Early-Stage Ventures Tap into Top Entrepreneurs & Advisors with Inaugural Lab2Market Launch Founder Council
HALIFAX, NS (May 18, 2023) - Today, Lab2Market Launch (“L2M Launch”) and Dalhousie University are announcing its inaugural Founder Council network for the Atlantic and National Health cohorts which will match top entrepreneurs and startup partners with early-stage ventures based out of Canada’s leading universities.
Teams who have been accepted into the Lab2Market Launch program will benefit from the expertise of a Founder Council as they form and launch their ventures. Founder Councils will consist of experienced entrepreneurs, founders, and investors, and will be carefully curated to offer backgrounds well suited to the venture ideas. Founder Council members will work with participating teams to set milestones and unlock program payments.
Over 40 Founder Council members from across Canada have signed on to the program with limited remaining spots available. One of those participants is Sydney Rankin, a FinTech Business Lead based out of Fredericton, New Brunswick.
When asked why she signed on to be a member of a Founder Council, Rankin stated, “I believe that mentorship is a two-way street. It's not just about the mentor imparting knowledge and wisdom; it's about creating a supportive environment where both the mentor and the mentee can learn and grow together. That's why I'm so excited to join the Founder Council - I want to be able to contribute my skills, experiences, and insights to empower and guide others on their own paths to success.”
Hear from more Founder Council members on why they’ve committed their time and knowledge:
“To give back to the ecosystem and be the experienced voice I didn't have when I was starting my career.” Jon McGinley, Principal, Climb Marketing
“To get back into the entrepreneur and startup world and use my hard-earned experience to help others.” Sreejata Chatterjee, product lead for Foundry’s and former co-founder of LeadSift
“I saw an opportunity to give back to a community that has been very generous to me.” Stephen Duff, Director, Precision BioLogic
“We see a component of mentorship in almost all of our Dal Innovates programming,” said Jeff Larsen, Assistant Vice President of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Dalhousie University. “What I love about the new Founder Council model is that we’re able to tap into the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem across Canada, including Dalhousie University’s robust alumni pool, to create pairings of individuals that would not typically be available to ventures at this stage.”
Dal Innovates’ Lab2Market Launch program will kick off on June 1st with two cohorts, one for post-secondary students in Atlantic Canada, and one for post-secondary students across Canada with a health-based venture. Toronto Metropolitan University will also be running a summer cohort of the L2M Launch program for students in Ontario.
The Founder Council model will be piloted by Dal Innovates’ and Toronto Metropolitan Lab2Market Launch programs and then scaled at Lab2Market affiliated post-secondary institutions across Canada this Fall.
Dalhousie’s Lab2Market cohorts are made possible with support from the Government of Canada through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Mitacs, Build Ventures, Morrison Park Advisors, Springboard Atlantic, and I-INC through the Future Skills Centre.
Expressions of interest in becoming a Founder Council member can be made at innovation@dal.ca.
About Lab2Market:
Lab2Market is a national suite of programs that gives academic research teams the practical skills to spark their passion for entrepreneurship, validate their ideas, and successfully launch innovative new businesses. Funded by the Government of Canada, Mitacs, NSERC, and the Ocean Startup Project, the program is based on the immersive, entrepreneurial I-Corps training program in the United States and the leading ICURe accelerator program in the United Kingdom. Learn more at www.lab2market.ca.
About Dalhousie University:
Dalhousie University is Atlantic Canada’s leading research-intensive university. Located in the heart of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with an Agricultural Campus in Truro/Bible Hill, Dalhousie is a truly national and international university, with more than half of the university’s 20,000-plus students coming from outside the province. Dal’s 6,000 faculty and staff foster a diverse, purpose-driven community, one that spans 13 faculties and conducts more than $200 million in research annually. Part of a cluster identified as one of the world’s top international centres in ocean research, the university proudly celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2018. Learn more at www.dal.ca.
About I-INC:
The Incubate Innovate Network of Canada (I-INC) is a pan-Canadian, internationally connected network of high-performance university-linked accelerators and incubators. I-INC creates an ecosystem for the efficient commercialization of university-based and science and technology-enabled innovation. Founded in 2014, the network has expanded to include 13 universities across Canada. Learn more at www.iincanada.ca.
Media contact:
Emily Neil
Project Manager
Dal Innovates | Dalhousie University
902-300-0022