lean & agile: what publishing can learn from startups
Post on 21-Oct-2014
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This presentation was given by at the Edinburgh Publishing Conference held June 12, 2013 at the Edinburgh Business School in Edinburgh, Scotland. The conference examined the innovation, disruption and new business models that are helping to shape the future of publishing. In this presentation, Rachel Willmer, the founder of Luzme (a worldwide ebook search site) discussed how Lean & Agile practices learned from decades of software startups can be applied to building a successful business in the new disrupted future of publishing.TRANSCRIPT
Lean & Agile: What Publishing can Learn from Startups
Rachel Willmer
Why Learn From Us?
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/scriptingnews/
The Waterfall Model
© Paulsmith99 at en.wikipedia
Why Doesn’t Waterfall Work?• Requires perfect knowledge at every
stage
• Assumes perfect consistency
• Works for Engineering projects
• Inefficient model for Software
projects
• Mistakes are expensive
The Agile Manifesto, 2001
• http://agilemanifesto.org/
• KEY POINTS:
– Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and
continuous delivery of valuable software
– Welcome changing requirements, even late in development...
– Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a
couple of months ...
– Simplicity, the art of maximizing the amount of work not done, is
essential
– And others….
What This Means in Practice
• Have a long-term Big Idea
• Plan only short-term work plans, a “sprint”
• Continuously engage with customers
• Be very willing to change everything as you
learn
• Change != Failure
• Change at an early stage = cheap
It’s a marathon, not a sprint
© http://www.flickr.com/photos/wwarby/4782201357
Disruptive Technologies• *Significantly* lower prices
• Lower Margins
• Less Functionality/Performance
• “Innovator’s Dilemma” - Clayton M.
Christensen
Less Functionality?!?“Competing against Non-Consumption”
http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/12/22/the-amazing-power-of-deflationary-economics-for-startups/
Examples
• TV&Hollywood -- YouTube
• Daily Newspapers – Twitter, Feedly,
Zite
• Photos&Film - iPhone
The Lean Startup, 2011
• Term coined by Eric Ries, based on earlier work done
by Steve Blank
• KEY POINTS:
– Product/Market Fit
– Minimum viable product
– Continuous deployment
– Split testing
– Actionable metrics
– Pivot
Lean Links
• http://theleanstartup.com/
• http://runninglean.co/
• http://leananalyticsbook.com/
Fail Early, Fail Often, (Fail Cheap)
• “Fail” = “Try,Learn,Change” not “Failure”
• Mark Suster’s motto:
– “Good judgement comes from experience,
– But experience comes from bad judgement”
http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/
How to Fail Early
• Don’t Wait until it’s ready until you talk to your
customers
• Customer Discovery interviews
• Minimum Viable Products
• Verifiable Hypotheses
• Landing Pages
• Ask for money early!
Example 1: Tech Publishing
• O’Reilly Early Release
– http://oreilly.com
• Lean Pub
– http://leanpub.com
“Lean Publishing” the book
• https://leanpub.com/lean
• Coupon code: “EDINBURGH”
Example 2
• Luzme Translation service for writers
• Idea originated at CrimeFest a fortnight
ago
• Determined initial business model idea
• Landing pages will go live next week
• Then customer discovery
SUMMARY
• Fail early, fail often, fail cheap…
• Succeed sooner
• Have more fun!
• QUESTIONS?