| Week | Date | Start | End | Event | Assignment | Slides |
| Week 1 | ||||||
| 9/24 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Opportunity Assessment | 1a. Team Concept Memo (pdf) 1a. Team Concept Memo (docx) 1b. Market Research (pdf) 1b. Market Research (docx) |
pptx | |
| 9/25 | 5:30pm | 7:30pm | Mixer 1: Brainstorming | |||
| 9/26 | 5:30pm | 7:30pm | Mixer 2: Pitch Night | |||
| Week 2 | ||||||
| 10/1 | 3:15pm | 3:45pm | Idea Generation | |||
| 10/1 | 3:45pm | 4:15pm | Mentor Meet and Greet | |||
| 10/1 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Market Validation Customer Discovery |
2. GTM and Fieldwork (pdf) 2. GTM and Fieldwork (docx) | pptx | |
| 10/3 | 5:00pm | 6:00pm | Market Research with Konstantin Guericke |
pptx video |
||
| Week 3 | ||||||
| 10/8 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Go-to-market Product Validation |
3. Financial Assumptions (pdf) 3. Financial Assumptions (docx) | pptx | |
| 10/12 | 8:30am | 12:00pm | Gate 1 Presentations | |||
| Week 4 | ||||||
| 10/15 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Financial Modeling | 4. R&D (pdf) 4. R&D (docx) | pptx | |
| 10/17 | 5:00pm | 7:00pm | Financial Modeling Deep Dive |
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| Week 5 | ||||||
| 10/22 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | R&D Plan | 5. Financial Metrics (pdf) 5. Financial Metrics (docx) | pptx |
|
| 10/24 | 5:00pm | 7:00pm | How to Pivot Successfully |
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| Week 6 | ||||||
| 10/29 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Financing | 6. Cap Table (pdf) 6. Cap Table (docx) | pptx | |
| 10/31 | 5:00pm | 7:00pm | VC Term Sheets | |||
| 11/2 | 8:30am | 12:00pm | Gate 2 Presentations | |||
| Week 7 | ||||||
| 11/5 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Capitalization | 7. Business Canvas (pptx) | pptx | |
| 11/7 | 5:00pm | 7:00pm | Crosslink Capital Mixer | |||
| Week 8 | 11/12 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | VC Presentation |
pptx | |
| Week 9 | 11/19 | 4:15pm | 7:15pm | Entrepreneurship: Extreme Sport |
pptx | |
| 11/26 | Thanksgiving | |||||
| Week 10 | ||||||
| 12/3 | 2:00pm | 6:00pm | Dry Run 1 | |||
| 12/4 | 2:00pm | 6:00pm | Dry Run 2 | |||
| 12/5 | 8:45am | 2:00pm | Final Presentations | |||
| 12/6 | 8:45am | 2:00pm | Final Presentations | |||
Week 1
Session 1 - Course Introduction
- Learn more about the course through an interactive lecture with the course instructors and course Alumni. This should prove an exciting introduction! Applications are due by the end of class.
Session 2 - Opportunity Assessment
- Learn how to take the technology ideas swirling in your head and assess them in terms of their market opportunity.
Team Mixer I - Wednesday, September 26 (5:30 PM) MANDATORY
- Meet at the d.School atrium. Get to know your classmates and form your team! The teams form really fast in this class, so don't miss this event. If you can't make it be sure to email the TAs ahead of time.
Team Mixer II - Thursday, September 27 (6:00 PM)
- You must attend if you haven't formed a team yet. Located at the patio in front of the Treehouse at Tressider. This will be the final session where we all get together to form teams. Drinks and light snacks will be provided.
- TAs will announce "final" class list by midnight. Wait-listed students are strongly encouraged to come to the next class on Oct 2nd since historically spots will open up.
Preliminary mentor Assignments email by TA by midnight, Monday, Oct 1st
Assignments
- Submit Team Form by Thursday 9/27 11:59pm.
- Team Concept Memo - Due via Piazza to the TAs by Monday 10/1 11:59pm
- Market Research and Product - Due via Piazza to the TAs by Monday 10/1 11:59pm
Week 2
Special Sessions
- Idea generation - Office of Technology Licensing & Steve Eglash - 3:15 PM Come early to hear more about the opportunities from the OTL and the surrounding silicon valley area.
- Steve Eglash's slides on Environmental Big Data and Sensors for a Changing Climate.
- Steve Eglash's spreadsheet on Stanford faculty interested in sensors.
- Mentor Introduction - 3:45 PM Here's your first chance to meet your assigned mentor. Remember, they will need to sign-off on your initial concept before you proceed, so get started with them right away! If you mentor is unable to attend this session their contact information will be provided.
Session 3 - Market Validation
- MedTech Opportunity Assessment, Paul Yock
Session 4 - Customer Discovery
- Often the trickiest part of entrepreneurship, learn how to find the right customer for your product, or the right product for your customers.
Required Reading
- Note on Business Model Analysis for the Entrepreneur (HBS)
- Textbook: “The Path to Epiphany: The Customer Development Model,” Four Steps to the Epiphany, Steven Blank, Chap. 2.
Optional Reading
- TechCrunch: Your Other Computer is a Data-Center
- Dropbox Lessons Learned
- Opportunity and the Business Summary, Technology Ventures, Chapter 2
- Building a Competitive Advantage, Technology Ventures, Chapter 3
- Creating a Strategy, Technology Ventures, Chapter 4
Assignments
- Concept/Product Signoffs - Due by Friday 10/5 5:00pm
- Go-to-market - Due via Piazza to the TAs by Monday 10/8 11:59pm
Week 3
Session 5 - Go-to-Market
- Once you discover your customer, the next question to ask is how to actually reach them. Learn more from experienced guest lecturers Donna Novitsky and Scott Weiss.
Session 6 - Product Validation
- As a high-tech entrepreneur, you must build a viable technology solution to compete. But as a graduate student, you may often focus on technologies still 10-20 years from market development. Learn how to vet your technology idea for its current potential and avoid relying on a technology that's still in its infancy. No 'WarpDrive' allowed as we like to say!
Required Reading
Optional Reading
- Textbook: “Customer Discovery,” Four Steps to the Epiphany, Steven Blank, Chap. 3.
- Textbook: “Customer Validation,” Four Steps to the Epiphany, Steven Blank, Chap. 4.
- "The Marketing and Sales Plan" Technology Ventures, Chap. 11, p. 231-257.
- Stengel Solutions overview of the marketing plan
- Core Marketing Elements
Other Material
- All Marketers are Liars, Seth Godin.
- Marketing Planning and Organization, Robert Dolan in Harvard Business Review, 1984.
- The Innovator's Dilemma and The Innovator's Solution by Clayton Christensen
Assignments
- Financial Assumptions - Due via Piazza to the TAs by Monday 10/15 11:59pm
- Finance Video Question
Gate I: Opportunity Assessment
Saturday, October 13 (8:30 AM - 12:00 PM) Y2E2-101/103
- Sign up on the Office Hour Signup Page (go to the Gate 1 tab on the Google Doc)
- Prepare a 15 minute team presentation of your opportunity and marketing/sales plan (described below). Timing will be enforced.
- A guide to Gate 1 is found here.
Gate I Examples:
Week 4
Session 7 & 8 - Financial Modeling
- Mike Kourey
- Peter Kent
Required Reading
Optional Reading
- Guy Kawasaki's simple Web 2.0 Startup Financial Model
- The Age of the Unthinkable
- Text: "The Financial Plan," Technology Ventures, Chap. 17, p. 341-361.
- Text: "Sources of Capital," Technology Ventures, Chap. 18, p. 387-421.
Assignments
- Research & Development - Due via Piazza to the TAs by Monday 10/22 11:59pm
Week 5
Session 9 & 10 - R&D Plan
- Julian Mann (Skybox)
- Justin White (Solum)
Required Reading
- Defining a Manufacturing Strategy in a Startup Environment - Karen Meyer
- HandSpring Case
- HandSpring Operations
- HandSpring Development Timeline
Optional Reading
Week 6
Session 11 - VC Financing/Multistage Financing
- Capitalization Overview: Audrey MacLean
- Special Guest: Andy Rachleff
Session 12 - Multistage Financing
- Special Guest: Ann Miura Ko
- Gate 2 Sanity Check
Special Session - VC Terms Sheets
- For an explanation of a classic terms sheet, see the Form of VC terms sheet.
- Also see the Mock terms sheet.
- Here is a VC terms sheet glossary.
Optional Reading
- Raising Initial Funding For High Technology Companies in the San Francisco Bay Area, Greguras and Stafford, Fenwick & West LLP.
- East Coast vs. West Coast: Regional Differences in Venture Capital Financing, Cooley Godward, LLP, Aug 2007.
- Presenting the Plan and Negotiating the Deal, Technology Ventures, Chap. 19, p. 423-435.
Gate II: Operating Plan
Saturday, November 3 (8:30 AM -12:30 PM) Y2E2 101/Y2E2 103
Prepare a team presentation of your operations plan.
Gate II Examples
Gate II Reminders
- Describe how you plan to develop your product and bring it to market including number, timing and costs of R&D heads.
- Expand on your financials from Gate I to include detailed five year projections and your cash flow breakeven. Be sure to distinguish your product development stage from your steady state of operations.
- Ground all of your financials with a proxy analysis. Be prepared to defend any material differences at any stage of the company between your proxy and your plan.
Week 7
Session 13 & 14 - Capitalization
- Special Guest: Jerry Fiddler (Solazym)
- Special Guest: Kevin Brown (Coraid)
- Cap structure class examples
Optional Reading
Week 8
Session 15 & 16 - VC Presentation
- Special Guest: Dan Dorosin (Fenwick & West)
- Special presentation by alumni groups: Elencose and WifiSlam
Required Reading
- Video: Start-Up Company Formation - Daniel A. Dorosin, Fenwick & West LLP
- Video: Start-Up Intellectual Property Considerations - Daniel A. Dorosin, Fenwick & West LLP
- Video: Key Term Sheet Issues - Daniel A. Dorosin, Fenwick & West LLP
- Video: The VC Presentation: Content and Process - Erik Straser, General Partner
Optional Reading
Business Model
- Please make sure your business model description is at least 12 but no more than 15 pages (excluding appendix). Be concise and to the point!
- Please submit your business model electronically (pdf format) via Piazza no later than Friday, November 16th, by midnight.
- More details can be found here.
Business Model Example
Week 9
Session 17 - Entrepreneurship: an Extreme Sport
- Special Guest: Geoff Moore
- Please come to class having read Crossing the Chasm.
- Please review the presentation Pitching Mohr Davidow Ventures, which will also be discussed in preparation for your pitch.
Session 18 - Entrepreneurship: an Extreme Sport
- Concluding Thoughts/Wrap Up
Required Reading
- Crossing the Chasm, by Geoff Moore
Optional Reading
- Leading a Technology Venture to Success, Technology Ventures, Chap. 20
- The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Entrepreneurial Organizations- Murthy Mathiprakasam
- Rites of Passage: Managing CEO Transition in Venture-Backed Technology Companies - Pascal Levensohn.
- After the Term Sheet - How Venture Boards Influence the Success or Failure of Technology Companies - Pascal Levensohn.