Applications Close March 31, 2023

Virtual Program
10 Weeks
Apply by March 31st
Starts April 11th, 2023

A 10-week program to help women entrepreneurs build their minimum viable product (MVP)

Data shows that women and women led technology companies may take longer to develop their minimum viable product (MVP) because they lack the technical skills required within their founding team. This can cause the companies to stall longer than necessary at the discovery or early validation stage of development.

In partnership with WEtech Alliance and Sitaran Group, Haltech is bringing back Roadmap to MVP – a 10-week series that will help women-identifying tech entrepreneurs accelerate through this milestone.

Roadmap to MVP aims to give woman-identifying entrepreneurs the opportunity to define and develop their MVP in a supportive and collaborative group environment. Participants will gain access to a community of other women founders and will receive mentorship from our program facilitator – Reema Duggal – President of Sitaran Group and Co-Founder of Silicon Halton.

Who is the Roadmap to MVP program for?

  • Women identifying founders and entrepreneurs in the early stages of their startup
  • Founders looking for guidance to build their MVP (minimum viable product)
  • Women who lack the technical skills or knowledge to plan and build their MVP alone
  • Founders who want a sense of community and common objectives with those around them

Not sure if Roadmap to MVP is for you? Watch our March 6th Info Session recording.

Reema Duggal

President of Sitaran Group and Co-Founder of Silicon Halton

Reema is a strategic professional with a long career in the global IT industry; she has expertise in Revenue Generation (Strategy, Marketing, Portfolio Management) and Delivery Management (Practice Leadership, Program and Project Management). She serves as President of The Sitaran Group and Co-Founder of Silicon Halton, a 1500-person community of talented technology freelancers, solo-preneurs, entrepreneurs, and professionals.

At the Sitaran Group, Reema’s team works with companies to create Digital Business Roadmaps that will guide them in building strong businesses. These roadmaps help: drive revenue, enable digital marketing and sales activities, reduce costs by optimizing business processes and build organizational capability with strong change management and training programs.

2023 Program Schedule (Virtual)

Roadmap to MVP is a 10-week commitment consisting of 5 in-depth sessions designed to help you build your MVP. These 5 sessions will take you through the fundamental steps, key strategies, tools and resources that can help you efficiently build your MVP. Each session is followed by a “Virtual Office Hours” workshop, where you will have the opportunity to get to work and ask any questions you may have.

All sessions run from 9AM-11AM ET

WEEK 1 | UNDERSTANDING THE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT LIFECYCLE

April 11th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

This introduction session will help you:

  • Understand the product development lifecycle
  • Understand what goes into a solution definition / scope of work
  • Understand how to develop your project plans, test plans, assumptions, risks, constraints, and budget

WEEK 2 | VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS

April 18th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

An opportunity to get to work and ask any questions you may have.

WEEK 3 | DEFINING YOUR MVP PRODUCT FEATURES AND FUNCTIONS

April 25th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

In this session you will learn to develop:

  • Your mission / vision
  • Your user’s journey
  • Features, functions
  • Data flows
  • Integration requirements

WEEK 4 | VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS

May 2nd, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

An opportunity to get to work and ask any questions you may have.

WEEK 5 | DEVELOPING YOUR MVP WITH LOW/NO CODE APPLICATIONS (PT 1)

May 9th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

In this session you will learn about:

  • No code / low code platforms available to you
  • How they work and how to try them
  • You will be walked through one of the platforms to build a simple application

WEEK 6 | VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS

May 16th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

An opportunity to get to work and ask any questions you may have.

WEEK 7 | DEVELOPING YOUR MVP WITH LOW/NO CODE APPLICATIONS (PT 2)

May 23rd, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

In this session you will about:

  • Working through build challenges
  • Making sure the processes, data, and user interfaces work
  • Testing

WEEK 8 | VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS

May 30th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

An opportunity to get to work and ask any questions you may have.

WEEK 9 | DEVELOPING YOUR MVP WITH EXTERNAL HELP

June 6th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

In this session you will learn about:

  • How you can find a development team
  • How to discuss your vision / scope, features and functions, timelines and budget
  • How expectations need to be defined for successful projects
  • The top hosting / cloud computing platforms available to you to host your application and how to evaluate the features
  • How to understand pricing models

WEEK 10 | VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS

June 13th, 2023 | 9AM – 11AM

An opportunity to get to work and ask any questions you may have.

What People Are Saying

I thought it was excellent - content, pacing, time for questions, demonstrations, and real-life example. Thank you so much! I love that Reema is such a capable auditory learner that she can discern someone's issue and suggest potential solutions on the very first hearing!

Program Participant

I loved the program; the mentor (Reema) was very knowledgeable. My business is still in the very early stages, but I got a bunch of ideas and now I know my next steps and my path is clear. It was great to have someone to guide you.

Program Participant

I sincerely thought it was a VERY informative session. I was grateful that Reema took considerable care in making sure to answer any and all questions. I felt like I could keep up with the content, and everything wasn't ‘over my head’... not always easy when discussing technology-related content.

Program Participant

Before I was wondering if I should hire a developer to create my website, but now I know there are other no-code options where you can choose your layout and get your website up and running in no time.

Program Participant

I found Reema's testing and release plan presentation extremely valuable. This was all new information for me and provided a great overview of the requirements I need to be prepared for when developing my MVP and full product(s).

Program Participant

It was awesome being able to connect with other women in tech. Now I have some additional contacts that I didn’t have before.

Program Participant

I really noticed how well Reema was working with everyone. She adjusted the topics to make sense for the audience and on top of that, she was able to guide people to no-code software that would make sense for their idea and she would be able to find that missing piece.

Program Participant

Applications have now closed. Applications will reopen in early 2023.

Not sure if Roadmap to MVP is for you? Watch our March 6th Info Session recording.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is eligible to apply?

  • Women and woman-identifying founders
  • Best suited for entrepreneurs in idea, discovery and early validation stages
  • Should be willing to invest in a technology solution

Do I need to be a Haltech client to apply?

No – you do not need to be a Haltech client to apply for Roadmap to MVP.

Will the program take place physically or virtually?

Since this program is offered in collaboration with WEtech Alliance, we will be holding this program virtually via Zoom.

How much does the program cost?

Roadmap to MVP is an initiative under the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES) and is funded by the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario. Roadmap to MVP is 100% free.

When is the deadline to apply?

Applications for Roadmap to MVP will close on March 24th, 2023 at 8AM ET.

Is Roadmap to MVP a 1-on-1 program?

No. The Roadmap to MVP webinar series consists of 5 group education sessions, each of which are followed by a group “Virtual Office Hours” session where participants can get work done and ask any questions they may have. Participants can however request 1:1 time with the program facilitator, Reema Duggal.

Do I have to be located in Halton Region?

No. Since we are offering Roadmap to MVP virtually, you don’t have to be located in Halton region in order to be eligible.

Still have a question? Reach out

Roadmap to MVP is brought to you by:

The Government of Canada is advancing women’s economic empowerment with the first ever Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES), a $2-billion investment that seeks to double the number of women-owned businesses by 2025. Doubling the number of women owned businesses requires a strong ecosystem of support, expertise and connections.

Le gouvernement du Canada tente de promouvoir l’autonomisation économique des femmes en lançant la stratégie d’entreprenariat au féminin (Women Entrepreneurship Strategy ou WES). Cette initiative unique en son genre met à disposition deux milliards de dollars d’investissement et a pour but de doubler le nombre d’entreprises à propriété féminine d’ici 2025. Un tel objectif nécessite un solide réseau de soutien, des compétences  et l’accès à un réseau de contacts.