ENTRE 440-540AB Business Plan Practicum On-ramp to the 2015 U.W. Business Plan Competition Tom Eckmann 206-441-2067 Teckmann@UW.edu 1
What is an entrepreneur? Many paths open to entrepreneurs Risk Growth Entrepreneur Solopreneur (life style) Social (impact) Entrepreneur Re-entrepreneur (purchase) Franchisee (operator) Intrapreneur (manager or executive) Reward Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440/540 Business Plan Practicum 2
Today s Agenda About this course Administration / Rules of the road 2015 Business Plan Competition (Amy Sallin) Is entrepreneurship for you? (Chris DeVore) Good business ideas (Matt Erlichman) Class discussion/wrap-up Brief student introductions Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 3
Course Objectives Prepare you for success in the 2015 UW Business Plan Competition (BPC). Learn to identify good business ideas Form a team Develop and present a compelling business plan By end of course, you should have: A new understanding of entrepreneurs and what it means to be one An idea of how to plan and start a new venture A network of new people who can help you succeed Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 4
Course Journey January 8 January 15 January 22 January 29 February 5 February 12 February 19 February 26 March 5 March 12 Is entrepreneurship for you? and Good business ideas Lean Startup, library resources, and networking night Business planning and risk assessment Marketing, competition and uniqueness Business model and financial projections Legal considerations for startups Insights from past BPC participants Bootstrapping a startup Raising investor capital Dreaming Big! (who says the sky s the limit?) Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 5
Administration / Rules of the Road Enrollment contact Amy Sallin for add codes Auditing? add name to email list Attendance -- Sign-in as you come into class! Enrolled students sit in front with name tent Class structure Start and stop on time! First 5 minutes student announcements No break Class participation - Rule of 3 s Laptops/smartphones Canvas and BPC website (class PPTs, other) Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 6
Course Reading Required: The Lean Startup, Eric Ries (UW Bookstore) Manage uncertainty Validated learning Minimum Viable Product Build-Measure-Learn Recommended reading and other resources on Canvas Free articles for download Other articles through Buerk Center Library Resources available through Foster Business Library Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 7
Course Grading Scheme: Pass/No Pass (2 credits*) Attendance and Class Participation (25%) Must attend at least 8 of 10 classes Business Opportunity Assessment (75%) As an individual or team (3 max) Identify a good business idea Assess the business opportunity * Earn additional two credits by reaching investment round in BPC Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 8
Introduction to the BPC Amy Sallin BPC Program Manager asallin@uw.edu 206-685-9868 Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 9
Why enter? The BPC is a new venture competition designed to promote student startup ideas and venture creation by bringing together students with judges from the entrepreneurial community in a multi-stage, real-world challenge. Open to students from any college or university in the state of Washington. The benefits: Make serious headway on your idea/vision Gain visibility from the community Build your network of contacts Get feedback from other entrepreneurs Receive skilled coaching and mentoring Win seed funding $$$ to start your company
Resources Available BPC Website Team Formation Website: http://teamformation.herokuapp.com/ Post your profile, search for skilled teammates or find a team to join. Networking Night (all Entre 440/540 students attend as part of class) Thursday, Jan. 15, 7:00 8:30 in Anthony s Executive Forum (DEM, 3 rd floor). Follows the Science & Technology Showcase sponsored by SEBA. MentorConnect (via website) Experts from the entrepreneurial community are available by phone or email to answer your questions. Office Hours (winter and spring quarters, dates TBD) 1-hour appointments with experts who can help you with your business plan, investor pitch, legal or research questions.
BPC Deadlines and Events March 9, 2015: Early Registration begins Online form to complete with preliminary team information. April 6: SUBMISSION DEADLINE. 5 7 page Executive Summary April 9 12: Screening Round (completed online) All team entries are judged online; feedback provided. April 28: Investment Round (at UW HUB) Top 36 teams from Screening Round take part in this live, tradeshow-style round at the UW Husky Union Building (HUB). May 14: Coaching Round Non-competitive mentoring session for Sweet 16 participants May 21: Sweet 16 Round; Final Round; Dinner and Awards Ceremony Anthony s Executive Forum; Bell Harbor Conference Center
The Result Visibility, Feedback and Prize Money! The judges are looking for great ideas and for talent. If your goal is a startup, this is your pitch to an influential audience. $25,000 Grand Prize $10,000 Second Prize $5,000 Finalist Prizes (2) $2,500 Best Idea Prizes (7 + $5,000 AARP Foundation prize) Over 400 people from the entre community take part in the BPC each year as coaches, mentors, and judges. Take advantage of this network to move forward with your idea in progress, or get your idea started.
Find a team member or join a team for the BPC Register for Networking Night, during the second half of next week s class. Thursday, Jan. 15, 7:00 to 8:30 pm Anthony s Executive Forum (following SEBA s Science & Technology Showcase) RSVP/pre-register at: http://bit.ly/1dutioe
Questions? Amy Sallin BPC Program Manager asallin@uw.edu 206-685-9868 Rosalinda Mendoza BPC MBA co-chair mendozrr@uw.edu Nelson Tang BPC MBA co-chair tangnc@uw.edu startup.washington.edu
Guest Speaker Is Entrepreneurship for you? Chris DeVore Founders Co-op and Techstars Seattle Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 16
I want to talk about... Why I m here Why entrepreneurship matters What I ve learned about entrepreneurs Practical advice for starting out / up
You want to talk about...??
Seed stage VC + Startup accelerator MD Entrepreneur / product / business guy Northwest native w/bay area + east coast perspective
Size Time
Why startups matter (i) US venture-backed companies employ >12MM people + drive >20% of US GDP Startups account for nearly all net new and 20% of gross US job creation
Why startups matter (ii)
Why startups matter (iii) If you re wired a certain way, you ll never Have more fun Feel more empowered (and responsible) Work with more talented + selfmotivated people Be careful: you may be ruined for life + never be happy again in a regular job
What do I look for? People, People, People Ability, Commitment, Skills Mix, Track Record Opportunity Scale, Stage / Maturity, Potential for Disruption Approach Speed / Agility, Customer Engagement, Capital Efficiency Idea Credible point of entry, consistent with first 3 items?
People patterns Insatiable need to create + build Prioritize autonomy + control over status + $$ Don t need a ton of external validation Lofty standards (for themselves and others) High tolerance for uncertainty Impatient Relentless
Don t do it for $$ There are a million easier ways to make a buck If money is what motivates you, do something else
Opportunity patterns ideas!= opportunities Customer Discovery happens in two separate, distinct phases: problem discovery and, later, solution discovery - Steve Blank, Why too many startups suck
Opportunity math Customer Development --> Conviction Creating value!= Extracting value Positive Margin = Survival --> Success Lifetime value (LTV) > Cost of sale (COS) Most founders MASSIVELY overestimate LTV and underestimate COS
Team What skills (i.e., people) people do you need to make this business work? Who are the founders? What gaps remain + how will you fill them?
Founder hygiene Do the hard work BEFORE you start: How much equity for each partner Over what period of time will the shares vest What happens if one partner leaves Who is CEO they can fire the other partners What are the salary NEEDS (not wants) of each partner(s)
Gut check Write a list of the top 10 personal reasons why you re starting a business If money is #1 reason you re making a mistake Don t just ask why do this? Consider asking, why not do this? Depending on your skills + temperament the worst case scenario might not be so bad
Get good help Get referrals for 3 lawyers and 3 accountants + choose 1 of each Negotiate first year fees with these providers to be low / deferred Meet with accountant and talk about tax implications of your new business on your personal life etc Make sure you file 83(b) form for IRS if applicable -- Ask accountant whether this applies to you Acct or lawyer will help you get an EIN number from the IRS this is the soc sec of your business Establish companylegal@gmail.com Use this email address for all correspondence as a legal depository (good to have a cc email alias like this for legal purposes)
Where to find me chris@founderscoop.com (206) 801-1080 @crashdev http://www.crashdev.com http://www.founderscoop.com
CEO & Chairman matt@porch.com http://porch.com
Co-founder and CEO of Porch Previously, Chief Strategy Officer at Active Network Revenues from $65M to $420M and IPO in 4 years Co-founder, CEO at Thriva Acquired in March 2007 for $60 million. BS in Entrepreneurial Engineering, Stanford MS in Mgmt Science & Engineering, Stanford Husband with 2 kids (4 & 18 months) Seattle native Seahawks fan and season ticket holder. Go Hawks!
300+ employees as of December 2014 Over $33 million in total funding (includes $27.6M Series A) Big partnerships with Lowe s and realtor.com and others Homeowners in 62% of U.S. cities and towns use Porch 2.8 million home professionals on Porch across all service types 120 million projects and insights on Porch, including cost, history $2.5 trillion worth of tracked home improvement projects on Porch
Me! Basement
Lean Learn Build Quietly Scale Quickly
We are building the next great Seattle company. We are hiring. matt@porch.com
Class Discussion What customer problem or need does Porch.com address? Who are his customers? What is unique about the business? Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 45
Wrap-up 1. Sign-in at start of each class! 2. Read Lean Startup 3. Think about a business idea and BOA team 4. Next Week: Jason Sokoloff and Foster Library team Discussion Lean Startup Term Project Business Opportunity Assessment (BOA) Networking Night Tom Eckmann ENTRE 440-540 Business Plan Practicum 46