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Grupo Guayacán seeks applications for 11th edition of Venture Accelerator

Grupo Guayacán Inc. announced the start of its annual call for applications for the Guayacán Venture Accelerator, an entrepreneurial education and development program for companies established in Puerto Rico seeking new growth opportunities.

Companies, which are selected through a competitive process, must
be in operations for at least three years and demonstrate
organizational capacity and commitment to design and implement an aggressive
growth plan.

Participating teams will benefit from a curriculum of advanced education and tools to develop their growth plan, which may include increasing local market share, entry to international markets, or development of new products or services. GGI seeks to identify 10 to 12 companies to participate in the 2019 program.

The program consists of a series of 14 educational workshops
offered by a renowned group of academics, professionals, executives, and
investors from Puerto Rico, the United States, and Canada. In addition, each
participating company will be paired with a mentor to help them implement their
expansion plans.

Lastly,
companies will benefit from a series of coaching sessions where distinguished
entrepreneurs, investors, and professionals offer their perspectives and advice.
The purpose of these sessions is to prepare companies to present their growth
plans before a panel of business experts and local and international investors
at the Guayacán Demo Day.

On Feb. 22nd, Grupo Guayacán will host an event for companies
interested in the GVA. The event features a presentation by Antonio Sifre and
Abdón Ruiz of Juncture Venture Advisors, GVA instructors and experts in
corporate finance, exit planning, and mergers and acquisitions.

The theme of the presentation is “Planning for the Future: Transition
and Exit Strategies for Growing Companies.”

“The GVA is a unique program in Puerto Rico that allows
participating companies to look deeply into their business model to grow
locally and, potentially, enter new international markets. We are incredibly proud
of the success our GVA graduates have achieved and we invite Puerto Rican
companies in search of new opportunities to accept the challenge and apply,” said
Laura Cantero, executive director of Grupo Guayacán.

Since its launch in 2010, the GVA has become one
of GGI’s cornerstone entrepreneurship programs and has impacted 88 companies representing over 6,500 jobs. The 2018 class
included 11 companies: Able Sales, EDP University, La Ceba, Nazareno Services, Piloto
151, AZ Engineering, Conspro, IT Group, Levain Artisan Bakery, Synerlution, and
South Caribbean Financial Services.

“As a result of our participation in the GVA, we are implementing new
growth strategies, from creating new products to establishing new partnerships,
and transforming our recruitment processes,” said Gabriela Soler, director of operations
for Able Sales.

This new GVA
class features a record growth in the Pay-it-Forward fellowship program.
Founded by Jorge López, CEO of Fuller Group and GVA 2014 alumni, it covers the
cost of tuition for a current participant who in turn commits to offer a
scholarship to a participant of the subsequent class.

This is the
fifth year that Fuller Group contributes uninterruptedly to the fellowship
program, which has been granted to companies like La Ceba, Máximo Solar,
Connect Road Assist, and MedPlus Solutions, among others.

In addition
to the Pay-it-Forward, the GVA 2019 will also offer the Health
Innovation Fellowship sponsored by the MCS Foundation and a fellowship sponsored
by the Puerto Rico Builders Association for a leading company in the construction
industry. The GVA is also supported by the Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company.

Companies interested in participating in the GVA must apply HERE by
May 1st. The program will be held from June to November 2019.

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This story was written by our staff based on a press release.
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