Startup Małopolska – support for entrepreneurship in the region

#StartUP Małopolska was an acceleration program addressed to startupers – small and medium-sized entrepreneurs from Małopolska who wanted to develop their business.

The program was one of the activities under the project called “Startup Małopolska – support for entrepreneurship in the region” carried on by the Małopolska Region, co-financed by the European Union. (European Regional Development Fund) as part of the Regional Operational Program for the Małopolska Region for the years 2014-2020..

Project goal was: Strengthening the support system for SMEs in early stages of development – mainly startups operating based on new technologies, which would have a positive impact on the potential of the SME sector in the region.

Activities carried on under the project:

• The #StartUP Małopolska acceleration program  – offered training and mentoring services for SMEs from Małopolska in early stages of development (operating on the market for up to 36 months). It aimed to improve competences of entrepreneurs in key areas for business development, including marketing, sales and offer presentation. Each training course was preceded by pre-acceleration workshops during which participants analyzed business models and marketing and sales strategies of their companies and identified areas for optimization, and thus defined the scope of support under the acceleration program to best meet their needs. Each company also used mentoring services: individual work with mentors (30 hours on average) in areas of ​​their choice requiring improvement or development. Companies were looked after by acceleration managers who defined the acceleration and development paths for them. In addition, companies might obtain co-financing for participation in the most important industry and startup events. Participation in the program was an opportunity for young entrepreneurs to acquire new competences and skills, as a result of which they could develop their companies, make new products and services available and introduce them to new markets. Each edition was evaluated so that the support would be best suited to the needs of companies. The Małopolska Region has already carried out 9 editions of the program, in which 64 entrepreneurs from the region took part.
  
  
• Organization of events promoting entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial attitudes, the main assumption of which was to create an environment conducive to networking, exchanging experiences and establishing new contacts. One of the flagship events was  the Global Entrepreneurship Week in Małopolska, organized in the region since 2010. It was a global initiative aimed at promoting the idea of being entrepreneurial. Every year, for one week in November, a number of meetings, workshops and training sessions were organized, during which participants could improve their competences related to business development. The event was inaugurated by the Young Business Meeting. The project also organized smaller networking meetings, including events consistent with the goals of the pan-European Startup Europe Week

Implementation period of the project “Startup Małopolska – support for entrepreneurship in the region”: 01/04/2020 – 31/03/2023

Project value: PLN 3,766,232.50, including the contribution of the European Funds of PLN 3,195,789.62.

The tasks carried out under the project were a continuation of the project entitled “Entrepreneurial Małopolska - development of technological entrepreneurship in the region” (RPO WM 2014-2020).

Contact:

• For the acceleration program: Małgorzata Kwiecień, tel.: 012 63 03 475, e-mail: malgorzata.kwiecien@umwm.malopolska.pl
• For events promoting entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial attitudes: Barbara Nieć, tel.: 012 63 03 370, e-mail: barbara.niec@umwm.malopolska.pl

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