successful entrepreneurs: grand visionaries or piecemeal tacticians?
TRANSCRIPT
Next PracticeSuccessful entrepreneurs: Grand visionaries or piecemeal tacticians?
Teaching opportunistic thinking
Stanford Drop-Out 1996 Harvard Drop-out 2005
Causal vs Effectual Reasoning
Linear Non-Linear
Strategic ’means-to-an-end’ planning
Two types of start-up factory
Successful entrepreneurs
Beth Marcus, Ph.DMarcus Enterprises Limited
Successful entrepreneurs
• Sold 1st company to MSFT 1996
• Sold last company Playrific in Dec 2016
• Founded 3 companies in-between
• Advised 30+ other companies
• 20+ patents issued & more in process
• EiR at Imperial College London
• EXOS: Grants to medical products to joystick for PC games to sale
• HBN: US manufacturing to EU to component to licensing
• Glow Dog: Dog jackets, to human clothes, to brand & sale
• Zeemote: phone texting improvement to game controller & extensive IP sale
• Playrific: Safe kids browser, to App company, to B2B App factory to sale.
War stories
Job description: There isn’t one
PEOPLEOPPORTUNITYIDEASSTICK-TO-ITIVENESSEXCITEMENT
POISE: to balance, to keep steady
An entrepreneurs job is to keep the balance between excitement for ideas and opportunities and focusing on
building a successful business. Persistence is key.
Required skills: Networking ++
FLEXIBILITYRESOURSEFULNESSINGENUITYECONOMYNETWORKINGDOLLARS
FRIENDS : use all the resources you know about and get to others through friends
An entrepreneurs life during the early phases of the business is like a rollercoaster. The expected seldom occurs or when it
does it doesn’t happen when you want it to.
Life, entrepreneurship, & inventing are messy
• Embrace the challenge• Embrace failure & learn from it• Pivot early & often if necessary• Balance vision with tactics
Takeaways
Make the journey worth it (it will be longer and harder and more expensive than you expect)
Share the rewards (both monetary and intangibles)
Your life ≠ your company (so enjoy both)
Fear is the enemy
CEOs need to remember
Successful entrepreneurs
Ivan RetzignacMedicAnimal
• 2004-2008: Preparation & Just do it
• 2008-2013: Growth & Competitive Advantage
• 2014: Profitability & OKRs
• 2015: Sale & Unexpected Outcomes
• 2016: What’s next & Complacency
Timeline & strategy
Entrepreneurial philosophyThe Myths
• Revenue
• Funding
• Fortune
The Reality
• Profit
• Hunger
• Passion
Insights & advice
Observe sectors/activities you enjoy; then look for the pain
• Founder vs Entrepreneur
• First vs Best
• Ideas
• Imposter Syndrome
Successful entrepreneurs
Matthew JudkinsMade in Mind
Successful entrepreneurs
Kevin ChongBeacon Capital
• 2004-2008: Preparation & Just do it
• 2008-2013: Growth & Competitive Advantage
• 2014: Profitability & OKRs
• 2015: Sale & Unexpected Outcomes
• 2016: What’s next & Complacency
The role of vision in early-stage tech ventures
Are successful entrepreneurs grand visionaries or piecemeal tacticians?
Early-stage
Grand vision = 50% of telescope
• Obvious pain point
• ‘000,000,000 of users
• Low tech incumbent
• Who are the buyers?
• How to get to buyers?
Validate your vision
Runway
• Big innovations need long runways
• CEO = Chief Cash Extraction Officer
• Personal Runways
Vote on the motion
Audience vote: www.menti.com85 73 92
Successful entrepreneurs: Grand visionaries or piecemeal tacticians?
Linking your own experiences with the entrepreneurs you most admire, how would you
characterise most successful entrepreneurs?
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Imperial global enterprise network
“Bringing staff and students from all disciplines together with
Imperial’s global community of alumni and friends, partners and
business… Stimulating and supporting the development of
the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs”
Thank you
Thank you for attending this evening’s event.
Please make your way outside for refreshments.