The Rady School of Management's Sullivan Center for Entrepreneurship (Center) is seeking a team of venture fellows to develop and determine early growth strategy for Mercury Health. This Venture Fellow opportunity is open to pre-formed diverse cross-disciplinary teams of 3-5 students, preferably including at least one MBA student and/or able to demonstrate experience with growth strategies.

Early Growth Strategy
Determine the growth strategy for an early-stage venture. The company has existing sales and partnerships with key customers across two markets. The Founders are pursuing a first round of funding and seek recommendations on growth scenarios based on a projected level of investment. The Venture Fellows Team will work with the Founders, a Mentor, and use the company’s initial pro-forma financials, in-depth conversations with existing customers, and market research to develop a milestone-based growth plan.

As part of this project, the Team may revise the financials, provide deep analysis and recommendations on the company’s value to long-term care/memory-care facilities, and conduct deep research into the company’s market framework, particularly providing analysis of top customers (B2B) in each of the company’s two main segments – assisted living and memory care facilities and the home care markets.

Benefit:

• Hands-on experience working as a team with a nascent, highly viable start-up and experienced mentor on a critical stage of a start-up’s growth. Students will be able to include their participation on their resume and will receive a letter of completion from the Center, pending a final review by the Science Lead, Mentor, and the Center’s Executive Director.
• Course credit (2 Units): One unit for Fall 2022 and one unit for Winter 2023. Rady students may apply the project toward a 499 Independent Study. Other students may check with their home department on the application of credit.
• Non-Credit: Students may elect to participate in the project without academic credit.

Fall 2022:
B2B Customer Value Analysis - generate metrics around how much business value the company can provide two key customer segments:

• Assisted Living and/or Memory Care Facilities: Determine the scaled value that AI-augmented caregiving provides facilities using metrics collected internally and directly from business partners. Verify this analysis with the customers. (2 pages)
• In-Home Care: Determine the business growth/sales model for new AI-augmented caregiving for partners providing in-home care. (2 pages)

Winter 2022:
B2B Customer Market Analysis – conduct deep research into the top 4-5 customers in each of the two markets; evaluate their place /size in the market, current technologies used, sales cycles, sales and distribution channels used to engage these customers; tradeshows and trade publications used by each market, etc. (3-5 page report)

Time Frame/Commitment
Fall 2022: 4-5 weeks for 2-3 hours per week, including one mandatory weekly call with the founders and the mentor. One final session will be scheduled to review the project to date and assess the deliverables.

Winter 2022: 4-5 weeks for 2-3 hours per week, including on mandatory weekly call with the founders and the mentor. One final session of an 60-90 minutes to review the entire project, assess the deliverable, and review the Venture Fellows process.

Expectations
The Fellows will work diligently and professionally with the Center’s Executive Director, the Founders, and the Mentor. The Fellows are expected to work collaboratively and to support each other toward the successful completion of the project. The Fellow(s) will meet for 60-90 minutes for a kick-off meeting with the leadership team and others relevant to the project.

The Fellows are expected to work both as a team and independently and meet with the Mentor and the Founders for approximately 60 minutes once a week for the duration of the project to report on progress and to discuss any questions or issues. The Team may also be required to meet and report to the Center’s Executive Director or others on a more regular basis.

*𝘏𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 "𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘥" 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱 12.5 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵 (𝘰𝘯𝘦-𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘩) 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘢, 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘰/𝘓𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘴 (𝘜𝘊𝘖𝘗: 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘈𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘴, 2003).