Why do you have opposable thumbs? Do you use your thumbs in your work?

1. Five Questions for the Smith
Fellows
Paul Hudnut
April 25, 2013

2. Q1: Why do humans have
opposable thumbs?

3. A) To listen to lectures
B) To give lectures
C) To do research
D) To make things (and peel fruit)
E) None of the above

4. Q2: Are you using your thumbs in
your work?

5. Enough about thumbs…
• Let’s talk about me for a while.
• Education:
– Colorado College, Virginia Law, HBS
– Mashup: Environmental biology, political
econ, law, business
• What else:
– Entrepreneur: US
WEST, Heska, Envirofit, Inviragen, New Belgium
– Educational Arsonist: CSU College of Business
– Venture Gapitalist: Bohemian Impact Investments
– Awe Hunter

6. Q3: What happens when you use
brains and thumbs?

7. How an idea becomes a good or service which
people will use (and someone will pay for).
Brains provide ideas.
Thumbs provide action.

8. Lean Startup
“A startup is a human institution designed to
create a new product or service under extreme
uncertainty.” Eric Ries, The Lean Startup (2012)
A startup is a “temporary organization designed
to search for a repeatable and scalable business
model.” Steve Blank, Four Steps to the Epiphany

9. Lean Startup
Steve Blank blog, April 16, 2013

10. Squiggling Along
Oft modified, from Damien Newman

11. Q4: What is a business model?
A: How an enterprise creates
and shares value.

12. One approach…

13. Better Approach:
Business Model Canvas
> 9 simpler pieces

14. H.E.R.O.’ic Enterprises
• Produce cleaner air, cleaner water, health, justice
• Find value in waste
• Prevent pollution, disease
• Restore/regenerate ecosystems and communities

15. Chronic
Crisis
BOP TOP
Partners in Health, Doctors
Without Borders
Aravind, Envirofit, Vision
Spring
Red Cross, CDC &
FEMA
Merck, Toyota, BP
Business Models for Environmental
& Public Health Ventures

16. Chronic
Crisis
BOP TOP
Partners in Health, Doctors
Without Borders
Aravind, Envirofit, Vision
Spring
Red Cross, CDC &
FEMA
Merck, Toyota, BP
Business Models for Environmental
& Public Health Ventures
XX
XXXX
HEY…
Were you paying
attention?

17. “Most people look at a company like Apple and
think, how could I ever make such a thing?
Apple is an institution, and I'm just a person.
But every institution was at one point just a
handful of people in a room deciding to start
something. Institutions are made up, and made
up by people no different from you.”
Paul Graham, A Student’s Guide to Start Ups 2006

18. Q5: Do you have an example?
Envirofit International
• “Making the world
fit for humanity.”
• CSU spin off
• Sophisticated
technology
• affordable design
• mfrg and logistics
• carbon and micro
finance
18

19. In process…Surviving in the
Entrepocene
How to build something...
that matters…
with soul.
a guide to clean startups for the other 99%.
(with andy hargadon)

20. Bonus Question: Want more?
• www.bopreneur.blogspot.com
• Twitter: @BOPreneur
RESOURCES:
steveblank.com
businessmodelalchemist.com
andrewhargadon.typepad.com
Eric Ries, The Lean Startup (2012)
Osterwalder & Pigneur, Business Model
Generation (2011)

21. Made to Stick (2007)
You have a Curse of Knowledge problem
How do you design your idea to maximize its
chances of survival and replication?
SUCCESs framework