- Come to work each day willing to be fired.
- Circumvent any orders aimed at stopping your dream.
<< Innovating IS Competitive Creativity! >>
Ten Commandments of a Corporate Entrepreneur
Creating a Competitive Advantage
The following questions are designed to help you determine whether you have an identifiable competitive edge and whether you are currently capitalizing on it ...
[Thank you, SCORE]
- Have I clearly defined my company and my target market?
- Who are my competitors?
- What is my company's specific strategy for success?
- Do I regularly track my competitors' moves?
- Do I take advantage of my competitors' weaknesses?
- What have I learned from my competitors' mistakes?
- What have I learned from my competitors' strengths?
- Do I take advantage of competitive opportunities?
- Does my company possess a uniqueness that easily separates it from my competitors? What, specifically, is it?
- Would I pay money to use my own product or service?
- How do my prices compare with the rest of my industry?
- Who are my customers?
- Do I have a loyal customer base?
- Am I sensitive to my customers' needs and requests?
- Are my employees trained in customer service?
- What trends do I see for my industry in the future?
- Is my company and my product mix aligned with those trends?
- Do I have the capabilities and resources to compete in the market five to 10 years from now?
- What is my vision for my company five to 10 years from now?
[Thank you, SCORE]
Finding a Name for Your Venture
There isn't a one-stop place to find out whether a business name is already in use, so it requires some checking around.
A good start is a thorough Internet search ... If you do come across another business using the name, there are a couple questions to ask: Is the business in the same industry as yours? Is it operating nationally or solely in its local area? Would prospective customers confuse your business with the other business?
Under federal trademark law, a business can claim rights to a name if it's first to use a name in a particular category of business in the geographic area it serves. So you want to determine whether another business in your industry is using the same name in the same geographic region you are. A business still has rights to the name if it is using the name publicly -- even if it hasn't officially registered it for trademark protection.
The next step is to go to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Web site, www.uspto.gov, to see whether another business has officially registered the name for federal trademark protection. Click on "Trademarks" on the left navigation bar. Then click on "Search TM database" on the left to access the trademark search database.
If another business has registered the name, you're typically restricted from using it only if that business is registered in the same category of business as yours or sells the same goods and services. If the businesses are totally different -- say, you're a bakery and the other business using your chosen name is a florist -- then it probably isn't a problem.
But you do want to ensure that your business name won't be confused with another business in your area ... the last thing you want is your potential customers to be confused ... and end up having to change the name.
Some businesses register trademarks only in their state, so check with your state's trademark authority as well. Many states have online databases. You also can hire a naming consultant or a trademark attorney to conduct an exhaustive name search.
Another issue: Make sure there's a domain name available that closely matches the name for your company, since that will be important if you want your business to have a Web presence.
[Thank you, Wall Street Journal]
A good start is a thorough Internet search ... If you do come across another business using the name, there are a couple questions to ask: Is the business in the same industry as yours? Is it operating nationally or solely in its local area? Would prospective customers confuse your business with the other business?
Under federal trademark law, a business can claim rights to a name if it's first to use a name in a particular category of business in the geographic area it serves. So you want to determine whether another business in your industry is using the same name in the same geographic region you are. A business still has rights to the name if it is using the name publicly -- even if it hasn't officially registered it for trademark protection.
The next step is to go to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Web site, www.uspto.gov, to see whether another business has officially registered the name for federal trademark protection. Click on "Trademarks" on the left navigation bar. Then click on "Search TM database" on the left to access the trademark search database.
If another business has registered the name, you're typically restricted from using it only if that business is registered in the same category of business as yours or sells the same goods and services. If the businesses are totally different -- say, you're a bakery and the other business using your chosen name is a florist -- then it probably isn't a problem.
But you do want to ensure that your business name won't be confused with another business in your area ... the last thing you want is your potential customers to be confused ... and end up having to change the name.
Some businesses register trademarks only in their state, so check with your state's trademark authority as well. Many states have online databases. You also can hire a naming consultant or a trademark attorney to conduct an exhaustive name search.
Another issue: Make sure there's a domain name available that closely matches the name for your company, since that will be important if you want your business to have a Web presence.
[Thank you, Wall Street Journal]
Traits of a Good Target Market
A business cannot efficiently and effectively solve every prospective customer problem. Rather, successful business ventures begin by serving a particular niche market segment really well, better than the competition.
Venture Plan Outline
- Opening, Front Page: Company name, company location, contact information, legal statements (proprietary information, copyright, etc.) ...
- Executive Summary: One-page summary of the key elements of the business plan ...
- Problem / Opportunity: The problem the venture will solve, the significance of the problem, the opportunity this offers the venture, quality of the opportunity, growth potential ...
- Product and/or Service Solution Description: Essential product/service idea, category of product/service, proprietary protection, entry strategies ...
- Customers and Target Markets: Target market characteristics, why this market is the best for your venture, market validation research ...
- Business Model: How your venture will earn a profit, expected margins, sources of recurring revenue, vision, mission, goals ...
- Competitive Advantages: Market focus, value proposition, core competencies, barriers to entry, competitive validation ...
- Environment and Context: Industry overview, research results and analysis, major competitors, benchmark ventures, how your venture will position itself to meet the competition, timeliness, regulations ...
- Marketing and Sales Strategy: Pricing strategies, distribution model, partnering, promotional strategies ...
- Technology Strategies: Technology, product development ...
- Operational Strategies: Production methodologies, manpower requirements, equipment requirements, material management, flow diagram of key processes ...
- Intellectual Property and Legal Issues and Strategies: Patents, trademarks, trade names, copyrights, trade secrets, operating and other agreements, legal structure ...
- Organization: Management team, relevant domain knowledge of the team, commitment, advisers, management to be added, culture, talent ...
- Development Plan: Current company status, number of employees, development stage, early revenue, number of customers, relevant historical information, long-term venture goals, growth strategies, timeline ...
- Risks and Contingencies: Downside risks and contingency plans, upside risks and expansion plans ...
- Financial Plan: Key assumptions, historical financial statements, pro forma statements, return on investment ...
- Investment Funds Sought and Use of Proceeds: Total investment funding being sought, use of funds in 4 or 5 general categories, any unusual use of funds ...
- Harvest Plan: Return of cash to investors and entrepreneurs; most-likely exit method (IPO, acquisition, ...) ...
- Summary: A brief who, what, where, when, why, and how of the venture; vision and mission ...
- Appendices and Research: Detailed resumes, research results, product data sheets ...
How to Make a Decision
1. Define the problem, characterizing the general purpose of your decision.
2. Identify the criteria, specifying the goals or objectives that you want to be able to accomplish.
3. Weight the criteria, deciding the relative importance of the goals.
4. Generate alternatives, identifying possible courses of action that might accomplish your various goals.
5. Rate each alternative on each criterion, assessing the extent to which each action would accomplish each goal.
6. Compute the optimal decision, evaluating each alternative by multiplying the expected effectiveness of each alternative with respect to a criterion times the weight of the criterion, then adding up the expected value of the alternative with respect to all criteria.
[Thank you, Paul Thagard]
2. Identify the criteria, specifying the goals or objectives that you want to be able to accomplish.
3. Weight the criteria, deciding the relative importance of the goals.
4. Generate alternatives, identifying possible courses of action that might accomplish your various goals.
5. Rate each alternative on each criterion, assessing the extent to which each action would accomplish each goal.
6. Compute the optimal decision, evaluating each alternative by multiplying the expected effectiveness of each alternative with respect to a criterion times the weight of the criterion, then adding up the expected value of the alternative with respect to all criteria.
[Thank you, Paul Thagard]
Good Books for Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship
- A Whack on the Side of the Head (von Oech)
- Cracking Creativity (Michalko)
- Creativity in Business (Ray/Myers)
- Crossing the Chasm (Moore)
- Democratizing Innovation (von Hipppel)
- Driving Growth Through Innovation (Tucker)
- Entrepreneurship ... A Real-World Approach (Abrams)
- Founders at Work (Livingston)
- How to Get Ideas (Foster)
- How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci (Gelb)
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Drucker)
- Innovator's Dilemma (Christensen)
- Made to Stick (Heath)
- The Design of Everyday Things (Norman)
- The Game Changer (Lafley/Charan)
- The Innovator's Solution: Creating and Sustaining Successful Growth (Christensen, Raynor)
- The Innovator's Toolkit: 50+ Techniques (Silverstein, Samuel, DeCarlo)
- The Medici Effect: Breakthrough Insights at the Intersection of Ideas, Concepts, and Cultures (Johansson)
- Thinking, Fast and Slow (Kahneman)
- Weird Ideas That Work (Sutton)
- What a Great Idea (Thompson)
- 5280 Tips for Innovators and Entrepreneurs (Jindrick)
[2.02]
Venture Plan Guideline
Here are some guidelines for a venture plan.
A typical "first round" investor-grade venture plan is usually about 20 - 25 pages plus separate appendices.
There are many possible outlines for a venture plan ... the following is pretty standard.
Remember, the purpose of a venture plan is to mitigate risk ... you are selling your concept here and need to show the reader that you know your stuff! It's not so much the plan as the planning (and learning and testing and explaining and ...)
A. Cover Page ... Company/venture/business name, company location, contact information, legal statements (proprietary information, copyright, etc.) ...
B. Executive Summary ... independent one page document ... the exact same executive summary that you used to entice the prospective investor or corporate executive to want to read this plan. What is this venture about? Where is the market? What is the innovation and competitive advantage? Who is on the venture team? Why is this a good venture concept (ie, financial projections, et al)? When are the key development milestones? How will this venture come to fruition?
C. Table of Contents ... one page.
D. Opportunity ... tell a story here! Engage the reader! What is the hook, the story, the "grabber"? Two to four pages.
F. Goals and Strategies ... critical and key information as appropriate to your venture ... three to five pages.
H. Funding Proposal ... independent one or two page document.
J. List of Available Appendices ... Variety of support information ... resumes, detailed financial statements, product data sheet, marketing brochure, research data, technology information,detailed competitive analysis, etc.
A typical "first round" investor-grade venture plan is usually about 20 - 25 pages plus separate appendices.
There are many possible outlines for a venture plan ... the following is pretty standard.
Remember, the purpose of a venture plan is to mitigate risk ... you are selling your concept here and need to show the reader that you know your stuff! It's not so much the plan as the planning (and learning and testing and explaining and ...)
A. Cover Page ... Company/venture/business name, company location, contact information, legal statements (proprietary information, copyright, etc.) ...
B. Executive Summary ... independent one page document ... the exact same executive summary that you used to entice the prospective investor or corporate executive to want to read this plan. What is this venture about? Where is the market? What is the innovation and competitive advantage? Who is on the venture team? Why is this a good venture concept (ie, financial projections, et al)? When are the key development milestones? How will this venture come to fruition?
C. Table of Contents ... one page.
D. Opportunity ... tell a story here! Engage the reader! What is the hook, the story, the "grabber"? Two to four pages.
- Problem / Opportunity: The problem your venture will solve, the significance of the problem, the opportunity this offers your venture, quality of the opportunity, growth potential ...
- Product and/or Service Solution Description: Essential product/service idea, category of product/service, proprietary protection, entry strategies ...
- Customers and Target Markets: Target market characteristics, size, why this market is the best for your venture, market validation research ...
- Innovation: What does this venture do that is new and better?
F. Goals and Strategies ... critical and key information as appropriate to your venture ... three to five pages.
- Goals, vision, mission.
- Competitive Advantages: Market focus, value proposition, core competencies, barriers to entry, competitive validation, how your venture will position itself to meet the competition, ...
- Business Model: How your venture will earn a profit, expected margins, sources of recurring revenue ...
- Organization: Management team, relevant domain knowledge of the team, commitment, advisers, directors, management to be added, culture, talent ...
- Product Development Strategies
- Marketing and Sales Strategies: Pricing strategies, distribution model, partnering, promotional strategies ...
- Technology Strategies: Technology, product development ...
- Operational Strategies: Production methodologies, manpower requirements, equipment requirements, material management, flow diagram of key processes ...
- Intellectual Property and Legal Issues Strategies: Patents, trademarks, trade names, copyrights, trade secrets, operating and other agreements, legal structure ...
- Development Plan: Current company status, number of employees, development stage, early revenue, number of customers, relevant historical information, long-term venture goals, growth strategies, timeline ...
- Risks and Contingencies: Downside risks and contingency plans, upside risks and expansion plans ...
H. Funding Proposal ... independent one or two page document.
- Resource Requirements: Short summary of financial projections; total investment funding and resources being sought, use of funds in 4 or 5 general categories, any unusual use of funds, return on investment to investors and entrepreneurs, harvest strategy ...
- Call to Action: What do you want the reader to do ... join your team, invest, meet with you to learn more ... ?
J. List of Available Appendices ... Variety of support information ... resumes, detailed financial statements, product data sheet, marketing brochure, research data, technology information,detailed competitive analysis, etc.
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