Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

Tech IPO prices exploded and subsequent trading prices rose to dizzying heights as the stock prices became disconnected from the traditional metrics of revenue and profits. Startups with huge burn rates – building leases, staff, PR and advertising – ran out of money. Some have labeled this period as irrational exuberance.

Lean 335

Lean Burn Rate Startup IPO 335

David Teten

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

Instead of budget approvals, monitor key metrics and give managers more flexibility. So here’s the solution I have recommended to some of my portfolio companies: “ agile budgeting ”, i.e., monitoring a few key variables while giving managers significant flexibility. This agile approach is not restricted to small startups.

Agile 60

Agile Management Forecast Silicon Valley 60

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 27, 2009

The full formula works like this: runway = cash on hand / burn rate # iterations = runway / speed of each iteration Very few successful companies ended up in the same exact business that the founders thought theyd be in (see Founders at Work for dozens of examples). Combining agile development with customer developm.

San Francisco 117

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 117

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 13, 2009

And even worse, wed cranked up the burn rate in order to be ready to handle all those millions of mainstream customers we anticipated. Know what the success metrics are for the launch. Combining agile development with customer developm. When they failed to materialize, the company was in big trouble. Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 168

San Francisco PR Lean Early Stage 168

Steve Blank

JUNE 1, 2011

As customer and agile development reinvent the Startup, it’s time to ask why startup board governance has not kept up with the pace of innovation. The Wrong Metrics. The only numbers in those documents that are important in the first year of a startup’s life are burn rate and cash balance. Jonathan Swift. Not Real-time.

Silicon Valley 300

Silicon Valley Business Model Venture Capital Balance Sheet 300

Steve Blank

JUNE 1, 2011

As customer and agile development reinvent the Startup, it’s time to ask why startup board governance has not kept up with the pace of innovation. The Wrong Metrics. The only numbers in those documents that are important in the first year of a startup’s life are burn rate and cash balance. Jonathan Swift. Not Real-time.

Silicon Valley 273

Silicon Valley Business Model Venture Capital Balance Sheet 273

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 13, 2011

As customer and agile development reinvent the startup, it's time to ask why startup board governance has not kept up with the pace of innovation. The Wrong Metrics : Traditional startup board meetings spend an insane amount of wasted time using Fortune 100 company metrics like income statements, cash flow, balance sheet, waterfall charts.

Silicon Valley 117

Silicon Valley Balance Sheet Metrics Early Stage 117