British Columbia Innovation Council

The BCIC Mentor Program (in partnership with ACETECH) is a province-wide development program for early-stage entrepreneurs to help improve the success of technology companies in BC. The BCIC Mentor Program is modeled after the very successful MIT Venture Mentoring Service and adopts best practices from ACETECH's Growth Strategy Program. The core principles of the program are:

• Integrity - the beneficiaries are the entrepreneurs.
• Mentor quality, expertise and motivation.
• Mentoring provided by teams of two or more individuals.
• Entrepreneurs must be accountable and demonstrate that they are serious about their ventures.

The BCIC Mentor Program matches early-stage technology CEOs and founders, referred by Participating Organizations, with mentors of strong professional reputation, qualification and experience in the tech industry. Mentors provide guidance, advice and support to help emerging entrepreneurs grow their companies. The Program is operational in the Vancouver and Kelowna regions, with rollout in Victoria and other regions planned for Fall 2011.