The 2013 Energize conference hosted by the Energy Commercialization Center, a DOE-supported center at the U of Utah. I get to do another primer on lean!

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

8. 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

9. • “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!

11. 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?
11
Source: Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010

12. What’s a Business Model?
• Three key questions to answer – identify all
key assumptions for each:
– 1) Value Proposition
– 2) Value Delivery
– 3) Value Capture
(but how do we get started??)

13. www.businessmodelgeneration.com

17. Lean Startup Machine

23. 23

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

25. 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

26. 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)

27. Making opportunities happen:
Causation & Effectuation
Causation Logic Effectual Logic
- Selecting between a given set of means to achieve a - Imagining new possible ends using an existing set of
pre-determined goal means
- Presumes a market’s existence and ample resource - No assumptions about a market’s existence
and process availability - Starts with entrepreneur’s own knowledge, resources,
- Begin with the end in mind & generate alternatives networks, affordable loss, and goes from there
Given Means
M1 M1
M2 M4 Imagined
Given Goal M2
M3 M3 Ends
M5
M4
M5 Given Means
27
Source: Sarasvaty et al. 2005; Read et. Al 2010;