Lean and keen, speed is everything.
Well, I have learned a lot and I have also been quite confused. I’m sure if every entrepreneur spoke perfect business English it would be much easier, but I’m in Spain, so Spanish it is. I will also translate this blog into Spanish too, as I know some of your levels in English may differ. For courses in English to improve your level you can always find us at www.showmeenglish.com
So, anyway the lean startup machine event has just taken place in Madrid and, mainly, in Spanish. So, although it was quite interesting to listen to some guest speakers about business ideas, strategy and how or how not to launch a new business….. it was also a challenge for me as they were speaking in Spanish, “pero no pasa nada”, as the Spanish say.
Technology is changing our lives, how we live, with whom we chat and interact. What I find fascinating about technology, in general, is how it changes absolutely everything we know. Whether it’s new materials which can now be put into an ink jet form and printed into guns or guitars or a new app which maps the area you cycle in a city, in order to gain points and compete in a virtual world against fellow cycling opponents.
“Speed is everything”, said Ariel Quinones, the Co-founder of http://www.ironhack.com who is also attending the http://www.leanstartupmachine.com event in Madrid this weekend with his other Co-founder and good buddy Gonzalo Manrique.
This is a key event in the calendar for budding or existing entrepreneurs who want to pitch ideas, get out of the building, test the market and see if they can launch a new business or service.
“Fail quickly and succeed quicker.” Is one of the key mantras of the Lean Startup Machine.
The Ironhack founders also presented at a recent event in Madrid for internationnal entrepreneurs and talked about their vision for their new, soon-to-be-launched business. They decided that they would start from nothing and launch within three to four months. Making potential pivots early where necessary and learning….fast.
“There is a margin between what graduates study and the subjects they leave university with, versus the ever evolving skills which current employers need candidates to have, in the current market. Universities are not teaching things which are relevant on the market and so there is a void between what they leave with and the positions which need to be filled.”
MVP is also a key acronym in the lean business world – but what does this mean? Well, quite simply put, it stands for Minimum Viable Product, a term coined from the creator of the Lean Startup movement, Eric Ries, meaning the minimum amount of features available to launch a product.
So, the idea is, to an extent, as I understand it, to launch your company with the bear minimum required to save time and money and get your ideas to market as quickly as possible without achieving perfection. The market will tell you the rest. If you need to change something based on the customers’ feedback then you can and will, (called to pivot, which is a regular verb.)
The Madrid based network for international enterpreneurs http://www.guiripreneur.com were the proud hosts of the event, welcoming almost 80 attendees to the workshop. Pierre-Alban Waters, the founder and president of the Guiris added that , “Our community is about doing rather than just talking about things, changing behaviour, and the attitude to the status quo. The majority of our 800+ members speak in English as there are roughly 20% Spanish natives. Our community is continually growing and we are looking forward to launching our new website soon.”
“Get out of the building” is another common slogan also written on the T-shirts of the key speakers of the event. The main ideas of this event are to:
1. Form teams and brainstorm ideas for new businesses
2. Get out onto the street and validate these ideas by asking people on the street (potential customers) what they think of their idea.
3. Go back to base and pivot ideas where necessary.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until the final ideas are improved, without changing the vision of the project (pivoting).
5. Present project and findings to the panel of judges, try to win stuff.
The projects and potential businesses which the groups came up with were
• An app to help parents create interesting stories for their kids, which could then be shared between other users.
• A small machine to take a blood test giving the user significant information regarding their health. ( Naturally, all this data to be uploaded onto the App) WINNERS!
• An app to help customers find the bars which play their favourite music around the city and for the bar owners to keep them as customers.
• A business consultancy advising entrepreneurs on MVP strategy.
• A network for teaching English allowing new citizens to find teachers quickly.
• An app/ service to help households to reduce their electricity costs.
• A service for adults to help them program tricky devices such as video recorders, to also save their kids the hassle of having to help them.
During the validation period when speaking to potential customers in and around the city some were even successful enough to committ some people to pay for a product that does not exist and the winning group were able to get a letter of intent signed for 3000€.
I was also very privileged to have the chance to interview (and film for exclusive content on http://www.showmeenglish.com) two bright young entrepreneurs, who have formed their own club for their fellow students at Universidad Carlos III, Madrid. Please check their website for details.
http://www.startuc3m.com/
Founders: Carlos Delgado and David Arnedo have both spent time in the States and were heavily influenced by the entrepreneurial attitude there.
“In our club, amongst other things, we try to influence our students and suggest that they should approach people with their ideas and business models. Just because you are at university doesn’t mean an investor won’t be interested in your ideas or potential.”
Impressive. Inspiring. Innovative. These three adjectives are the what comes to mind when trying to sum up the event and its participants. Changing the world one step at a time, lean-style, of course.
I’m certainly looking forward to seeing more events like these in the near future, in English, like a Guiri!
Watch this space for video content and interviews of the event of lean startup machine coming soon!
Tom Dillon
Tom & Vicki write for www.showmeenglish.com 