Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 22, 2009

Each has its own iterative process: customer development and agile development respectively. Ive spoken in some detail about a specific pivot that we went through at IMVU , when we decided to abandon the instant messaging add-on concept, and switch to a standalone instant messaging network. Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Agile 167

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 29, 2009

I hope to show why lean and agile techniques actually reduce the negative impacts of technical debt and increase our ability to take advantage of its positive effects. For example, I’ve talked often about our belief that an instant messaging add-on product would allow IMVU to take advantage of a network effects strategy.

Technical Review 168

Technical Review Software Review San Francisco Lean 168

Steve Blank

JUNE 8, 2021

This was followed by an 8-minute slide presentation describing their customer discovery journey over the 10 weeks. While all the teams used the Mission Model Canvas , (videos here ), Customer Development and Agile Engineering to build Minimal Viable Products, each of their journeys was unique.

Lean 417

Lean Security Asia SBIR 417

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 22, 2008

What those sites have in common (despite their very different audiences) is that something is causing their customers to become addicted to their product, and so no matter how they acquire a new customer, they tend to keep them. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

San Francisco 167

San Francisco CPA SEM CTO Hire 167

Steve Blank

MARCH 29, 2010

They typically met once or twice in person with the team, help them network outside the building, answer emails, provide critiques, etc. For example, when we taught the value of getting out of the building and agile development, we had Eric Ries talk about the Lean Startup. Essentially mentors support and coach each team.

Business Model 236

Business Model Silicon Valley California Engineer 236

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 20, 2008

As I evolved my thinking, I started to frame the problem this way: How can we devise a product development process that allows the business leaders to take responsibility for the outcome by making conscious trade-offs? When I first encountered agile software techniques, in the form of extreme programming , I thought I had found the answer.

Software Review 164

Software Review Engineer Management Technical Review 164

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. Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 166

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 166

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 22, 2020

The growth of social networking, the spread of mobile devices, and the advances in the use of cloud computing have changed how people consume content from the news and media industry. Furthermore, developers can also create new device platforms in less time and using fewer resources compared to more traditional methods.

API 141

API Media Agile Technical Review 141

Steve Blank

APRIL 27, 2009

Now I knew that it began in the early days of World War II as a crash program to reduce the losses of bombers to the German air defense network. And in hindsight, we seemed a bit more agile and innovative in WWII.) Electronic warfare and signals intelligence in the U.S. started with Fred Terman and the Harvard Radio Research Lab.

Silicon Valley 210

Silicon Valley Technical Review Europe Germany 210

SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 1, 2010

aka: An Open Letter to the Next Big Social Network) - 500 Hats , November 1, 2010 I've held off writing this post for a long time, because I couldn't quite get my head around all the issues. If network B has 20 users than it’s value is 400 (20*20). How to Take Down Facebook -- Hint: It Ain't Twitter. but: Something is Still Missing.

Technical Review 175

Technical Review Technology Product CTO Hire 175

Steve Blank

JUNE 12, 2020

This was followed by an 8-minute slide presentation describing their customer discovery journey over the 10-weeks. All the teams used the Mission Model Canvas , (videos here ) Customer Development and Agile Engineering to build Minimal Viable Products, but all of their journeys were unique.

Oakland 315

Oakland Asia Lean Video 315

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. How did they do it? Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 128

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Agile 128

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 3, 2009

This post describes how the traditional product development model distorts startup sales, marketing and business development. Finally, I’ll write about how Eric Ries and the Lean Startup concept provided the equivalent model for product development activities inside the building and neatly integrates customer and agile development.

Customer Development 229

Customer Development Developer Silicon Valley Customer 229

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 28, 2009

This builds on a lot of great thinking that has come before, like the agile movements insistence that only the creation of working code counts as progress for a software development team. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 98

San Francisco Continuous Deployment Lean DC 98

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 26, 2009

And they expose the startups to a vast network of mentors, none of whom get paid for their involvement. And do your customer development. Thank you @ericries for drastically altering my perception of agile startup Thank you all so much for your kind words. Some of the mentors are based in Boulder, but many are not.

San Francisco 113

San Francisco Silicon Valley Startup Lean 113

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 14, 2008

But the early customers all compared it to MySpace. This was 2004, and we had never even heard of MySpace, let alone had any understanding of social networking. It required hearing customers say it over and over again for us to take a serious look, and eventually to realize that social networking was core to our business.

San Francisco 131

San Francisco Customer Lean Continuous Deployment 131

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 22, 2009

I went to excellent public schools (so-called science magnets) that had computer classes, which meant they had networked computers that I could use. If we network them together, theyll answer each others questions and collaborate on projects we can hardly imagine. But I was also very lucky. Theyll take it from there.

Programming 143

Programming San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment 143

Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 15, 2009

The agile software movement has made numerous contributions: continuous integration, which helps accelerate feedback about defects; story cards and kanban that reduce batch size; a daily stand-up that increases tempo. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Expo SF (May.

Continuous Deployment 167

Continuous Deployment Software Review San Francisco Lean 167

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 5, 2008

Spray files across cheap disks on your network. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Waves of technology platforms The lean startup Customer Development Engineering Greasemonkey compiler Great open source scalability tools from Danga Ideas. Pay less for storage.

Open Source 107

Open Source San Francisco Continuous Deployment Lean 107

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 13, 2009

Do some Customer Development instead. Launching is about creating circles within circles (groups of people that connect) and social networking, word of mouth, and real-world advertising are all contributing factors. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

San Francisco 168

San Francisco PR Lean Early Stage 168

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 8, 2009

When it becomes possible to build products "live" with customers, the cycle time changes and design becomes a much more dynamic process. We still struggle to create Firm software that is defect-free, and it still requires customer insight (and maybe some customer development) to discover what will Delight.

Software Review 87

Software Review Design Software San Francisco 87

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 6, 2009

From my side, i network with many startups all the time, and i am constantly trying to persuade them to adopt the new age mindset, but its often no easy task. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? No departments The Five Whys for Startups (for Harvard Business R. Expo SF (May.

Lean 115

Lean Video San Francisco Continuous Deployment 115

Steve Blank

MARCH 18, 2011

Over time, open source software the rise of the next wave of web startups and the embrace of Agile Engineering meant that startups no longer needed millions of dollars to buy specialized computers and license expensive software – they could start a company on their credit cards. Rules For the New Bubble: 2011 -2014. Tools in the New Bubble.

Internet 335

Internet IPO Silicon Valley Agile 335

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 22, 2010

All the usual ideas are good ones: I support inviting more women to speak at conferences , the creation of women-centric networking events like Women 2.0 All the usual ideas are good ones: I support inviting more women to speak at conferences , the creation of women-centric networking events like Women 2.0 Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco Lean Sweden Continuous Deployment 167

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 18, 2008

For companies in the early-adopter phase, you can play "the earlyvangelist game" whenever a customer turns out to be too mainstream for your product. Pick a similar product that they do use, and ask them "who was the first person you know who started using [social networking, mobile phones, plasma TV, instant messaging.]? So why you?

San Francisco 133

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment DC 133

Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 7, 2008

In school I was being pounded day and night with anything that has to do with agile software development. When I entered the company, I realized that there were no process and I quickly applied what I know about agile software development. I am basically a one-man shop. Expo SF (May.

Software Review 94

Software Review Technical Review San Francisco Part-Time VPE 94

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 18, 2008

And in some markets its decisive, because of well-known network effects (as happened with Microsoft, eBay, and many others). But if your product category doesnt have strong network effects, word of mouth alone is not usually enough to fend off a competitor who also has a quality product. So what model will prevail on the iPhone?

Distribution 74

Distribution San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment 74

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

iridium satellite network. But in the 11 years it took Iridium to go from concept to launch, innovation in mobile phones and cell phone networks moved at blinding speed. In 2000, new investors bought Iridium’s satellites and network for $25-million, or one half of one percent of the invested capital.

Business Plan 335

Business Plan Customer Business Model Customer Development 335

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 24, 2009

These individuals, possessing talent, experience or real-world networks, will continue to function as ‘virtual gatekeepers’ in the next-generation media industry. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Though technology tools and Web 2.0 ideas (e.g. Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 113

San Francisco Lean Technical Review Distribution 113

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 7, 2010

I’ve previously documented that early-on in IMVU’s life, we made the mistake of building an IM add-on product instead of a standalone network. We would bring customers in for a usability test, and ask them to use the IM add-on functionality. (For and for which customer? and for which customer?

San Francisco 154

San Francisco Lean Metrics Design 154

Steve Blank

AUGUST 5, 2010

I think you can blame Customer and Agile Development for a small part of it. It’s because the startups are doing something very new that make them “Lean&# : These startups embrace customer and agile development that Eric Ries has been evangelizing. Here’s why. Electron-based Venture Capital.

Lean 265

Lean Internet Silicon Valley Venture Capital 265

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 27, 2009

Im going to be speaking on June 3rd at an event sponsored by the Technology Entrepreneurs Exchange (TeXchange), "the premier networking organization in Texas for business executives and entrepreneurs to meet, exchange ideas and share experiences." It uses principles of agile software development, open source and web 2.0,

Lean 60

Lean Austin San Francisco Startup 60

Steve Blank

APRIL 7, 2020

The classes are built on the Lean Startup methodology: Customer Discovery, Agile Engineering and the Business/Mission Model Canvas. So how do our students get out of the building to talk to customers to do Customer Discovery when they can’t get out of the building? All you have are a series of untested hypotheses.

Customer 422

Customer Business Model Restful Video 422

Startup Lessons Learned

JANUARY 4, 2009

This is true of most web application servers, caches like memcached, and all of the network infrastructure that connects them. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Data storage is becoming a specialized function, delegated most often to relational databases. Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 151

San Francisco Architecture Startup Database 151

Steve Blank

APRIL 29, 2013

I was surprised how interested the faculty was in exploring whether the Capstone class could be modified to use the Customer Development process to get input from potential “customers” inside the Air Force. And how the engineering process could be turned Agile. Air Force Customer Development Lean LaunchPad'

Silicon Valley 265

Silicon Valley Colorado Lean Connecticut 265

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. 3) An experienced board brings an extensive network of customers, partners, help in recruiting, follow-on financing, etc. Jonathan Swift. The Wrong Metrics.

Silicon Valley 300

Silicon Valley Business Model Venture Capital Balance Sheet 300

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

I started my last company with 100% off-shore resources because I could never have completed Customer Development at a reasonable cost of money or regulatory burden had I employed US Citizens. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? Expo SF (May.

DC 90

DC Washington San Francisco SBIR 90