This article is published in partnership with Brinc, a Hong Kong-based accelerator.

We at Brinc are about to complete our global Spring 2020 accelerator programmes. This cohort was different from the rest. Due to the many COVID-19 limitations, all of our programmes had to be shifted entirely online.

A big move

With our headquarters in Hong Kong, the pandemic was increasingly causing fear as early as February of this year. Together with the global number of cases rising, we had to make a quick decision.

On one side, postpone the programme and wait for the lingering uncertainty of the virus to disappear, or, take action and pivot completely to a remote and online programme. We decided to host our latest accelerator programmes online to ensure that we could continue to support global startups especially during a time when they needed it most.

“The decision to move the programme online was the only choice to ensure we could continue to support our founders. Postponing was not an option. A full online accelerator made sense for us, as historically, we had years of experience running our programs half online and off on-site.

Moving fully online was a natural transition – we had the infrastructure, a tried-and-tested framework for delivering content and mentorship in place. This also meant our teams could spend more time focused on their business instead of dealing with logistics during these uncertain times,” said Manav Gupta, Founder and CEO of Brinc.

Also Read: This is the era of virtual accelerators. Are you ready? 

Thankfully, this wasn’t going to be a completely new approach for Brinc. In 2017, we made a careful decision to find a balance between running a programme both online and offline. We recognised that it was a stretch to expect the best founders and startups to move their operations around the world for extended periods of time.

Instead, we optimised the process by requiring startups to be onsite at the programme’s location for just one month of the three-month programme. This allowed them to receive in-person support from our team, attend in-person mentorship sessions, and most importantly, share and learn from fellow founders. The remaining two months are usually hosted online to allow the startups to participate within the comforts of their company’s headquarters.

Online curriculum

To support the shift to a fully online programme, we decided to revamp our existing online platform along with a new and improved customised curriculum to enhance our support to founders.

New content was created, and our global network of mentors, experts, and investors  were onboarded to further support the founders in their entrepreneurial journeys.

How startups can benefit

Founders from the current cohort have been receptive to the new online programme.

Jing Gao and Jin Xiaoxuan, Co-founders of Aurora Foods who make sweet indulgences healthier and more diabetic-friendly with their patented glycemic lowering technology, said, “the three-month accelerator programme helped us get prepared in almost every area from product manufacturing and fundraising, to business communication.”

With a series of online tools (Zoom, Slack, and Brinc’s Learning Management System), we are able to access course materials anytime. The remote mode makes the whole program more flexible, efficient, and condensed, as there is no limit to geography or timing.

At the same time, the interaction is not lost, as weekly meetups with mentors and managers are scheduled, and we are well linked to experienced entrepreneurs, government agencies, and professional service providers for any form of engagement we need.”

Also Read: Why startup founders should look for sharks as mentors

Other founders have also highlighted how we’ve been extra supportive to their needs while operating in this new normal. However, as expected, most founders agreed that the online programme does lack some of the more intimate moments that are usually present when meeting in-person.

To try and enhance the experience, we added extra check-ins with the startups and hosted sessions dedicated to meeting the other founders. In addition, we are grateful to have mentors that have been very accommodating during this process and have offered to host multiple sessions for different time zones.

We hope to give these founders the same experience of joining one of our accelerators by inviting them to the next in-person programme. In addition, we will also be leveraging the strengths of our global operations to further expand the access to mentors, partners, investors, and other stakeholders all critical for long term startup success.

“The fully online programmes have really been an eye-opener. Overcommunication is key. Although I miss meeting all the founders face to face, we’ve done our best to get to know them even more during the online programme, especially with the help of the many communication tools that are available,” said Edwin Lee, Hardware and IoT Program Manager at Brinc.

In order to create the same level of serendipity with an online accelerator, we’ve relied on tools that help us navigate timezones and deliver good content such as our ever-present Slack channels; the Brinc Learning Management System for content; Zoom for all our mentor and expert sessions, our proprietary calendar system, Google calendar integration, and many more. Being flexible to time zones and at the same time, keeping a strong structure to the program, has been key in our ability to support the startups.

Going forward, we at Brinc are carefully monitoring the daily challenges that COVID-19 is creating within every city that we operate in. But our goal remains to provide the highest quality support to our startups and partners while keeping everyone safe and adhering to global and local health authorities’ standards. We hope to eventually bring back the physical attendance to our programmes as we believe this adds significant value for the development of our founders and their businesses.

For now, our upcoming programmes will remain online for the foreseeable future.

Brinc is currently accepting applications for its next programmes starting this Fall. Applications will be open until August 15 with the final selections being announced by October. If you’re interested in learning more about our accelerator programmes, visit this link.
–

Register for Meet the VC: Genesis Ventures

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. Become a thought leader in the community and share your opinions or ideas and earn a byline by submitting a post.

Join our e27 Telegram group, or like the e27 Facebook page

Image credit: John Schnobrich on Unsplash

The post How Brinc is shifting its accelerator programme online appeared first on e27.