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Clayton Christensen

Steve Blank

I remember the first time I read the Innovator’s Dilemma in 1997. They operated this way because their existing business models didn’t allow them to initially profit from those opportunities – so they ignored them – and continued to chase higher profitability in more-demanding segments. I never got to say thank you.

Lean 428
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Revenue Development

K9 Ventures

In fact, at the time (1996-1997) we offered both a downloadable product, that our customers could install on their own servers, and a “hosted-offering”, which came to be known as “On-Demand”, then the “ASP” (Application Service Provider) model, and today we call it “SaaS” (Software as a Service).

Revenue 72
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Don’t Underestimate the Undergraduates

Steve Blank

Jim has founded six companies, including Preview Travel, one of the first online travel agencies, which went public in 1997 and subsequently merged to create Travelocity.com as an independent company. Align and train mentors to embrace customer development. Today he is the co-founder and Chairman of Triporati, LaunchPad Central.

Lean 282
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Business Plans Are An Historical Artifact

Feld Thoughts

In the 1990s, business plan competitions were all the rage. I was a judge early on at the MIT $10k Competition (now the $100k Competition) and read lots and lots of business plans. By 1997, when I started investing as a venture capital investor, I was no longer reading business plans. Related articles. Looking for Help?

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The rise of the “successful” unsustainable company

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

Freeloader — On $3m invested, sold for $38m in 1996 — shut down in 1997. .” Here’s the summary of his track record (excerpted from the Fast Company article): Forefront — IPO’ed in 1995 by CBT — CBT stock fell 85% in 1998 and prompted class-action lawsuits. Support.com — On 2.5m

IPO 240