Stage 2 Capital Catalyst FAQs

What is Stage 2 Capital Catalyst?

Stage 2 Capital Catalyst is Stage 2 Capital’s go-to-market accelerator program with the core of the program being the 11-week Catalyst Curriculum that helps founders to build the foundation of their revenue engines by implementing the Science of Scaling methodology. Catalyst provides founders with tactical, hands-on GTM guidance to execute their GTM engine in real time. Catalyst is backed by over 300 leading GTM executives and is a separate program and fund from the Stage 2 Capital Venture Fund.

When does the next Catalyst Curriculum run?

From August to October 2024.

When is the due date for my application?

Applications close at 5pm PT / 8pm ET on Friday July 12, 2024

When do I know if we’re accepted?

We will let you know no later than the end of July.

What are the investment terms?

We invest on a SAFE with $200K on your most recent valuation with a max of $15M-post cap and an information rights, pro rata, and MFN side letter.

Where do the sessions happen?

Virtually over zoom. Calendar invites will be shared in advance during onboarding.

Who can join the sessions?

Anyone on your full-time team you think would benefit from the sessions is welcomed to join (non-FTEs like advisors, investors, interns, contractors are not eligible to participate in sessions).

How many hours per week is the Catalyst Curriculum?

~3-4 hrs. We’ve structured each week as follows:

• • Tuesday Instruction Session (1 hr / 11am - noon ET): Introduction to the principles and frameworks for that week’s topic
  • Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday 1:1 Implementation Workshop (1-2 hrs / timing up to you and your Catalyst LP Coach): Hands-on execution session with your LP Coach to help you implement that week’s learnings. Duration of the session is up to you and your LP Coach
  • Following Monday Fireside Chat (1 hr / 11am - noon ET): Executive Fireside Chat with one of our senior executive LPs and alum Catalyst portfolio founders. In prior years, our companies have heard from Chris Degnan (CRO, Snowflake), Ashley Kramer (CSO and CMO, GitLab), Jim Steele (President, Salesforce), Genefa Murphy (CMO, Udemy), Ryan Longfield (fmr CRO, Gong), among others. You will also hear from our alum Catalyst portfolio founders who are 1-2 steps ahead of where you are now in your growth and who will share tactics and approaches from their experience solving the same questions you face today.
    
    

How many LPs do I have access to?

You have access to our 300+ Catalyst LPs who are senior GTM leaders like the Global VP of GTM at Datadog, CMO at Crossbeam, SVP of Sales Engineering at Seismic, COO and SVP of Americas at Tableau, Head of Enterprise Demand Gen at Atlassian, Global VP of Strategic Projects at Toast, CMO at Sailpoint, among others.

What’s the difference between Catalyst LP Mentors and LP Coaches?

• LP Mentors are longitudinal guides who stay with you throughout the duration of the 11 week program. These Mentors will be strategic guides and address a range of scaling and GTM topics regardless if they are directly relevant to the Catalyst Curriculum.
• LP Coaches are subject matter experts who are topic-specific tactical guides to help you execute that session’s topic in your current context (e.g., In the 3rd week of the Catalyst Curriculum, our session will be on Building Your First GTM Playbook. Your LP Coach for that week will help you specifically build and execute your GTM playbooks.) Sessions with your LP Coach will occur on Thursdays.

How do I connect with Catalyst LP Mentors?

There will be a mentor matching process where you will get to present to LPs and have a round-robin “speed dating” session to chat live for ~3min to check the vibe. We match on company profile with LP experience, company GTM need with LP expertise, and personality and culture fit.

How do I connect with Catalyst LP Coaches?

You will be matched to your LP Coach 1 week before the session so you and your coach have time to prepare before your Thursday implementation workshop.

What does the relationship with Catalyst LP Mentors look like during the program?

Once you’re matched with your mentor (up to 2 per company), that LP will become your go-to-guide throughout the duration of the 11 week Catalyst Curriculum. The frequency of touch points is up to you and your mentor but we generally recommend 5 touch points throughout the 11 weeks. Your mentor will be a strategic guide on whatever topics are top of mind. In past years, many companies have continued to engage their Mentors as formal advisors even after the Curriculum ended. 

What does the relationship with Catalyst LP Coaches look like during the program?

Similar to mentors, you have the option for continued conversations with your LP Coaches after your designated Thursday Implementation Workshop. In past years, many companies have also continued to engage their Coaches as formal advisors even after the Curriculum ended.

What happens after the Catalyst Curriculum is over?

After you’ve completed the curriculum, you’ll join the Stage 2 Capital network as a 2024 Catalyst Alum. You’ll have access to our Catalyst Alum group of other founders from past cohorts, all Catalyst LPs, and Stage 2 Capital Portfolio Portal which houses our proprietary templates, resources, recordings, etc.