Teton Entrepreneurs & Mentors Service

TEAMS is a foundational program formed to accelerate the development of entrepreneurs in the Teton region and beyond, and further the mission of Silicon Couloir. TEAMS is powered by volunteer mentors who are excited by innovation, ideas, and problem-solving for ventures.

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TEAMS Mentor Program · Silicon Couloir · 2027

Who TEAMS serves

TEAMS is a free mentoring program, licensed by MIT, for growth-minded entrepreneurs in the Greater Teton Region. We look at each venture as a whole. A few basics apply to everyone, and beyond those, eight considerations are weighed together.

Step 1

Before you apply

Every venture needs to meet these to be considered.

Based in Wyoming or Idaho

Your business is incorporated or organized in Wyoming or Idaho.

Incorporated elsewhere, such as Delaware? You're still eligible if you're registered to do business in Wyoming or Idaho and your principal operations, founders or employees are based there.

A business type TEAMS supports

TEAMS isn't set up to support:

Real estate development
Consultancies
Lifestyle businesses
Multi-level marketing (MLM)

Nonprofits only

Leadership ready to act

Your Executive Director has operational control and budget authority to act on TEAMS recommendations.
Your board president signs off on TEAMS participation during onboarding.
Your ED reports to the board quarterly on TEAMS progress and shares the board's feedback with your mentor team.

Nonprofits make up no more than 10% of TEAMS ventures. Once 10% is reached, nonprofits join a first-come, first-served waitlist.

Step 2

How applications are evaluated

The wheel shows how much each consideration counts when staff review your application. Strength in one area can make up for a gap in another. The four larger blue slices are weighted more heavily than the green ones, and ventures that are weak in the blue areas are rarely accepted. Select a slice for details.

Weighted more heavily

Also considered

Tourism and hospitality ventures are considered case by case. Strong applications show an innovative, growth-driven model that operates year-round, addresses local tourism challenges, strengthens the local workforce, and has a rigorous triple-bottom-line component.

Nonprofits are evaluated on the same wheel. For customer evidence, show demand for your services and a path to financial sustainability.

Who decides: TEAMS staff review every application and make case-by-case decisions, with input from the TEAMS committee when needed.

Team & jobs

FTE calculator

Count your full-time equivalents (FTE) the same way our staff do. Co-founders count.

People working 30+ hours a weekInclude yourself and any co-founders or employees at 30+ hours. Each counts as 1.

Part-time people (under 30 hours a week)Enter each person's average weekly hours, including any founder working under 30.

Your FTE count

Add up part-timers' weekly hours.
Divide by 30.
Round down.
Add everyone working 30+ hours.

A founder demonstrates a product prototype to two mentors in a meeting room at The Cowork Space. — Founders bring real problems, products and plans to every mentor session.

Step 3

What to expect in the program

Every TEAMS venture agrees to the following, starting with one step before acceptance.

Program timeline

Before acceptanceChance MeetingAttend at least one
KickoffFirst meetingHeld in person, no exceptions
Months 1–3MonthlyMeet with your mentor team every month
Month 4 onwardMonthly to quarterlyCadence set with your team
After graduationStay connectedSee "Staying in TEAMS" below

Around every session

At least 7 days beforeSend your agenda

SessionMeet your mentor team

Within 48 hrs afterComplete post-meeting notes

3 business days to reply to emails from TEAMS staff

Your first year

Mentor meetingMonthly to quarterly, as your team sets

Quarter 1

Metrics report1 Silicon Couloir event

Quarter 2

Metrics report1 Silicon Couloir event

Quarter 3

Metrics report1 Silicon Couloir event

Quarter 4

Metrics report1 Silicon Couloir event

Your quarterly metrics are combined with other ventures' to measure how well the program works. Staff keep track of event attendance.

Profit. People. Planet.

Commit to one near-term goal tied to triple-bottom-line impact, in line with Silicon Couloir's guiding principle.

Pre-revenue?

Set a timeframe for reaching revenue. Your mentors will hold you to it as a near-term goal.

Staying in TEAMS

OngoingClear progress toward your team's goalsRequired to stay in the program, along with coachability and accountability. Staff review progress regularly.

Staying onTriple-bottom-line intentions + active engagementTo stay on, keep your triple-bottom-line intentions and stay engaged with Silicon Couloir through events and/or philanthropic support.

Step 4

Ready to apply?

If your venture meets the basics, you're ready to start. The application opens in Traction5, our mentoring platform. Remember to attend a Chance Meeting before acceptance.

Apply to TEAMS

Questions first? Email teams@siliconcouloir.com

What Our Entrepreneurs & Mentors Are Saying

Erica Rice, Founder, The Brandstalk

“Participating in the TEAMS program is directly related to my business’s current growth and operations improvement. Mentors help me identify good habits that I should nurture along with how to address the areas that are challenging my success.”
Ellen Williams TEAMS Mentor

“After a decade in early‑stage startups, I love applying that experience to ventures in the Silicon Couloir community. The real joy is learning from founders tackling challenges in industries and markets I haven’t yet encountered.”
Gary Duquette, Executive Director, The Wonder Institute

“The TEAMS program has had an immediate impact on Wonder Institute by providing high quality mentorship that brought focus and direction to our work. It helped us clarify priorities, strengthen our program model, and move from ideas to actionable plans with confidence.”