From Idea to Scaling Your Business

From Idea to Scaling Your Business THE PROCESS Many people have business ideas, but dont know how to validate them and when to start scaling the business. © Shutterstock.com | xefThats why we developed a simple to follow framework that shows you how you can get from an idea to scaling your business in an efficient manner.THE PROCESS 1. IdeaGenerate as many business ideas as possible using the bottom-up or top-down approach. Once you are done, then select the 2-4 most promising ideas for entering the next step.2. Model logic assumptionsFor each of your promosing ideas you need to build a rough business  model logic (dont worry, Ill come to that in a minute :-)) with the associated assumptions and define a hypothesis for scaling your business.A) BUSINESS MODEL LOGICThe business model logic describes the rationale how you will create, deliver and capture the customer value. The business model canvas  shows the main components to consider. © Flickr | marcfonteijnThe main questions you need to answer related to your business model are the following:Customer segments;  What different customer segments are we targeting and which customer segments generate most sales and profit?Customer relationships; How does each of our customer segments expect us to establish and maintain our customer relationship and how are we currently doing it?Channels; Which channels do we need to use in order to reach different customer segments in order to acquire customers cost efficiently?Value proposition; What bundles of products and service are we offering different customer segments and which customer problems do we actually solve?Revenue streams; For what value are our customers willing to pay? How do customers want to pay? What are our largest revenue streams?Key partners; Who are our key partners and key suppliers? Which key activities do they perform and which key resource are we acquiring from them?Key activities; What key activities do our value proposition require for example in the distribution channels, customer relationships and revenue streams?Key resources; What key resources do our value proposition require for example in our distribution channels, customer relationships and revenue streams?Cost structure; What are the mayor cost drivers (resources, activities) inherent in our business model?B) KEY ASSUMPTIONSAfter youve answered all questions you will have a good grasp of what drives your business model.  Now, you need to define a list of key assumptions that make or break your business model. Limit yourself to 6 key assumptions. The following examples underline what I mean.Example #1: ECOMMERCE customer acquisition costs, order economics (basket size, gross margin, return rate), repurchase frequencyExample #2: SaaS customer acquisition costs, monthly average revenue per user, customer lifetime (=1/monthly churn rate)C) HYPOTHESIS FOR SCALINGAfter youve identified the key assumptions, you need to stat e under what circumstances you would start scaling your business. For example, you could state the following hypothesis:IF I can acquire 10 customers for a maximum of $40 each and I earn a gross profit of $60 per customer while less than 10% of the customers return the order, THEN I will start scaling my business (because I know, I can make tons of profit :-)).This hypothesis needs to be crisp, so you know when your hypothesis has been falsified!3. Validate assumptionsYou want to validate your key assumptions and the related hypothesis  cheap, fast and reliable. Reliable means that your test results should be a good indicator for the future.A proven way to test your hypothesis is by building a minimum viable product (short: MVP). A MVP is used for fast and quantitative market testing of product features and encompasses the core features of your product only.The MVP of a website selling a product or subscription based service could be as follows.Build a simple landing page; show your product offering and be able to convert visitors to customers (Tip: Use free tools for that; this is only for testing and learning purposes)Create a search engine marketing campaign (e.g. google adwords); select relevant key words, spent $500-$1,000 on campaigns and learn about your customer acquisition costs.Execute A/B tests in order to optimize your MVP; e.g. change the structure of your landing page and see what is the difference in the behaviour of your visitors.After you have sufficient test data, you should be able to validate or falsify your hypothesis and then state what to do next.WHAT TO DO NEXT(A) GO BACK TO IDEA MODE, if your test results are significantly worse than assumed.(B) START SCALING YOUR BUSINESS, if your test confirmed your assumptions.(C) GIVE UP, if you NO You wont give up. You go back to the idea mode and look for a new and better idea! ??4. Scaling your businessOnce youve identified your product market fit (= your hypothesis is validated and you have th e justified belief to earn some money when scaling) you should scale your business.MISTAKES YOU BETTER LEAVE FOR OTHERS1. FORGET ABOUT BUSINESS MODELLINGMany founders forget to really understand which factors are driving their business model. Maybe they are too focused on one part of the business model and thereby neglecting the holistic business model. Or they dont know how to create a basic business model canvas. You dont need to become a modelling expert and building extensive financial models, but you should at least be able to create a business model canvas.2. DONT KNOW WHAT AND HOW TO TESTAgain, focus on the main drivers and be rigorous in defining methods for testing your assumptions. If you are not rigorous enough, you will miss a great opportunity to learn and improve your minimum viable product.3. SCALING TOO EARLYIf you are scaling your business while your product market fit or your core processes are not established, then you are loosing money for no reason. Studies have shown that finding a product market fit takes 2-3 times longer than founders expect. I can confirm this based on my own entrepreneurial experience. ??Image credit:  Flickr | marcfonteijn under Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic.

Peace Written by Aristophanes in 421 BCE - 1538 Words

In Aristophanes’ Peace written in 421 BCE, the automatist utopian trope of food is used to satirize 5th century Athens, particularly the aristocracy. In the opening scene of the play, two Athenian slaves are kneading cakes made of dung for the pet dung beetle of their master Trygaeus (Peace 1-2). Cakes are generally viewed as a decadent treats. However, theses cakes are not made out of appetizing ingredients but dung. These dung cakes are meant to parody Athenian obsession with food. After all, scholars agree that Aristophanes lived in a â€Å"food obsessed comic world† (Compton-Engle 326). The dung beetle also appears to serve a role in satirizing the aristocracy, â€Å"this beast†¦no food is good enough unless I first waste a whole day handling it†¦Go on, eat the lot, you big shit beast†¦ the gluttonous beast! Look at him† (Peace 35-38). In this instance, the beetle will only eat the dung after it has been kneaded into a cake for one day. It is p ossible that the dung beetle represents members of the Athenian aristocracy, of which would be most selective with the preparation of their food. In Peace, the automatist utopian trope of food is used to satirize war. In an early scene, the comic hero, Trygaeus is overlooking the god, War, tossing different types of food into his mortar. In this passage, the food that War tosses into his mortar are meant to be representative of different Greek city-states, â€Å"War:(Takes a bunch of leeks and drops them into the mortar)†¨In you go, Leek City,

The President Of The Columbia Institution - 1955 Words

After meeting with Kendall and his associates in April 1857, Gallaudet accept the offer (Gallaudet, 1983). In addition to accepting the position, Gallaudet also proposes the idea of expanding the institution into a college for the Deaf (Gallaudet, 1912). Kendall supported the idea and promised to speak to the Board of Directors and solicit the aid of Congress (Gallaudet, 1912). While Kendall would be the president of the Columbia Institution for the Instruction of Deaf and Dumb and Blind, school for children, Gallaudet would become the president of the college once Congress conferred the institution full collegiate powers in 1864. In 1865, the blind students at the institution were transferred a As plans were being made to establish the college, Gallaudet and Kendall faced a couple of disagreements. In 1864, Gallaudet drafted a bill that would grant the institution collegiate powers and worked on it with Senator James W. Grimes of Iowa to enact it. Gallaudet noted that some oppositions was faced because some doubted if deaf persons had the ability to learn collegiate studies (Gallaudet, 1912). Nevertheless, the law was passed in both houses of Congress and was signed by President Lincoln on April 8, 1864 (Armstrong, 2014). Gallaudet exclaims that when Kendall received the news, he â€Å"was pleased but remarked that he hoped I was not going† (Armstrong, 2014, p. 4). Additionally, Kendall and Gallaudet disputed about the admission policy. Gallaudet believed that there should aShow MoreRelatedThe University Of District Of Columbia Community College Essay1414 Words   |  6 Pagescolleges face. For this assignment, I will discuss the University of District of Columbia Community College and its governance. In addition, I will provide information on federal and local government involvement, leadership structure, political culture, student demographics, and community groups. 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In order to do so, I will be focusing on how online universities came to be, the people who are enrolled in them, the pros and cons and some background information on America’s number one Online University. History There are nearly 2,000 Universities in the U.S.A today. With so many options how did the idea of an online institution arise? It all startedRead MoreThe Systemic Prevalence Of Sexualized Violence Plaguing Post Secondary Campuses Within British Columbia Essay1510 Words   |  7 Pagesplaguing post-secondary campuses within British Columbia (BC), calls into question the adequacy of the mechanisms post-secondary institutions have in place. Bill 23 requires public post-secondary institutions to establish and implement stand-alone sexual misconduct policies. This policy plays an important role in addressing the bigger issue of rape culture and the institutionalization and normalization of it in our society. 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Checkpoint Jsbmha and Hipaa Case Study Free Essays

Checkpoint: JSBMHA and HIPAA Case Study Phoebe Edwards Carrie Cooper 4/18/13 1. How does HIPPA serve to protect patient rights? A patient’s health information can be shared with doctors and hospitals for treatment and care. The information can also be shared with family members who the patient has given permission to access the patient’s records. We will write a custom essay sample on Checkpoint Jsbmha and Hipaa Case Study or any similar topic only for you Order Now HIPPA’s guidelines make clear exactly what information about patients is protected. Called PHI, this information includes anything that would identify a patient, from name, Social Security numbers and addresses to broader identifiers like race, age and home state. Information about the person’s health care needs or medical history is also considered PHI. HIPPA guidelines dictate that this information cannot be shared except in particular instances, including when the individual patient requests their own personal information, or when privacy investigation by the Department of Health and Human Services requires it. 2. What areas of the JSBMHA did HIPAA compliance impact? HIPPA has a great impact on the patients’ rights, all areas of the JSBMHA is affected by these two individuals. It affected the patients, and put the agency in an awkward position. It affected the grandmother which she can make others aware about what happened and this could affect the agency negatively. People who are involved with the agency could make people feel uncomfortable about giving them any information. And this mean any information is not safe at JSBMHA, and the trust has been violated. 3. What actions should the JSBMHA director take about the HIPAA violation? I think that both of them should get suspended, this is a serious violation. They have put JSBMHA in a very bad situation and have lost the trust of the family. Jim know better ,because he has been with JSBMHA for a long time, longer then Betty, he should have told her that she should have not be talking about these clients outside of the office. I think that Jim should get fired because he know ‘s better, after being at the JSMHA for 20 years is a long time to be with JSMHA and it is more than enough time to know and understand the rules. Jim was supposed to be an example to Betty, someone who Betty can learn from. JSMHA should fired Jim and Betty because Jim did not tell about the HIPAA rules. How to cite Checkpoint Jsbmha and Hipaa Case Study, Free Case study samples

Operational Levarage Essay Sample free essay sample

This SLP requires to make some research to larn about operating purchase. ROI. EVA. and another public presentation step of your pick. Note that there are fluctuations in the calculations of a peculiar measuring. Using the information from the latest fiscal statement for a company to calculate the measurings researched. Reflect on the advantages and disadvantages of these public presentation steps. Choose a preferable step and explicate the principle. Economic Value Added ( EVA )A step of a company’s fiscal public presentation based on the residuary wealth calculated by subtracting cost of capital from its operating net income ( adjusted for revenue enhancements on a hard currency footing ) . ( Besides referred to as â€Å"economic profit†. ) The expression for ciphering EVA is as follows:= Net Operating Net income After Taxes ( NOPAT ) – ( Capital * Cost of Capital )Unfortunately. unless you are a company insider. it can be really hard to get all of the information necessary to mensurate a company’s DOL. We will write a custom essay sample on Operational Levarage Essay Sample or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Consider. for case. fixed and variable costs. which are critical inputs for understanding operating purchase. It would be surprising if companies didn’t have this sort of information on cost construction. but companies are non required to unwrap such information in published histories. Tax return On Investment ( ROI )A public presentation step used to measure the efficiency of an investing or to compare the efficiency of a figure of different investings. To cipher ROI. the benefit ( return ) of an investing is divided by the cost of the investing ; the consequence is expressed as a per centum or a ratio. The return on investing expression: In the above expression â€Å"gains from investment† . refers to the returns obtained from selling the investing of involvement. Return on investing is a really popular metric because of its versatility and simpleness. That is. if an investing does non hold a positive ROI. or if there are other chances with a higher ROI. so the investing should be non be undertaken. The definition of the term in the broadest sense merely efforts to mensurate the profitableness of an investing and. as such. there is no 1 â€Å"right† computation. Free Cash Flow ( FCF )A step of fiscal public presentation calculated as operating hard currency flow minus capital outgos. Free hard currency flow ( FCF ) represents the hard currency that a company is able to bring forth after puting out the money required to keep or spread out its plus base. Free hard currency flow is of import because it allows a company to prosecute chances that enhance stockholder value. Without hard currency. it’s tough to develop new merchandises. do acquisitions. pay dividends and cut down debt. FCF is calculated as: EBIT ( 1-Tax Rate ) + Depreciation A ; Amortization – Change in Net Working Capital – CapitalOutgoIt can besides be calculated by taking operating hard currency flow and subtracting capital outgos.It is by and large believed that in order to maximise value for stockholders. companies should endeavor towards maximising FCF ( and non needfully their entire market value ) . The best manner to make so is to maximise the FCF. which reflects an organization’s ability to gain returns above the cost of capital. The purchase available to companies that incur fixed costs and usage borrowed capital with a fixed involvement charge has been known and quantified by fiscal directors for some clip. The popularisation of EVA and FCF has opened up new possibilities for look intoing the purchase consequence of fixed costs ( operational purchase ) and involvement ( fiscal purchase ) in concurrence with EVA and FCF. and for finding what consequence alterations in gross revenues woul d hold through purchase. non merely on net incomes. but besides on EVA and FCF. What Is Operating Leverage?Basically. runing purchase boils down to an analysis of fixed costs and variable costs. Operating purchase is highest in companies that have a high proportion of fixed operating costs in relation to variable operating costs. This sort of company uses more fixed assets in the operation of the company. Conversely. runing purchase is lowest in companies that have a low proportion of fixed operating costs in relation to variable operating costs. Operating purchase occurs when a company has fixed costs that must be met irrespective of gross revenues volume. When the house has fixed costs. the per centum alteration in net incomes due to alterations in gross revenues volume is greater than the per centum alteration in gross revenues. With positive ( i. e. greater than zero ) fixed operating costs. a alteration of 1 % in gross revenues produces a alteration of greater than 1 % in operating net income. A step of this purchase consequence is referred to as the grade of operating purchase ( DOL ) . which shows the extent to which runing net incomes alteration as gross revenues volume alterations. This indicates the expected response in net incomes if gross revenues volumes change. Specifically. DOL is the per centum alteration in income ( normally taken as net incomes before involvement and revenue enhancement. or EBIT ) divided by the per centum alteration in the degree of gross revenues end product. In decision. investors must be really careful utilizing either of these attacks. They can be misdirecting if applied randomly. They do non see a company’s capacity for turning gross revenues. Few investors truly know whether a company can spread out gross revenues volume past a certain degree without. state. sub-contracting to third-parties or farther capital investing. which would increase fixed costs and alter operational purchase. At the same clip. a company’s monetary values. merchandise mix and cost of stock list and natural stuffs are all capable to alter. Without a good apprehension of the company’s interior workings. it is hard to acquire a truly accurate step of the DOL. Nevertheless. it worth acquiring even a unsmooth thought of a company’s operating purchase. Even if it is non 100 % accurate. cognition of a company’s DOL can assist us measure the degree of hazard it offers to investors. Although you need to be careful when looking at oper ating purchase. it can state you a batch about a company and its future profitableness.

Disparity Example

Disparity Example Disparity – Coursework Example Disparity The current budget of North Carolina, which stands at $19.7 billion, has largely cut on education spending. Schools in North Carolina are funded differently depending on their locality. Schools in low income areas are supposed to get more funds than schools in higher income areas; this is because the former are likely to have poorer learning facilities and more educational needs than the latter (North Carolina General Assembly, 2010). However, in most cases, the schools that are supposed to get more funding are the ones that get less. There is also considerable disparity in the way property tax is collected. According to the state’s General Assembly reports, counties and other areas within the state which record high income are likely to provide higher property tax to their county governments than low income areas. The Title VI of the Civil Rights Act is very clear in its statement that there should be equity in the way state funds are used and distributed (North Car olina General Assembly, 2010). The variations that exist in large urban school districts should be done away with since they are a sign that there are patterns of race and class stratification in the disbursement of education funds. All schools are entitled to equal funding and if there is to be any additional funding for any reason, it should be fully accounted for. On the issue of property tax, urban settings normally attract more tax than other areas. However, the taxation policy should be regulated sp that no property owner is taxed using disproportionate rates. In North Carolina, high income areas such as Wake and Mecklenburg Counties attract quite a large property tax percentage when compared to other counties. When taxation for property is regulation, the amount of property tax that residents of these affluent areas will definitely come down to amore reasonable level. ReferenceNorth Carolina General Assembly. (2010). North Carolina’s fiscal year 2011-12 budget gap. Ral eigh: Fiscal Research Division.

How Sociologists Define Marriage

How Sociologists Define Marriage Marriage is a socially supported union involving two or more individuals in what is regarded as a stable, enduring arrangement based at least in part on a sexual bond of some kind. Depending on the society, marriage may require religious and/or civil sanction, although some couples may come to be considered married simply by living together for a period of time (common law marriage). Though marriage ceremonies, rules, and roles may differ from one society to another, marriage is considered a cultural universal, which means that it is present as a social institution in all cultures. Marriage serves several functions. In most societies, it serves to socially identify children by defining kinship ties to a mother, father, and extended relatives. It also serves to regulate sexual behavior, to transfer, preserve, or consolidate property, prestige, and power, and most importantly, it is the basis for the institution of the family. Social Characteristics of Marriage In most societies, a marriage is considered a permanent social and legal contract and relationship between two people that is based on mutual rights and obligations among the spouses. A marriage is often based on a romantic relationship, though this is not always the case. But regardless, it typically signals a sexual relationship between two people. A marriage, however, does not simply exist between the married partners, but rather, is codified as a social institution in legal, economic, social, and spiritual/religious ways. Typically a the institution of marriage begins with a period of courtship that culminates in an invitation to marry. This is followed by the marriage ceremony, during which mutual rights and responsibilities may be specifically stated and agreed to. In many places the state must sanction a marriage in order for it to be considered valid and legal, and also in many cultures, a religious authority must do the same. In many societies, including the Western world and the United States, marriage is widely considered the basis of and foundation for family. This is why a marriage is often greeted socially with immediate expectations that the couple will produce children, and why children that are born outside of marriage are often branded with the stigma of illegitimacy. Because a marriage is recognized by law, by the economy, socially, and by religious institutions, a dissolution of marriage (annulment or divorce) must, in turn, involve a dissolution of the marriage relationship in all of these realms. The Social Functions of Marriage Marriage has several social functions that are important within the societies and cultures where the marriage takes place. Most commonly, marriage dictates the roles that spouses play in each others lives, in the family, and in society at large. Typically these roles involve a division of labor between the spouses, such that each is responsible for different tasks that are necessary within the family. American sociologist Talcott Parsons wrote on this topic and outlined a theory of roles within a marriage and household, wherein wives/mothers play the expressive role of a caregiver who takes care of socialization and emotional needs of others in the family, while the husband/father is responsible for the task role of earning money to support the family. In keeping with this thinking, a marriage often serves the function of dictating the social status of the spouses and the couple, and of creating a hierarchy of power between the couple. Societies in which the husband/father holds the most power in the marriage are known as patriarchies. Conversely, matriarchal societies are those in which wives/mothers hold the most power. Marriage also serves the social function of determining family names and lines of familial descent. In the U.S. and much of the Western world, we practice patrilineal descent, meaning the family name follows that of the husband/father. However, many cultures, including some within Europe and many in Central and Latin America, follow matrilineal descent. Today, it is common for newly married couples to create a hyphenated family name that preserves the named lineage of both sides, and for children to bear the surnames of both parents. Different Types of Marriages In the Western world, monogamous, heterosexual marriage is the most common form and is considered the norm. However, homosexual marriage is increasingly common and in many places, including the U.S., has been sanctioned by law and by many religious groups. This change in practice, law, and cultural norms and expectations for what a marriage is and how can participate in it reflects the fact that marriage itself is a social construct. Other forms of marriage that occur around the world include polygamy (a marriage of more than two spouses), polyandry (a marriage of a wife with more than one husband), and polygyny (the marriage of a husband with more than one wife). (In common usage, polygamy is often misused to refer to polygyny.) As such, the rules of marriage, the division of labor within a marriage, and what constitutes the roles of husbands, wives, and spouses generally are subject to change and are most often negotiated by the partners within the marriage, rather than firmly dictated by tradition. Updated by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.