Advisor, Summer Accelerator Program

Babson College•New York, NY

About The Position

THE OPPORTUNITY The Advisor’s role is to provide dedicated mentorship and coaching in a variety of areas for summer accelerator teams. The Blank Center for Entrepreneurship annually presents a summer accelerator program for graduate and undergraduate students. The program develops their entrepreneurial skills and knowledge and helps them to accelerate their ventures. This program may be presented in different formats (i.e. in person vs online) and may be presented in name as the Summer Venture Program or Summer Catalyst. The intensive program culminates in a Showcase event, where the students pitch their businesses to a wide and diverse audience drawn from the Babson community and the Boston entrepreneurial ecosystem. WHAT YOU WILL DO Work directly with assigned venture teams. Meet with each team on a consistent basis. Champion goal-setting process in meetings with assigned teams and monitor each entrepreneur’s progress against their action plan. Ensures that each entrepreneur maximizes the resources of the accelerator program. Contribute to the accelerator program by delivering content in a workshop format or providing expertise in office hours. Monitor and report progress of assigned teams at advisor meetings. Assist assigned teams in final preparations for the Showcase event and attend Showcase event. Be a sounding board for team and individual issues. Provide guidance in connecting to external resources as appropriate; in some cases, connect/introduce the entrepreneurs to those contacts. Support assigned teams in defining value propositions and messaging and in honing pitches. Facilitate sharing, teaming, and peer-to-peer mentoring. Advise other teams as needed if the Advisor’s experience has direct application to that team’s current challenges or next steps. Assumes additional responsibilities as required.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree
Must have a minimum of 3-5 years of related experience, including entrepreneurial or entrepreneurial leadership experience.
Appropriate industry/functional experience that is relevant to the ventures in the program.
Experienced and knowledgeable about Babson’s Entrepreneurial Thought & Action® (ETA™) methodology, including idea generation, design thinking, customer and expert interviewing, marketing, sales, pivoting/shaping, venture forecasting, and sources of capital.
Strong coaching, advising, and mentoring experience.
Strong interpersonal skills.
Ability to listen, probe, critique, and push entrepreneurs.
Strong computer skills including proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint).
Ability to work in a culturally diverse environment and interact with culturally diverse individuals.
Works in partnership with the Blank Center team to advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts in alignment with Babson College’s goals.
Ability to introduce/share appropriate contacts with entrepreneurs as needed.
Ability to envision and propose new methods to perform tasks that support ET&A; take thoughtful risks; and accept new and ongoing initiatives, objectives, and solutions to gain sought-after results.
Ability to anticipate and embrace change; demonstrate willingness to achieve, acquire, and utilize new skills and challenging tasks; and is flexible in changing conditions.

Nice To Haves

Graduate degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Work directly with assigned venture teams.
Meet with each team on a consistent basis.
Champion goal-setting process in meetings with assigned teams and monitor each entrepreneur’s progress against their action plan.
Ensures that each entrepreneur maximizes the resources of the accelerator program.
Contribute to the accelerator program by delivering content in a workshop format or providing expertise in office hours.
Monitor and report progress of assigned teams at advisor meetings.
Assist assigned teams in final preparations for the Showcase event and attend Showcase event.
Be a sounding board for team and individual issues.
Provide guidance in connecting to external resources as appropriate; in some cases, connect/introduce the entrepreneurs to those contacts.
Support assigned teams in defining value propositions and messaging and in honing pitches.
Facilitate sharing, teaming, and peer-to-peer mentoring.
Advise other teams as needed if the Advisor’s experience has direct application to that team’s current challenges or next steps.
Assumes additional responsibilities as required.