12. No one understands a nut (not only me!)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bessemer_Venture_Partners
We said no to: eBay, Apple, Intel, PayPal
(http://www.bvp.com/Portfolio/AntiPortfolio.aspx)
14. ... no kidding, I’m serious
Vision/Mission Statement Generators are freely available:
http://www.timmcnulty.iofm.net/missionstatement.htm
http://www.isms.org.uk/mission%20statement.htm
http://www.laughing-buddha.net/toys/mission?
Our challenge is to assertively network economically sound
methods of empowerment so that we may continually
negotiate performance based infrastructures
(generated by Dilbert ‘s Mission Generator)
15. Vision: why do we do it?
Understanding trends to anticipate value
16. Visions: examples
Microsoft 1978
A computer on each single office desk
My first startup 1996
New services will be enabled and provided by Internet
My second startup 2002
Money will not be the only currency
17. 4 qualities of a good vision
1. Short (and written in plain English)
2. Easy to understand (also if arguable)
3. Comes true quite rapidly (less than 5 years)
4. Persistent (it lasts for decades)
18. Mission: what we do? For whom?
Microsoft 1975
Developing one easy to use operating system for any
HW platform vendor
My first startup 1996
Developing a billing system for Internet services
delivered by Telco operators
My second startup 2002
Developing a Telco platform to dinamically authorize and
price purchases of any possible good based on any
possible currency combination
19. Challenging your core value
Don’t project into the future your past success
(i.e. success makes you blind)
20. Vision & Mission keep you focused
Collect and organize data about pros and cons
21. What markets should we address?
Large and quickly growing markets (CAGR > 10%)
22. Now write down your business idea
1. What are the emerging trends we are noticing?
2. What does our product/service do?
3. Who will buy it?
4. Why will they buy it?
5. What is the forecasted size of our market?
6. What is the duration of our opportunity window?
Jot down everything in less than 200 words and start
pitching your targets
27. What do you know about your market?
nothing
Entrepreneurs live in world of surprises, they cannot afford
the luxury of prejudices
28. What do you know about your market?
everything
We don’t know what the market will be.
We perfectly know what the market was.
29. Questions about founders
• Where are the founders from?
• What have they accomplished in the past?
• What is their reputation?
• Whom do they know?
• Who else needs to be on the team?
• Are they prepared to recruit high-quality people?
• How realistic are they about the venture chances?
• How will they respond to adversity?
• Do they have the mettle to make the inevitable hard
choices that have to be made?
• How committed are they to this venture?
• What are their motivations?
31. A few football scores
Great teams with bad ideas 2
Average teams with average ideas 0
Great teams with average ideas 2
Average teams with great ideas 1
...but great ideas are always generated by great teams