Design Thinking Bootcamp – ACT SMART INNOVATION HUB STARTUPS

Context & Background

Berytech is a leading organization in the Entrepreneurial Eco-system in Lebanon, that aims to provide a conducive environment for the creation and development of startups, through incubation, business support, counseling, funding, networking, and the company hosting, hence taking part in the economic revival of the country, participating in wealth and job creation, and retaining graduates and high-level skills in Lebanon.

Through the Clyntech Accelerator Program, startups receive support to develop their Minimum Viable Product, test it with early adopters, and build their capacity to establish their business from marketing, financial, management and operational levels. The Program aims to contribute to job creation and sustainable economic development while advancing the Lebanese entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The Clyntech Accelerator Program's mission is to nurture and grow proof of concepts, and prototypes that share three common characteristics:

• An innovation with scientific or technological focus in the Cleantech sector.

1. The possibility to scale beyond the local market
2. The potential to create sustainable job opportunities locally

Scope of work

• • The Accelerator Program seeks a Design Thinking expert to plan and facilitate a dynamic bootcamp for up to 12 early-stage startups with a prototype or a minimum viable product (MVP) in the clean-tech sectors. The primary focus of this engagement is to support startups in identifying and validating their riskiest assumptions, refining their business models, and preparing them for the acceleration phase. This will be achieved by guiding startups through design thinking methodologies with an emphasis on empathy, validation, and testing, while also helping them gain a clear understanding of their business objectives, target customers and competitive landscape. Ultimately, the bootcamp aims to prepare startups to improve their

products, validate product–market fit, and align their growth and marketing plans with the requirements of the next program phase.

• • Facilitating a 2 / 3-Day Bootcamp:
  • Lead a dynamic, hands-on 3-day bootcamp for 12 startups at the MVP &/or Prototype stage participating in the Accelerator Program.
  • Design and deliver interactive sessions aimed at helping startups learn to empathize with their users (gaining a solid understanding of their market, the problem they are solving and validating their solution fit)
  • Utilize design thinking methodologies and tools to guide startups in refining their business models, improving their product, and maintaining constant iteration for the improvement of their solution to validate their Product / market fit.
  • Foster an environment conducive to collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving among participants.
  • Provide hands-on support and guidance to startups throughout the bootcamp focusing on their unique value proposition, validation tools and methods and problem-solution fit.

The bootcamp will run over 2 / 3 intensive days focused on market validation and prototype testing, followed by a one-week pause for startups to conduct real stakeholder interviews and field validation, and concluding with an additional day dedicated to refining their UVP and developing a pilot roadmap based on the insights gathered.

Objective 1: Stress-test Problem & Market Fit

Challenge assumptions about the problem, customers, and market to ensure the startup is solving something real and valuable.

Suggested Topics & Activities:

• • Introduction: Refresher on design thinking mindset in the context of cleantech.
  • Stakeholders    mapping:   Identify    all   stakeholders    (users,    buyers,   regulators, municipalities, industry partners)
  • Problem Validation: Formulate and refine problem statements, focusing on “jobs to be done”.
  • Customer Personas: Build or revisit detailed customer personas (needs, pains, adoption drivers/barriers).
  • Riskiest Assumptions (RAT): Identify and prioritize assumptions related to customer needs, willingness to pay, adoption barriers…
  • Deliverables: Problem statement, stakeholder map, list of riskiest assumptions, updated customer personas.

Objective 2: Solution & Business Model Validation

Ensure that the solution fits the problem and has a viable, scalable model. Suggested Topics & Activities:

• • Value Proposition Refinement: Using insights from Day 1, update the Value Proposition Canvas.
  • Prototype / MVP Testing: Explore testing methods.
  • Business Model Stress-Test: Desirability, Viability and Feasibility.
  • Competitive Landscape: Identify direct competitors and substitutes, highlight differentiation.
  • Deliverables: Updated value proposition canvas, refined prototype, updated business model canvas.

Objective 3: UVP & Pilot/Growth Roadmap

Help startups translate insights into a clear UVP and a roadmap for growth. Suggested Topics & Activities:

• • Unique Value Proposition (UVP): Crafting a clear and compelling Unique Value Proposition.
  • Developing a Validation Roadmap: Build an actionable roadmap: what experiments to run in the next 3–6 months (pilots, partnerships, pricing tests).
  • Deliverables: UVP statement, Validation roadmap.
  • Facilitating the “Return Day”:

Objective: Validate progress, showcase learnings, and stress-test next steps.

The Return Day serves as a checkpoint to consolidate the work done during the field validation week and ensure startups are moving forward on tested insights rather than assumptions. The main objective is to validate learnings, refine business models and roadmaps, and align on next steps for the acceleration phase.

Startups can present their findings in a pitch-lab style format, followed by expert and peer feedback. The session can also include group reflections and discussions to encourage peer-to-peer learning, and close with each startup defining a clear action plan for the coming months.

• • Key areas of focus:
  • Validate riskiest assumptions in business models, markets, and value propositions.
  • Apply design thinking as a practical, iterative process for refining solutions.
  • Ensure startups understand their business objectives, customers, and competition.

1. Prepare startups to advance toward product improvement, go-to-market strategy, and marketing in the acceleration phase.

Expected deliverables

• • Bootcamp Delivery: Facilitation of a 2–3 day, in-person bootcamp combining design thinking, market validation, and business model refinement for up to 12 startups.
  • Return Day Facilitation: A full-day session to review fieldwork insights, validate

progress, and refine each startup’s roadmap through expert and peer feedback.

• • Follow-up Sessions: One online follow-up session per startup (up to 30 minutes each) to review deliverables, assess progress, and provide tailored recommendations.
  • Validated Frameworks per Startup: A completed and refined Business Model Canvas and Value Proposition Canvas, including a well-defined UVP, updated based on field validation.
  • Validation Roadmap: For each startup, a documented short-term roadmap outlining next validation steps (pilots, customer tests, partnerships) to guide the acceleration phase.
  • Workshops Materials: All presentations, case studies, and reference materials used during the bootcamp, provided in digital format.
  • Templates & Canvases: Practical templates and canvases (Lean Canvas, Value Proposition Canvas, Business Model Canvas, Validation Roadmap tools, etc.) made available to startups and the program team for continued use.

Qualifications

• Certification as a Design Thinking/Design Sprint practitioner or coach, in addition to having business knowledge.
• Proven experience in facilitating interactive workshops and bootcamps for startups or similar organizations.
• Rigorous business acumen across many of the following areas: Business Development, Product Development, Product Management, Startups, Marketing (Product or Brand), Organizational Behavior, Operations, Finance, and Design
• Experience working with early-stage startups
• Excellent communication skills
• Strategic in thinking and analytical in execution