Accelerator Masterclass Trainers

Bloom is launching an Accelerator Masterclass Series to provide short-term intensive support and training to local and MENA regional accelerators. This program aims to mobilize world-class talent to share knowledge and expertise with accelerators in Lebanon and the region.

The Lebanon Growth Accelerator, supported by the European Regional Development and Protection Program, is our current initiative to re-ignite and boost the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Lebanon. It aims to create employment through direct enterprise accelerator programs and enhances the ecosystem’s collaboration, resources, and capacities. The goal is to provide new job opportunities short-term and long-term for Lebanese and refugees, especially vulnerable and marginalized communities.

For 18 months, Bloom will select 50 enterprises into the LGA Program through 8 accelerator cycles, two run by the Bloom team, six run in collaboration with accelerator partners. 

Masterclass trainers will dig into the pain points that emerging accelerators face as we unveil viable solutions to identify a sustainable accelerator model that thrives in the ecosystem. 

Every workshop session will include: 

1. Learning from Other Accelerators: Accelerators will share their most pressing strategic questions and get answers from others who are building accelerators.
2. Collaboration with Peers & Leaders: Get to know other workshop attendees and work as a group to address challenges.
3. Developing actionable plans for your accelerator: Work through specific templates and guides to help you develop your accelerator program. 
4. Having Fun: The masterclass is meant to be enjoyable, and attendees leave refreshed and ready to build a solid program.

Objectives

Our goal is to have training sessions be opportunities for accelerators and training partners to make clear progress on their core priorities. To achieve this goal, for each module, consultants are expected to:

1. Develop recorded video training (we remain open for suggestions to use other digital material too) that would serve as a complete explanation of a particular topic.
2. Share an assignment that would make a measurable change in the accelerators and training partners related to the discussed topic.
3. Submit all deliverables three weeks prior to the training session to give enough time for participants to understand the content and, more importantly, work on the implementation of the assignment in their own accelerators.
4. Attend an online training session where accelerators and training partners pitch their assignment to give and receive comments from each other, their mentors, and the training consultant.

We will capture the feedback of the participants and share it with consultants to refine their work.

Scope of Work

This multi-day masterclass will leverage the ACAT – Accelerator Capacity Assessment Tool and framework developed by Bloom and cover topics and outcomes such as:

1. Impact Monitoring (M&E)

• M&E guides an organization to succeed simultaneously in the dual mission of social impact and optimal financial efficiency; the organization can seek and find new opportunities to improve impact constantly; They can anticipate possible problems and have a sense of urgency about upcoming challenges
• The organization has a range of specific, realistic, and time-based measures to track progress towards impact objectives: Measures include both long-term targets and interim milestones and are supported by process measures that track progress toward outcomes
• The organization has dynamic relationships with many diverse groups of constituents and engages in regular communication.

2. Innovation & Learning 

• The organization actively encourages and provides resources to drive experimentation and learning
• The organization has the ability and tendency to efficiently and effectively adjust or create new programs to meet the needs of potential services.
• The organization has a regular process and provides staff with time for identifying innovative opportunities and experimenting.
• The organization has assessed gaps in the ability of the existing programs to achieve goals.
• The organization has to work collaboratively with other organizations to identify new ideas

3. Programs and Projects 

• The organization has a well-developed comprehensive, integrated system (e.g., balanced scorecard) used for measuring the organization’s performance and progress on a continual basis, including the social, financial, and organizational impact of the program and activities.
• Programs consistently have a rigorous planning process that includes detailed, syndicated and iterative timelines, budgets and scenario plans that account for a range of realistic risks to program execution.
• All programs and services are defined and aligned with mission and goals; program offerings are linked to one another and to overall strategy; synergies across programs are captured.
• The staff skills are aligned with the program needs and gaps are filled through improved hiring or training. 
• Assessment of gaps in the ability of existing programs to meet recipient needs. Ability and tendency efficiently and effectively to create innovative programs to the needs of potential service recipients in local areas or other geographies. 

4. Advocacy 

• The organization proactively and reactively influences policy making in a highly effective, sustainable manner, on local, state and national levels. Always ready for and often called on to participate in substantive policy discussion and at times initiates discussions.

5. Community Engagement & Communication  

• The organization has a communications plan and strategy and updates it frequently.
• The organization has tools deployed are deliberately chosen to have the desired impact on specifically identified constituents and stakeholders; Tools are regularly added and adjusted to address any identified gaps
• Organizational goals use and access multiple types of media e-mainstream, ethnic, online, social, written, etc. to reach multiple relevant audiences 
• The organization has well-articulated stories and anecdotes adopted by all members of the organization to garner support for cause.
• An active network of next stage investors, funders, people and benefit from their support.
• Consultants are free to choose any modules they would like to develop or even suggest other modules they judge necessary in our context or for our future accelerator cycles.

Deliverables

The consultant is expected to submit a training syllabus in which he/she highlights the module goal, context, objectives, and tools/strategies.

The consultant is expected to submit three videos of around 10-15 min each for every module he/she decides to develop. 

Based on previous experiences, the best videos are when the speaker is accompanying his/her talk with a small presentation. But we are not limited to this technique, and the consultant is free to use their creativity as they see fit to deliver the message they want to relay. 

(NB we usually recommend using vimeo.com to record the videos as it is practical, professional, straightforward to use and easy to share videos)

Every video should be accompanied by 

Worksheets/templates relevant to the topic.

Two or three valuable resources (articles, websites, podcasts, etc.) relevant to the topic.

An assignment that solves a specific problem related to the topic in the context of the participant’s enterprise.

Timeline

Final deliverables should be shared with Bloom 3 weeks after signing the agreement.

Compensation

Kindly share with us your financial proposal for this consultancy per day in USD.  

We want to make this experience highly rewarding on multiple levels. It includes making the feedback and participation process as effective and efficient as possible. In addition to highlighting our Speakers and Trainers on our website and elsewhere to show our appreciation, we will also encourage other consulting opportunities with us, enterprises in our programs, partners, and others.