Startup Growth Entrepreneurship in Oulu region

Startup Growth Entrepreneurship in Oulu Region project supports the development of startup and growth entrepreneurship in Oulu by activating people from different backgrounds to develop business ideas and startup skills and by providing opportunities for networking and team building. The project will create a new, open startup programme for the Oulu higher education community. The project will also seek collaborative contacts with international startup ecosystems to support the growth of Oulu companies.

The project is co-funded by the European Union, with funding granted by the Council of Oulu Region. Other funding is provided by the City of Oulu and the implementing organisation Oulu University of Applied Sciences.

The main objectives of the project are:

1. To create new activation and teaming concepts.
2. Increase startup skills and create a new startup programme open to all in Oulu’s higher education institutions.
3. Develop communication, cooperation and coordination of startup activities in the Oulu region.
4. To find partners in international startup ecosystems and growth paths for Oulu-based startup entrepreneurs to internationalize.

1. Development of different approaches to activate the start-up ecosystem. The result will be new event concepts that support the creation of startup teams and business idea development as a basis for a dynamic startup ecosystem.
2. Development of a startup programme for the Oulu university community and promotion of the startup skills of Oulu region’s business development actors. In the new startup programme, participants will develop and validate business ideas using lean startup methods. In addition, the skills of business development staff will be developed, thereby multiplying the chances of success of the Oulu region’s growth startup teams.
3. Cooperation between startup business development actors will be developed and coordinated. Communication channels will be developed to make startup growth business development services accessible to all. Additionally, Business Corner space on the Linnanmaa campus will be established as a space for business development and innovation.
4. Cooperation with international startup ecosystems will be strengthened, which will provide support for the development of the Oulu startup ecosystem and further pathways for the international growth of local growth entrepreneurial teams.