Learning at GDC can be compared to a Venn Diagram that has two intersecting circles - before going out of the building, we hypothesize that the customer needs are contained by one of the circles; whereas when we come back after interviewing customers, we discover that the customer needs are, in reality contained by the other circle. This gives us the A-ha moment!
Over the 7 cohorts that I have participated in as a mentor I must admit that I have immensely enjoyed interacting with bright entrepreneurs - so much so that I look forward to the next! Getting them to focus on Customers instead of Products, Technology & Solutions may be challenging to begin with but the structured & fast paced program using lean methodology does just that.
As a GDC mentor I have got opportunities to contribute meaningfully to the go-to-market journey of many significant, high impact products and services. I am able to productively share my knowledge, insights & experiences with a highly motivated set of young entrepreneurs, while at the same time learning many new things myself.
Working with the different teams enrolled in the GDC INCUBATE program as a mentor allowed me to see not only my own team but also others and has brought me to speed on many modern technologies and scientific developments and further has honed people management and mentoring techniques and lead to expansion of my own network in the industry and academia. The parallel interactions with the highly competent set of GDC instructors gave me an opportunity to learn the practices of the INCUBATE program and also several management theories and practices.
GDC's Mentor Onboarding session for Cohort 6 that I attended at IISc struck a chord with me by highlighting the problems I had faced when I founded my first startup. Then on, GDC is continuing to provide me a great opportunity to interact with young, inquisitive minds and learning about cutting-edge innovations.
GDC gave me the opportunity to engage with young and creative minds that want to change the world, which rubbed off on me in its own positive way. The work being done by GDC in enabling ideas/technology at universities to be brought to market is filling a critical gap. I am privileged to have been a part of the GDC journey.
GDC has given me the opportunity to work with some very exciting technology start-ups - and to help construct a pathway to take their innovations to market. I have personally gained a lot from the exposure to the Lean Start-up methodology and from my interactions with the entrepreneurs, faculty leads, mentors and co-instructors.
My experience as a mentor with GDC was actually a great learning for me, I liked the systematic way in which the program was conceived, run and administered. Kudos to Mr Raghuttama Rao and Thriveni. The idea of having a faculty member as a member of each group was a wonderful way of combining wisdom and experience with youthful enthusiasm, both essential ingredients of the entrepreneurial discovery process.
My experience with GDC as a mentor over 4 cohorts has been an insightful experience. The learning process for the young innovators is experiential and prepares the innovators/founders to embark the entrepreneurial journey with a right mindset. The GDC customer discovery process architecture is by far one of the best the ecosystem has to offer today. The program structure meets the highest levels of professionalism. This program qualifies to be a "must have "in the startup life cycle.