Startup Coaching & Support

Money

The average startup gets kick-started by driving the entrepreneur into personal debt and loans upwards of $70k. That’s a hefty cost considering the low success expectation. However there are better ways to fund your startup, including venture capital, investors, crowd funding, and my personal favorite: self-funding by getting the venture to produce sales as early as possible.

Planning solutions: Funding plan, pre-sales, product rollout in phases.

Reporting: Funding opportunities, pitch/presentation critique.

Hands-on: Participate in funding process.

Team

If money is an issue, everything else will be in short supply. You can’t afford the perfect team, nor can attract top talent with a small and risky operation. The biggest concern is that having the right team is one of the top keys to success, because great people are your access to great knowledge and manpower to get things done. An industry expert coach can supply a team’s worth of knowledge to fill in the void, and team development coaching can provide the direction and tools to bring in key yet affordable people in order to build a winning team regardless of the limitations.

Planning: Team breakdown, skillsets required, growth roadmap.

Report: Performance and improvement opportunities.

Hands-on: Filling gaps as needed.

Time

You’ll always be running out of time. Startups are time-sensitive endeavors in multiple ways at various stages, be it constrains created by marketing needs, events, ad purchases, product launches, critical mass concerns, partner agreements, etc. On top of that, since you are the most passionate and knowledgeable person behind the enterprise you’ll be needed at every corner of the work map. The only path to success is to master time by planning, structuring, prioritizing and delegating – and recognizing that some tasks will simply not get done… and that’s alright if you choose wisely.

Planning: Tasks and priorities, project management.

Reporting: Performance and improvement opportunities.

Hands-on: Filling gaps as needed.

Product Development

You think you have a product. You think you know what you’ll be selling, to whom and why. Yet the operating keyword in startup is “new,” as in this is a new venture and we are yet to develop hard evidence that we are right about our business model, target audience, market expectations, product maturity, etc. As the venture grows into maturity, products reach the market and sales start pouring in (or not,) opportunities emerge and change and the products must twist and grow with them.

Planning: Product roadmap, opportunities.

Reporting: Performance, improvement and growth opportunities.

Hands-on: Product development direction.

Direction and Sanity

You started with a vision and a passion. The road is long and full of obstacles. There will be many successes along the way, and plenty more stresses and failures. Coaching helps upkeep order and sanity by providing a vital sounding board: feed it problems and chaos, and it gives you back clarity, direction and renewed purpose.

Planning: Business plan (whole or parts, ex: risks, problems)

Reporting: Performance, opportunities, problems and solutions.

Hands-on: Problem solving, management.

Sharp Business Instincts

Considering the constrains of the startup business, you will often be forced to make decisions on the go, using limited information and relying on your “gut feeling.” Chances are your “gut” will be right if you bounce your ideas off a business coach drawing on hands-on experience with over 50 startups.

Reporting: Problem & solution research.

Hands-on: Problem solving, decision-making, management.

Succeed by Planning

Change is great when fully understood and guided by expert hands. You’ve heard the expression: failing to plan is planning to fail. Most smart entrepreneurs know how painfully true this adage is, yet due to the typical constrains most startups rely on very limited planning that fades out as the venture grows and changes. A startup coach keeps you in check by setting a baseline for planning accountability, particularly at the key points when your venture would otherwise begin to lose its focus and drift away from the known roadmap.

Planning: Targeted planning as needed.

Reports: Performance, improvement and growth opportunities.

Lead at Full Capacity

Management is often considered the #1 reason for failure. It is hard enough to run an enterprise and team when the roadmap is crystal clear, yet startups often have to make their own way within a ecosystem of constrains. A startup coach can provide a global vision for management and leadership, identifying problems and offering solutions, as well as filling in the gaps as needed.

Reports: Performance, improvement and growth opportunities.

Hands-on: Project management, HR solutions, problem solving, direct management.