What is the coaching program at Embarc Collective?
Our coaching program is our core differentiator and the value prop of member experience at Embarc Collective.
Coaching differs from mentorship (learn from my experience) and advisory (learn from my expertise) in that coaches see the solution to problems as being with the coached.
It differs from therapy in that the focus is not on healing the past (how did I get here?), but in moving forward (where do I want to go)?
—Brad Feld
Founders meet with paid, on-staff Embarc Collective coaches to work on the foundations of their business and the challenges unique to their startup’s journey. Whether they are a first-time founder or a seasoned entrepreneur, our coaching team is here to offer high-quality, consistent, customized strategy support.
Our nonprofit mission is rooted in talent development, and we believe founders are the primary drivers of their business. In coaching sessions, we highlight blind spots and offer questions, guidance, feedback, and accountability to help them push towards their goals.
Who are the Embarc Collective coaches?
The Embarc Collective coaching team has collectively worked with thousands of early-stage companies. We are a high-caliber group of startup operators aligned on each startup’s goals and objectives, which means founders have access to a dedicated bench of strategy and functional experts.
Our coaching team draws their experience from careers in impressive organizations, including:
- Messenger (Facebook)
- Yaro (exited to Virgin Pulse)
- Zynga Games
- SnackNation
- Boeing
- Walmart
- IBM
- Lockheed Martin
- Microsoft
- Disney
- 1871
- Prophet
- BAM PR
- Redwood Partners
- Rustic Canyon Partners
- IDEA Fund
- Draper University
- Work-Bench
- 37 Angels
Who is a good fit as an Embarc Collective coach?
We have assembled a highly-curated bench of top-tier coaches; we are exceptionally selective when evaluating a prospective coach. There are many factors that determine fit, but generally a strong coach is:
- A functional expert (eg. growth marketing, enterprise sales, product, etc.) or business strategy expert, with 10+ years deep experience working in and around early- to growth-stage technology startups
- Experienced in coaching or mentoring others
- Able to commit a minimum of 10 hours per month to coaching at Embarc Collective
- Passionate about helping Tampa Bay’s startup talent build bold, scalable, thriving companies
- Able to support companies in-person at Embarc Collective
- Motivated to contribute to Tampa Bay’s growth story