stages of development - International Business Growth Radio Network

BUILDING OPERATIONS FOR A STARTUP - SHOW 13: STARTUPS AS EXPERIMENTS - THE MODEL - WILLIAM EASTMAN

28/3/2022

Today's show, the last of our 13 part series, is using the concept of MVO to introduce what is really required to build a startup - constant experimentation to test assumptions, build quick and test ideas to get it right.
One way to define MVO is more than the Minimally Viable Offer it is a Minimally Viable Organization.

EPISODE 45: HOW MUST YOU THINK TO BUILD THE OPERATIONAL FUNCTIONS OF A STARTUP BUSINESS
Let's start with risk. The simple act of creating a new business that is going to do something different than the competition. You are looking to create value at an acceptable price point that will make your offer standout while delivering a profit.

When we look at that equation from an internal perspective our vision is based on a confidence in the model. However, when you look at it externally - how arrogant.

Unless your idea and model is truly unique and untested, which by the way is at least slightly delusional, why do you believe in the greatness hasn't already been tested and discarded?

So let's start with minimizing risk until you have sufficient real-time data to have real confidence in your idea and model; and that starts with the offer and processes.

Minimize the risk for the first offer by reducing the initial development investment while providing just the core features needed to make the sale.

The challenge with the first offer is the number of critical assumptions that must be made and how those can be tested or minimized.

Building the MVO is never a finished product or service, it is a process to build right enough the first time and improve from there. Identifying the bare minimum features and functionality to engage the target market that is upgraded with each successive upgrade.

Topics:

What Is The Minimum You Must Build to Make the First Sale - MVOffer?
Given the product or service, what is the MVOrganization?

EPISODE 46: A STARTUP IS NOT A BUSINESS, IT IS AN EXPERIMENT
Since all startups are really experiments and not businesses. Therefore your goal is the keep everything simple and easy to test: limited variables, simple processes, quick production & testing, easily improved.

Understand what you are testing.

This might seem over simplistic but it gets at the first problem - are you a solution looking for a problem (finding the right customer) or building the right offer for a specific customer (the customer is known)?

Topics:

ALL STOP - A Startup Is Not A Business, It Is An Experiment!
What Must You Know Before Starting The Startup
What To Build and When to Build It? (Right Customer or nature of the Offer)
One More Thing Before You Start - How Are The Best of The Best Doing It

EPISODE 47: CLOSING THE CHASM BETWEEN THE PLAN AND REALITY
This is consulting in its purest form - knowing the questions to ask. Our experience is answers are easier than questions and when engaging in this type of experimental design to prove the business idea there are 3 distinct stages in the process. Although initially only the first two matter. Once you have a winning offer, the last stage takes you from a tested prototype to a repeatable and a 'manufacturable' offer.

The first chasm problem is reality - what are the market conditions that will determine the offer and its price point.

Topics:

Turning The Plan Into Reality
Draw A Picture Of The Competitive Landscape
How Do Customers Make Buying Decisions

EPISODE 48: BUILDING YOUR FOREVER CORE - WHETHER A ZERO OR A BILLION IN REVENUE
Now that you have enough quality information on the aspiration or problem, the next step is to build a prototype that is minimal in its offer (MVOffer) but complete enough for the customer to use. In many ways this step can be viewed as the opposite of R&D (Research and Development) - D&R - Development and Research.

Most companies as they mature develop a R&D process for the developing improvements or something new. We are advocating this is the first process to develop and is the inverse - D&R - Development & Research.

Topics: