Industry and Entrepreneurs
In the ACE Project Space, our students can help you turn your business and project ideas into reality. Our environment is best suited to help entrepreneurs who are in the early stages of their business development and organizations that require a technology-related solution, product or prototype. We can help you reach your goals and have long-term success by working together, sharing experiences and experimenting with new ideas.
You can get involved as an:
- Entrepreneur-in-residence – Work in one of our EiR rooms on your project, collaborate with students in person and use our facilities to support your business needs
- External client – Meet with a dedicated team of students periodically to support the development of your project. External clients include startups, established businesses, non-profit organizations and government agencies.
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence
Entrepreneurs-in-residence (EiR) are granted office space at the ACE Project Space while working on a term project to bring their business ideas to life. EiRs collaborate with a team of students, who are assigned to work exclusively on the EiR project for a four-month term. Faculty and staff help guide students through the project while providing support to the entrepreneurs.
Innovative people have become entrepreneurs-in-residence by having their project selected by ACE Project Space faculty. Start the process with a business project idea involving competencies that fit within one of our work disciplines. Discuss their idea with ACE Project Space staff, and then apply for space within our facility. If your application has been approved, the ACE Project Space Coordinator will arrange to have your project and dedicated EiR room made available to you in a future term at the ACE Project Space. By being physically present in the space, you can collaborate in person with students and receive assistance from our business and technology experts as you develop your solution.
With our diverse faculty, we are well-equipped to help you in many areas beyond crafting your minimum viable product (MVP). Our faculty specialize in entrepreneurship, marketing, advising on business decisions in an agile manner, and discussing success strategies.
Students and entrepreneurs-in-residence have access to working-space, technology and mentorship at the ACE Project Space to work on projects. Our space is a safe environment for entrepreneurs and students to work together and make a difference in the community. We want to ensure that each project matches the skills of the students as much as possible. Entrepreneurs must be willing to mentor students and encourage them to pursue their own ideas and to become future entrepreneurs.
External Clients
External clients are idea owners within established organizations or startups who want to have a project or research developed with us, but don’t need an office space at the ACE Project Space. Our external clients consist of entrepreneurs, industry leaders of businesses and non-profit organizations as well as government representatives. As an external client, you will have to provide for your own office; however, you may book meetings with students in one of our meeting rooms at the space.
By participating as external clients in the ACE Project Space, organizations and startups benefit from the relationship developed with ACE instructors and staff who are happy to provide guidance on best practices and on developing a long term business strategy that fosters and encourages innovation.
Getting Involved
Benefits
Whether you are a budding entrepreneur or a leader in a large organization, having a project in the ACE Project Space provides you with a number of benefits for four months:
| Benefits | Entrepreneurs-in-Residence | External Clients |
|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 technology students dedicated to your project at no charge |  | ✔ |
| Signed non-disclosure agreements | ✔ | ✔ |
| Dedicated office space free of charge | ✔ | |
| Flexibility to meet students at your office location | ✔ | |
| Access to meeting rooms | ✔ | ✔ |
| Access to technology in the project space | ✔ | |
| Entrepreneurship mentors | ✔ | ✔ |
| Opportunities for project renewal | ✔ | ✔ |
| 24/7 security patrol | ✔ |
Types of Projects
We have completed dozens of technology projects at the ACE Project Space and have helped many entrepreneurs build marketable products and services. With help from our funding partners, we have also helped to advance domain knowledge through research projects in areas such as natural language processing and machine learning. The types of projects we accept at the ACE Project Space generally fall under one or more of the following disciplines:
- Technology Development
- Machine Learning
- User Experience
- Virtual Reality
- Information Security
- Business Analysis
- Interdisciplinary
Our projects all use agile project management. While it is beneficial for entrepreneurs to be familiar with agile, it is not required. In addition, we require students, faculty, staff and clients to meet on a regular basis to collaborate on the project development, which provides students with real industry experience and you with better potential to complete your project successfully.
Propose a Project Idea
Interested entrepreneurs and organizations are encouraged to apply. By proposing a project idea, you could become an entrepreneur-in-residence or an external client. Come and work with a team of talented students at the ACE Project Space and use technology to turn your innovative idea into a real product.
RRC Polytech campuses are located on the lands of Anishinaabe, Ininiwak, Anishininew, Dakota, and Dené, and the National Homeland of the Red River Métis.
We recognize and honour Treaty 3 Territory Shoal Lake 40 First Nation, the source of Winnipeg’s clean drinking water. In addition, we acknowledge Treaty Territories which provide us with access to electricity we use in both our personal and professional lives.