I had the pleasure of meeting 3 Plug and Play Ventures startups this week and offer my time to mentor them with any areas of focus they requested.

1. Predictiv
2. Visana Health
3. Backdrop Health

In this series, I want to showcase the talented companies and teams that I meet in hopes that my network and I can help them achieve their mission of providing better patient outcomes and quality of living for our world.

Since starting several companies over the last few years, I have grown to appreciate meeting many types of people and companies to get a better perspective on how business is changing.  Many think of mentorship as a way to give back (Which it is) but often I find myself learning so much by way of giving advice first and learning later.

In a startup, as well as the founders and their team of collaborators, we can find other roles who influence the business and very likely the decision-making of the founders: mentors and advisors.

What do you think Jeff Bezos, Larry Page, and Steve Jobs have in common? These are all extremely successful entrepreneurs. But they also have one other thing in common – They all received guidance from mentors. Yes! Even the famous founders of these great companies got by with a little help, advice, and support from time to time. No matter who you are, where you’ve come from, or what you have achieved, a good mentor is an invaluable asset in business.

In the entrepreneurial world, this figure is more and more settled and it provides the new business creators with the security to take their first steps and better their positioning. It is someone who is willing to dedicate their time and experience to guide the development of the business and of its entrepreneur. Many mistake the term mentorship with coaching. Though similar, they are substantially different because the mentor is a source of knowledge and support, but does not search for a change in behavior or habits like coaching does.

The main purpose of a mentor is to help entrepreneurs with specific questions by sharing their knowledge and contacts harvested through their years of experience. Therefore, a mentor must not only fulfill their executive functions but also understand the process and evolution of the project.

Why is the contribution of this figure so important in a startup?

Turning to a mentor can have various clear benefits for entrepreneurs, the main one being the transferral of knowledge in an effective way, as well as helping your business grow in every aspect.

When talking about the importance of mentoring, the English author and businessman Richard Branson couldn’t have said it any better– ‘ No matter how incredibly smart you think you are, or how brilliant, disruptive or plain off-the-wall your new concept might be, every start-up team needs at least one good mentor. Someone, somewhere, has already been through what you are convinced nobody else has ever confronted! Okay, so their version may have been analog rather than digital, but trust me, many of the business fundamentals are exactly the same. Building a new business takes more than technical skills and creative genius – it needs people, and if you’re going to create a great culture as well as a great product, those people need tending to in a plethora of different ways.’

Overall, mentors work as a kind of fuel for entrepreneurs and are equivalent to those manuals which tell you where to place every piece to build a good piece of furniture.

Types of mentors

In the market, we can find different mentors who have had different successes with their own businesses and now offer their experience to entrepreneurs as well as professionals who support new ideas.

On the other hand, we can also find mentors from business schools who contribute more technical knowledge, and who can be focused on a specific area of business (marketing, finances, product, international expansion, fundraising, legal, etc.)

Which would be ideal? Mixing both profiles.

Roles and contributions of the mentor

Some of the teachings, tasks, and knowledge that a mentor shares are:

• Their work experience
• Brings a good reputation and credibility to the business
• Information from their own journey
• Advice in a strategic plan as well as operative
• Orientation in the resolution of problems
• Can support in the commercial work of the enterprise
• Motivation in difficult times
• Help to establish goals
• Identify resources
• Help to professionalize the management: business culture, process, recruiting talent, etc.
• Developing and sharing contacts, and therefore can help open doors

Stages of counseling 

• Initial: The support provided is mainly focused in the incubation of the idea and how the product or service will be launched. In this case, the mentor must offer general advice to the whole team.
• Acceleration: Aid specializes in the startup ecosystem. In this stage, how the money will be generated, and the way in which the results will be measured is studied.
• Growth: Here the startup must become a company and formalize the business lines to go from turning over thousands to millions. Aid must be focused on management.

The mentor-mentee relationship: what makes a successful mentorship

The mentor-mentee relationship is a process based on trust and effort invested by both parties. You can’t expect that your mentor will magically remove all the obstacles on your way or remedy all your mistakes. The mentor’s advice will be effective only if you’re willing to listen, learn, and implement.

Be honest about your business’ positive and negative sides, your flaws and capabilities, as well as your fears.

Before the first meeting with your mentor, make a list of your expectations. What can your mentor help you achieve? What obstacles are you hoping to overcome? This will help your mentor understand what needs to be done and come up with a plan.

You’re not restrained to using the services of only one mentor. Maybe you need help in different segments of your business that require different mentoring methods. One mentor can be good at your product strategy, while another might help you grow as a leader. You are allowed to seek a range of advice that will help you formulate a well-rounded perspective.

Finally, keep an open mind and accept your mentor’s honesty, no matter how hurtful it might sound.

How is the service of a good mentorship?

• A good mentor talks from experience, and shares it in a truthful way so that it can be of help to the mentee;
• Listens to the entrepreneur and gathers all the information to give advice later on;
• Empathizes with the challenges faced by the entrepreneur and shares his or her experiences;
• Is capable of establishing trusting long term relationships;
• Enjoys contributing to the growth of the entrepreneur;
• Motivates and channels the energy of the entrepreneur towards his or her objectives.
• The usefulness of the mentor also depends on the entrepreneur. Building a business is not an exact science and professionals must be capable of listening and knowing what to ignore.

Thanks to bcombinator.com for the great info included in this article.

Here are the company descriptions and websites for your reading pleasure.

Predictive

We analyze your entire DNA and compare it to 16,000 genetic diseases. Our analytics pipeline predicts which genetic diseases you are most at risk for and enables you to take preventive measures to prevent and decrease the impact of the diseases you are silently developing.

Visana Health

Visana is a virtual women’s health platform that targets underserved gynecological conditions that drive ~3-5% of total plan spend. Our personalized digital programs improve clinical outcomes for the most common women’s health conditions through personalized content, health coaching, and patient navigation.

By empowering women to access comprehensive, best-practice care, we deliver up to 4:1 ROI for our customers (health plans & employers) by reducing unnecessary surgeries. Our programs include endometriosis/chronic pelvic pain, uterine fibroids, heavy menstrual bleeding, and more.

Backdrop Health

Clinical trials are expensive, time-consuming, and risky. Pharma companies spend a lot to license the electronic medical records needed to assemble and manage the trial and control cohorts. Backdrop Health has created a breakthrough solution that harnesses every bit of information in clinical records, patient demographics, gene sequencing data, and more, to provide far more precise predictions about clinical outcomes, for individuals and populations, than previously possible.