Slides from my lean startup workshop at the Energize 2013 conference by the Energy Commercialization Center at the U of Utah.

1. LEAN Startups: a primer
Learn
Entrepreneurial
Agility
Now!

2. a little about me?
Norris Krueger, PhD
recovering tech entrepreneur
PhD researcher in entrepreneurship
(entrep ecosystems & entrep learning)
global speaker (next up: Denmark, Cairo)
Total lean startup fanboy! 
Norris.krueger@gmail.com
@entrep_thinking, LinkedIn, Facebook, G+
http://bit.ly/NKblog ; http://bit.ly/NKshortbio

3. the “Lean” movement
• … just a few key names:
• Eric Ries
• Steve Blank
• Dave McClure and other cool cats
• …BUT… Is this really that new?
• Isn’t this what smart entrepreneurs ALREADY
do? How smart entrepreneurs ALREADY think?
• And how the best educators already work?

4. What is a “Startup”..really?
• A startup is simply the vehicle for figuring out a
sustainable, repeatable, scalable business model
• This is no time for a business plan… takes very
different planning (and thinking)
• Finding your Scalable Business Model:
– Test each critical assumption in your model
– Measure (qual & quant) ruthlessly
– “Pivot” quickly
– Iterate

5. A few quick thoughts…
• “Lean” doesn’t mean cheap.. It means FAST
• “Lean” could just as easily be called “Learn”!
WHEN to be Lean?
• Extreme uncertainty
• Significant ambiguity (Type III errors)
• Startups – scalable startups
• Social / Sustainable / BOTP
• New Product Development

6. The Process
• from Steve Blank: The search (SBM) we can call
“Customer Development”
• Implementing SBM = “Agile Development”

7. Minimize TOTAL time through the loop
Source: Eric Ries,
The Lean Startup

9. Build  Measure  Learn
• BUILD: Identify & Test
• Minimum Feature Set
• Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
• MEASURE:
• Find out what customers love… and especially hate
(Kathy Sierra vs Dave McClure)
• LISTEN! (to your metrics & your customers)
• LEARN:
• Pivot quickly & decisively

10. • “Failing fast” is also a misnomer – “fail
FORWARD” which means…
• Better your assumptions fail… than your biz
• Disrupts the “Inventor Mentality” -
forces attention on Value (benefits>>features)
• Build  Test/Measure  Learn (L,R,R)
Get Out of the *%^$#@ Building!

12. Venture formation starts with the
search for a business model
What is a business model?
describes how an organization rationalizes the way it
captures, creates, and delivers value
Why it is important?
Clarifies the makeup and interlacing of fundamental elements
needed by any organization: customers, offer,
infrastructure, and financial viability
How is it developed?
12
Source: Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010

13. What’s a Business Model?
• Three key questions to answer – identify all
key assumptions for each:
1) Value Proposition [what customer values]
2) Value Delivery [how to make it happen]
3) Value Capture [how to get paid]
(shall we get started??)

14. www.businessmodelgeneration.com

18. Quipu: online support platform
www.quipuapps.com
Powerful new cloud-based platform for
supporting business model evolution
Other strategic analysis tools
Useful for starting a plan
Useful for developing your pitch
(tell Mike Issa at Quipu that Norris sent you!)

19. Lean Startup Machine

25. 25

26. Key Partners Key Activities Value
Propositions
Customer
Relationsihps
Key Resources
Channels
Cost Structure Revenue Streams
Customer
Segments
Online retail
shopping
Fulfillment by
Amazon
Amazon web
services
Customized online
profiles &
recommendations
Global consumers
(NA, EU, Asia)
Developers &
companies
Individuals and
companies that
need fulfillment
Logistics
Partners
IT & S/W Dev. &
Maintenance
IT infrastructure
Global
fulfillment
infrastructure
Amazon.com
Affiliates
Affiliates
Marketing
Technology and
content
Fulfillment
Source: Osterwald & Pigneur, 2010
Sales margins
Fulfillment
handling fees
Web services

27. for more info…
The 'Lean' Gurus & Key Links:
• Eric Ries (@ericries,www.startuplessonslearned.com)
• Steve Blank (@sgblank, www.steveblank.com)
• Alex Osterwalder (@business_design)
•Trevor Owens (Lean Startup Machine)
GET STARTED HERE: www.slideshare.net/sblank/successful-
entrepreneurship-1
www.StartupWeekend.org
• www.TechStars.org
• www.gewusa.org; www.unleashingideas.org
• www.ideatoproduct.org (Idea to Product)
• Utah Foundry

28. One exercise:
Get Out of the *%^$#@ Building!
• Form pairs;
• Group into sets of four pairs, numbered 1-4.
• #1 is the Brilliant Entrepreneur
• #2-#4 are Demanding Customers/Clients
• #1 specifies product/service then makes plausible
assumption in each canvas category then...
• In turn, asks #2, #3, #4 separately for feedback –>
who give plausible but DISconfirming feedback
• #1 pivots
• (can integrate with “SRI” model)

29. Making opportunities happen:
Causation & Effectuation
29
M1
M2
M3
M4
M5
M1
M2
M3
M4
M5
Given Goal
Given Means
Given Means
Imagined
Ends
Source: Sarasvaty et al. 2005; Read et. Al 2010;
Causation Logic Effectual Logic
- Selecting between a given set of means to achieve a
pre-determined goal
- Presumes a market’s existence and ample resource
and process availability
- Begin with the end in mind & generate alternatives
- Imagining new possible ends using an existing set of
means
- No assumptions about a market’s existence
- Starts with entrepreneur’s own knowledge, resources,
networks, affordable loss, and goes from there