Technopreneurship (5th meeting)

In my previous reflection, I discussed about the SWOT Analysis, which is a structured process and a useful technique that is commonly used by an organization in making a strategic plan for goal and mission accomplishment. SWOT analysis consists of a series of examinations that examines an organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and the threats that a certain organization might encounter. The purpose of a SWOT analysis is to create synthesis, captures and frames up what your current state is. A SWOT analysis is divided into two environments: the internal environment, which focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of an organization, and the external environment, which focuses on opportunities and threats. 

In our fifth discussion, our facilitator already discussed the internal environment which the main focus is on the strengths and weaknesses of an organization. In our last meeting, our facilitator continued discussing SWOT Analysis but this time we will be focusing in its external environment. External environment factors include the environment your organization operates in, the ecosystem, your organization’s market, and all of the third parties involved. An organization’s market refers to the market sector you supply your goods or services to even if this is done on a not-for-profit basis. It includes all of your customers. The Ecosystem is something that exists beyond the market per se and includes current and the future technologies as well as current and proposed business models. And the Third parties are all of the other entities you deal with who are not your customers (and therefore part of the 'market'). They include your suppliers, partners, and competitors, and may also include government and regulatory bodies, the media, or any other group that you need to deal with in the course of doing business. Our facilitator also discussed the Opportunities and the Threats that an organization might encounter.

In the middle of our discussion, our facilitator, suggested that we should watch Guy Kawasaki’s Art of Start. In his talk, he discussed some essential topics that has a connection in our discussion. In the video that I watched, Guy Kawasaki said that the very first thing that he learned and figured out is that the core and the essence of entrepreneurship is about making meaning. He noticed that companies that are fundamentally founded to change the world and make it a better place are the companies that succeed compare to those companies that are only founded just make money. He said that “If you make meaning you’ll probably make money, but if you set out to make money you will probably not make meaning and you won’t make money”. According to him, there are 10 key elements to follow in starting an organization.

1. To make a meaning

To make a meaning is considered as the core reason in why you are starting a company. Kawasaki said that there are three ways to make meaning. The first way to make a meaning is to Increase the quality of life, Guy Kawasaki used to be a Macintosh division of Apple Computer. And he said that they were not motivated by making money, they were motivated by changing the world to make people more creative and more productive. They were trying to increase the quality of life for the Macintosh user and that was the great motivation that kept them going through many different difficult periods. Every day, they are waking up in the morning thinking how they could change people’s lives and make it better. The second way to make meaning is to Right the wrong. To right a wrong is simply finding something that’s wrong in the world or you noticed something that is wrong and you want fix it and find a suitable solution for it. The last way to make a meaning is to prevent the end of something good. It is like seeing something that is beautiful and something wonderful and you want to stop it from being eroded, changed, and ruined. It is like preserving something good.  As you start a company, you should have at least one of these motivations or more to make meaning. But if you don’t have any of these motivations, you should rethink what you are doing, because these three things are the keys in starting a great organization.

2. To make a mantra 

The second thing that you should learn is to make a mantra. Many entrepreneurs considered as one of the fundamental things that you have to do is to figure out a mission statement. So what they do is they grab the core team, from marketing, from sales, from engineering, from production, finance and HR and they go off-site and they craft this mission statement and everybody has to put their ideas and thoughts because this mission statement has to be workable for employees, for shareholders and most especially for the customers. Guy Kawasaki recommended the one should not make a mission statement as a start-up, because a mission statement usually ends up crap ‘cause it is too long, it is impossible to remember and it cannot even focus the company which is what it should do. Guy Kawasaki gave an example mission statement from Wendy’s. The mission statement of Wendy’s is “to deliver a superior quality products and services for our customers and communities through leadership, innovation and partnerships”. Wendy’s mission statement is a bit long and it is impossible to remember and their mission statement leaves a lot to be desire, by contrast you should do a mantra, because it’s only consist of three to four words that captures the essence of a certain organization. Guy suggested that Wendy’s should use the mantra “Healthy fast food” because this three word mantra is something that is very easy to remember. Another great mantra that he gave as an example is for FedEx and it is “Peace of mind”, because when you positively and absolutely want something or someplace you think of FedEx. One of the best mantra Kawasaki gave as an example is from Mary Kay which is “Enriching women’s lives”. This is a good mantra because it worked for two groups, the customers of Mary Kay who buys the Mary Kay products and the also the salespersons of Mary Kay because it enriches both people’s lives.

3. Get going

The third element of the Art of start is to get going.  There are three recommendations to get going according to Kawasaki, and the first in the list is to think different. Think different, as an entrepreneur you have to think different or think outside the box just like what our Technopreneurship facilitator keep on telling us. Your goal as an entrepreneur is to not to do fifteen to twenty percent better from your competitors it is to do something ten times better and building the products and services you love. Polarize people, the second point about get going is “do not afraid of polarizing people”. Many entrepreneurs are afraid to polarize their customers from the fact that many people might not like what they do. Because of this scenario, entrepreneurs tend to create a product and services that everybody likes which is impossible.  Entrepreneurs must be able to find the balance. Find a few soul mates, the last point in get going is to find the perfect people who will help you and will bring out the best in you.  These people will pick you up when fall down and when you feel cold these people will hug you and keep you warm. For Bill Gates there was Steve Ballmer and for Steve Jobs there was Steve Wozniak so find a soul mate that will keep you warm and will pick you up in times you are down.

4. Define a business model

The fourth step is to define a business model. This is an essential step which most entrepreneurs skipped from 1998 to 2001. Business models nowadays, are very different and these are the qualities of a business model 

Be specific 

Guy Kawasaki said that in making a business model you need to specific and straight forward. Start by asking yourself “Who are your customers? How do I get your money out of their purses?” be specific on who are you target clients to generate income from them.
     

Keep it simple

Keeping your business model as simple as possible helps your business do well. And it will not give your customers a confusion since it is easy to understand.

Ask women

Guy Kawasaki believed that women are genetically superior to men in many ways in particular when it comes to business model because men has a genetic defect called the killer gene. This killer gene makes men predisposed in making a decision. In contrast to that, women don’t have this genetic flaw. So this suggests when you come up with a new idea for a company, ask women about it. Ask women about the product, the services and the business model and don’t waste your time asking men according to Kawasaki. 

5. Weave a MAT (milestones, assumption, tasks)

The fifth key element is to weave a MAT which stands for milestones, assumptions and tasks. Guy Kawasaki compared a start-up company to an ice hockey rink. He said when you start-up a company you don’t have a high tech machines or furniture, you don’t have the employees and you don’t have a crappy office and it’s just pure virgin start-up just like the ice rink or the ice surface in the ice hockey which is completely empty. So what happens in this situation is that since you’re just starting a company there is so many fun things that you want to do that makes your priorities whacked out. So this is about prioritization. The first priority is to create milestones for you company. When we say milestones these are the things or goals that you want to achieve like finishing a design, finishing the prototype, and the like. A milestone is something that increases the valuation of your company. So, creating a milestone is a top priority. The second thing is to write down your assumptions, these assumptions creates the business model. And the last thing to do is to create a task. These tasks is used to either test the assumptions you wrote or it is used to complete a milestone.

6. Niche thyself

The sixth element is to niche thyself. This is the marketing you ever need to know. It’s also probably all the R and D and product design you ever need to know.

7. Follow the 10/20/30 Rule

The next thing you need to understand is the art of pitching. Pitching is usually used to raise money but pitching more generically is about the process of seeking agreement. You can seek agreement for money, you can seek agreement to recruit, you can seek agreement for partnership and you can seek agreement for sales. There is what we call the 10/20/30 rule. The 10 part of the rule is the optimal number of slides for a power point pitch, you may exceed up to 15 but 10 slides is enough for a pitch. The second part of the rule is the 20, this refers to 20 minutes time limit that you have in explaining your slides and the last part of the rule is the 30 and it is the font size that you are going to use in your slides.

8. Hire infected people

Next recommendation is to hire an infected people. And these are the guidelines in effective hiring infected people. Ignore the irrelevant, ignore what’s irrelevant and find the relevant and that is the people’s love for a product. Hire better than yourself, if you’re an A or you’re in a higher level, you tend to hire someone who is lower than you which is a B, and there is also a possibility that, that person you hired will also hire someone that he/she thinks that is lower than him/her which is a C. And if that chain will continue there will be possibility that will make your company surrounded with bozos or ineffective and not competitive people.

9. Lower the barriers to adoption

There are there key elements to follow to lower the barriers to adopt these are: to flatten the learning curve, do not ask people to do something that you wouldn’t and Recruit evangelist. In starting a company you need to recruit an evangelist because these are the people who see your products and services as a way to make the world a better place.

10. Be a mench

Mensch is a Yiddish word to describe a person who is admired, who’s trusted, whose word is soft, whose opinion is sought and who is sort of like a saint. The first element to be a mensch is to help people who cannot help you. A mensch helps other people for the sheer pleasure of helping people. The second element to become a mensch is to do the right thing, the right way. It is not about who can shred their corporate documents faster than Enron, it is about whether you’re doing things right and you’re doing the right way. It talks about morality. The third point of being a mensch is that you desire to pay back society. To truly be the greatest entrepreneur you would be a mensch, you would do all the right things, you would help people who cannot help you and you would fundamentally pay back to the society.

I had a great time listening to Guy Kawasaki’s Art of Start, but to be honest Guy Kawasaki’s speech is quite long but I learned a lot from him because he shared all his knowledge without complexity rather in a most simple and comprehensible way. I really like the way he speaks because he always finds his way to connect with is audience and not to mention he was very funny too.