London-based procurement software company Omnea has launched the Omnea Future Founders Fund, a new initiative designed to support employees who want to start their own businesses. The programme, launched in partnership with European angel fund Firedrop, will allow employees who have spent at least five years at the company to pitch for $250,000 in seed funding to launch their own ventures.
Founded in London with offices in New York, Omnea develops an AI-native procurement orchestration platform that helps businesses manage purchasing workflows by connecting requests, approvals, suppliers and spend data into a single system.
Employees will pitch directly to Omnea founder and CEO Ben Freeman and Firedrop founding partner Pietro Invernizzi in a single 30-minute meeting, with investment decisions made immediately.
In addition to funding, successful applicants will receive workspace, operational support and coaching from Omnea's leadership team, along with access to the combined network of Omnea and Firedrop, which includes entrepreneurs, operators and investors such as Claire Hughes Johnson (former COO of Stripe), Anne Raimondi (COO of Asana), Joel Hellermark (CEO of Sana), and Harsh Sinha (CTO of Wise).
According to Ben Freeman, joining a high-growth startup can give aspiring founders the experience, skills and network needed to build a company of their own.
People who want to start businesses are looking for an environment where they can develop the skills they need and find a launchpad for the next step. Omnea does exactly that, which is why we have the confidence to invest in any long-serving Omnean who chooses to take that path,
he said.
Pietro Invernizzi, founding partner at Firedrop, said Omnea attracts and develops people with the qualities early-stage investors typically look for in founders, adding that the partnership aims to help more employees turn their ideas into companies.
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