Virtual Shark Tank CareFactor for Aged Care Entrepreneurs in Australia
Aged care innovation event, CareFactor, is set to launch on Monday 9 November, following a successful program in 2019 that brought entrepreneurs, mentors and investors together.
Led by Bentleys Queensland, CareFactor is an accelerated program of growth and learning for Australian aged care start ups, entrepreneurs, and intrapreneurs.
After a competitive application process, ten teams will grow their products with the help of mentors, community and networks in aged care, technology, marketing, investors and capital raising.
Last year’s program featured a mix of in-person and virtual events, culminating into a Pitch Day with an audience of 200.
With teams spread across Australia and impacted by travel bans, CareFactor 2020 will be fully online – consisting of a 3 Day Masterclass, mentoring program, and Pitch Day e-vent, running from November 2020 to early 2021.
“We’ve had to be creative this year because of COVID-19, but we weren’t going to let the pandemic stop us from rolling out the program safely, because it’s reiterated that innovation in aged care is needed now more than ever. And that’s the whole purpose of CareFactor,” said Bentleys Partner and CareFactor architect, Heath Shonhan.
Following huge success last year, CareFactor is again running ‘speed pitching’ sessions where teams get rapid feedback and market validation from industry providers. This year, they will be online and held across multiple sessions, starting on Tuesday 10 November.
Image: ‘Speed pitching’ at CareFactor 2019
With the help of sponsors such as Telstra Health, ACSA, Paynters, Redchip, Sprint, and Westpac, CareFactor strikes the balance between providing aged care industry insight and intensive scale-up exercises.
Telstra Health Head of Aged & Disability Michael Donnelly said, “This year has emphasised the need for innovation in aged care, and as Australia’s largest eHealth company, we are pleased to support CareFactor to help drive that industry development.”
Sprint Founder and Managing Director, and CareFactor Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Llew Jury said, “To see the teams grow from day one to Pitch Day makes us, as their coaches, really proud. And it’s exciting to see them make a mark in the industry.”
CareFactor 2019 team Hayylo won last year’s Pitch Day contest in December. Sprint went on to invest in Hayylo in early 2020.
The Pitch Day contest will be held virtually in early 2021.
To stay up-to-date with CareFactor, follow Bentleys Queensland on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.