What IFTE does

IFTE (Initiative for Teaching Entrepreneurship) is an Austrian non-profit association (gemeinnütziger Verein) headquartered in Vienna that develops and delivers entrepreneurship education programs, competitions, teacher training, and events for children, youth, and educators. Founded in 2008 as the Austrian organizer of Global Entrepreneurship Week and formally incorporated under its current legal name in 2017, IFTE operates a broad portfolio including flagship programs Youth Start and Youth Start Digital, competitions (Next Generation, European Entrepreneurship Award, Trau di Challenge, Entrepreneurship Team Challenge, RYA Sustainability, Staatsmeisterschaft Debattieren), teacher professional development, and the annual Entrepreneurship Festival & Summit. Its core customer segments are Austrian primary and secondary schools, teachers, and students, with curriculum-aligned offerings delivered through direct school partnerships and educator training.

The organization does not operate a proprietary technology platform; its value delivery is built on in-person programs, competitions, workshops, and teacher training content rather than software products. IFTE functions as the official Austrian host of Global Entrepreneurship Week in collaboration with eesi-Impulszentrum and is the Austrian member of the Youth Start European Entrepreneurship Network, giving it access to a 170-country, ~10 million-participant global movement. Strategic partners include eesi-Impulszentrum (core co-host), UNIQA (corporate sponsor via simplystrong), and Super 5 (media partner), with no disclosed technology integrations, APIs, or AI/ML capabilities.

IFTE operates as a non-profit association with no disclosed revenue, commercial pricing, or external funding rounds. Operations appear to be sustained through a combination of sponsorships, partner support, and likely public or institutional grants aligned with Austrian entrepreneurship education priorities. With 1–10 employees and a distributed volunteer/stakeholder base across schools and educators, IFTE runs a lean, mission-driven model focused on program quality, curriculum integration, and ecosystem participation rather than commercial scale.

Name

IFTE

Legal name

Initiative for Teaching Entrepreneurship – unternehmerische Haltungen wecken, fördern, stärken

Website

https://ifte.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

IFTE is an Austrian non-profit association that delivers entrepreneurship education programs, competitions, teacher training, and events for children, youth, and schools, including hosting Global Entrepreneurship Week Austria since 2008.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entrepreneurship Education

NAICS

Educational Services (611), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Business Planning, Pitching & Competitions (Pitch Decks, Demo Days) (EDAMAHAB), Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC), Career Exploration & Industry Exposure (Guest Speakers, Company Visits) (EDAMAHAJ)

Keywords

• Entrepreneurship education
• Youth programs
• Teacher training
• School partnerships
• Non-profit association

Headquarters

HQ city

Breitenfurt Bei Wien

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Non-profit Association Operations: IFTE operates as a gemeinnütziger Verein (non-profit association) registered in Vienna. The organization's purpose is educational and charitable, focused on promoting entrepreneurship education rather than generating commercial revenue. No explicit revenue streams are detailed.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

IFTE delivers a portfolio of entrepreneurship education programs, competitions, workshops, festivals, and teacher training initiatives for children and youth in Austrian schools. Core offerings include the Youth Start program and Youth Start Digital, the Next Generation and European Entrepreneurship Award competitions, the annual Entrepreneurship Festival & Summit, and Global Entrepreneurship Week Austria. Programs are delivered free of charge to participating schools through partnerships, classroom activities, and educator professional development.

Product overview

IFTE (Initiative for Teaching Entrepreneurship) is a non-profit educational association that operates a comprehensive portfolio of programs, competitions, workshops, and training initiatives focused on entrepreneurship education for children and youth in Austria. The core offerings include Youth Start and Youth Start Digital programs, various youth competitions (Next Generation, European Entrepreneurship Award, Staatsmeisterschaft Debattieren, Trau di Challenge, Entrepreneurship Team Challenge, RYA Sustainability), annual flagship events (Entrepreneurship Festival & Summit, Global Entrepreneurship Week Austria), workshop programs (Debattierclub, Starte Dein Projekt, Youth Entrepreneurship Week, Genossenschaft macht Schule), and professional development for educators. The organization functions as a platform for youth entrepreneurship education rather than a technology product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Jedes Kind Stärken: A program strengthening children through entrepreneurship education from primary school level
• YouthStart / Changemaker
• European Entrepreneurship Award
• Next Generation

Products and services

• Youth Start
• Youth Start Digital
• Staatsmeisterschaft Debattieren

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 10 million participants in Global Entrepreneurship Week across 170 countries
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• eesi-ImpulszentrumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008Collaboration with eesi-Impulszentrum as co-host of the Global Entrepreneurship Week in Austria. The partnership has been active since 2008 when GEW was first organized in Austria.
• simplystrong by UNIQAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor of the Jedes Kind Stärken Feste 2027, providing support for the Austria-wide festivals celebrating children's entrepreneurship projects.
• Super 5minorGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner supporting the Jedes Kind Stärken Feste 2027 through video content collaboration.
• Youth Start European Entrepreneurship NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean network of national organizations conducting youth entrepreneurship competitions. IFTE represents Austria, with winners qualifying for the European competition held annually in different countries (2025 in Albania).

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America): DECA is an established international student organization preparing emerging leaders in entrepreneurship, marketing, and finance through competitions and curricular programs. Comparable to IFTE via its K-12/secondary school competition focus on entrepreneurship and business planning.
• Junior Achievement (JA) Worldwide: JA Worldwide is the largest global nonprofit delivering entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy education to K-12 students. It is directly comparable to IFTE in mission (youth entrepreneurship education) and target market (schools/youth), but operates at far greater scale across 100+ countries.
• Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN): GEN is the parent organization that coordinates Global Entrepreneurship Week across 170+ countries, of which IFTE is the Austrian host. It is comparable as the global umbrella body through which IFTE gains reach and brand association in youth entrepreneurship.
• Ashoka (Ashoka Young Changemakers / Youth Venture): Ashoka is a global social entrepreneur network with significant youth-facing programs (Ashoka Youth Venture, Young Changemakers). It is comparable to IFTE in fostering changemaking and entrepreneurial mindset in young people, though with a broader social innovation rather than pure entrepreneurship focus.

Direct peers

• Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE): NFTE is a US-headquartered nonprofit providing entrepreneurship education programs to young people from low-income communities through school partnerships. It is directly comparable to IFTE's school-based entrepreneurship education model, competition structure, and teacher training focus.
• Enactus: Enactus is a global nonprofit running student-led social entrepreneurship projects and competitions in universities and increasingly secondary schools. It compares to IFTE through its competition-driven entrepreneurship education format and pan-European operating presence.
• eesi-Impulszentrum: eesi-Impulszentrum is an Austrian entrepreneurship education support center and IFTE's co-host of Global Entrepreneurship Week since 2008. It is directly comparable to IFTE through shared focus on Austrian youth entrepreneurship education, teacher training, and school partnerships.
• Youth Start European Entrepreneurship Network: The Youth Start European Entrepreneurship Network is a pan-European alliance of national organizations (including IFTE for Austria) running youth entrepreneurship competitions. It is directly comparable as the umbrella organization through which IFTE operates its competitions and the European Entrepreneurship Award.

Emerging players

• BizWorld Foundation: BizWorld Foundation delivers entrepreneurship and financial literacy programs to elementary and middle school students via school-based curricula and competitions. Comparable to IFTE's "Jedes Kind Stärken" primary-school focus in mission and audience, though smaller and US-centered.

Regional players

• European Schoolnet (European Entrepreneurship Education NETwork / EE-HUB): European Schoolnet coordinates European-level initiatives in entrepreneurship education for schools across Europe, including policy advocacy and teacher resources. Comparable to IFTE as a Europe-wide platform operating in the same Austrian/European school ecosystem but at the supranational layer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookde-de.facebook.com/johannes.lindner.75
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ifte

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about IFTE