Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

In the early stages of a startup your hypotheses about all the parts of your business model are your profound beliefs. You can’t be an effective founder or in the C-suite of a startup if you don’t hold any. Here’s how I learned why they were critical to successful customer development.

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Business Model Product Development Early Stage Customer Development 305

Steve Blank

MARCH 16, 2016

There are many reasons to found a startup. There are many reasons to work at a startup. To most founders a startup is not a job, but a calling. But startups require money upfront for product development and later to scale. What does this mean for startup founders? ——-.

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Liquidity Event Founder Liquidation Preference Venture Capital 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 6, 2011

Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. I challenge any startup to show me they have avoided all of these: One of the founders isn’t delivering. I challenge any startup to show me they have avoided all of these: One of the founders isn’t delivering.

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Startup Software Developers Software Development Business Model 245

Steve Blank

MAY 9, 2017

I’ve spent my life in innovation, eight startups in 21 years, and the last 15 years in academia teaching it. the wave of semiconductor startups in the 1960’s/70’s, the emergence of Venture Capital as a professional industry, the personal computer revolution in 1980’s, the rise of the Internet in the 1990’s and finally.

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Restful Silicon Valley Puerto Rico San Jose 222

Steve Blank

MAY 6, 2015

It’s time to update Build, Measure, Learn to what we now know is the best way to build Lean startups. Build a product, get it into the real world, measure customers’ reactions and behaviors, learn from this, and use what you’ve learned to build something better. Then came the Build-Measure-learn focus of the Lean Startup.

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Lean Agile Business Model Customer Development 120

Steve Blank

AUGUST 31, 2009

After 20 years of working in startups, I decided to take a step back and look at the product development model I had been following and see why it usually failed to provide useful guidance in activities outside the building – sales, marketing and business development.

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Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 238

Steve Blank

MAY 18, 2009

It’s why all of you operated so well in the unpredictable environment that all startups face.” What makes an individual a great startup founder (versus an employee) has been something I had been thinking about since I retired. My comfort in operating in chaos was something I first recognized when I was working in the Midwest.

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Founder Silicon Valley RSS China 297

Steve Blank

APRIL 23, 2018

A version of this article appeared in the Harvard Business Review. The entrepreneur who founded and grew the largest startup in the world to $10 billion in revenue and got fired is someone you have probably never heard of. If you’re following Tesla, you might be interested to know that Sloan wasn’t the founder of GM.

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Michigan Cofounder Stock Forecast 268

Software By Rob

AUGUST 5, 2010

Join nearly 6,000 startup entrepreneurs by subscribing to my RSS feed. You’re a startup founder, whether actual or aspiring. Business books are a founder’s learning tool. The problem is that the premise of all of them – whether true or false – is irrelevant to you as a startup founder.

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Founder Startup Software Review Software 78

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 24, 2010

Wave after wave of hardware, software, biotech and cleantech products have emerged from what has become “ground zero” of entrepreneurial and startup culture. While startups continued to innovate in each new wave of technology, the rate of innovation was constrained by limitations we only now can understand. Starting now.

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Silicon Valley United States Venture Capital Software Review 335

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2012

Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. I challenge any startup to show me they have avoided all of these: One of the founders isn’t delivering. I challenge any startup to show me they have avoided all of these: One of the founders isn’t delivering.

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Software Developers Software Development Business Model Product Development 229

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 1, 2021

You think startups are hard? Try innovating inside a large company where 99% of the company is executing the current business model, while you’re trying to figure out and build what comes next. Do they have better sales, marketing, or product development groups? The short answer is no.

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Incubator Lean Agile Business Model 402

Duct Tape Marketing

APRIL 6, 2022

Steve is the CEO of Founders Space, one of the world’s leading startup accelerators with over 50 partners in 22 countries. Founders Space was ranked the #1 incubator for overseas startups by Forbes and Entrepreneur Magazines. Questions I ask Steve Hoffman: [2:30] How did you get into the business of advising start-ups? [3:49]

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San Francisco Technical Review Incubator Silicon Valley 97

Steve Blank

AUGUST 27, 2012

A founder’s skill is knowing how to recognize new patterns and to pivot on a dime. Knowing how to sort between vision and hallucination can avoid chaos inside your startup. He turned his PhD thesis into a killer product, got it funded and now was CEO of a company of 30. We’re building the wrong product!” A Pivot a Week.

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Founder Cofounder Advisory Board Burn Rate 316

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2015

Most technologists have little interest in the mechanics of starting and building a business. That’s why I recommend that they find a co-founder who loves business challenges, including marketing and finance. Outside investors are most interested in scaling a proven business model, not research and development.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Intellectual Property Cofounder Bootstrapping 120

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 15, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, September 8, 2008 The lean startup Ive been thinking for some time about a term that could encapsulate trends that are changing the startup landscape. After some trial and error, Ive settled on the Lean Startup. Of course, many startups are capital efficient and generally frugal.

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Lean San Francisco Startup Continuous Deployment 168

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Nand changed the culture of the JAIC, bringing in Silicon Valley tools for product development, product management and for the first time a culture that focused on UI/UX, MVPs and continuous integration and deployment. One product at a time wasn’t going to change the trajectory of the DOD. Lessons Learned.

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Artificial Inteligence Fractional CTO Technology CTO 388

Hearpreneur

OCTOBER 10, 2023

In the realm of great business ideas, a well-crafted business plan takes center stage. It's your persuasive pitch to potential investors, outlining your startup's objectives and profitability strategy. 7- Yes, to help navigate the path to success Photo Credit: Steven Light A business plan is essential.

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Business Plan Jordan Entrepreneur Florida 125

Up and Running

JULY 2, 2014

Picking the right attorney in your startup is as important as picking the right business partner. You can’t underestimate the importance of selecting an attorney who “gets” your business model, your market opportunity, and most importantly, your fundraising and exit strategy. My business partner and I were elated.

Technical Review 118

Technical Review Angel Investor Due Diligence Dilution 118

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2023

Here are some guidelines that will help you with the right answers, not only in closing your next investment, but in planning when and how much money to ask for: Investors are most interested in helping you scale the business. They are willing to cover marketing, inventory and scaling, but not product development.

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Elevator Pitch Salary Angel Investor Viral 228

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 30, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, September 30, 2008 What does a startup CTO actually do? 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.

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CTO Fractional CTO CTO Hire Technical Review 168

David Teten

APRIL 1, 2021

Nick Kim , Crosscut’s Head of Platform, in his presentation at the 4th Annual VC Platform Summit, shared their Platform development methodology, which he viewed as an exercise in product development. For example, recruiting writ large is useful at all stages of development. AskAnything.VC Advantages.

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Private Equity Venture Capital Portfolio Equity 78

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 12, 2020

Here are some guidelines that will help you with the right answers, not only in closing your next investment, but in planning when and how much money to ask for: Investors are most interested in helping you scale the business. They are willing to cover marketing, inventory and scaling, but not product development.

Elevator Pitch 336

Elevator Pitch Salary Angel Investor Viral 336

Startup Lessons Learned

JANUARY 30, 2018

I was really curious to learn more about his research and findings, but also how these practices apply to working in startups. Q: Startups are inherently unstable. Can you explain how the principles that make people successful in more traditional, less volatile work environments can also work for startups?

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Metrics Startup Lean Detroit 349

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Unfortunately in early stage startups the drive for financing hijacks the corporate DNA and becomes the raison d’etre of the company. Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. The goal of their startup in this stage becomes “getting funded.”

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Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 262

ConversionXL

SEPTEMBER 6, 2013

Most startups fail. Not because they have a conversion problem but because they never really nail the product or how to market it. The most common mistake startups make is assuming they can operate the same way big companies do, and expect success with little to no feedback from potential customers. Pivot the product entirely.

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Customer Development Conversion Developer Customer 126

Transformify

JUNE 6, 2019

One of the reasons why Toyota is cited as a best practice so often is that the quality of their products does not deteriorate over time. How to apply it to your business? Running a technology startup is always a challenge, especially in the early days when the brand is unknown and it is hard to attract top talent.

Lean 56

Lean Management Technical Review Software Review 56

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 24, 2009

The Founder’s New Insight Smart founders are never satisfied with simply executing their current business model, they are constantly observing, orienting and deciding whether their current business model can be made better. But at times it’s why entrepreneurs can sink their own companies.

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Customer Silicon Valley RSS California 195

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 4, 2021

Modern entrepreneurship began at the turn of the 21 st century with the observation that startups aren’t smaller versions of large companies – large companies at their core execute known business models, while startups search for scalable business models. Here’s their description of why and how.

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Customer Marketing Lean Vertical 420

steveblank.com

JULY 8, 2011

Useful blogs and links for startups Click Here ————– 2.

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Software Review Startup Silicon Valley Analytics 110

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2010

Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. I challenge any startup to show me they have avoided all of these: One of the founders isn’t delivering. I challenge any startup to show me they have avoided all of these: One of the founders isn’t delivering.

Software Developers 122

Software Developers Software Development Business Model Design 122

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 22, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, September 22, 2008 The three drivers of growth for your business model. Master of 500 Hats: Startup Metrics for Pirates (SeedCamp 2008, London) This presentation should be required reading for anyone creating a startup with an online service component. Choose one. One last thought.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco CPA SEM CTO Hire 167

Steve Blank

MAY 14, 2012

magazine is publishing a 12-part series of excerpts from The Startup Owner’s Manual , the new step-by-step “how to” guide for startups. The excerpts, which appeared first at Inc.com , highlight the Customer Development process, best practices, tips and instructions contained in our book.

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Balance Sheet Business Model Customer Development Metrics 335

Steve Blank

JULY 29, 2013

There’s been a lot written about the individual characteristics of what makes a great founder , but a lot less about what makes a great founding team and how that’s different from a great founding CEO. In doing so we’ve failed to help founders understand what it takes to build a great founding team. Founders – the idea.

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Cofounder Advisory Board Customer Development Leadership 335

Austin Startup

AUGUST 20, 2017

August 20, 2017: This is another in my series of posts all leading up to a book on Startup Decision Making. One of the most common mistakes I see in startups is making decisions that lose sight of the context , including the past, present, and future. Sooner or later everybody in a startup knows what everyone else is getting paid.

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Technical Review Software Review Cap Table Securities and Exchange Commission 48

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. RBI normally requires founders to pay back their investors with a fixed percentage of revenue until they have finished providing the investor with a fixed return on capital, which they agree upon in advance.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

www.vccafe.com

MARCH 11, 2013

Startup Resources (Updated Mar 2013). Venture Capital Cafe > Startup Resources (Updated Mar 2013). VC & Startup Resources. Seed Startups. VC Cafe covers early stage Israeli and European tech & mobile startups. Hundreds of startups featured since 2005, will yours be next? About VC Cafe.

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Software Review Technical Review Startup 53