From idea to IPO, we help tech companies at all stages of growth
The Communitech Founder Services team is here to help you understand your business, commercialize your product and get you where you want to go.
We help you:
- Find and keep the best talent.
- Understand the funding landscape to access capital and growth financing.
- Sell to the biggest customers at home, and then around the world.
- Connect you to the people and networks to help you—others who have been there before, coaches who can guide you through the difficult spots and partners from all over the world.
Who you are
You’re firming up your idea. You’re working toward building your Minimum Viable Product, but your product isn’t quite developed.
What you get
Talent
- Postings on Communitech’s job board
- Access to local and national compensation data
- Access to recruitment support via our Pro Squad
- Discounted rates for employee benefits via Tech Life Benefits
- Access to peer groups to help develop your team
Capital
- Assistance seeking applicable grants, funding and loans
Sales
- Customer validation opportunities through the Future of X collaboratives
- Access to world-class market intelligence trends and data
Community
- Drop-in advisory services
- Curated resource library
- Access to Communitech's Startup Slack Channel
- Topical AMAs to answer your most pressing questions
- Member2Member discounts
- Access to pre-vetted business professionals
- Google for Startups network perks and access to MaRS suite of startup programming
- Access to AWS and Google Cloud credits.
Become a startup member
Great news: eligible startups pay no membership fees for being part of the Communitech network. Qualifying companies have less than 21 employees, and are developing and distributing custom-built technology.
Who you are
You have a product that you’ve started to test. You either have revenue or proof of market demand.
We can help you
- Find market opportunities.
- Sell to customers.
- Hire and develop your existing team.
- Prepare to raise capital within Canada and beyond.
- Grow your medtech company.
What you get
Talent
- Postings on Communitech’s job board
- Access to local and national compensation data
- Discounted rates for employee benefits via Tech Life Benefits
- Access to peer groups to help develop your team
- Recruitment support via our Pro Squad partners
- Discounted access to leadership programming via the Communitech Academy
Capital
- Investment readiness coaching and potential connections to investors.
- Assistance seeking grants and funding and loans
- Potential funding opportunities via Fierce Founders Uplift and Intensive Track
Sales
- Opportunities to pilot solutions and sell to big customers through the Future of X collaboratives
- Access to world-class market intelligence trends and data
- Enhanced growth services / intensive tracks
- Grow your customer via Member2Member discounts
Community
- Access to Communitech Growth Coaches
- Dedicated lead advisor
- Access to Communitech's Startup Slack Channel
- Topical AMAs to answer your most pressing questions
- Access to exclusive founder peer groups
- Access to pre-vetted business professionals
- Google for Startups network perks
- Enhanced access to MaRS suite of startup programming
- IP strategy support
Become a startup member
Great news: eligible startups pay no membership fees for being part of the Communitech network. Qualifying companies have less than 21 employees, and are developing and distributing custom-built technology.
Who you are
Your team is more than 20 strong. Your custom-built technology is your primary revenue source.
We can help you
- Build your org structure.
- Fill gaps at all levels and scale culture.
- Find the right sources of capital.
- Develop growth strategy for new products and/or new markets.
- Develop a sales strategy to speed up customer acquisition.
What you get
Talent
- Hire and manage global talent via Communitech Outposts
- Post on Communitech’s job board
- Access to local and national compensation data
- Discounted rates for Tech Life Benefits packages
- Access to peer groups to help develop your team
- Employer brand and talent recruitment opportunities
- Discounted access to leadership programming via the Communitech Academy.
Capital
- Connections to investors
- Assistance seeking applicable grants and funding and loans
- Funding opportunities through private and public networks
Sales
- Get in front of big customers with Future of X collaboratives
- Get boots on the ground in global markets with Communitech Outposts
- IP strategy support
Community
- Dedicated relationship manager
- Access to Communitech Growth Coaches
- Access to exclusive scale-up peer groups
- Topical AMAs to answer your most pressing questions
- Discounted or free events
- Member2Member discounts
- Access to pre-vetted business professionals via the Pro Squad
Become a scale-up member
Scale-up memberships start at $2,000 per year; eligible scale-ups have more than 20 employees and are developing/distributing custom-built technology as their primary source of revenue.
Scale-up membership fees
| 21-40 employees in Canada |
41-60 employees in Canada |
61-100 employees in Canada |
100+ employees in Canada |
| $2,000 / year + HST |
$3,000 / year + HST |
$4,000 / year + HST |
$5,000 / year + HST |
Thanks to investments from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, the Scale-Up Platform is a collaboration among Communitech, Invest Ottawa and MaRS Discovery District that will help hundreds of high-growth firms attract more customers, talent, sales and capital, and increase their potential to become $100 million anchor companies for Canada.
We acknowledge the support of the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
Nous reconnaissons l’appui du gouvernement du Canada à travers l’Agence fédérale de développement économique pour le Sud de l’Ontario.
“Communitech is a resource for tech companies in the Waterloo Region, helping them to scale revenue and increase international sales by providing mentorship and connections. Any early-stage tech company and especially a first-time entrepreneur would be remiss in not leveraging these resources to their fullest.”
Carol Leaman, President & CEO, Axonify
FAQ
We’re here to help you understand your business, commercialize your product and get you where you want to go. Our team of experts works with you to shape your talent strategy, find the right sources of capital, help you understand your market and connect you with an amazing network – from Waterloo Region to the world.
We offer three tiers of services based on your stage of business.
- Early-stage startups are firming up ideas and working toward building an MVP.
- Late-stage startups have a product and some revenue or proof of market demand.
- Scale-up companies have more than 20 employees and a product as a primary source of revenue.
We work with you to figure out your next steps, guide product development, start building your team and connect into the tech ecosystem in Waterloo Region. Early-stage startups get:
- Access to 40+ Peer Groups.
- Talent recruitment on Communitech’s job board.
- Assistance seeking grants and funding via the Funding Advisor Is In program.
- Time with an advisor to get advice and guidance on next steps via the Advisor Is In program.
- Access to the MaRS suite of startup programming.
- National and international workspace via CDMN Passport and Google Passport.
- Connections, networking events, Member2Member discounts and more.
- Access to the Communitech Startup Slack channel and newsletter.
With a dedicated lead advisor, you will find new market opportunities, build your team and develop their skills, and start raising capital in Canada and beyond. Late-stage startups get:
- Talent recruitment opportunities at our Tech Jam events.
- Special member pricing on Communitech Academy training and programs.
- Connections to investors.
- Investor readiness preparation and support.
- Assistance seeking loans.
- Potential access to Communitech Growth Coaches.
- Dedicated lead advisor.
- Access to the Communitech Pro Squad.
- Access to advanced tech platforms (5G, advanced computing, HD mapping).
- IP strategy support
- Connections, networking events, Member2Member discounts and more.
We work with you to build your org structure, learn how to scale your culture and develop a repeatable sales strategy that you can use to expand into new markets. Scale-up companies get:
- Access to Communitech Growth Coaches.
- Dedicated Customer Success Manager.
- Access to advanced tech platforms (5G, advanced computing, HD mapping).
- IP strategy support.
- Help expanding to global markets with Communitech Outposts.
- Connections to investors.
- Investor readiness.
- Assistance seeking grants, funding and loans.
- Connections, networking events, Member2Member discounts and more.
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