SOME ADVICES SOME ADVICES for for YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS

I-lin Cheng

ContentsContents Basics . Sustainable Competitive

Advantages . Positioning . Five Rules to be noted ; - low-hanging fruits. - sellable products. - opportunity validation. - outsourcing (sharing ). - customers’ purchasing behavior. Conclusion .

BasicsBasicsThose who win shall not compete ! 善勝者不爭 !

Those who plan well shall not fight !

善陣者不戰 ! Those who fight well shall not lose ! 善戰者不敗 ! Those who always lose shall not

panic ! 善敗者不亂 !

Success is not final ; Failure is not fatal !!

““SustainableSustainable”” Competitive Competitive AdvantageAdvantage Why You and Your Products Why You and Your Products ?????? Competitive Advantage ; - rare. - valuable. But to be sustainable advantage;

you have to add ; - durable. - inimitable.

PositioningPositioning

“ Near - Red “ Ocean with Ocean “ Typhoon”

“Red “ Ocean Opportunity Window

Existing Technology New Technolo

gy

Mature Industry

High-Tech Industry

Rule # 1- Focus on Harvesting Rule # 1- Focus on Harvesting thethe Low-Hanging Fruits Low-Hanging Fruits Low hanging fruits are products that

can be shipped in reasonable quantities over the next 12 to 36 months and offer significant value to a real market- an opportunity for transforming an R&D venture into a revenue-generating company.

Rule #2– Develop Sellable Rule #2– Develop Sellable ProductsProducts Examples of a “sellable product”. A nanocatalyst might be considered a scientific success

if it achieves a target activation rate at a certain price point. For the catalyst to become a sellable product it may need to deliver on a number of other criteria beyond price/performance, including:

-upper and lower temperature for achieving the required activation rate.

-ability to adhere to a particular substrate. -lifespan. -reaction with other chemicals in the operating

environment. -ease pf handling. -customer support for custom variations. -flexibility in placing orders. -shelf life. -ability to work with large-scale users.

Rule #3– Regularly Validate the Rule #3– Regularly Validate the

Commercial Viability Commercial Viability Compromise between the development and the

commercial opportunity. Since before the product is ready for sale, changes in

customer specifications, competitive offerings, available technologies, industry standards, and government regulations can make a product obsolete before it is even completed.

Rule #5– Managing the Rule #5– Managing the Customer’s Customer’s Purchasing Processes Purchasing Processes

Getting potential customers interested in your products is easy ; getting them to actually buy your products is another story!!

Initial customers for your products are most likely to be large companies and government agencies; thus,

- a purchasing manager might have a great relationship

and already have an “ eco-system “ existing with the current supplier and won’t want to risk changing .

- an executive might have pressure from a government agency to do business with a certain company.

- a financial evaluator might think that a start-up company is too weak financially to support a major program, as it might not be in business next year.

Rule #4—Outsource Non-core Rule #4—Outsource Non-core Operations/Functions Operations/Functions

Outsourcing permits products and services to be supplied at a fixed price with high degree of certainty in what you are getting.

It can significantly improve the completion time and outcome compared with in-house personnel who might be doing for the first time.

Therefore, an opportunity exists to evaluate if certain operations and activities really need to be core competencies and then determine the benefits of having them outsourced.

Ten Deadly Small Business Mistakes ---- Meir Liraz Sticking to a single idea too longNot having a results-driven marketing

planNot knowing your customersIgnoring your cash position Ignoring your employeesConfusing likelihood with realityNot having a sales planBeing a Long Ranger (learning to

delegate)No Mastermind (get an advisory group or

mentor)Giving up

Conclusion:Conclusion:

Focusing your resources and making a product easier for a customer to buy.

Be conscious of every lever at the disposal to speed up the processes, since time is a precious commodity.

Knowing the customer’s buying behavior, the stake-holder(s).

Any novel product is based on a solid foundation of good science, a strong technical and management team and the perseverance to stick it out.