Startup Catalyst: What we learned from supporting idea-stage founders with a human-centered approach?

Last spring, we at Tribe Tampere tried something new. For years, our community has supported aspiring founders through peer support, events, guidance, and simply by being a place where people can show up with an idea and start building. But in 2024, we started wondering: What if we turned everything we know about community, early-stage needs, and human-centered support into a structured program of its own?

That question sparked Startup Catalyst, our three-month incubator program created specifically for idea-stage founders. It was a test, a prototype, and a learning journey for both us and the participants. And it surprised us in the best possible way.

Now that months have passed and we are able to fully see the outcomes and impact, it’s time to share what we learned. We are not talking only about the numbers, but the insights and human stories that shaped the program. These takeaways are also shaping the path for what’s coming next.

Why Startup Catalyst was created?

Startup Catalyst began as a vision from our long-time community member and startup builder, Ishan Regmi. Over the years, Ishan has helped countless aspiring founders navigate their first steps. He has seen the gaps and obstacles that beginners consistently face, and noticed that many of those have nothing to do with business models or pitch decks. They have everything to do with people.

Starting a company is deeply social, yet still often incredibly lonely. Idea-stage founders struggle with confidence, accountability, emotional resilience, and simply knowing where to turn when things don’t go as planned. Information is everywhere, but genuine support is not.

At Tribe, we have always believed that entrepreneurship grows strongest in a community. So the idea was simple: What if we built a program where the founders’ growth is the priority, and the business grows as a natural result?

This became the foundation of Startup Catalyst.

What the program actually looked like?

Startup Catalyst ran from March to June 2025 with 19 participants, a mix of four teams and fifteen solo founders. The group came from diverse backgrounds, industries, and life situations, but shared a common thread: they all had spotted a problem worth solving.

The program combined:

• Community and peer support, both online and on-site

• Goal-setting and accountability factors

• Practical startup knowledge and access to relevant events

• Getting familiar with the Tampere’s Startup ecosystem

Most importantly, the program emphasized courage. The courage to talk to customers, to refine ideas openly, to ask for help, and to face uncertainty with others by your side.

What we learned, and why it matters?

Throughout the spring, and again after the program ended, we tracked progress and interviewed participants. Several findings stood out clearly:

1. Community is not a “nice to have”, it’s core infrastructure for early-stage founders.

The strongest value didn’t come from any single workshop or tool. It came from people. The participants highlighted the importance of a space to openly share wins, doubts, and setbacks, a group that kept them motivated and accountable, and a culture where showing up imperfectly was welcomed. 

For founders at the earliest stage, these alone lowered the barriers to taking action.

2. A human-centered structure boosts confidence, ownership, and follow-through.

Among the participants, we saw clear increases in:

• motivation

• sense of ownership over their idea

• clarity on next steps

• confidence in customer interactions

These were the exact areas we intentionally designed the program to strengthen,  and the results validated the approach.

3. Many participants moved forward surprisingly quickly.

While not everyone took their idea to the finish line (which is absolutely normal and healthy at this stage), we saw impressive progress among those who did:

• 58% registered a company during or immediately after the program

• 68% expanded their team

• 89% felt integrated into the Startup Tampere ecosystem

Especially the last number is meaningful. One of our core goals was to help participants understand where to get support and feel that they belong in the ecosystem.

4. Focusing on the founder as a person unlocks long-term potential.

One of the clearest insights was this: When you support the founder first, the business benefits naturally.

Participants consistently shared with us that the emotional and social elements of the program were what enabled them to stay committed, test assumptions, talk to customers earlier, or pivot without shame. These human-level learnings are key foundational skills for any entrepreneurial journey.

5. There’s room to build something even bigger.

Startup Catalyst proved that Tribe can fill an important gap: a warm, community-driven entry point to entrepreneurship. With some refinements, the impact could be even greater.

And let’s just say… We’ve been thinking about what comes next.

Where this leaves us?

We’re proud of Startup Catalyst. Not just because of the numbers, but because of the courage every participant showed. Some continued building their startup. Others realized the idea wasn’t the right fit. Both outcomes are equally valuable. Both require honesty and self-reflection.

We learned a lot about how idea-stage founders think, what they truly need, and how a community-centered structure can support them just as well, if not even better, than more traditional models.

And yes. We might have something new on the way.
But more on that later.

Stay tuned.