Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation Renews Support Commitment to Maryland Tech Council’s Venture Mentoring Services Program
Gaithersburg, Maryland, January 28, 2018
Maryland Tech Council (MTC) announced today that the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) will continue its partnership with and support of MTC’s Venture Mentoring Services (VMS) program. MCEDC has funded the mentoring program for three years and will continue to support it in 2019—to further augment the growth of Montgomery County’s target industries—technology and life sciences, while providing a key component to sustain economic growth in the County.
“We desired an experience similar to that of an accelerator group without the intense time commitment typically required,” said Givhero Founder and CEO Vishal Chintawar, one of the program participants. “The MTC Venture Mentoring Services program allows us to benefit from the insights of a diverse group of startup veterans who have not only assisted us in honing our focus, but who have also guided us in winning contracts with both small and large companies.”
Specifically, MTC VMS will use the MCEDC support to:
- provide continued service to current Montgomery County mentee companies,
- add a growing number of companies from the County to the program,
- train and add mentors,
- host robust networking meetings, and
- expand the program’s staffing.
MTC VMS was established in partnership with Montgomery County in 2016 with a value proposition that is focused on developing talent and attracting capital to innovative businesses, while building the ecosystem in Montgomery County.
“Eighty-percent of our entrepreneur mentees are based in Montgomery County, and 80-percent of our trained mentors live and/or work here, too,” said MTC VMS Managing Committee Member Sally Sternbach. “We exist to foster an environment that encourages innovation and expands financial and business opportunities for start-up companies.”
VMS is a program based on the well-established and highly successful MIT Venture Mentor Services Program. Unique versus traditional mentoring programs, mentors volunteer their time and there is no fee to the participating mentee companies.
“Remedy Plan raised $3.7 million last year, and we are grateful to our VMS mentors—many of whom have deep venture capital expertise—for guiding us through this funding raising journey,” said Remedy Plan Therapeutics Founder and CEO Greg Crimmins, Ph.D., another participant in the mentoring program. “ Our mentors were a great resource as we prepared for productive meetings and conversations with investors at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference this month.”
More information on the MTC VMS program is available at: https://mdtechcouncil.com/vms/