3/ ODF = an intensive 10-week program bringing together a community of experienced engineers, designers, operators, and repeat founders. Includes extensive expert-led curriculum, co-founder dating, and more.
4/ In a post-COVID world, the cracks are starting to show in the institutions we grew up with. Anyone paying $100k+ for college/MBA right now would agree.
As @pmarca would say: it’s time to build new institutions.
5/ We are assembling a special team of builders to take on this challenge.
We don’t want people who are content as engineers or product managers, working for someone else the rest of their career.
We want to hire people who will start and run their own companies in the future.
6/ Whether you're with us 6 months or 6 years, your time at On Deck should be less of a "step on your career ladder", and more a series of learning curves.
The faster you can run up a curve, the harder we'll work to make sure there's another one waiting for you. 🏃♀️🏃♂️
7/ When there's nothing left to learn at On Deck, we'll help you take the next step and start your own company.
In your time with us you’ll get to know potential co-founders, collaborators, and investors.
If you're with us for 3+ years, we'll be your first investor too. 🚀💰
8/ We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, and encourage folks from underrepresented groups in tech.
"If [college] teaches people to be productive citizens of society, On Deck is helping them become productive citizens of the internet"
— @eriktorenberg on the @NFX podcast.
What does this mean?
Why does it matter?
A quick thread exploring the @beondeck mission/vision:
👇👇
First, let's wind back the clock ⏪⏱
Back in the 90's and early 2000's, capital and credentials were bottlenecks to starting a technology company.
Anyone can start up... so long as you can get an MBA and $10M from Sand Hill Road.
In the mid 2000s, that all changed.
With the rise of AWS & open source software, the cost to spin up new software products plummeted.
Now, anyone can start up... so long as you can code.
"I may not be starting a startup just yet — i'm taking some time out to explore, advise, angel invest, and think about what I want to do next. Is @beondeck for me?"
We use “on deck” as a verb to describe the state of being between things or thinking of moving on — being "open to opportunity."
To be clear: most in ODF are/are planning to be founders.
But tenured "explorers" contribute immensely to the community, and get a lot of value too.
While this group have been *incredibly* generous with their time, it's not all about "giving"
Joining On Deck is a powerful way to refresh your network, get inspired and boost your entrepreneurial energy, learn some new skills or test some ideas.