About Startup Commons

Scaling Innovation Entrepreneurship Globally!
Startup Commons, a service by Digiole Oy, was born around simple but powerful concept of digital commons familiarized by Open Source Software and Creative Commons that have enormously accelerated global innovation, business and  development of the internet in all areas of life.
We apply the same core concepts for sharing knowledge, education, best practises, software and data - to reduce duplicated work and facilitate collaborative efforts towards business creation and ecosystem development. By sharing things learned and created by us or others. 

Image credit: modified from original by ​Sacha Chua

Our Core Expertise 

The unique value we can deliver in projects we get involved, comes from our deep and wide expertise in three key areas; innovation, entrepreneurship and digital, where each of these topics are extensive and complex on their own with various aspects and considerations.  

​For few decades we have worked in the intersection of these topics globally in building global ventures and developing ecosystems while strategizing, consulting, developing and training about these topics both individually and in combined manner. From deep details to global ecosystems levels. But most importantly, we never stop learning and sharing our learnings.

The easiest, fastest and most convenient way to validate our expertise, before committing with bigger projects, is to validate our knowledge directly via our eLearning courses. If the value you experience via eLearning programs does not match your expectations, we'll give your money back.

If you are convinced, please contact us with your innovation entrepreneurship ecosystem development and digital transformation needs. 

How do we work?

We work to enable effective global sharing of best practises, development efforts and resources between ecosystem operators and ecosystem developers, supported with our international business creation, ecosystem development and digital expertise and related knowledge, applications and connecting infrastructure, - to empower, accelerate and facilitate ecosystem development, digital transformation and data connectivity within and between startup ecosystems.

Enabling Ecosystem Operators

Co-developing Ecosystem Operator functions and providing EcosystemOS digital API infrastructure, connected applications and knowledge assets to partnering Ecosystem Operators to be deploy and operate at local geographical or global business vertical ecosystems, within one of multiple ecosystems.

All in One Infographic

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​with active links.

Ecosystem Membership Models

Membership packages with access to support function, digital transformation and ecosystem development knowledge documents, eLearning courses and tools, with optional on-call expertise support for ongoing ecosystem development.

Platform For Global Sharing

• Sharing best practises of support functions, successful/ongoing ecosystem development projects and related subject matter experts within and between ecosystems.
• Marketplace for EcosystemOS connected applications targeted for needs or various ecosystem segments and supporting different functions within ecosystems and ecosystem development
• Coordinate co-development of globally neutral “How to” -handbooks for Business Creators, Support Providers, Ecosystem Developers and Digital Teams by facilitating the collection, moderation, publishing and distribution of these handbooks with various subject matter experts.

Training, Consulting And Support Services

• On-site and online webinar trainings and handbooks for different ecosystem segments.
• Workshops for ecosystem training and development for key topics & development targets 
• Workshops for training, development and deployment of specific service function.
• Consulting projects for services and digitalization assessments, solution deployments and ecosystem development team organizing
• On-call expertise support packages for: support function, digitalization and ecosystem development 

Mission
Scale innovation entrepreneurship by empowering ecosystem development with shared global knowledge and digitalization for data-driven development and decision making, in financially sustainable way.

Vision
A global network of digital startup ecosystems, operated and co-owned locally, connected by open standard data models, global API infrastructure and shared licensing. Where all data belongs to their rightful owners.

Strategy
Facilitate, co-create and license open global knowledge and digital solutions for ecosystem key actors and operators to accelerate developments and enable data-flow within and between ecosystems for smarter actions.

Why do we do what we do?

Whether it's about our Digital solutions model, open sourcing innovation entrepreneurship curriculum or ecosystem development knowledge, questions we are asked repeatedly; "Why do you share so much for free?" Or "What is your business model?" 
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​Not only do we believe, but the world has proven, that "open source" is a viable business model. Actually, it's one of the winning business models for infrastructure at a global scale, like in case of Linux, Wordpress, MySQL, Android, and many more. Same principles apply for openly sharing deep knowledge, like in case of Tesla and even by Microsoft. These are models where open innovation is embedded into to the core by default and models that outsurvive any individual people, company or political cycles. In digital economy, the world is already seeking even further, like in case of blockchain to enable distributed trust. 

Ultimately we believe, innovation entrepreneurship is one of the most positive and powerful drivers of growth in economic development and to push societies forward. In startups and scaleups, this drive and energy get capsulated for creating and validating new value creation in externally investable package, - to find solutions for the world's problems at various levels.

When there are no barriers to access knowledge itself or limitations on using it, it forces us to innovate more advanced offerings and value creation to drive business. While also being the most scalable way to support innovation entrepreneurship that we have been able to imagine. - A true win win for everyone involved. - At scale.

We also don't want our business model to be the limiting factor in scaling to our vision. - As with enough scale, there's enough business to be made, - by us and those working with us.

We also don't think there can be such thing as - "too many entrepreneurs creating new value". - So this is, a never ending business.
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When it comes to digital platforms and ecosystems, more and more people, organizations and regulators are concerned with monopolistic models and data privacy, where even the founder and entrepreneur of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg himself has stated -“I feel fundamentally uncomfortable sitting here in California in an office making content policy decisions for people around the world”.  
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We believe the digital economic development of any city, region or country should be in the hands of local actors, connecting within and between ecosystems, while being properly managed under local rules, and where data is in possession and controlled by its rightful owners. - Not in control by foreign government or freely monopolized by global "black box" businesses. At least not without a clear mandate to do so. - Just because there may be a lack of awareness, understanding, digital skills, or capacity. - As here is exactly where we, a neutral and globally operating private company, can help, and this is the core of our added value we can deliver.

Not only does this approach feel right for us, but it also feels right at a global scale. We know this is not the easiest path, but it's the right one for us in a long run and for anyone who share our believes.

"We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things! - Not because they are easy, but because they are hard!" ​- John F. Kennedy, Rice University 1962

Our Work With Different Ecosystem Segments

• Ecosystem Developers (also known as Ecosystem Builders) to share best practises and ecosystem development projects between ecosystems to share global knowledge, digitized content, development and management tools.
• Ecosystem Operators for assessing, identifying and deploying applications and digital connectivity infrastructure to support ecosystem development and enable connectivity and data flow between ecosystem functions and between other ecosystems.
• Support Providers and Business Creators to provide business creation and support providing knowledge and training in on-site and digital means, as well as develop models for sharing best support practises and related support function specific experts, available to help develop ecosystem support functions in ecosystems around the world.
• App developers ​around the world developing EcosystemOS connected applications, SAAS services or platforms focused on startups business creation, managing support services for startups or managing & coordinating ecosystem development, - for sharing and distributing applications between ecosystems around the world.

Our Expertise

As part Grow VC Group, developing the Startup funding and investing models, we understood early on that DATA is crucial to understand and develop best digital channels to identify most potential new startups in volume. 

​We have assisted national and local governments at various Ecosystem Maturity levels and population sizes in US., EU and Asia on policy-making and developing solutions, services and instruments on how to nurture and grow a thriving startup culture and how to develop startup ecosystems in a globally connected world. We are proud to be working in this important area of global economic development.

Beyond the knowledge and consulting in innovation entrepreneurship ecosystem development and digital transformation under Startup Commons brand, as Digiole Oy, we also offer digital platform economy and digital ecosystem solutions with international connections necessary in global business vertical ecosystems and digital business development. 

Meet our team

Our History

2009 - 2011

At the end of 2009, Startup Commons was registered in Helsinki Finland as non-profit association for the sole purpose to openly share business creation knowledge and tools like agreement templates under creative commons licensing. Primary source being from Grow VC, having launched the world's first equity crowdfunding platform for startup companies at the time.

​While also utilizing all of founders past experiences and accumulating new shareable knowledge and tools, Startup Commons was gaining requests and learnings from various types of gaps and needs in global business creation perspective from various support providers, and was exploring ways to develop the association as an independent global non-profit to be able to cater for these needs.

2012

Regardless for the growing need for tools and materials being shared by Startup Commons for free, combined with broader focus on helping development at startup ecosystems level, the non-profit association model continued to be very dependent from the operative support of Grow VC regardless of the efforts by Grow VC to help Startup Commons to become more independent and self sustainable.

In summer 2012 Grow VC company as the biggest contributor for Startup Commons, made a big strategic move to diversify it's operations and expand it's global business focus from single global equity crowdfunding platform for startups, to cater more broadly the growing p2p lending, crowdfunding and digital finance services markets by pivoting and converting into a private holding company for growing portfolio of fintech companies catering for this growing market. 

2013 - 2014

With priorities in transition from Grow VC platform to Grow VC Holding Group along with new business creation and growing portfolio of digital finance companies, the ability to give operative support for Startup Commons was very limited. 

At the same time a consideration to share more assets, including significant software contribution to support Startup Commons that was no longer as relevant in Grow VC Group own direct business operations was considered to help Startup Commons seek for more independence and sustainable operating model.

Having mutually realized that operating as non-profit association did not really bring any real benefits, while being very different structure from normal business creation and operations, making things harder to validate in the markets and creating limitations in many ways compared to normal business operations, without much benefits as a globally oriented small association. So, - as part of making the decision in 2013 to contribute new assets to Startup Commons use, a mutual agreement was made to convert the operations under Startup Commons name into normal business entity format going forward.

With new assets, focus to Startup Ecosystem development and digital ecosystem solutions, combined with decision to transition to limited company entity, gave Startup Commons new opportunity to use also equity to start building for more committed operative team and seek for sustainable business model as any normal business entity.

2015 - 2017

With mission to "scale innovation entrepreneurship globally" combined with vision to "digitalize​ and connect startup ecosystems globally" and with it's first version of it's digital solutions - Startup Commons focused to develop, validate, iterate and refine it's products, services and business model assumptions in global markets, while intensively working with many ecosystems around the world at various levels.

During 2017 combined with accumulated validations and learnings, emerging regulatory developments like GDPR and cloud technology developments like API economy, microservices and serverless technologies, Startup Commons started to plan and develop a next generation version of its digital solutions offering - EcosystemOS.

2018 - 2019

Startup Commons introduced the beginning of the next generation models; via EcosystemOS digital API infrastructure with open standards and documentation for API connections, data models & data sharing principles, MyData concept based Circle Pass Ecosystem User Accounts & API’s for GDPR compliant user data ownership, portability and sharing. Along with specific open source application concepts for ecosystem development & management, like KPI data dashboard and ecosystem portal.

​In addition, to help grow or transfer good support service concepts globally between ecosystems, Startup Commons started developing a new platform approach marketplace for sharing software applications, sharing best practises in providing support services in an ecosystem and sharing knowledge about successful ecosystem development projects, along with a network of available experts from around the world, knowledgeable about these shared services, projects and applications to help deploy them to other ecosystems.

And finally - we "open sourced" our innovation entrepreneurship curriculum for open global use and co-creation, where together with existing and future partners, we continue digitizing all our collective ecosystem development, support function and business creation knowledge into webinars, e-learning and digital learning content and solutions - to support business creation, support service providers and ecosystem developers in most scalable ways.

From January 2019. - The full Growth Academy innovation entrepreneurship curriculum is available in digital format. 15+ years of global venture building and scaling experience, combined with more than 10 years of coaching experience, packaged into five modules with roughly 23 hours of intensive training/learning digital content, with 935 slides of supporting material, tens of template documents and several canvas tools along with links to related deeper learning resources of key concepts in MOOC. Globally available 24/7/365 with lifetime access. 

2020 - 2021

Being no surprise to anyone, the year 2020 has been globally unique duet to COVID 19, where the effects on the market have been significant in many ways. Regardless of the big impacts on the markets, we were able to react actively to this change, by monitoring signals in the market, reacting to them agilely, and conducting experiments, where some of the key observations were.

Strong growth and acceleration of digital. Since the initial shock, COVID-19 biggest and most comprehensive impact on our own operations has been the significant increase in the use of digital services and practices, and the perception of the benefits and new opportunities that come with their use.

Market has woken up widely to notice the vulnerability of local startup ecosystems to current functions. In particular, the local ecosystem efficiency, based on the physical networking of people, often through various events, trainings, the metabolis, etc. Which practically ended completely when meetings could no longer be arranged. - Towards need to recognize things in a way where similar outcomes must not only be possible but also made possible digitally. Other benefits of digitalisation, and in particular new opportunities for cooperation internationally, have also been noted.

Significance of data. - There has been a sharp increase in understanding the benefits of available data and in understanding, illustrating, and reading data in general. The wider use of data and the utilization of data and automation obtained with the help of data has been one of the core promises of our own services.

As the key actions we took in 2020.

During the second and third quarter of the year, while COVID shock phase was on globally, we decided to make all our eLearning content with ‘Growth Academy’ and 'Ecosystem Development Academy' free for the world. As an immediate action to start contributing towards new business creation and to help bounce back economies via ecosystem development knowledge and tools. 

Towards end of 2020, driven by market changes and acceleration of all digital aspects in the markets, we made a strategic decisions to accelerate our focus from consulting approach to growth via digital solutions approach.

Along with this decision, we decided to reorganize our activities into a new company, Digiole Oy. To further focus on international growth with digital solutions. Digiole enables more clear structure and divide between Startup Commons innovation entrepreneurship ecosystem development activities and more broadly applicable digital solutions development under different brands and activities;

• where activities under Startup Commons brand are more focused on local and geographically focused ecosystem development needs, often driven by public sector and non profit activities in the early part of the startup journeys,
• and where activities under Digiole brand we can more clearly focus on digital services development, focus on globally crossing business vertical ecosystem development. Also development of digital platform economy, platforms & digital ecosystems, will start as a new products & services category under Digiole, where international private companies emerge as a new customer segment.

This will further enable us to also better support all of our open source services and offerings and also gives room for future shareholders, and investors to join us going forward.

For 2021, our commitment for ecosystem development and digital transformation is stronger than ever. This is most clearly visible via our first collaborative ecosystem development project approach (see video presentation here), that we are focused to carry out starting on the first part of the year. 

"Innovation entrepreneurship is a positive and powerful driver for growth of economic development and to push societies forward. In startups and scaleups this drive and energy is capsulated to create and validate new innovations to find solutions for problems at various scales."