Investor Accelerator

investor Accelerator

women funding women

The Doyenne Investor Accelerator is an 8-week program designed to equip individuals with the skills and knowledge to invest in startups.

Currently, women occupy less than 4% of all Venture Capital (VC) manager roles across the U.S.A. In 2020, women-led startups received just 2.3% of VC funding. We know that women are more likely than men to invest in women-led ventures. By increasing the number of active women investors within the startup ecosystem, we aim to close the funding gap for women-led ventures.

The Investor Accelerator blends online learning, virtual workshops, and partnership events to build women’s financial knowledge and ability to evaluate companies, make smart investments, and remain engaged after deals are made. We do all of this while keeping legal and tax implications in mind to explain risk and create a safe space where questions are encouraged for increased learning.

Gain the skills to become an investor.

Join the next Investor Accelerator cohort.

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investor accelerator outcomes

Gain vocabulary associated with investing in startup ventures
Know the financial requirements of various types of investors
Source potential investment deals
Understand different investment arrangements and important associated terms
Learn the personal tax implications of investing in ventures, necessary documents, and how to file
Meet with seasoned investors and service providers who can support building your startup investing portfolio

The experience

The Investor Accelerator contains 3 phases

The Doyenne Investor Accelerator is divided into three major phases that build on each other over the course of the 12 weeks. Participants receive a workbook for each phase and attend a combination of live workshops (with Q&A) and on-demand webinars.

Phase 1: Being an Investor & Startup Investment Vehicles

What does being an investor mean? And what are the different requirements and options for being an investor? During the first three weeks of the program, participants will learn about financial requirements, the impact of women investors on the startup & investing ecosystem, Different types of investors, and legal structures & tax implications for investment options.

Phase 2: Managing and Evaluating Deal Flow

In the second phase, participants learn how to find and evaluate companies to invest in:

—Sourcing investment options
—Evaluating company pitches
—Due diligence
—Investment types
—Terms
—Live practice seeing entrepreneur pitches and evaluating documents

Phase 3: Post-Investment Management

What happens after you write the check? In phase three, participants learn how best to serve and advocate for the entrepreneurs and ventures within their portfolio and their options for getting their money back to be able to invest again.

additional details

connecting & Empowering women investors

Investor Accelerator Kickoff Event

The first step in the Investor Accelerator experience is to build community within the cohort. The cohort will be working closely with each other over the 12 weeks, we are in this together and we create a space where you can be honest, vulnerable, and accepted for your experiences, background, level of knowledge, and personal story you bring to the group.

Celebration & Conclusion of Program

The program ends with Doyenne Investor Accelerator participants attending the Doyenne Showcase event to hear pitches and evaluate ventures participating in our Triple Threat Venture Training program. We also host a celebratory happy hour to celebrate the journey and growth the cohort has experiences throughout their participation within the program.

Additional Opportunities throughout the 12-week journey:

Peer Coffee Sessions: As a cohort, you have the opportunity to schedule coffee meetings with other Investor Accelerator participants and/or Doyenne program team leaders—either one-on-one or as groups to learn from each other and strengthen your network.

Introductions to Investor Networks: Doyenne works with other investor networks and will provide you with opportunities to meet these individuals & groups.

Access to Entrepreneurs Seeking Investment Dollars: Doyenne's Triple Threat Venture Training program runs at the same time as the Investor Accelerator program to create opportunities for both programs' participants to support each other's learning and growth along their journeys. Doyenne also works with many other women entrepreneurs who are seeking investors and will create opportunities for Investor Accelerator participants to meet with these entrepreneurs.

what is the criteria for participating in this program?

The Doyenne Investor Accelerator is open to women who are interested in learning more about investing in early-stage ventures. You do not have to be an accredited investor or have a certain amount of personal wealth to be part of this program. The Accelerator is designed for women who have been thinking about wanting to become investors and are looking to gain knowledge and experience before putting dollars into startups but plan to do so within the next 12-18 months. Since all workshops are virtual, participants who live outside Wisconsin are welcome to register to be part of the program, but are responsible for their own travel costs if they wish to attend sessions in-person (if available).

what is the cost?

The total value of the 12-week Investor Accelerator is $5,000. Thanks to generous sponsorships and in-kind support we are able to make the program available for $1,500.

Payment plans are available upon request. Please contact info@thedoyennegroup.com to discuss this option prior to registering.

The Accelerator fee includes the costs for the expert facilitators, program materials/tools, access to the online course content, and food/beverage provided during workshops (if meeting in-person).

where is the program held?

All workshops during the Investor Accelerator will be held virtually with video conferencing URLs sent to participants. For meetings outside of scheduled workshop sessions (such as peer coffees), it is up to participants if they wish to meet in person or virtually and they must supply their own virtual meeting URLs.

what is the cancellation policy?

If you are not selected to participate in the Investor Accelerator by Doyenne Staff, you will be refunded your payment.

If you are selected and withdraw from attending within 8-14 days prior to the Kickoff Event, you will be refunded 50% of your payment.

If you are selected and withdraw from attending within 7 days prior to the Kickoff Event, or you fail to show up, you will not be refunded any of your payment.

what is the weekly time requirement?

Most weeks, you'll need to set aside 2 to 3 hours.

The 12-week Investor Accelerator is laid out to meet your goals within the program and also accommodate unexpected life responsibilities. If you are unable to attend a live virtual workshop, you will get access to the recording. All pre-recorded webinars and supporting materials will be provided via the Doyenne Learning Lab platform.

All workshops during the Investor Accelerator will be conducted virtually with links and calendar invites sent to participants ahead of time.

(Workshops are live events with time for Q&A. Webinars are pre-recorded seminars without a Q&A.)

Week 1:

Kickoff Event (1.5 hours) — Meet with your cohort members to learn about each other as people, backgrounds, and your goals for the program

Week 2:

Angel vs. Syndicate vs. Individual Investor Options | Webinar (1 hour) — Presentation by an attorney about your options as an investor and implications of different investment structures

Week 3:

Being an Investor | Workshop (1.5 hours) — Financial requirements and the impact of women investors on the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem

Week 4:

Deal Flow: Where to Find Investment-Seeking Ventures | Workshop (1.5 hours) — Identifying sources, evaluating pitches, due diligence outlines, investment types and common terminology

Week 5:

Cap Tables | Webinar (1 hour) — Learn how to build and read a cap table, which is a ledger of shares in a company that is used at every round of fundraising

Week 6:

Investment Managers Insight | Virtual Panel Discussion (1.5 hours) — Investment managers representing venture funds, angel funds, syndicate groups, and institutional funds share details about their structures, requirements for participation, and deal types with time for Q&A

Week 7:

Equity Investments, Notes, and Safes | Webinar (1 hour) — Investor options and legal structures

Week 8:

Investor Rights | Workshop (1.5 hours) — What are your rights when you invest within a venture, how can you exercise them, and best practices

Mentor Swarm | Mentoring Opportunity (2 hours) Opportunity to mentor entrepreneurs as part of Doyenne's Triple Threat Venture Training strategy retreat. You'll hear each entrepreneur's short pitch and have time to ask questions and provide feedback as part of a two-hour 'mentor swarm' session.

Week 9:

Loss & Gains Within Investment Deals | Webinar (1.5 hours) — Explore what happens when exits occur and how you can prepare for losses & gains within ventures

Week 10:

Q&A with an Investment Banker | Workshop (1.5 hours) — Come with any questions you have based on the webinars you watched in prior weeks and answer any lingering questions you have about managing and evaluating deal flow

Week 11:

Showcase Event | Live Event (2 hours) — Hear pitches from participants in Doyenne’s Triple Threat Venture Training program, practice evaluating their ventures and providing feedback

Week 12:

Celebration | Happy Hour (1.5 hours) — Come together one last time as a cohort to discuss learnings, next steps, and ways to continue to support each other going forward