IDEALAB- Call for Expert: Pitching Sprint

Park Innovation is a mission-driven organization focused on innovation, combining a community project, coworking space, tech hub, and business accelerator to promote community development. With over six years of active engagement, Park Innovation offers unique programs and resources to empower youth and women with an emphasis on entrepreneurship and employability programs. The initiatives at Park Innovation align with its two core pillars:

1- Entrepreneurship, focusing on fostering innovation and empowering startups through tailored support, mentorship, and access to resources that enable sustainable business growth.

2- Employability and Employment, aiming to bridge the gap between education and employment by equipping youth with essential, market-relevant skills and practical experiences to thrive in a competitive workforce.

For the fourth batch in a row, Park Innovation is implementing Idea Lab in South Mount Lebanon, a 10-week entrepreneurship support program being implemented across Lebanon with the aim of providing the proper technical, financial, and business support needed for entrepreneurs to validate their solutions and turn their ideas into businesses. It allows entrepreneurs with Cleantech and Agrifoodtech solutions to learn how to identify their problem, validate their solution in the market, use the 1500 USD to build their first prototype, and create a strong team that has the capacity to take on challenges and scale their startup.

We are seeking an experienced and skilled trainer to lead the Pitching Sprint, guiding startups through the process of creating and delivering a compelling, concise, and persuasive pitch. The trainer will help startups craft a pitch that clearly conveys their value proposition, business potential, and unique selling points, tailored to their target audience, whether investors, partners, or customers. Through hands-on exercises, startups will learn how to effectively communicate their business ideas, anticipate questions or objections, and enhance their delivery. The training will focus on refining the pitch’s structure, ensuring it highlights the most compelling aspects of their business while addressing potential concerns. By the end of the sprint, participants will be equipped with a well-polished pitch that maximizes their chances of securing funding, partnerships, or market opportunities.

Scope of Services

The selected expert will be responsible for the workshop from planning to execution, monitoring, and reporting. The duration of the in-person physical workshop is 5 hours including practical exercises, for 10 teams concurrently. Following the training, the expert will be leading 2 VIRTUAL (online) clinics: Creating Pitch Decks and Mastering Presentation and Public Speaking Skills one hour per clinic per startup for the 10 startups (20 sessions in total for the two clinics with all startups).

Key areas to be covered:

• Conduct a practical Pitching Workshop for startups, focusing on refining and perfecting their pitch in the context of their industry.

• Guide startups through the key components of an effective pitch, including clarifying their value proposition, identifying the target audience, and presenting their revenue model in a compelling way. Use structured approaches to help startups clearly communicate how their business meets market needs and stands out from competitors.

• Training entrepreneurs to deliver a concise 60-seconds elevator pitch without visual aids, focusing on capturing attention and communicating value proposition effectively.

• Providing guidance on delivering a compelling 3-minute pitch with visual aids, such as PowerPoint presentations, to engage and persuade the audience.

• Facilitate the adoption of a Build-Measure-Learn mindset, mentoring startups on iterating and refining their pitch based on feedback and real-world validation. Emphasize the importance of continuously testing their pitch to ensure it resonates with investors, partners, or customers.

• Assist startups in defining key messaging to evaluate the success of their pitch, ensuring it effectively communicates their business’s potential.

• Encourage startups to develop a flexible, adaptable pitch strategy, integrating Lean and Agile principles to ensure continuous improvement and alignment with market opportunities.

• Train the entrepreneurs and provide them with a handbook on the importance of Body Language to increase their credibility when pitching to prospective investors, the public audience or their customers.

• Lead two clinics for the Pitching Sprint: Pitch Deck Refinement Clinic and Pitch Perfect: Mastering Presentation Skills Clinic, providing one-hour tailored sessions per startup (20 sessions in total).

  • Pitch Deck Clinic: Helps startups enhance their pitch decks by focusing on the content, structure, visual design, and storytelling techniques. The clinic provides expert feedback to ensure startups effectively communicate their value proposition, market opportunity, and growth potential. 

  • Pitch Perfect: Mastering Presentation Skills Clinic: Focuses on the delivery of the pitch, with the expert guiding startups in mastering body language, voice modulation, and storytelling techniques. The clinic ensures that startups can confidently and effectively present their pitch, engaging the audience and making a lasting impression on Demo Day.

Startups will complete the following exercise:

• Well-Structured Pitch Deck: Refine their pitch decks to clearly articulate their business idea, value proposition, and growth potential.

Qualifications and Requirements

This call welcomes applications from independent trainers/consultants or legal entities based in Lebanon.

• A Bachelor's degree in Communications and Media, Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Public Speaking, or a related field is required, with preference given to candidates holding a Masters or PhD.

• Demonstrable knowledge of the various fields related to pitching including but not limited to:  Body Language, Public Speaking, Negotiation Skills, Graphic Design…

• A minimum of 3 years+ of relevant experience.

• Experience in guiding startups to refine and deliver compelling pitches, aligning their value propositions with their target audience’s needs, while ensuring the pitch highlights the scalability and potential for growth.

• The expert should have a track record of helping startups structure their pitches to clearly communicate their revenue models, demonstrate their business’s long-term viability, and assess ways to enhance the pitch for maximum impact. 

• Background in AgrifoodTech/Agriculture, or Clean Energy startups is a plus.

• Strong communication skills in English and Arabic, with an engaging and interactive training style.

• Availability to conduct the workshop at Park Innovation, Semkanieh- El Chouf (tiny.cc/pi-location)

Expected Deliverables

• The selected expert is required to provide a comprehensive curriculum outline, detailing the various subtopics to be covered during the workshop, along with estimated durations for each segment. 
• Upon approval, the selected expert will be responsible for delivering the 5-hour workshop and 20 total clinics in accordance with the approved curriculum.
• The trainer must complete a feedback form for each startup, one after the training and another after the clinics, detailing their observations and assessments.
• The expert shall be ready for an oral briefing about the startups right after the sprint to highlight all strengths and areas of improvement to the IdeaLab program manager.
• Furthermore, the trainer is required to adhere to the relevant procurement procedures (quotation, signature of a service agreement, invoice, receipt, MOF certificate and/or ID/Passport, programmatic deliverables)