Amman, February 2011 – Oasis500, an early stage and seed investment company, has organized a networking event which was attended by a number of entrepreneurs from eight startup companies it has chosen to incubate. The event enabled participating entrepreneurs to meet with experienced and accomplished professionals from the Oasis500 Mentor Network who help guide up-and-coming entrepreneurs develop their projects to fruition.
The Oasis500 Mentor Network includes a select group of prestigious businessmen who have volunteered to participate in this initiative, utilizing their expertise to create a work environment that supports startups incubated by Oasis500.
As the Oasis500 Mentor Network’s first meeting, the event aimed at providing participants with the opportunity to interact with the selected mentors and benefit from their professional experience in developing their startups into successful businesses and avoid common pitfalls. Forty CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors and subject matter experts, attended the meeting.
The session shed light on the extended experience of the Oasis500 mentors and included a speech by Mr. Tom Keller, Managing Director at Techstars, who discussed the importance of proper guidance for the success of a business. Mr. Keller also shared his personal experience as a mentor to several startups in the USA. Mr. Mike Cassidy, Director of Search Product Management at Google, followed with an overview of his personal experience as a mentor to multiple startups.
In turn, Mr. Maher Kaddoura and Mr. Mohamad Haj Hasan, also members in the Mentor Network, provided a positive example of how to base operation models on sound foundations by sharing insights. Mr. Kaddoura had mentored Mr. Haj Hasan during the establishment of Akhtaboot.com. The two men also discussed the importance of obtaining sound mentorship when starting any project and the need to outline the workflow to ensure the desired results.
The meeting also enabled the entrepreneurs to present their projects to the other participants, and interact with the mentors through designated booths, covering such topics as the most efficient methods to improve a business.
Commenting on this event, Dr. Usama Fayyad, CEO of Oasis500, said, “We at Oasis500 believe that mentorship can be a deciding factor in the success of startups. It is exciting to witness such an overwhelming turnout of entrepreneurs who are interested in providing guidance to startup companies through the Oasis500 Mentors Network.”
Bringing together mentors and entrepreneurs, Oasis500 Mentor Network meetings will be held on regular basis to boost the success rate of startups in all fields, offering the personal experiences and expertise of Oasis500 mentors to transform the goals and aspirations of startups into reality.
In addition to incubating the selected companies, Oasis500 will provide project owners the chance to receive intensive mentorship for a period of six to eight months.
Amongst the companies selected by Oasis500 is Ishra7.com, a project that provides video explanations as a means of communication; Curl Stone Studio, an animation studio that produces 3D and 2D animations as well as special sound and visual effects; Wheels Express, an e-commerce website that offers home delivery services; Masmoo3 for Audio Knowledge, a website that provides digital audio books, some of which are translated into Arabic; Menwayn.com, the first bilingual comparison-shopping website of its kind in the Arab world that gives buyers quick and efficient information about a wide range of products; DakWak, a next-generation website translation and localization tool and service with more than 60 languages enabled; AlHudhud, a fleet tracking services and solutions company; and Alnassah, a software solutions provider that enables enterprises to achieve a high level of service efficiency and customer satisfaction.