FAQs

Everything You Need to Know to Get Started with Fc

Why did you choose the name “Fc” or Centripetal?

The goal of Fc is to provide validation for your solution, at scale, allocate you enterprise mentors and identify a sales pipeline for you to access once milestones are completed. All with the end goal of achieving a scaled company and a follow on institutional financing round from a venture capital firm. We see this journey in the same way we think of centripetal force, which is why we named the company Fc, the physics symbol for centripetal force.

Further, our site's address, www.fcmv2r.com is an homage to the mathematical equation for centripetal force, Fc = mv2 / r. Using the centripetal force process, Fc’s mission is to increase the size (m) of an early stage company or solution and the speed (v) at which it goes to market, while simultaneously compressing the space (r) between the company and its eventual customers, the enterprise IT decision maker community. This net effectively increases centripetal force (Fc = mv2/r), which de-risks & accelerates the founder's journey. The goal is to generate enough force to achieve escape velocity once released.

If we participated in an accelerator, can also participate in the Fc program?

Yes, of course. You are more than welcome to also submit your solution for rapid review.

Can we apply more than once?

Yes, if you did not make it through the first time but you think something has materially changed/improved, then yes, by all means please apply again. Just please note that this is a follow up application.

Can I participate in the Fc program if I am a student or working in another job?

Likely not. All companies in our program should be fully focused on the company that is being built / scaled.

We have already raised capital, are we still able to submit our solution for a rapid review?

Certainly, having raised capital does not exclude you from submitting your solution for a rapid review.

Is my company too early to apply to the Fc program?

We evaluate a broad spectrum of companies and founder. From those whom only have an idea, are pre-revenue and have not yet incorporated - all the way to companies that have revenue and customers.

How often are companies evaluated and when should I expect to receive a response?

We assess 8-12 companies weekly. Within 30 days of your application submission you will be informed if your company is chosen for rapid review. At that time you will be given a date of when the rapid review will take place. Once assessed, the results should be returned in a matter of weeks.

How do you choose which founders to accept into the Fc program?

Our team filters through every submission to determine which should be entered into the confidential rapid review and separately invited into our program. We are currently focused on scaling enterprise technologies companies.

We look for strong founders and team that have a passion for the problem they are trying to solve. The goal is to identify an important problem with a smart and intelligent approach to solving it and an ability to materially scale.

What is the time commitment of the Fc program?

We expect our founders to be fully focused on their companies. Once accepted into the program, we expect them to be dedicated to scaling their business and achieving the key milestones agreed upon.

We do not put a time frame on the process as some will achieve their milestones in 4 months and others in 12+ months. Regardless, we will be there to support you during the full journey.

What is the location of Fc - do I need to move?

Fc is a virtual program and you do not need to move from your current location. We remotely provide founders with our full suite of services including enterprise IT mentors/advisors.

What if I'm post-Ideation, but not yet ready for the Fast Track?

The majority of the companies we meet and work with fall into this camp. The idea is already hatched, the corporation is likely already formed and a few dollars from friends & family have been raised. Maybe even a SAFE was done and the company has angel investors involved. However, the company doesn't have enough engineers & developers to support enterprise clients at scale and/or the company isn't getting enough product traction in the market. In truth, most early stage technology companies do not have enough sales engineers to properly support an enterprise client until they complete a true institutional round.

In these situations, we essentially use an On-ramp before merging onto the Fast Track. Here, an early stage company initially meets a small select group of enterprise buyers that fit their ideal customer profile. These enterprise IT decision makers act as advisors, so as to 'ready' the solution & company to then meet the interested buyers identified during the rapid review.

Must my company go through the entire Fc process & program... Is there Fast Track?

Yes and No. All submissions selected for our rapid review process will be reviewed by our community of high-level enterprise IT decision makers. This is necessary as it not only validates the solution at scale, but it also garners and aggregates indications of interest from our community of IT buyers, which is used later in the process for the purposes of introductions and product previews. That said, those that already have a working solution and possibly customers and revenue, can be Fast Tracked.

Fast Tracked solutions and companies skip having mentors & milestones assigned and go straight from the rapid review to introductions and product previews with the enterprise IT pros that indicated interest during the rapid review. In theory, a Fast Tracked company could potentially go from the rapid review this week to meeting hundreds of interested enterprise IT decision makers & buyers next week.

Do we need to form a corporation before submitting our solution?

No, you don’t. One of Fc's many resources is access to some of the best corporate attorneys available. We ask that when you do incorporate, that your parent company is a Ccorporation located in the United States.

How is Fc Compensated?

We receive a fixed amount of equity value, regardless of your current valuation. This is standardized and automated across all participants in the process. We view this as good faith equity which allows your company to leverage the entire platform and process to create material shareholder value. If your company does a fundraising round in the future, driven by the success on Fc’s platform, we will have the ability to invest in that round, at the market terms, without a discount. We benefit in the future if you are successful.

Does Fc take a percentage of what they help raise in the future?

No. We will facilitate introductions to our venture investor partners but we do not take a percentage of dollars raised. This is all part of the Fc Platform

If we have already raised venture or growth capital, can we also work with Fc?

Yes, of course. Our program and process is the ideal for early stage companies looking to raise capital for the first time from VCs / institutions or that have recently become venture backed. Our process that simultaneously provides validation-at-scale and populates sales funnels is ideal for pre-seed through series A companies. See the following FAQ below regarding our Fast Track

Would Fc participate in my company’s current capital raise?

No. It is uncommon for accelerators to participate in companies' open rounds. Fc, similar to other accelerators, is not a simple cut & dry investor, but rather a value-added partner actively creating value over the long term. We participate in a private round with the company using our own term sheet. Note we will selectively participate in future rounds of our current portfolio companies but we do not invest in current open rounds of Fc applicants.

Does Fc accept all Enterprise facing companies that apply to the accelerator program?

No. Historically we accept around 10%-15% of all applications to our program.

How much will Fc invest in my company?

Fc provides companies in our acceleration program with access to financial, human and intellectual capital to drive their success and increase total company value. Fc’s typical contribution is around $10,000. We view this as a stipend, similar to most other accelerators, for your company to use as you wish. As an accelerator program, we partner with your company to actively create shareholder value utilizing our process, platform and network.

We allow the company to benefit from Fc’s accelerator platform and gain significant momentum from our network, to pre-populate your sales channel, build your technical board of advisors and when ready, make capital introductions to the venture community. Also note when there is a subsequent raise, it is at this time we could participate more meaningfully in the follow-on.

Can I leverage the free confidential rapid review for myself without going through the program?

Yes. Every company that is reviewed by our community of IT decision makers, will receive the results.

This review can potentially validate your solution and you are able to leverage this information to gain a better understanding of how key IT decision makers view your solution

What is the standalone value of the results of the rapid review?

The results of the rapid review will be confidentially and securely delivered to you as a spreadsheet in a matter of weeks post your review. This file will contain profile-attributed response data from potentially hundreds of global IT decision makers (CIOs/CTOs/CSOs) that assessed your technology solution (e.g. size of organization, geographic location, industry, private or publicly traded, et al.).

This includes, but is not limited to, IF they believe the problem you are trying to solve is a real problem in the enterprise that needs to be addressed and solved, as well as IF YOUR approach warrants merit. Further, it could also contain indications of interest and willingness to preview your solution when a product is ready, as well as identify those high-level IT decision makers that are interested in mentoring you and your company. The results and the data there within can be used to justify capital investment from an institutional investment firm or even your "rich uncle", as the results are yours to do with as you wish. There is no obligation to participate in our program if invited.

Will I receive the results of the rapid review regardless of how I fare or if I want to proceed with the program?

Yes, regardless if you are invited into our program or not, you will receive and are able to keep the results of your review to do as you wish. This is free of charge, no strings attached.

What does Fc’s Accelerator Program offer?

Fc validates your solution at scale with quantifiable data directly sourced from our proprietary network of over 3000 Enterprise IT Decision Makers during our Rapid Review Process. We leverage this data to build your technical advisory board who focus on product market fit, go to market advisory and your IT stack/cyber security stack. At the same time we pre-populate your company’s sales pipeline with those specific Enterprise IT decision makers that indicated interest in your solution during the Rapid Review.

We ensure you have a material amount of potential enterprise customer meetings (as indications of interest is a material metric that Fc utilizes in determining who to invite into the program). Fc leverages our validation process to identify new and additional enterprise opportunities over time as your company continues to iterate and expand its product portfolio. Based on demonstrable success or execution during the customer meetings with Enterprise IT decision makers and/or the milestones established, Fc will begin strategizing your next fundraising round so as to launch an investor roadshow with our venture and growth investor partners and network.

My company has a working solution and paying customers, is Fc appropriate for us?

Yes. While some of our companies are earlier in their journey and pre-revenue, our platform has been very beneficial for companies that are farther along as well. With our IT advisors and team, we are able to scale a business, expand the customer base and prepare the company for an institutional funding round.

Our team has experience incubating and accelerating companies as small as pre-seed to as large as multi billion dollar public companies. We understand what is needed to build enterprise grade, regardless of where you currently are on your journey.

How do I apply to the Fc program?

Submit your solution here. This submission could provide you with a free rapid review by hundreds of Enterprise IT Executives.

Note the submission process is rolling so there are no late applications. Apply when you are ready!

Could you please provide a specific timeline and milestones for the Fc Accelerator Program?

The first milestone is entering your company into our Rapid Review where your solution will be validated and assessed by hundreds of Enterprise IT executives. This is the starting point where we can pre-populate your sales pipeline and allow you to build your technical board of advisors. The next step is to find how those IT decision makers would like to connect with you and your company. We give them the option of seeing a pre-recorded video, a one page summary of the solution, a group call with your team or a one on one with your team. The cadence of those meetings will be prioritized and scheduled based on your preferences. After completing those meetings, the goal is to secure multiple paid proof of concepts with these enterprise customers. As a reminder - Fc is a venture client model. These IT executives know that when they meet with you and evaluate the solution directly, this is not just a fact finding session.

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As a customer deploying your solution in their enterprise, they have the understanding that you will be learning from this experience with regards to go to market strategy, pricing, product market fit. You will use that knowledge to iterate and improve your future sales motion. So at the end of the day this is not just 50 siloed introductions, this is 50 venture client intros with multiple parties able to advise you going forward. And if you find a CIO/CTO that you want to work with further, you can leverage them to be on your technical board of advisors. Your company will also have the opportunity to enter back into the Rapid Review multiple times over the coming year(s) to further increase your exposure and build your sales pipeline. Our goal for you is to leverage the customers you acquire from Fc’s network to secure your next financing round with the venture community now that you have momentum, incremental revenue, incremental clients and you are making a meaningful entry into the marketplace.