Access to mobility is the single most important driver to alleviate poverty. The MAN Impact Accelerator is built to scale social ventures in transport and logistics with a considerable impact on society. It takes you on a journey through four ecosystems in Europe, India, South Africa and California. Get access to a pool of more than 300 mentors, become inspired by social entrepreneurs and learn from leaders of your industry!
The MAN Impact Accelerator supports social business startups in the field of mobility, transport and logistics to accelerate their impactful innovations.
The MAN Impact Accelerator brings social entrepreneurs from Europe, South Africa and India together to tackle social and environmental challenges through innovative solutions in the transport and logistics space. Join us on a journey from Munich to Wolfsburg via Mumbai and Cape Town to San Francisco.
Connect with fellow entrepreneurs, get access to a pool of more than 300 mentors from MAN Truck & Bus, Salesforce and Yunus Social Business. Among them are MAN CEO Joachim Drees and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Muhammad Yunus who has built social businesses impacting over 27 million people. Get also access to impact investors and key MAN resources.
MAN has developed this program in cooperation with Yunus Social Business to create an impact for the underprivileged while building sustainable businesses. We will leverage new technologies to create innovative solutions that have a significant impact on the society or the environment.
We will connect you with a global community of like-minded people. That is why we will take you on a journey across four continents. It prepares you to think differently and build your own network for future growth. We will aim at nothing less than transforming your life and the trajectory of your business.
The MAN Impact Accelerator kicks off at the Global Social Business Summit in Wolfsburg in November 2018. The curriculum that follows will take you to cities like Munich, Mumbai, Cape Town and San Francisco. The official closing ceremony in Munich in June 2019 will mark the end of the program.
23 September 2018
Application Deadline
Last chance to get your application sent!
04 – 09 November 2018
1st Program Week in Munich & Global Social Business Summit in Wolfsburg (Germany)
Start the program off with amazing mentors around purpose, team building and industry expertise. Meet executives from MAN Truck & Bus and Yunus Social Business (incl. Prof. Yunus) as well as the global social business community.
21 – 23 January 2019
2nd Program Week in Mumbai (India)
Learn from experienced mentors in the fields of Product Development and Growth Marketing. Get to know key stakeholders and partners in the Mumbai ecosystem.
04 – 07 March 2019
3rd Program Week in Cape Town (South Africa)
Meet mentors who will help you integrate social or environmental impact into your business model and HR experts who can help you build a more resilient business. Visit exciting stakeholders in Africa’s most vibrant startup ecosystem.
29 April – 01 May 2019
4th Program Week in San Francisco (USA)
Get a sip of the Silicon Valley’s spirit and ambition to understand how you can scale your business beyond national borders. Meet tech mentors to learn about the latest technology and talk to investors who have backed the world’s leading social businesses.
17 – 20 June 2019
Final Program Week in Munich (Germany)
Learn more about how to persuasively present your business and visit Munich’s most exciting places for startup entrepreneurs. Put your newly acquired skills into action when meeting impact investors over dinner and presenting your progress at our final Closing Ceremony.
SELECTION CRITERIA
We accept social businesses and impactful startups from Europe, India or South Africa that have a strong logistics, transport or mobility focus with a prototype and preferably early revenues. Startups must have a strong purpose and create both tangible and measurable impact beyond financial returns.
BENEFITS
The program offers a range of benefits from various partners. The below list is by far not comprehensive and gives you an indication of how we help you grow further.
ASSETS & SERVICES FROM MAN
- MAN Staff Mentors with Industry Expertise
- MAN’s Global Network of Partners
- MAN’s Supply & Distribution Networks
- Access to the Volkswagen family
- Access to MAN’s “RIO” platform
ASSETS & SERVICES FROM YSB
- Access to Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Prof. Yunus
- Visiting entrepreneurs from the YSB portfolio
- Access to social businesses by Grameen
- Potential funding from YSB
- Access to a global impact investor community
ASSETS & SERVICES FROM OTHER PARTNERS
- Access to more than 300 mentors
- Consulting services
- Visits at sites of social entrepreneurs
- Access to the Silicon Valley community
- Software for free or at preferred rates
FINANCIALS & COSTS
Travel and accommodation costs are covered by MAN Truck & Bus. The program provides an indirect grant and support of up to 50,000 USD for each startup (no equity or cash). This also includes free access to coaches and mentors as well as to software and data perks for free or at preferred rates.