The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will introduce a multi-faceted evaluation system from the second cohort to resolve the "black-box screening" controversy that arose during the first cohort of "Startup for All." In the second cohort, it plans to expand the recruitment size to widen startup opportunities and raise screening transparency through an operating-agency review committee.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) said on the 16th that it held the "Startup for All first-cohort launch ceremony" at Startup Venture Campus Seoul (SVC Seoul) and began operating the startup nurturing program. For the first cohort of Startup for All, 63,000 people applied and 5,000 were selected.
Startup for All is a state-supported project that allows anyone with just an idea to try starting a business. A total of 119 institutions with startup incubation capabilities have built a support system, and institutions and mentors directly scout founders and provide support ranging from mentoring to commercialization.
At Startup Venture Campus Seoul on the day, more than 120 people attended, including Minister Han Seong-sook of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS), first-cohort selectees who beat a 12.6-to-1 competition rate, mentor institutions, and senior founders. Minister Han said, "Startup for All is building founder-ecosystem databases and creating a foundation on which anyone can achieve consolidation."
She added, "The ideas selected this time reflect attempts to find new opportunities amid tough challenges across society," and said, "The government will back you so that experiences of failure become an asset for new challenges by issuing challenge résumés and supporting re-tries."
While Startup for All is meaningful as a first step toward a national startup era, controversy arose over the objectivity of screening. One mentor evaluated 20 to 40 submitted startup ideas, and critics also said the reasons for nonselection were unclear.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) plans to ensure objectivity by having three mentors evaluate one idea starting with the second cohort. It also prepared guidelines to provide unsuccessful applicants with at least 200 characters of reviewer comments. Operating agencies will check the screening and activity status of their affiliated mentors and will exclude insincere mentors from participation. It will also mandate an operating-agency review committee that confirms successful candidates by agency resolution.
An official at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) said, "It won't be a method where one person leads and two assist; three people will evaluate quantitatively and reflect opinions equally," and explained, "If a (mentor) does not fulfill the role or there is a problem, participants can request a mentor replacement from the operating agency."
Kwon Do-gyun, CEO of Primer, which participated as a mentor institution at the event, noted, "The biggest asset confirmed in this selection process was the challengers' determination to see things through," and said, "The mentor group will also provide close, step-by-step support so that challengers can successfully start their businesses."
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) plans to expand the recruitment size for the second cohort of Startup for All to 10,000 people. The eligibility will also be expanded from prospective founders or startups within three years of founding to prospective founders or startups within seven years of founding.
Minister Han said, "The government will listen to on-site voices and reflect your experiences and suggestions to develop this into Korea's leading startup platform."