Program Guidelines

Program Mission

Every venture has a distinct trajectory, specific challenges and needs, and a unique market opportunity, and as such, Uptake’s program offers bespoke mentorship, coaching and commercialization support. From day one, every Uptake company will chart an individualized journey, roadmapping goals and pathways to commercialization. As each startup works to realize these goals, they will follow a structured path, progressing through the Core phase (~3 months), Runway phase (~3 months), and finally graduating into the Emeritus phase in which companies are invited to participate in the Uptake network and community indefinitely. 

Eligibility

All companies must submit a complete application containing all required information to be eligible for inclusion. Qualified companies should, at minimum:

  • Be developing technology or business model innovations with the potential to positively impact climate outcomes

  • Have at least two Full-Time Employees (FTEs)

  • Be no more than one year away from a commercially deployable product or service. While company trajectories may vary, the companies we seek to support typically fall between 4-7 on the Commercial Readiness Level (CRL) scale. Companies that are uncertain about TRL/CRL may download NYSERDA’s TRL/CRL calculator here, or view this CRL table from ARPA-E.

Additionally, all selected companies will go through a four-phase selection process and will be expected to answer standard screening questions during the interview and intake processes. Prior to enrollment, selected companies will be required to sign an NDA and Membership Agreement Form to be formally admitted.

Program Participation

Program Structure and Time Commitment

Core Phase

During the program’s three-month Core phase, Uptake will provide a specialized and market-focused curriculum to provide the knowledge, tools and disciplines commonly required to effectively commercialize and sell technical products and services. This curriculum will be offered across 13 weeks with each week embodying a dedicated theme, e.g. Policy & Regulations, Fundraising, Sales Enablement, etc.

The Core Phase will begin with a Company Roadmapping exercise during which the portfolio companies – with guidance from Uptake staff, mentors, or facilitators – will develop a plan with clear goals and milestones for the company to pursue throughout both the Core and Runway phases of the program. The creation of the Company Roadmap will help Uptake curate the Curriculum, source speakers, and customize events, among other purposes.

Curriculum content will consist of “Core”, “Recommended” and “Discretionary” content, labeled according to the Uptake staff’s adjudication of its universality and importance. Uptake expects all portfolio companies to complete the “Core” curriculum content and the work is assigned to them by coaches and mentors, but will not require any of the Recommended or Discretionary content to be consumed or completed and will not require any deliverables around this content.

The Core curriculum, which will consist of readings, lessons, videos, classes & facilitation sessions, mentor meetings and other content, is expected to require a time commitment of approximately five hours per week. These five hours may be spread across up to two primary participants from each company, and in rare cases some exceptions may be made to allow for a third participant. For example, perhaps only the CEO wishes to attend the live session and complete the assigned content during the Fundraising week, and perhaps the VP of Sales participates for all of the programming during the Sales Enablement week.

It should be noted that the Uptake Core curriculum - as well as optional modules - will not be static and is expected to grow and improve over time. In particular, the Uptake curriculum team will consistently be developing original content, recording and posting videos of past classes and events (e.g. speeches), and improving the delivery of core content. Uptake will solicit and incorporate feedback from portfolio companies to ensure that our curriculum is not only high-quality and efficient but also tailored to their needs.

Runway Phase

The primary purpose of the three-month Runway phase is to give entrepreneurs the time and space to take what they learned during the Core phase - while it’s fresh in their minds - and apply it towards achieving their goals as described in their Roadmaps. While the Runway phase will be much less structured than the Core phase, the Uptake staff expects to provide more individualized and direct support to portfolio companies in pursuit of their Roadmap goals as well as internal company goals.

During the program’s Runway phase, Uptake expects all portfolio companies to provide bi-weekly updates on their progress towards their stated goals as outlined in their Company Roadmap. We expect a time commitment of two to three hours per week outside of core business operations to meet with mentors, investors, corporate partners, and Uptake staff to ensure each startup benefits from the support they need while active participants in the Uptake program.

Emeritus Phase

No alumni of Uptake should be gone for good; upon program completion, all startups will retain access to our Digital Knowledge Hub and be kept up-to-date on commercial & funding opportunities as well as the Uptake program in general.

As portfolio companies near the end of their tenure in their Collective, they will deliver a final report consisting of key takeaways from the program and a Roadmap completion summary and schedule a closing call within a month after the completion of the Runway phase. The final report delivery and closing call will mark program graduation. After successful completion of all Runway phase requirements, companies will then enter the Emeritus phase.

Uptake encourages Emeritus companies to remain involved and engaged for further funding, networking, and other opportunities to continue working towards their climate and business goals while giving back to the Uptake community.

Program extension

During the final month of a company’s participation in the Uptake program, a company representative may choose to request an extended Runway Phase in order to retain access to their mentor, corporate partners, Uptake staff, and other program benefits. In such a case, the Uptake team will evaluate if the company is truly at risk of failing to accomplish its goals by their projected deadline, and whether additional time in the program would provide disproportionate benefits to the startup team.

If a company has made meaningful progress towards its goals but could benefit from additional support and time to achieve the stated milestones, Uptake will consider them for an extension of up to six months; companies may be able to extend their participation beyond this in very limited cases.

Uptake reserves the right to decide whether to grant an extension. Uptake may grant an extension if the company:

  • Has a record of consistent participation throughout the program;

  • Can demonstrate material progress has been made toward defined milestones; and

  • Has articulated a plan to achieve its goals within the extended time frame.

If the Uptake team decides to grant an extension, the Company Roadmap will be modified accordingly; the new Roadmap will include an addendum outlining the company’s plans to accomplish its goals given the additional time, the steps the company plans to take to do so, and how Uptake will support the company in achieving its goals.

If a company is not making significant progress towards the outlined roadmap goals, Uptake reserves the right to deny an extension request and instead request a final report that outlines the company’s accomplishments and a description of how the Uptake program staff and ecosystem could have provided better support.

Attendance

Uptake asks all companies to choose two representatives to act as the primary points of contact, which will typically be a C-suite executive and project manager. Both representatives should attend all core curriculum sessions and engage with mentors, coaches, and Uptake personnel throughout the program.

During the Core phase, portfolio companies may request an exemption or request to send a different team member in their stead to sessions that cover topics in which the company has deep demonstrated experience or mastery. The Uptake team will work with participating companies to determine the appropriate exemption. At most, companies may request two exemptions during the Core phase.

Uptake acknowledges that unforeseen circumstances may interfere with portfolio companies’ ability to attend all sessions. When possible, portfolio companies should notify coaches, mentors, and Uptake managers of absences or significant tardiness with 24-hours’ notice. This protocol will allow Uptake to work with companies to ensure that occasional absences do not reduce the value of the curriculum. Repeated absences without any corresponding communication may result in removal from the program.

Data Collection

Throughout the duration of the program, Uptake will systematically gather data from portfolio companies via surveys, emails, telephone communication, or other appropriate means. These data will play a pivotal role in evaluating the program's effectiveness and help in the refinement of the curriculum. The scope of data collection includes, but is not limited to, metrics such as TRL/CRL progress, hiring statistics, sales performance, funding details, corporate partnership information, and more. Portfolio companies are expected to respond to these data collection requests accurately and promptly.

In the Emeritus phase, Uptake will initiate surveys at the outset of this phase and subsequently on an annual basis. Emeritus companies are likewise obligated to participate in these surveys, ensuring the ongoing assessment of their progress and contribution to the program's objectives.

Marketing & Promotion

Uptake is committed to celebrating the achievements of both active and Emeritus companies, and Uptake will regularly prepare and publish marketing materials including, but not limited to, press releases on the Uptake website, third-party sites, LinkedIn posts, and third party publications and newsletters. It is expected that both active and Emeritus companies will publicize or otherwise provide Uptake with updates of their major milestones and achievements, and allow the sharing of such achievements on Uptake platforms and beyond.

Community Values

The Uptake team is enthusiastic about building a community based around shared respect for all portfolio companies and their goals. By acting according to these principles, all companies can contribute to an Uptake ecosystem that extends beyond participation in the curriculum. In order for this vision to become a reality, all Uptake portfolio companies must respect the community by acting with kindness and decency towards the entire Uptake ecosystem.

Additionally, portfolio companies must extend this principle of shared community respect towards one another’s privacy. All portfolio companies are encouraged to collaborate and communicate only what they are comfortable sharing; however, Uptake recognizes that companies may share sensitive information while participating in the program and asks all portfolio companies to respect the privacy of internal discussions, and abide by the Non Disclosure Agreement and the Membership Agreement.

Membership Violations & Terminations

Upon acceptance to the program, all portfolio companies must commit to program expectations by signing a Membership Agreement and Non Disclosure Agreement.

If a company violates the terms of the Membership Agreement, they will receive a written report from Uptake with a clear description of the violation. The Uptake team will work to avoid membership termination wherever possible and will be available to discuss and clarify violations with companies.