Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 17, 2009

The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Startup Visa update ► February (5) Kiwi lean startup + Australia next Why diversity matters (the meritocracy business) Beware of Vanity Metrics (for Harvard Business Rev. Startup Lessons Learned - the Conference (April 23.

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Lean San Francisco Web Continuous Deployment 76

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 30, 2008

When Ive asked mentors of mine who have worked in big companies about the role of the CTO, they usually talk about the importance of being the external face of the companys technology platform; an evangelist to developers, customers, and employees. No departments The Five Whys for Startups (for Harvard Business R.

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CTO Fractional CTO CTO Hire Technical Review 168

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 28, 2008

We pitch to potential partners, vendors, publishers, conferences, employees, and even lawyers. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Usually we think of pitches in the context of raising money, but that is only one of many pitch situations.

San Francisco 128

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 128

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 26, 2009

Every two months, the company would have a big end-of-milestone meeting, with our Board of Directors, Business Advisory Board, and all employees present. And at each meeting, we’d also include an unedited, uncensored report direct from the Customer Advisory Board. No departments The Five Whys for Startups (for Harvard Business R.

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Advisory Board Customer San Francisco Lean 151

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 10, 2008

I would add, though, a further question: Do new employees write code on their first day? So if an employee pushed code that broke the site, wed ask: why didnt our cluster immune system catch that? The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Completely necessary.

Software Review 144

Software Review Technical Review San Francisco Continuous Deployment 144

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 3, 2009

The same has been true of an unfortunate number of startups, they manage to generate a lot of hype, raise a lot of money, and sometimes make some of their investors, employees, or founders rich. bigs : @ericries says Stealth dev is a (undesirable, failure-presaging) customer-free zone. Use some customer development to find out.

Lean 60

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment Cofounder 60

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 23, 2009

Part one is up on their site today , in text, audio and slide format. To hear full audio and a complete transcript, click through to Venture Hacks. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? I recently say down with Venture Hacks for an interview.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Audio 167

Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 17, 2010

Not to be outdone, the technologists on the team had also brought their big guns, and the meeting was packed with employees of every level – from VP’s all the way down to me. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ▼ June (3) What is a startup? Startup Lessons Learned - the Conference (April 23.

Technical Review 164

Technical Review San Francisco Lean Software Review 164

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 26, 2009

Its an amazing thing when you can hire an employee who knows more about your code base than you do, and this turned out to be a big source of advantage. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Product development leverage Validated learning about customers Built to learn Web 2.0

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Product Development Developer San Francisco Product 88

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 4, 2009

The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Startup Visa update ► February (5) Kiwi lean startup + Australia next Why diversity matters (the meritocracy business) Beware of Vanity Metrics (for Harvard Business Rev. Startup Lessons Learned - the Conference (April 23.

San Francisco 68

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 68

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 20, 2008

A new employee is more likely to make a mistake than an experienced one, but everyone makes mistakes. Of course, we wouldnt have a new employee write a huge new feature on their first day - usually wed start with a simple cosmetic change or bug fix. a robust set of defense mechanisms against a bad change making it to production.

Software Review 164

Software Review Engineer Management Technical Review 164

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 24, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, March 24, 2009 The metrics and levers of engagement, presentation on Engagement Loops for Facebook Developer Garage SF Ill be presenting a talk at the Facebook Developer Garage SF Wednesday evening. What good are these metrics if they dont help guide product or business decisions?

Metrics 88

Metrics San Francisco Lean Viral 88

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 3, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, March 3, 2009 Employees should be masters of their own time Every startup should have a culture of learning. The rule is simple: every employee is 100% responsible for how they spend their time. The suggestion is that you implement one single company-wide rule. I asked why.

Employee 146

Employee San Francisco Lean Software Review 146

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 30, 2008

Over-communicate with employees, investors, customers. Ive also used the voluntary salary reduction tool - its particularly useful as a way to get passionate employees who dont have a lot of personal expenses to buy into the mission of the company at a deep level. Pay attention to where your cash is. Dont sugar coat.

Lean 121

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment DC 121

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 19, 2009

It isnt until a customer actually clicks or calls to place an order that TPGTEXs developers will build the software. "We We do not develop a product until we get a paying customer," says Orit Pennington , who co-founded the six-employee company with her husband in 2002.

San Francisco 137

San Francisco Product Lean Continuous Deployment 137

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 7, 2010

Whether youre a US citizen or an immigrant, entrepreneur or investor, founder or employee, theres something you can do. Whether youre a US citizen or an immigrant, entrepreneur or investor, founder or employee, theres something you can do. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

San Francisco 118

San Francisco DC Startup Lean 118

Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 23, 2009

Priority will be given to employees of companies participating in the fbFund REV program, but I am confident that there will be room for members of the general public who want to attend. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? If youd like to reserve a spot, please RSVP.

Lean 74

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment DC 74

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 31, 2009

If youve been following my efforts in figuring out the best way to evangelize the lean startup , youll know that I am trying to apply customer development principles. And if you know those principles, you may notice that I am trying to pass from the "customer discovery" phase to the "customer validation" phase.

Lean 68

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment DC 68

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 1, 2009

Well have a full audio recording posted soon, but I did want to share the slides with everyone. LIKED: Y startups fail, cont deployment vs waterfall vs agile, small batches & learn fr biz metrics #leanstartup As concise a summary as Ive ever seen. A: have them deploy code to production on their first day as an employee.

Lean 60

Lean San Francisco Startup Continuous Deployment 60

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 19, 2009

In fact theyd cause there to be more jobs for Americans, because the companies they started would hire more employees as they grew. In fact theyd cause there to be more jobs for Americans, because the companies they started would hire more employees as they grew. Brad Feld is working on promoting this idea inside the halls of Congress.

San Francisco 150

San Francisco Founder DC Washington 150

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 20, 2009

As a consequence, this new startup is relentlessly metrics-driven. It tries out new ideas with a fraction of customers in order to prioritize using facts, not opinions. Its unit of progress is that of validated learning about its customers. It is a truly fun place to work. This article also appeared on BusinessWeek.com.

Lean 68

Lean San Francisco Startup Continuous Deployment 68

Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 21, 2010

Yet, the real stories of successful startups are full of activities that can rightly be called institution-building: hiring creative employees, coordinating their activities, and creating a company culture that delivers results. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ▼ June (3) What is a startup?

San Francisco 168

San Francisco Startup Lean Continuous Deployment 168

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 13, 2009

Do some Customer Development instead. I wont recount what happened next (although your can hear us recount it in audio ). Know what the success metrics are for the launch. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Help you raise money. But dont be too sure.

San Francisco 168

San Francisco PR Lean Early Stage 168

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 2, 2009

For example, I often cite a real example of a problem that has as its root cause a new employee who was not properly trained. I pick that example on purpose, for two reasons: 1) most of the companies I work with deal with this problem and yet 2) almost none of them have any kind of training program in place for new employees.

San Francisco 164

San Francisco Lean Technical Review Software Review 164

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 6, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, October 6, 2008 When NOT to listen to your users; when NOT to rely on split-tests There are three legs to the lean startup concept: agile product development , low-cost (fast to market) platforms , and rapid-iteration customer development. I think Drucker said it best.

San Francisco 128

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Agile 128

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 11, 2014

If you are passionate about business, good at writing, decent at scheduling, can learn to edit audio, and want to help Jason share more interviews, then contact me to see if you could be the next producer of Smart Bear Live. How many employees would a medium-sized business have in your definition? You said the best customer is.

Technical Cofounder 220

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Software Review Management 220

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 7, 2009

We eventually discovered (via five whys ) that we also had to get each new employee acculturated to a fearless way of thinking. Because this was such a big cultural change for most new employees, we didnt leave them to sink or swim on their own. For one, it required us to keep our developer sandbox setup procedure simple and automated.

San Francisco 131

San Francisco Continuous Deployment Software Review Lean 131

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 27, 2009

Customer Development : a disciplined approach to finding out if there is a market for your product before its too late. Customer Development Engineering : techniques for accelerating your product development. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

San Francisco 117

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 117

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 29, 2008

On the one hand, it gives you insight into what kind of employee the candidate might be. It amused me because I knew that these things rarely matter and my answer conveyed very little of my value as an employee, but it frustrated my interviewer. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

San Francisco 146

San Francisco Lean Agile Java 146

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 27, 2010

Its easier to believe in a glorious future when you have only zeroes, for everyone: founders, investors, and employees. No vanity metrics should be looked at. Its easier to believe in a glorious future when you have only zeroes, for everyone: founders, investors, and employees. No vanity metrics should be looked at.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Software Review 167

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 13, 2008

Hes a new employee, and he was not properly trained in TDD So far, this isnt much different from the kind of analysis any competent operations team would conduct for a site outage. Instead, five whys kept leading to problems caused by an improperly trained new employee, and wed make a small adjustment. why did that code get written?

Software Review 167

Software Review Technical Review San Francisco Continuous Deployment 167

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 9, 2009

Then I wouldnt have the chance to work with the incredible employees and mentors from whom I learned so much. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? And yet, missing out on these trends wasnt the end of the world. Startup Lessons Learned - the Conference (April 23.

San Francisco 94

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 94

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 1, 2009

Not everything has to follow lean startup and customer development principles, and I write that as a devoted practitioner of both. It would be far more useful to discover how Apple really does develop their innovative products it rather than assume that they follow the principles that you and I espouse.

San Francisco 166

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 166

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 11, 2009

Thats all helpful for recruiting, retaining, and ramping-up a new employee. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? They have a certain amount of trust based on having been part of a common mission, and they share a passion for the projects goals.

Software Review 68

Software Review Software Hiring San Francisco 68

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 17, 2008

It has to balance competing goals of establishing clear ownership, while avoiding talented employees getting stuck. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? What is customer development? No departments The Five Whys for Startups (for Harvard Business R.

San Francisco 79

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 79

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 13, 2010

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, September 13, 2010 The Superbowl ad test I am a firm believer in the danger of vanity metrics , numbers that give the illusion of progress but often mask the true relationship between cause and effect. Vanity metrics are generally bigger. Vanity metrics. The solution? Is that really news?

San Francisco 154

San Francisco Metrics Lean PR 154

Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 6, 2008

These are facets that are conspicuously missing from the lives of employees in most organizations I would speculate but with this agile/scrum type methodology these can be the "juice" that keeps the team engaged and productive. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

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San Francisco SCRUM Lean Continuous Deployment 74