Great conversation with Steve Blank on applying lean startup principles inside corporates. Short but insightful if you’re working in the domain of corporate entrepreneurship or innovation. Key insights:
- Allocation of resources between horizon 1 (60-70%), horizon 2 (10-20), horizon 3 (5-10%)
- Need company wide training program to support the ‘entrenched middle’: horizon 1 executors who don’t know how to
- Incentive program needs to change to support horizon 3 innovations by current business models executors
- Get HR involved to embed innovation in KPI’s, job descriptions and incentives
- Incumbents are incentivized to execute on the short term, startups are incentivized to succeed at the long term
- Data does not equal customers, in most business it is still required to see the human reaction
- Great CEO’s do get out of the building and connect to customers
- Metrics: have you identified hypothesis, validated customer segments, for each customer segment a articulated value proposition. Reference to Investment Readiness Level.
- BMC ‘customer relationship’ box changes over time. On day one you have no customer, but you get, keep and grow them (acquisition and activation). Later you support and service them.
- BMC ‘key partners’ box: they’re a partner if you share revenue with them in the beginning. Otherwise they are customers in the beginning. Box changes meaning over time.
