The ISAV difference

Most venture firms aren't led by founders who've been there before. ISAV is different, using that founding experience to deeply support founders through their entire entrepreneurial journeys, by helping you:

Be (or become) a better founder and leader

Being a startup founder can be lonely, and no one has all of the skills and experiences needed to lead a company - especially if you're a first-time founder. The best leaders continue to grow and change over time, and we're here to help you in your leadership journey through:

  • Continuous learning, at all stages: Regular educational workshops with industry experts on topics like sales, marketing, operations, finance and more.
  • Complimentary tickets to EntreFEST, Iowa's largest entrepreneurship educational event.
  • Working on the business: An annual Retreat, to reflect on your business’ progress, consider strategic direction, and learn from peer CEOs and invited speakers.
  • 1:1 help when you need it: Regular office hours with ISA Ventures staff - most of whom are prior founders who've walked in your shoes before.
  • Mentoring:Access to ISA’s extensive mentor pool when and where needed.
  • Learn from your peeers:Quarterly CEO roundtable discussions with peer CEOs in your cohort.
  • Supporting female founders: Female founders meet monthly to discuss the challenges and opportunities of startup life.

Raise the capital you need to grow

In addition to ISA Ventures' ability to fund your business over time - we can invest up to four times, and write checks up to $1 million - we'll also work with you make sure you can raise the capital you need, when you need it, including:

  • Get prepared to raise captal: Free access to our four-part Investment Readiness workshops, to make sure you're prepared and ready to raise capital for your company
  • Stay organized and get off on the right foot:Build your cap table and data room, and keep them organized, with advice from our team and tools from Carta Launch
  • Know your math: We provide Excel models and tools, as well as office hours with our experienced team, to help you see how potential investment math plays out, before a deal gets done.
  • Get in front of investors: We can syndicate your deal to hundreds of other investors, making the process easier and faster for you.
  • Pitch investors on stage:Selected companies will be invited to participate in the Investor Demo Day at EntreFEST.
  • Tax documentation:We'll help you stay organized to potentially help you maximize tax benefits for you and your investors, such as documenting QSBS eligilibity.

Accelerate product development or augment your team

Our collaboration with NewBoCo provides you with access to experienced, startup-savvy experts to move your business forward.

  • Startup support services: Priority access to, and discounted pricing on, services from NewBoCo’s staff of experts including fractional CTO, advanced software engineers, digital marketers, user experience professionals, graphic designers, videographers, and more, available on a discounted direct contract basis with NewBoCo and subject to scheduling constraints;

Find and hire key talent

Talent is always hard to find, but we work hard to help you find the critical talent to join your team.

  • Hiring talent from DeltaV: Priority introductions to prospective talent available to hire from our DeltaV educational programs, which train software developers, digital marketers, sales professionals, customer success personnel, and more;
  • Tapping our extensive network: With global connections to talent, ISAV team members distribute key portfolio company position openings broadly to help find the right candidates.

Train your team

Keeping your team up with the latest trends and technologies is tough. ISAV - with our partners at NewBoCo - can help with upskilling your existing employees.

  • Crash Course training: Portfolio company employees are eligible to attend ISA Crash Course workshops at no cost (sales, marketing, etc)
  • Deep training opportunities for your team: Free training opportunities for you or your team members, to attend DeltaV Code School, Digital Marketing School, or other programs, at reduced charge. We expect you to have the option to send one person per program per session offered, but may have capacity constraints, so will be filled on first-come, first-served basis.

Workspace in Cedar Rapids

  • Free coworking and meeting spaces: If you or your team need occasional office space or meeting space, you’re eligible to use the Vault Coworking space a few days a month at no charge.

Save Money

  • Serious perks to help you grow: Access to technology perks potentially worth $1M+ in discounts, including AWS and Google Cloud credits, CRM systems like Hubspot and Pipedrive, payroll software like Gusto, email systems like Sendgrid and payment processing via Stripe.