Introducing Luiss EnLabs, the Italian Startups Factory

LUISS EnLabs, the Startup Factory, is an initiative launched by one of the most prestigious universities in Rome, Luiss, to support acceleration programs aimed to take promising startups to the market by strengthening their potential with a consolidated network of advisors and mentors and offering a direct connection to national and international business communities.

This acceleration program runs twice a year and usually lasts for five months. During this time, selected startups are hosted in LUISS's beautiful premises in the very heart of the Eternal City. The program strongly recommends startups to "follow an XPM approach. They must manage their time in the accelerator and speed up their development". However, in order to help young entrepreneurs to focus on their job and anticipate any problem that may eventually arise, LUISS EnLabs staff is used to run regular and problem-solving oriented business checks.

Events are also introduced as a key part of the Rome-based acceleration program. They include seminars dedicated to the hosted startups; open events organized to allow selected entrepreneurs to get in touch with the experts and the companies they should soon start interacting with if they want to make their ideas successful; and technical showcases where to get in touch with peers and to find new talents to hire or involve in the project.

LUISS acceleration program is divided into three stages: preparation (to learn how to manage a startup), acceleration (to understand the most convenient customer-solution fit) and revenue (to get ready for both initial sales and investment rounds) Every stage of the learning process is not only supported by a network of people with successful startup experience, but also by a continuous exposition to potential customers and users in order to help startups to familiarize with partners and interlocutors they have to learn how to interact with.

Follow @castaritaHK