1991 Mentors

Communications guru at Planeta Kino, Ukraine's most technologically advanced and cinema-loving cinema chain. Communications specialist, strategist, and digital expert.

Responsible for the brand's presence in the digital space and social media communication strategy.

Has experience in content production both as a standalone product and for integration into an existing business.

He works at the venture studio Pawa, which creates global startups based on Machine Learning technologies. He has experience in identifying, researching, and evaluating the most promising niches for launching deeptech startups, as well as in business modelling and fundraising. He has a background in B2C product development at Genesis and Together Networks.

‍

A specialist in labour and employment relations.

Member of the Board of the Social Insurance Fund for Temporary Disability and the Social Insurance Fund of Ukraine.

Provides consultancy and services in the field of accounting and tax legislation. Helps entrepreneurs manage their businesses.

10 years in the accounting profession, including:

• Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv (public sector)
• Leroy Merlin Ukraine LLC (imports, foreign economic activity, retail)
• Former co-owner of the consulting firm Deal with it (services)

A lawyer specialising in intellectual property and IT law, Vice President of the European Young Bar Association, and among the Top 50 lecturers at the Higher School of Advocacy.

Since 2011, he has been providing legal support to businesses and is the owner of Sergiy Barbashyn Law Office.

Current principal areas of practice: IT and startups, crypto and Web3 projects, intellectual property protection worldwide, and business relocation matters.

Daria has nine years of experience in marketing and helps businesses become compelling to clients and partners. She has created advertising for Ukrainian and international brands (Kyivstar, Shell, Danone, Morshynska, Ukrsibbank, and others), managed communications at blockchain and cryptocurrency companies, ran her own creative agency Pink Lions, and consulted IT startups, including teams participating in programmes at 1991 Startup Center.

Daria currently leads the employer brand promotion division at the British fintech company Wirex and is responsible for the brand of its R&D centre in Ukraine and Eastern Europe.

Olha has over 15 years of experience in complex litigation and arbitration proceedings in Ukraine and abroad, including international investment and commercial arbitration (under the rules of ICSID, UNCITRAL, LCIA, ICC, SCC, VIAC, and ICAC), enforcement of arbitral awards in Ukraine and abroad, as well as cross-border litigation.

In domestic litigation, Olha has not only extensive experience in resolving commercial disputes, but also specialist knowledge in sectors such as IT, agribusiness, pharmaceuticals, insurance, energy, and banking.

Olha's practice also encompasses tax and compliance matters. She has conducted numerous investigations into allegations of corrupt practices and regularly delivers anti-corruption training for senior managers and compliance specialists at leading international companies.

The international ranking Best Lawyers 2022 recommends Olha in the category of "International Arbitration and Dispute Resolution".

‍

Expert in PR and strategic communications for technology companies and startups. PR Manager at WeSoftYou and ISSP. Ex-Head of PR at SocialBoost/1991 Open Data Incubator/CyberAccelerator UA, Ex-Content Director at SLOVA Tech PR.

‍

Former Head of Country & Innovation at the British marketing company GROWTH SHOP in Ukraine, and former Director of Partnerships at the Sector X accelerator at UNIT.City innovation park, where she helped startups raise investment and brought in major local and international companies as clients (L'Oréal, British American Tobacco, Farmak, and others).

‍

The leader, e-democracy activist, and driving force behind the entire team is Yevhen Poremchuk, head of the NGO "Electronic Republic".

In the summer of 2019, Yevhen, together with Alla Pohonets and Andriy Todorov, registered the civic organisation, which became the first NGO to be registered online. Prior to this, he worked at a nuclear power plant, served as head of the IT department at a bank, drove the development of e-democracy, and subsequently founded his own engineering company. He worked as an independent IT consultant and entrepreneur, implementing e-governance tools and developing user-friendly services for citizens.

Over the years, he has taken part in large-scale projects such as Diia — the online public services portal; Smart City — the nationwide e-governance and democracy platform; the Electronic Driver's Cabinet — one of the most visited e-portals of central executive authorities; the Electronic Subsoil User's Cabinet — for issuing mineral extraction permits; and iGov — the public services portal. Yevhen can rightly be called an architect of digital solutions for the state.

For him, building an ecosystem of user-friendly services is like constructing a convenient digital skyscraper — with a foundation of open data, walls of personal data protection, a façade of intuitive interface design, and a roof of information security. In addition to "digital architecture", Yevhen is involved in auditing, analysing, and evaluating the effectiveness of existing IT products for the state. He is the one who can identify where security needs strengthening, where data needs updating, and what needs to be rebuilt from scratch.

‍

Solution Architect at JetSoftPro, working in web development since 2010. He has experience running his own outsourcing business between 2015 and 2017. Participant in Startup Incubation 1991 in 2016 (Ivano-Frankivsk), and winner of ODC 2020 with the project Free-Land. He has expertise in front-end development, BA, and product management. Mentor on the Statistics & Data Science programme at Lviv University and the Data Science & Intelligent Systems programme at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv.

Data Architect at Intapp. He has extensive experience in developing projects based on big data. He is a strong advocate of agile software development methodologies, which he has successfully applied across a number of projects he has led. Since 2010, Denys has been a Microsoft Data Platform MVP. He regularly speaks at Ukrainian and international conferences on database topics. Denys is also an active member of the SQL community and the founder of the Ukrainian Data Community Kyiv.

Topics:

• Scrum – a guide to action
• Scrum for startups
• Scrum: what's right, what's wrong
• SQL vs. NoSQL
• The role of relational databases in the era of Big Data

Core competencies:

• Public finance management
• Strategic planning
• Performance management
• Risk management
• Management accounting and reporting

Current projects:

• "Ukraine Public Finance Portal" (e-data.gov.ua)
• IAS "Transparent Budget"
• Electronic Journal
• Search and analytics system "007"

A specialist in acquiring technology and project management. Since 2009, he has been channelling his altruism by implementing and participating in social projects. A certified expert in internet marketing, UX planning, and project management. Theory backed by practice: Brand Manager of an online ticket sales platform. Head (Product Manager) of the launch of a personal loyalty programme technology. Product Manager of a software solution for personal finance management.

• Professional entrepreneur and investor with 25 years of experience
• Teaches his own Innovation & Entrepreneurship course for MBA programmes at the Kyiv-Mohyla Business School
• Since 1992, he has been involved in 17 startups, some of which are still operating today
• Co-owner of the companies "Green-Trade" (TM "Barrier Water Filters"), "Empire of Water", and "Dewberry CZ" (Czech Republic)
• Has personal experience launching projects in the markets of China, the United Kingdom, the USA, and the Czech Republic
• From 2011 to 2014, he managed the company "China Distribution Bridge" (water filter distribution in the PRC) in Shanghai
• Customer Development instructor
• Studied at CEIBS Business School (Shanghai) and Gallup University (USA)
• Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and Entrepreneurship Mentor

Business Analyst at Eleks. Works across domains such as digital, sharing economy, financial services, and e-commerce. Also a guest lecturer at the Lviv IT School on the topics of Business Model Canvas and presentations. Organiser of several TEDx conferences in Ukraine. Co-founder of the public speaking preparation project Spktome.

Founder of Networking Expert, a specialist in personal and business networking.
A prominent lawyer, business trainer, well-known public figure, and "connector".

• Creator of the original programmes "Networking 3D" and "NETWORKING GUIDE: the art of building genuine connections"
• Regular speaker at festivals and development programmes (TOUCH Fest, Politician Turnkey, LABA platform, and others)
• Member of the E-Awards 2015 jury

‍

Serhiy Venher entered the profession from a legal background, having founded the renowned Panic Design in the late 1990s. Prior to that, he distinguished himself in major journalism projects, managing editorial teams of business publications and a regional television company. He has extensive and diverse experience across marketing, advertising, sales management, business development, and business consulting, with a strong track record of successful startups and crisis management cases in both domestic and international markets.

‍

An M&A specialist in the IT market. In 2007, he completed his first successful company and patent sale in the med tech sector. From 2010, he managed investment attraction programmes for infrastructure investment projects in Dnipro, with a total portfolio of completed projects worth approximately $60 million. He specialises professionally in innovative products and services market analysis, investment sourcing at seed and pre-seed stage, and transaction support. He works with residents as a mentor and analyst on elevator pitches, market research, business models, financial forecasting, and venture strategy.

Founder and director of an outsourcing company, co-founder of a startup, and coordinator of a Dnipro civic organisation. Previously a developer and lecturer. Currently: a professional firefighter (putting out fires at work), percussionist, and activist. His primary area of interest is people.

Business consultant, entrepreneur, and a results-driven mentor. More than one generation of entrepreneurs has been shaped under his guidance. CEO of FeelGoodLabs Business Accelerator.

He helps promising Ukrainian teams build successful startups.

Author of the Life Hack Day Ukraine programme, where the majority of ideas were successfully implemented. He has extensive experience in the Polish market and actively mentors teams in the right direction.

‍

Co-founder & PR at Fison. Co-founder and Marketing Director of the startup DataScoring.

Deputy Mayor of Dnipro, adviser to the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, and adviser to the Mayor of Lviv.

Yanika Merilo is a member of the international reform team in Ukraine. She has nearly 20 years of experience in IT and over 10 years in the investment sector, and is an evangelist and driving force behind many e-government projects in Ukraine.

Yanika began her career in 1996 as a programmer and progressed from working at Olivetti to founding her own outsourcing company with clients such as Microsoft and Nokia. Since 2004, she has been managing investment companies and funds.

She has also been the founder of the ICT Competence Centre, Managing Director of the Ukrainian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (UVCA), and Director of Innovation for Lviv. Over a short period, Lviv became a hub for major e-government projects, including the introduction of electronic citizen identification, e-services, MobileID, and ID cards.

‍

A product manager, founder and lead curator of the pre-acceleration programme Experiment 42, co-founder of the civic organisation Startup Odessa, coordinator of startup activities and the startup scene at the annual international conference Black Sea Summit, curator of incubation programmes for the EGAP Challenge of the East European Foundation, and a regular mentor for Open Data 1991 incubation programmes.