TESTIMONIALS
Ofer Shoshan, Co-founder & CEO, OneHourTranslation
Ofer approached the MIT Forum for consulting with his first startup, CoreTech, as a young entrepreneur, at the age of 23.
"There is no doubt that without the help of the Forum in our early stages of development, we would have encountered serious problems in a number of areas at a time when the damage might have been irreversible."
Monica Eisinger, Founder & CEO, MIND-CTI (Nasdaq:MNDO)
"The Forum put us on the right track in terms of developing a realistic business plan, with proper benchmarks and milestones, thereby improving decision-making at MIND. The Forum afforded us the opportunity of developing on-going relationships with experts in fields related to our business, and also gave us insights into the intricacies of seeking venture capital, allowing us to avoid the pitfalls of hindsight by learning 'on the job' in the process of negotiations."
David Almagor, Founder & CEO ,Mysticom
"Participating in an MIT company review is not only a great consulting opportunity, but also a PR opportunity, especially since expert panels are always composed of industry leaders and luminaries, and attendance is typically high. When I presented Mysticom at the Forum, we had Kamran Elahian and Avigdor Willenz on the panel. I received great business advice, as well as good publicity. Foreign investors were present and that led to a few real contacts."
Ben Kidron, Founder and CEO, OmniVee
Ben Kidron, Founder and CEO, OmniVee
In July 2005 OmniVee was acquired by US-based DVTel for $6M.
OmniVee was established in 2003 at Ofakim Innovative Technologies, a privatized incubator. Since its founding a combined total of $600,000 was invested in the company by the incubator, the Chief Scientist of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor (totaling $500,000), and private investors. The primary shareholders are company founders Ben Kidron and Eyal Eshed, who according to the media hold 50%, and the Ofakim Incubator.
Following a recommendation made by Ofakim Incubator CEO Yoram HaLevy, OmniVee participated in a MIT Forum brainstorming session organized by the Forum's Executive Director, Ayla Matalon. The Forum proposed a list of relevant potential consultants, and ended up building a well-balanced panel which included Dr. Shlomo Kalish, Founding Partner of Jerusalem Global Ventures, and Yoav Avtalion, Co-founder of NICE. The meeting was short and focused. Omnivee ended up having its downside very explicitly put, and benefited from a few key suggestions for the best course of action. Thanks to the turnaround suggested on the brainstorming session, the company was sold, within 12 months, at a valuation 10 times the investments made.
