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Go from Designer to Founder

4.9

(6 ratings)

·

3 Weeks

·

Cohort-based Course

Considering taking the leap? Learn how to de-risk the move, leverage your skills beyond design and craft a pitch that gets your idea funded.

Course overview

Designer founders start here.

👋 Steph here – I'm a design leader and former Product Design Manager at Cruise. I founded Huddle in 2021 and have since raised over $3.5m. I believe designers are uniquely positioned to build the next wave of big, impactful companies.


I'm often asked by fellow designers about how to go about starting a company, what it's like to be a founder, and how to raise money. I've collected my insights into this 3-week sprint/course.


Beyond my teaching, this course is an opportunity to meet other designers that also have the entrepreneurial itch. We'll learn together and support each other's endeavors during this course and after.


If you've been thinking about starting a company on the side or are actively making moves, you're in the right place.

Who is this course for

01

Ambitious designers that are exploring starting their own company.

02

Side-hustle designers ready to pursue an idea full-time.

03

Design leaders looking to be more entrepreneurial in their current role.

What you’ll get out of this course

Find the founder path that's right for you.

Explore the routes you can take, whether part-time or full-time, venture-backed or bootstrapped.

Craft a pitch that gets you funded.

Decide on the right funding route and create a pitch that takes your startup to the next level.

Lean into your design superpowers.

Discover how your own creative strengths and passions make you a powerhouse startup builder.

Step beyond design.

Learn about how to tackle the parts of company-building outside of product and design.

Live lessons & coaching with a Designer Founder.

Each module is taught live by Steph, a product designer and now VC-backed startup founder.

This course includes

7 interactive live sessions

Lifetime access to course materials

7 in-depth lessons

Direct access to instructor

5 projects to apply learnings

Guided feedback & reflection

Private community of peers

Course certificate upon completion

Maven Satisfaction Guarantee

This course is backed by Maven’s guarantee. You can receive a full refund within 14 days after the course ends, provided you meet the completion criteria in our refund policy.

Course syllabus

Expand all modules

  • Week 1

    Aug 13—Aug 18

    Week dates are set to instructor's time zone

    Events

    • Aug

      13

      Live Module 1: The Designer Founder

      Tue, Aug 13, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM UTC

    • Aug

      15

      Live Module 2: Taking the first steps

      Thu, Aug 15, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM UTC

    Modules

    • Leaning into your design superpowers

    • Taking the first steps

  • Week 2

    Aug 19—Aug 25

    Week dates are set to instructor's time zone

    Events

    • Aug

      20

      Live Module 3: Craft your founder path

      Tue, Aug 20, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM UTC

    • Aug

      22

      Live Module 4: Find complementary collaborators

      Thu, Aug 22, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM UTC

    Modules

    • Craft your founder path

    • Find complementary collaborators

  • Week 3

    Aug 26—Aug 29

    Week dates are set to instructor's time zone

    Events

    • Aug

      27

      Live Module 5: Designing a pitch

      Tue, Aug 27, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM UTC

    • Aug

      29

      Optional: Founder Office Hour (1/2)

      Thu, Aug 29, 2:00 PM - 2:30 PM UTC

    • Aug

      29

      Optional: Founder Office Hour (2/2)

      Thu, Aug 29, 9:00 PM - 9:30 PM UTC

    Modules

    • Designing your pitch

  • Bonus

    Modules

    • Recorded Sessions

4.9

(6 ratings)

What students are saying

The next wave of designer founders

Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb @ Config 2023
Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb @ Config 2023
A pattern of wavy dots

Designers make great founders because they're naturally creative problem solvers, can tap into emotions and have taste.


Vision-to-reality is faster and sharper because there is less playing telephone.

What people are saying

        This is going to be epic. Cannot wait for this. 👏
Ridd

Ridd

Founding Designer at Maven, Founder @ Dive.club
        Steph is one of the very very best. I worked with her for two years at Cruise – Now she’s even more impressive as a founder!
Steph Engle

Steph Engle

Product Designer at Snapchat

Course schedule

2-4 hours per week

  • Live Modules with Q&A

    Tuesdays & Thursdays • 1pm - 2pm EST

    Each module is taught live, leaving time for group Q&A.

  • Founder Roundtables

    Last Friday • Morning & Afternoon

    The magic of a live cohort. To close out the course, put everything you've learned into action. We'll get together as a group and talk about where you landed and next steps.

  • 1:1 Coaching Session (for early signup)

    30 min

    The first 5 people to sign up receive a complimentary 30-min coaching session.

  • Weekly Journaling

    1-2 hours per week

    You'll be given weekly prompts to apply the learnings from each module to yourself and your idea. These entries will help reflect, put the lessons into actions, and be a resource to you beyond this course.

Free resource

Raise your first round of funding

This is my personal guide for how to pitch your startup and raise capital as a designer founder. It's powered by my insights of raising over $3.5M with no natural network.


As part of my course "Go from Designer to Founder," I'll be advising other designers on how to take the leap to start their own company and raise capital. We'll go into more detail during the course, but you can use this guide to get started.

Get this free resource

A pattern of wavy dots
Join an upcoming cohort

Go from Designer to Founder

Cohort 4

$599

Dates

Aug 13—30, 2024

Payment Deadline

Aug 12, 2024
|

Bulk purchases

Meet your instructor

Steph Golik

Steph Golik

Founder at Huddle

Meet Steph, a former Product Design Manager with over a decade of experience that is now the founder of Huddle and has raised over $3.5M in funding.


She's here to give real-life examples and insights on how to navigate the transition using design strengths and passion as a guide.

Learning is better with cohorts

Learning is better with cohorts

Active hands-on learning

This course builds on live workshops with real-time Q&A.

Meet fellow future-founders

Learn alongside and collaborate with other designers beginning their entrepreneurial journeys too.

Get support along the way

Sign up early to get a free coaching session and use the cohort chat to get async support from your instructor and fellow learners.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I can’t make a live session?
I work full-time, what is the expected time commitment?
What’s the refund policy?
A pattern of wavy dots
Join an upcoming cohort

Go from Designer to Founder

Cohort 4

$599

Dates

Aug 13—30, 2024

Payment Deadline

Aug 12, 2024
|

Bulk purchases

$599

4.9

(6)

·

3 Weeks

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