Summer School in Pitching – is a 2-week program where students can learn how to prepare and present their projects, and properly formulate information to convey it to investors, partners, etc. Participants will learn more about startups, new business models, and the necessary tools to understand how to start their own company. Cool entrepreneurs and startups will be involved, who will share their experiences and give their feedback on the participants’ ideas.
June 2023
Check out “How it was in 2023” below!
This year we had 46 participants in Summer School in Pitching!
Frankly speaking, this has become a challenge for us, because it is twice as much as last year. It was necessary to be on time everywhere and pay enough attention to each of the students.
But CfE team is never afraid of challenges!
It was interesting to work with students of different faculties and specialties and to find similarities and differences between them. It’s so cool when people are united by common goals and visions!
All participants had the opportunity to improve their pitching and presentation skills like Xzibit used to improve cars!
Everyone took something important for themselves – how to be heard, how to convey the idea correctly, and how to transform the presentation for the specific kind of audience. However, the main insight was that confidence comes with practice.
Also, the acting master class by Natalya Rybka-Parhomenko was something incredible! The students really liked this format, they opened up and felt that the body is also a tool that needs to be mastered. These emotions have become unforgettable, almost everyone wants to repeat such an experience again. What can I add here – Natalya is a truly professional in her field 🙂
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Maksym: To be honest, I would like to say that I was very pleased to be a participant in this summer school, because, first of all, the society is really cool, we all became quite good friends (thanks to you). Moreover, our tasks and teachers were super cool, they give us relevant and effective advices.
Regarding the three insights that I took away from this summer school, in my opinion, the most important for me is the understanding that you don’t need to be afraid of the public, on the contrary, you need to be able to manage it and direct it in an effective direction for you. The second rather important lesson for me is the ability to present myself. This skill is fundamental and, in my opinion, very often helps to reach great heights. Finally, I would like to add that it was also quite important for me that this summer school taught me to respond quickly and effectively to tasks/thoughts, and not to be afraid to be creative and even funny.
Anastasia: I gained experience not only in public speaking but also in how to properly give feedback, I understood how it should be done. I am thrilled with how my pitching skills have improved now that I hardly ever used storytelling for presentations. Also, it was very valuable for me to learn how to properly structure a startup presentation because, in most of the courses in my program, I have to present my ideas, so now I know how to do it. Thank you, it was an amazing experience!!!
Well, we’re happy to be useful and valuable. Reading the reviews, we were once again convinced of our strengths and, of course, understood what we still need to work on, because who is perfect?
(Ryan Gosling)
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Co-founder of PSIKULTURA – a psychological agency that helps develop a culture of mental health in organizations.
Co-Founder and COO at U-Hertz, a voice development company that helps businesses grow and thrive through innovative solutions, leveraging the power of Amazon Alexa.
He has about 10 years of experience in sales, mainly in foreign markets. In the last few years he has been consulting both service and product companies in the USA, Canada, Qatar, Australia, Great Britain, Ukraine and others.
Roman is certified in PRINCE2® Foundation and Consulting Skills. He is a member of Rotary International, a global network of professionals who share a common vision of service and leadership.
Vice President of Engineering & Operations at EdTech startup EduNav.
Worked and works in startups in engineering lead positions. He was the founder of bikeamp.com.
Ivan was a member of the Supervisory Board of Lviv IT Cluster for a long time. Has extensive experience working with American enterprise and a wide network of contacts, both among entrepreneurs and investors.
Partner at EVERLEGAL. Has unique experience in structuring startups and registering intellectual property rights.
Mentor and Fractional CTO; Founder and CEO at CodeLions.
As a seasoned technology leader with over a decade of experience, Volodymyr helps turn innovative concepts into reality. He has a track record of building high-performing technical teams and delivering custom software solutions that drive value and growth.
At CodeLions, he leads a team that develops custom software, reducing time to market for startups and small businesses.
Head of Engineering at Wix.com.
15 years in IT in product companies. Invests in startups and provides consulting. Has experience in consulting, building engineering teams that did large amounts of work with a small budget.
Product expertise and experience in multi-million dollar projects. Worked a lot on building a brand and culture in companies – on the example of the current Wix.com. Has experience and orientation of startup goals in Pre-Seed, Seed rounds.
Owner and CEO at Linked Promo; Founder and CEO at CARBAZAR. Over 10 years of experience in marketing.
Client Engagement Executive at N-iX.
Through over 20 years of leadership experience, Dmytro drove changes impacting up to 2000 people and led portfolios over $50mln ARR. Has expertise in driving strategic and operational transformations for the IT/Tech sector companies, together with helping leaders to make altering personality and style shift.
Consulted businesses globally, earning the trust of leaders from SMB Entrepreneurs to Senior Corporate Managers, including Fortune-500 and Big-4 companies.
Director of Product Management at Edvantis; VP, Product Management & Ukraine Operations at Simulmedia; Product Manager at Skybeam.
A results-oriented Product Manager with over 9 years of experience in the B2B industry, particularly within the adtech domain. Currently leading the PLG motion for Simulmedia’s CTV-focused SaaS product.
Has vast experience working on strategic initiatives and leading change management processes.
Leading HOWCOW, MISU as the Acting CEO, Volodymyr’s focus on life-saving technology has been pivotal in enhancing medical services, especially during the pandemic. Having eight-year tenure as a Territory Sales Executive at Mars, he was involved in spearheading national projects and fostering robust partnerships with major FMCG companies.
Volodymyr’s professional journey is characterized by a strong command of customer relationship management, strategic sales leadership, and analytical problem-solving
Senior Software Engineer at Ralabs.
Web developer with over 10 years of experience. Worked on various projects, from small startups to large enterprises. Fluent in various programming languages and technologies, including Ruby, Python, JavaScript, also has experience in Cloud Computing, DevOps and security.
Successfully managed teams of up to 10 engineers. Has experience participating in technical due diligence for a German startup that received €32m in investment.
Serial entrepreneur.
Has 15 years of professional experience, during which she tried various roles in marketing, business development and innovation, commercial launch of projects. From Eurovision artists to corporate startups.
Studied MBA at SDA Bocconi, a top business school in Italy and top 10 in Europe. Since then, she has lived in Belgium, where she worked at AB Inbev and the innovation development consulting company Verhaert. As a corporate employee in various positions, she worked with commercial departments of 5 markets in Europe and developed innovations for Henkel, Nestle, J&J.
Works as a resident mentor at Impact Hub in Milan and ESA Space Solutions Accelerator in Brussels.
Counsel EVERLEGAL.
Provides a general understanding of approaches to legal issues in a startup, and experience in legal structuring of business and negotiations.
Has experience in consulting as an in-house lawyer in large companies in the energy sector, as well as experience in external consulting, in particular as an advisor in a TOP-10 law firm in Ukraine.
Engaged in consulting on commercial and legal issues, participation in negotiations and dispute resolution of Ukrainian and foreign companies.
Project Management CoEx Supervisor at DataArt.
Graduate of the MSc in Technology Management program 2018.
Co-organizer of the LvBS alumni running community, Mentor of the Management and Business Administrations program at the UCU Business School.
Co-founder and Managing Partner at TH!NK.in Partners.
Has over 14 years of professional experience in international business, technology startups and as a consultant in organizational development and capacity building of businesses and organizations.
Since 2016, guest lecturer at UCU Business School, MBA at Adam Smith Business School.
Senior Business Analyst at Angel One Fund.
Senior VP and Head of Product at Iconectiv;
B2B SaaS Product Manager for 25 years at companies like Microsoft, Panasonic, Allvue Systems
Founder and CEO of GUSS & GOOSE boutique agency – a 360° communications and personal branding agency for leaders and brands in UA, US, EU. An advisor in global PR, communications, and personal brand development for leaders and entrepreneurs in B2B, B2B2C, B2C, tech, and government initiatives since 2019.
Personal Branding Ambassador at Wtech (international women’s leadership community); Ambassador & Supervisory Board at Afterparty UA (a nonprofit business community for startups, IT companies, and venture capitalists from 8 countries).
Advisor to the Mission Possible accelerator and the €20M European initiative Seeds of Bravery.
Co-founder at communicators community Piarity.
9+ years of experience in B2B, B2C, governmental, and investment PR and a 10-year background in socio-political and lifestyle journalism, and specializes in launching communications and branding projects from 0 to 1, strategic marketing and brand communications, crisis and reputation management, as well as grant and event PR.
Lecturer and mentor (1991 accelerator, USF, Projector Institute, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Global Teacher Prize, SET University, etc.).
Associate at Geek Ventures, a Pre-Seed/Seed fund focused on US startups.
Has 4+ years of VC/PE experience. Led 15 pre-seed/seed deals.
Worked on Preply Series C.
Head of Product Design at Zade startup studio.
Has experience working with various startups and numerous requests spanning 4 years.
Currently working on product development for the American BioTech startup NextNet.
Business Development Specialist at LetsData.
Vladyslav, drawing on his experience at Startup Wise Guys and deep immersion in the startup ecosystem, has expertise in business development and sales. He knows how to develop effective outreach strategies, create CRM systems, and interact competently with government agencies and corporate clients. Overall, he has a clear understanding of how to improve a product and sell it effectively.
Engineering Manager and Senior Team Leader with QA/AQA expertise at Techmagic.co.
10 years of experience in IT: worked in both product and outsourcing companies – from the position of QA Engineer to Manager.
Has the opportunity to collaborate with different teams at different stages of idea and development, and also implement changes and processes on the project, both technical and managerial.
She is a mentor on the Projector Mentorship Platform and participated in the volunteer program from the Projector Foundation, where she conducted mentoring sessions for students studying on the “Software testing” course. At TechMagic, she is a permanent QA Tech Leader and Mentor in the educational academy on the QA course.
10+ years of experience in sales and working with clients worldwide (from corporate to embassies and government organizations).
Helps build an effective sales process. Advises on defining ICP, lead generation, personalization and automation in sales, and shares his own experience launching a SaaS product sales process. In addition, he is ready to help with specific issues/challenges in sales and customer communication.
Has been working at Oracle EMEA for over 2 years.
Ex-CMO at Depositphotos and Admixer. Has advised dozens of technology companies at various stages.
CEO at Self-ERP.
Has 18+ years of experience in fintech from developer to deputy IT director of the bank.
Key projects in PrivatBank: launch of authorization in Diia via Privat24, the first cloud signature in Ukraine – SmartID.
Tech lawyer, privacy counsel Wargaming, partner at Wtech Club Singapore.
Focuses on data, privacy, digitalization, intellectual property and commerce. Leads children’s online privacy program globally.
Managed data and intellectual property issues in commercial operations. Understands regulatory requirements in areas of risk-based approach and advises businesses on developing compliance solutions.
Expert in funding facilitation, project planning and management, grant writing, communication, marketing, and strategic development.
Since 2013, Anna has been working in the field of attracting grant funding for innovative projects (businesses, research centers, startups). She started working in this sector in the Department of International Projects and Programs of the National Aerospace University of Kharkiv, and since 2017 she has been working as a consultant in companies from Luxembourg and Poland.
She has written more than 100 grant applications for EU program competitions for teams from different EU countries, associated countries, and Ukraine, and helped attract funding for a total amount of over 20 million euros from grant sources.
The topics she worked on are nanotechnology, transport, energy, robotics and AI, pharmaceuticals, biomedicine, aviation, etc.
In 2016, she worked with the PROMIN startup (unconventional energy), with which she became the winner of the American CRDF Global Entrepreneurship Development program and received a grant for a trip to the USA.
In 2019, she founded the creative company Anzy Home, which produces decor and exports to the USA and other countries. Currently, she is engaged in the strategic development of the company in the global market and attracting investments.
In 2023, she became a co-founder of Anromind, a company specializing in consulting in grant funding and attracting investments for innovative and creative enterprises.
CEO at Zade startup studio with over 7 years of experience working with startups, USF expert, Master of Marketing Management from the UCU Business School, mentor and speaker at Ukrainian and international accelerators.
PM in PMO Rush (Eva store chain). Expert in project management and business optimization, business and team coach ISF.
Has experience in system business and creating new businesses for more than 10 years.
Managed projects to implement new business directions, innovations and enter new market niches. The main functionality was to find weaknesses in business processes and eliminate them.
More than 6 years in project management. The last 2 years in project portfolio management (58 projects) in one of the best PMOs in Ukraine (2nd place in the rating of the best PMOs of 2023) – RMO LLC “RUSH”.
Over the past 2 years, she has been a mentor to more than 50 PMs. Taught how to develop business models, roadmaps, task backlogs, see system dependencies and risks, manage teams and resolve conflicts.
Certified Business Consultant, specialization – PM, Change Management, Business Process Optimization, STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT. Actively uses coaching tools, certified Business and team coach ICF.
Venture Partner at ZAS Ventures.
In his career, he went through the path of UX→PM→CEO→VC.
He was the head of the UX team for Parallels Desktop, worked for some time at MacPaw, and since 2014 in startups in various positions: as CEO of Softorino, as CPO at insuretech Raxel Telematics, returned to work at Preply and YouTeam for 2 years.
In 2020-2022, he had his own startup, where he helped over 6,000 people overcome type 2 diabetes and obesity (and also earned 500 thousand ARR).
Since 2023, he began to advise startups personally and through accelerators (now provided advice to over 200 startups) and joined venture capital.
Valerii is a former founder and CEO in the field of technology and software engineering, with over 15 years of executive-level and consulting experience.
His expertise lies in addressing the growth challenges faced by B2B tech companies, specializing in business strategy, client success, operations, organizational transformation, and holistic management for both service- and product-oriented organizations. Additionally, he possesses a strong engineering background.
Throughout his career, he has had the privilege of working with prominent clients in the hi-tech industry, including Fortune 100, Fortune 500, and Deloitte Technology Fast 500 companies.
Currently, as a Business Data Expert and Consultant, Valerii helps companies make smarter, data-driven decisions.
Founder and CEO of MetaliX, a manufacturer of interior zoning structures and doors made of steel and glass. The company has been on Forbes lists twice.
Over 12 years in IT paving the way from engineer to delivery manager; built and managed accounts with a total of 200 employees. Worked with large corporations – Google, Ericsson, Reddit, DropBox, Microsoft etc.
Angel investor and startup advisor.
Nazar knows exactly how to be a leader and create successful projects. His work combines knowledge of the market, a clear structure, analytics, and most importantly, how to apply knowledge in practice and achieve success.
Andriy is a successful entrepreneur with experience in e-commerce – B2C sales in the US and Canadian markets; sales and creation of physical goods through Amazon.
He will help you to understand strategy and business model building, customer experience, project management, technology, and product development.
Andriy is well acquainted with the formation of product economy units on the global market, communication with manufacturers, sales analytics, and product launch from scratch.
Also, he is a Co-Owner of the UA Comix Store.
Sofia is an entrepreneur, co-founder, and COO at Propertymate (a startup that passed the acceleration program at Techstars). She spent the last three years in real estate technology. Experienced in product and business development and building the team behind it. Previously COO at Brainify, and Marketing Director at Duna.
Can help to deal with:
Vladyslav is the head of the innovation department at Bain & Company, so he knows everything about how global corporations can accelerate innovation, create corporate startups, and change the experience of their customers.
Before working as a consultant, Vlad managed his own AgriTech startup and a commodity trading company. Graduated from several acceleration programs, including the CfE Accelerator.
He also mentors startups at CfE Accelerator (UA), The Mission (Frankfurt), and Vision Lab (Berlin).
Fractional VP of Sales Xceleration, Fortune 100 Executive, Entrepreneur, and Go-To-Market Strategist.
Paul Rafferty is President of Piedmont Sales Advisors. He serves as a Fractional Vice President of Sales and Executive Coach, helping small businesses and mid-market companies achieve breakthrough Sales Growth, Discipline and Accountability.
Previously, Paul founded Sales Engine Media to which brought Fortune 500 best practices in sales process, sales operations, and demand-generation to funded SMBs and mid-market companies. Sales Engine was listed as an Inc. 5000 fastest growing company in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 Paul was also the National Vice President, Sales Operations for Fortune 200 Company, guiding a nationwide Sales Team of over 700 Sales Professionals.
His first job was as a Naval Officer on USS Sea Devil, a nuclear- powered attack submarine out of Charleston, SC Paul is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, and lives in Denver, NC.
Product Manager and entrepreneur with 12+ years of experience in robotics, drones, and Defense Tech.
Led teams of up to 100 engineers. Vlad has expertise in AI software, hardware development, and military tech for drone systems. Proven track record in mass production of 5000 hardware units.
Raised $1,6m in sales, and won multiple industry awards.
Successfully implemented Scrum and Kanban methodologies, achieving up to 35% user retention. Developed 10 hardware products and partnered with top brands like Intel and Microsoft.
Holds an MBA in IT Management. Proficient in PM tools, PM frameworks, data analysis, KPI & OKR.
Alumni of Google for Startups and Stanford BS.
Myron C. Taylor Alumni Professor of Business Law, Cornell Law School.
Founder of The EngL and Smako’terra protein. Graduate of LvBS and Stanford Ignite Ukraine.
Natalya is an actress in the Lviv Academic Theater named after Les Kurbas.
Andrii Milinevskyi is an international professional in transformation, innovation, customer experience management, product and service design, and sales.
– Founder and CEO CXdesign: Strategy and Business Design
– Senior Director and Vice President Product at web3 IaaS startup Impossible Cloud.
– Having more than 20 years of executive work in telecom – Kyivstar, Beeline, Golden Telecom – Andrii in partnership founded the CX design agency, which helps large Ukrainian businesses to build success through effective client-centricity. The agency creates holistic customer experience management systems and builds excellent services and competitive products using design thinking methods.
– Andrii has led transformation, innovation, excellent customer experience, marketing, and sales at a large international telecom since 1997. From 2007-2010, he also managed a large telecom company: CEO of Golden Telecom and Beeline in Ukraine.
– From 2010-2016, as B2B Director and Chief Transformation Officer, Andriy managed the client-centric transformation of Kyivstar: the creation of the Customer Experience Management function and Big Data direction, reorganization of B2B Sales and Marketing, Call Center, design of Retail transformation, omnichannel program, implementation of digital.
– Andrii – MBA from Maastricht School of Management (Netherlands), design thinking practitioner, certified Partner and Sales Consultant of Miller Heiman Group, and Technology of Participation.
