Welcome to 2025 Planning Season🎊

• Founder's Notes
• Introducing Community Sessions
• Ecosystem Updates - New Unicorn Alert

📮 Founder's Notes

I’ve been told I can no longer say “Happy New Year” since we’re well into January, so instead, let me officially welcome you to the 2025 planning season!

For many of you—fellow founders—I know this time of year means being knee-deep in planning and setting team goals that strike the right balance between ambitious and executable. That’s exactly where I am right now.

The last thing I want to do is create an epic goal system only to let it lounge all year in a Google Drive folder or hide away on some forgotten Notion page—never to be seen again, or worse, completely forgotten.I know some of you have experienced this too (as we definitely have in the past). That’s why we’ve refined our approach, and I want to share a bit of our process to help you with yours.

At The Beta Collective, we use Objective and Key Results (OKRs) as our goal-setting framework. For those unfamiliar, here’s a quick overview:

• Objectives: High-level, aspirational goals.
• Key Results (KRs): Tangible, measurable outcomes and milestones that indicate progress toward the objective.

To make Key Results more actionable, we break them down further into Initiatives, Projects, and Tasks:

• Initiatives: Strategic focus areas to drive a Key Result.
• Projects: Time-bound efforts that accomplish specific parts of an initiative.
• Tasks: Discrete action steps that complete a project.

Once we’ve set our OKRs, we layer in KPIs and metrics to track progress. I’ve found that keeping things simple significantly increases the likelihood of follow-through. For example, we limit the number of OKRs and assign no more than two KPIs per Key Result to avoid overcomplicating the process.

What I love about this system is how it forces me to clearly define success by identifying the right outcomes and milestones. This way, I know exactly when I’ve achieved my goals.

If this structure sounds interesting and you’d like to learn more, let me know! If enough people express interest, I’d be happy to include it in our first community session and dive deeper into how it works.

Speaking of community, I’m thrilled to share that this year we’re doubling down on being more community-focused. Expect invitations to monthly virtual office hours and community sessions covering topics like investment readiness, startup accounting, legal advice, and expert mentorship.

We’re so excited to have you with us on this journey. Wishing you all the best as you tackle your 2025 goals!

Wishing you success,
Ukeme D.
Founder, The Beta Collective

🙌🏽 Introducing Community Sessions

This year, we’re going in on our commitment to building a vibrant, supportive community for founders and innovators like you. That’s why we’re introducing Community Sessions, a series designed to help you tackle challenges, gain valuable insights, and connect with like-minded peers.

It'll be a combination of the following depending on agenda.

• Office Hours: Informal small group discussions, to help founders tackle specific challenges, get expert advice, or simply get some help with your pitch.
• Learning Sessions: Interactive workshops and expert-led presentations on topics like investment readiness, startup accounting, legal frameworks, and more. These sessions are designed to equip you with actionable strategies and tools.
• Collaboration Labs: Problem-solving sessions where founders can share their pain points and collaborate on solutions with peers and mentors.

We hope these sessions are an opportunity for founders in our community to grow, and build alongside a network of driven and supportive individuals.

🗓️ First Session will be on Thursday Jan 30th, 2025

Stay tuned for more info on our first session—we can’t wait to see you there!

🌟 New Unicorn Alert: Africa's Innovation Resilience! 🌟

2024 may have brought challenges, but it also showcased the unshakable resilience of Africa’s tech ecosystem. Despite a 25% drop in total funding—$2.2 billion raised compared to $2.9 billion in 2023—the year proved to be anything but quiet for innovation on the continent.

Here’s the breakdown of Africa’s funding journey in 2024:

• $2.2 billion raised across equity, debt, and grants.
• 188 ventures secured $1 million or more—a slight 10% dip from 2023, highlighting ongoing investor confidence.
• A slow start with less than $800 million in H1, but an inspiring 80% recovery in H2, bringing in $1.4 billion.

🎉 And the crowning achievement? Two new unicorns emerged in Q4:

• Moniepoint, a fintech powerhouse driving financial inclusion.
• Tyme Group, reshaping banking and financial services.

These milestones are a testament to the continent’s relentless innovation and potential. While 2024 tested the ecosystem, it also reinforced its strength and adaptability, setting the stage for an even brighter future in 2025. 🚀

Read more here

Applications Open for the 11th Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme! 🌟

The Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme (TEFEP) is back for its 11th year, offering an incredible opportunity to African entrepreneurs!

Here’s what’s on the table:

• 💡 Startup Training: Access world-class resources to refine your business idea or startup.
• 🤝 Mentorship: Learn from experienced entrepreneurs and industry leaders.
• 💵 Seed Capital: Receive up to $5,000 in non-refundable funding to bring your vision to life.
• 🌍 Global Connections: Join a vast network of over 15,000 entrepreneurs who have benefited from the program since its inception, powered by a $100 million commitment to African innovation.

Your startup must be less than five years old.

📅 Don’t miss out: Applications close on March 31, 2025.

Apply now: Read more here

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"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment" - Jim Rohn