TechForge
We ran our ever-popular TechForge pre-accelerator earlier in the year. Attendance was good, and the character of the cohort was similar to that we have had before in that it was mostly very early stage founders coming to learn about the ‘journey’ with 3 or 4 more advanced stage founders who we are either picking up for 1:1s or are already working with. The feedback continues to be 5* and we are planning to run another series in Sept/Oct.
TechSY
Part of the TechSY project is to extend the ‘Tech ScaleUp Advisor’ support offer to other parts of South Yorkshire. This service went live earlier this month. We anticipate most referrals coming through local authority channels or other ecosystem actors in Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. TechSY are planning to promote the service via local events too. However, colleagues can refer a potential clients for a diagnostic meeting with me via this link: https://calendly.com/morgankillick/techsy-scaleup-advisor-initial-meeting?preview_source=et_card&month=2025-05. As part of delivering the service, further advisors will be recruited to join Robin and I.
Investment News
We are working with c. 6 businesses that are actively raising pre-seed finance right now. The quality is quite high and we are working intensively with these founders to maximise their appeal, and make appropriate referrals to SEIS-hungry investors. Worth mentioning that the newly formed Sheffield Angels group has proved particularly difficult to communicate/engage with. I’m utterly supportive of what they are doing and will continue to attempt to build a structured relationship with them.
Data Systems
The team recently implemented (beginning 1st April), a new data/crm system to handle caseload and reporting requirements.
A snapshot of our active client base is contained below.
Contact: Morgan Killick, morgan@levelupsolutions.co.uk