Key features

Programme vision: High achieving creative entrepreneurs and producers working in Auckland?s creative sector and backed by the region?s arts, business, education and investment communities generate rich cultural and economic outcomes for New Zealand through their innovation, intellectual property and business acumen.

Purpose of the programme: To provide an inspiring, future-focused and customised development programme that clearly serves and adds value to creative entrepreneurs and producers selected into the programme and to the strategic development of Auckland?s creative sector.

Programme overview:

The programme starts in February and finishes mid December 2007. Its anchors are:

1. Professional business and career development assessments: The business assessment is a requirement of the programme and the career development assessment is optional. Both assessments, which are participant centered, will be led by experienced professionals who are being contracted into the programme to provide these services (free of charge to the participant). Participants will be offered a further assessment opportunity in July to gauge their progress on the programme and also to identify further development needs (as relevant).
   
   
2. Workshop programme: Three weekend workshops will be held during the year:
   
   Being a Creative Entrepreneur: 30 March ? 1 April, Hoani Waititi Marae
   
   Intellectual Property Development in and through the creative sector: 7 ? 8 July, venue to be confirmed
   
   Making and sustaining global opportunities: cultures, networks, communities, markets: 1 ? 2 December, venue to be confirmed
   
   
3. Creative entrepreneur development plan: One of the aims of the first workshop is to provide a stimulating environment and process that will result in each participant producing a plan that supports their development as a creative entrepreneur during the course of the year. The plan will be anchored in at least one project that the participant will accelerate during the year as a direct result of their participation in the programme. The development plan will be a ?live? document that will be updated throughout the year. Each participant is required to have a written current development plan (signed off by the Programme Development Group) in order to access investment funding.
   
   
4. Investment Fund: Each participant will have access to a pool of investment funding that is available as seed capital to enable the participant to leverage an opportunity, a contact, a funding source and/or any other resources that will assist their acceleration as a creative entrepreneur through the project that they are working on (as described in their development plan).
   
   Participants will be provided with a monthly opportunity during the period April ? November 2007, to present a proposal for investment to ART Venture?s Investment Panel. It is anticipated that all participants will present to the panel at least once during this eight-month period and there is no limit to how many times (up to eight times) a participant may do so. There is a limit however to the total amount of seed capital that the panel can provide to each participant over the course of eight months.
   
   The panel will decide how much seed capital (or not) to release to the participant in discussion with the participant and as a response to their presentation to the panel and their development plan. Any conditions that the panel put on funding will be monitored and signed-off by the Programme Director. All seed capital provided to the participant will be subject to a funding agreement between Arts Regional Trust and the participant. A short report describing how any seed capital forwarded to the participant was used and what it generated and / or leveraged will need to be provided to the Programme Director prior to the participant making any further bid for seed capital to the investment-funding panel.
   
   
5. Venture mentor network (working title): The network is being organised as a special club for selected professionals drawn from the senior ranks of the private and public sectors and ART Venture participants. Four networking events will be held during the year featuring special guests and activities. Through attending all four events, participants will be able to make connections and contacts to support their development plans and their projects. They will also be able to access the network and the people in it throughout the year to support any aspect of their progress on the programme.