Speed Round

Increasing the velocity of early-stage startup fundraising success

Resource Page for Current Speed Round Founders & Coaches

What is Speed Round?

Speed Round focuses on helping Chicagoland Pre-Seed to Series A founders fundraise (industry agnostic). Speed Round offers the following core program elements:

Advise: Speed Round founders are assigned a coach who will provide regular 1:1 and group meetings over a 6-month period. Founders can expect access to 12 individual meetings with your coach throughout the duration of the program.
Prepare: Founders gain a high-level assessment of key business validation and fundraising metrics and gaps that cause barriers to growth and scale.
Practice: Founders use online tools such as Rhetoric to receive pitch practice and feedback from their assigned coach.
Prospect: Speed Round founders will have access to curated investor introductions through the robust P33 Chicago network and TechChicago CommonApp.

The speed round process:

1. Upload your deck

Upload your pitch in Rhetoric’s intuitive platform.

2. Record your pitch

Refine the core elements of your value proposition for a large market.

3. receive p33 feedback

Review the feedback and record your next presentation.

4. receive investor feedback

Get candid feedback from advisors and supportive investors.

5. Tailored vc intros

VC Database and be able to start requesting introductions.

FOUNDERS

Chicagoland Pre-Seed to Series A founders who are expecting to fundraise within the next 3-12 months. Once your application is completed, the P33 team will assess if your venture is at the right stage to participate. If accepted, we will share a self-assessment form that will help our P33 team match you with a coach aligned to your needs.

COACHES

Speed Round coaches are qualified in their experiences as current and former startup founders, industry experts, and investors with Pre-Seed to Seed stage experience in the Chicago ecosystem. Coaches are matched with 1-3 startups based on industry and experience relevance and compatibility.

FOUNDERS

COACHES

FOUNDERS

As a founder, we require you to be 100% committed to scaling your venture. The coaches we work with are dedicating a significant amount of their valuable time to assist you with your business journey. As a result, we expect founders to keep documentation up to date and come prepared with questions and updates for all meetings with their coaches.

COACHES

Most importantly, we ask that you buy into the success of the startups you're coaching. To do so, you'll commit 2 hours per month to between 1-3 startups, and attend one onboarding session.

FAQ

Cost

There is no cost for any Speed Round participant. However, we do recommend founders participating consider various ways to compensate their coach for their time and expertise, which could include:

Public Recognition across socials/newsletters
Paying it forward by sharing resources, tips, and introductions with fellow Speed Round Founders
Consider adding your coach as a formal advisor to your team, or providing advisory shares

What happens after I apply?

We’ll send you an invitation to join us for a group onboarding session within 1-2 months of receiving your application if you’re determined to be a good fit. Once you’re onboarded, we’ll match you with a coach, and it’s up to the two of you to schedule a meeting cadence that works best for your schedule.

Throughout the experience P33 will host ‘just in time’ workshops and happy hours/social events that will supplement the 1:1 coaching experience!

Questions about the program?

Email us at speedround@techrise.co, or book some time directly with our team!