Accenture Open Innovation creates a vital bridge between Accenture’s clients and the start-up community.

CASABLANCA, MOROCCO, October 11, 2018 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Open Innovation leadership team at Accenture joined the league of DEMO Africa partner organizations and will be showcasing their programme at the 7th edition of DEMO Africa in Casablanca, Morocco.This relationship with Lions@frica will allow the startup finalists at DEMO Africa to gain direct insights and benefits from Accenture's unique network of resources.

The 30 start-up finalists at DEMO Africa aim to develop unique products and services that will disrupt existing industries and create new markets. However, like many other entrepreneurs, they require expertise and resources needed to refine and improve their business models to the point where they are commercially viable, scalable and sustainable. By facilitating collaboration between large corporations and some of these start-ups, and contributing Accenture’s broad and deep technology and business capabilities, the Open Innovation program is designed to co-create solutions that solve tough business problems while also providing the selected start-ups with the support they need to grow.

Sandiso Sibisi, Accenture's Open Innovation Africa Lead commented - "Accenture Open Innovation creates a vital bridge between Accenture’s clients and the start-up community. We connect clients to enterprise-relevant innovators and provide the consulting, technology and operations skills needed to help them achieve their objectives."

Over two days of exciting programming including pitches from the 30 selected finalists, and pre-show activities around the Angel Investor Summit, Casablanca will be home to an array of innovation activities especially as some of the leading global venture luminaries join their African counterparts to explore investment opportunities, broaden their knowledge of African startup ecosystems and share best practices on global venture creation.

Accenture's presence at this year's conference, through the Open Innovation Africa program also offers a tremendous opportunity for delegates to learn more about the program and explore some of their case studies. The team works closely with the firm's clients, using design thinking to define their business problems. Following their analysis, they then identify start-ups, labs or universities that can help solve the problem. Finally, working with the client and start-up, they embark on co-creating a solution and developing a proof of concept in the shortest possible time.

Harry Hare, Executive Producer, DEMO Africa commented - "Our corporate innovation programs at DEMO Africa have always
welcomed ecosystem stakeholders that are willing to partner with creative entrepreneurs, startups and organisations from diverse backgrounds to discover new and better ways to unlock venture creation resources and meet the growing market demand.​We are thrilled to have Accenture as a partner, and look forward to supporting their efforts to empower African entrepreneurs."

The 2018 edition of DEMO Africa will see a combination of startup pitches, fireside chats and industry side events that are geared towards ensuring ecosystem wide discovery of sustainable economic opportunities. The conference will comprise of the following elements:

The DEMO Main Stage - Over 2 days of engagement, all of the 30 startup finalists will get six minutes to pitch and demonstrate their products to the general audience and an expert panel of judges for feedback and queries.
The DEMO Pit - Event attendees, technology buyers and the media will get an opportunity to meet the DEMO Africa startups at their individual booths which will be located at the DEMO Pit.
The Ecosystem Enabler Series - Through a combination of keynotes, panels and fireside chats, the Ecosystem Enabler Series will enable productive dialogue between industry leaders and innovation actors about the future of the African technology ecosystem.
The Investor Round-tables - In partnership with the African Business Angels Network we will convene an Investor Round-table to evaluate the current African investment and venture creation landscape and share best practices.
The African Future of X - The first in the series, the U.S State Department will lead discussions around the African Future of Infrastructure.
Workshops and Masterclasses - We will host a number of workshops and masterclasses across the venture creation value chain.
The LIONS@frica Innovation Awards - Five (5) Startups will be chosen as winners of the DEMO Africa and will proceed to Silicon Valley, California for the Lions Innovation Tour.

As an innovative company, Accenture is on the hunt to find Africa’s top tech start-ups – the digital pioneers solving critical challenges with technology across the continent. It’s a search for Africa’s big thinkers and big doers – visionaries who fearlessly push the boundaries of progress to shift African innovation to the next level. The Open Innovation leadership team will be on hand to meet with startups and delegates and to announce Accenture's Africatop30 program as well.

To meet with the Accenture team, register to attend DEMO Africa - Register here: https://bit.ly/2NMWjPl

Harry Hare
DEMO Africa
8186605676
email us here