Dubai Startup Hub event offers tips for finding right co-founder

Business Bureau, Gulf Today

Dubai Startup Hub, an initiative of Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, hosted an event earlier on Monday, which provided entrepreneurs with legal and human resources advice, in addition to mentorship, networking and practical tips for finding the right co-founder for their businesses.

The exclusive event was held at Dubai Chamber’s premises and attended by applicants of the Co-Founder Dubai pilot programme. The event kicked off with a workshop on human resources led by David Mackenzie, Group Managing Director, Mackenzie Jones. Mackenzie examined strategies for building long-lasting successful partnerships, finding highly-skilled talent, and navigating human resources concerns.

During a separate workshop, Shahram Safai, Partner, Afridi & Angell, highlighted important legal aspects related to selecting a co-founder, such as guidelines for drafting contracts, agreements and best practices when sharing work and dividing priorities among the company’s founding partners.

The workshops were followed by networking and mentorship sessions, joined byseveral entrepreneurs who have built successful businesses. Joining the session were Katharine Budd, Co-founder & CEO of NowMoney, Rodrique Nacouzi – Founder of Transcorp, Anna – Liisa Goggs- Co-Founder and COO of Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3), and Ihab Fikry - CEO of Al Mentor. The speakers shared their experiences and lessons learned from their entrepreneurial journeys. In addition, they shared their advice on selecting the right business partner and explained how they overcame challenges throughout this process.

For his part, Majid Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman of Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, explained that recent research conducted by the Chamber found that selecting a co-founder remains a key challenge for startups and entrepreneurs. He noted that the Co-Founder programme was established to address such obstacles by connecting startups with prospective co-founders and providing the right level of support and guidance during this crucial stage, with the aim of improving the success rate of startups in the region.

Al Ghurair noted that Co-Founder Dubai, launched under the Dubai Startup Hub platform earlier this year, connects entrepreneurs and business leaders in the UAE with the right co-founder who can support the company’s growth plans. He highlighted the far-reaching benefits of startups and co-founders participating in the first-of-its-kind programme, including comprehensive training, a dedicated curriculum and high-caliber talent, and valuable support. He added that the programme supports Dubai Chamber’s entrepreneurship strategy which is structured around the evolving needs of startup and SMEs in Dubai.

A total of 10 startups were shortlisted and selected for the programme over the past month, with three co-founder candidates will be selected for each. The selected startups are: Shala Online DMCC, Pacific67 Innovation Studio FZ-LLC, Hayya Middle East, YAH Capital Financial Services LLC, alBeqsha Gifts Trading, whspot, Deliver 2 Mum, ChannelPro, Darb Technologies and Tracking Systems LLC, and Solarino Energy Solutions.

Dubai Chamber launched Dubai Startup Hub in 2016 as an online platform to connect startups, entrepreneurs, developers, venture capitalists and students, enabling them to learn about new opportunities and create new partnerships that stimulate economic growth.

Meanwhile, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has recently announced that it has shortlisted the top 10 candidates for the 4th Dubai Smartpreneur Competition who will compete in the final round later this month.

The top three winners of the competition will be named during the closing ceremony of the Enterprise Agility Forum 2019 on April 30th, 2019. The winners will receive cash prizes and access to training and support designed to help them get their businesses off the ground.

More than 250 smart business ideas were submitted in the fourth edition of the competition, which is being organised in collaboration with Smart Dubai. Submissions were made under the categories of blockchain, artificial intelligence and digital transformation and all candidates were required to submit ideas that fit in with these technologies and concepts. The submissions were narrowed down to 50 before an expert panel of judges from Dubai’s entrepreneurial community recently selected the top 10 finalists.

The finalists are: Pic W Post, an ecosystem designed to help micro to small enterprises manage daily accounting needs; Monocole, an augmented reality app for tourists and residents; Design Hubz, a software as a service platform for sharing property renderings; Peliere, a service designed to improve communication and trade between airline and logistics companies through blockchain and smart contracts; Denari Cash, a mobile application helping overseas workers to send money; xpence, a digital-only intelligent business bank account designed by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs; Simplifai Labs, a new concept of instant commerce leveraging on visual discovery and AI technology; Arabee, a high specification platform providing an online multi-format Arabic language programme.