1. Managing the
Lean LaunchPad
Classroom

2. Agenda
• Philosophy
• Logistics

3. Class Decisions
Structural Issues
• Type of startup you are teaching
• Goal of the class
• Level of student experience
• Fit in overall curriculum
Comfort Issues
• Level of demands on students
• Comfort with failure as part of the process
• Comfort with student uncertainty

4. Class Philosophy

5. Type of Startup:
Who Are You Teaching?
• Lifestyle Entrepreneurs?
• Small Business Entrepreneurs?
• Buyable startups?
• Scalable (high-growth) startups?
• Corporate intrapreneurs?
• Social Entrepreneurs?
• Incubators/Accelerators?
• Domain specific – healthcare? Science?

6. Goal of this Class
• Experiential not theoretical
• Not for Demo Day
• A methodology for the rest of their lives
– In all it’s uncertainty
– In all it’s complexity
– With all of it’s stress
• Done by simulating a Lean Startup
You get what you design for

7. Level of Student Experience
• Undergraduate
• Graduate
• Existing Startup
• Corporate
• Engineering, Business, other
• Prior startup experience?

8. Fit in Overall Curriculum
• Theory versus experience classes
• Is class part of broader curriculum
• Is this the only class
• Bandwidth and resources needed for each

9. Comfort Issues

10. Level of Demand on Students
• Experiential designed to stretch students
• Don’t underestimate their ability
• Needs to match your goal
– “Happy” students with great reviews
– Students who learn something that lasts a lifetime

11. Comfort with Failure
• Is it OK knowing that some students will fail?
– Fail in finding the right answer each week
– Fail by finding the class too demanding
– Fail by discovering startups are not for them
• What’s your/school comfort level

12. Comfort with Uncertainty
• Discovery process is uncertain by design
– Makes engineers crazy
– Want a step-by-step guide
– We walk a fine line on how much we give
– Watching them stumble is part of the process

13. Class Logistics

14. Class Framework
• Class structure
– 8 teams of 4
– Admission is by team and by interview
• Select for passion, commitment first
• Emulate the real world
– Boot camp by design – never good enough
– Experiential and immersive
• Quarter, Semester, 5-week and 5-day versions
• Graduate, undergrad, corporate versions

15. Team Formation
• Info sessions
– 6 weeks before class
• Existing student ideas
• Ideas from VC’s
• Scalable startups vs Small Business

16. Class Concepts
Search versus execute
• Business Model Canvas as scorecard
• Customer Discovery heart of the class
• Agile Engineering MVP iterating in class

17. Class Organization
• Flipped classroom – lectures on Udacity
– Classroom more efficient, used for discussion
• Teams stand and deliver weekly
– Report on their customer discovery progress
• You teach by critique
• No guests, no lectures (discussion)

18. Unique Aspects
• Emphasis on number of interviews
• Canvas as the scorecard
• Discovery Narrative as the detail
– This is how you keep track of their progress
• Weekly presentations as the pressure

20. Teaching Resources
• Minimum Requirements
– You
– LaunchPad Central Software
• Recommended
– Co-instructors (investors, experienced Entrepreneurs, Startup
Weekend instructors)
– Mentors
– Teaching Assistant

21. Classroom Management
• Don’t underestimate what they’re capable of
– Push, push, push
• Team dynamics are part of the process
– Use them as teaching points
• LaunchPad Central as “early warning”
• 2 to 3 out of 10 will be clear failures
• 2 to 3 will make you remember why you teach

22. Lean LaunchPad Resources
• Educators Guide
• www.steveblank.com
– Slides/Video tab - steveblank.com/slides/
• Gateway to every syllabus, teaching guide,
presentations, faculty handbook
– Startup Tools tab - steveblank.com/tools-and-blogs-for-entrepreneurs/
• Gateway to tools, startup advice, mkt research
• Stanford eCorner - ecorner.stanford.ed

23. Resources on steveblank.com

24. Syllabi

25. Video Lectures

26. PowerPoint Presentations

27. Student Presentations

28. Where Does the Class Fit?

29. Startups Transition
Large
Company
Search Build Execute

30. Startups Transition
Large
Company
Search Build Execute
Business School Curriculum
• Finance Gov’t& Law
• Leadership  Entrepreneurship
• Org Behavior  Ethics
• Operations  Global Business
• Marketing  Accounting
• Strategy  Global Mgmt
• Supply Chain Small Business
•Entrepreneurship

31. Startups Transition
Large
Company
Search Build Execute
Lean LaunchPad
Experiential Entrepreneurship
ENTR 200 (or ENTR 090 for 5-day)
Lean LaunchPad
Corporate
ENTR 202
Business School Curriculum
• Finance Gov’t& Law
• Leadership  Supply Chain
• Org Behavior  Ethics
• Operations  Global Business
• Marketing  Accounting
• Strategy  Global Mgmt
•EntrepreneurshipSmall Business
Lean LaunchPad
Experiential Entrepreneurship
ENTR 10 (or ENTR 090 for 5-day)

32. Creativity &
Innovation
Business Model
Design
Metrics That Matter
Startup Finance
Customer Discovery
Markets/Opportunities
Building the Team
Startup HR and Culture
Startup Patent Law
Get, Keep and Grow
Startup Marketing
From Founder to
Operating Executive
Introduction to
Startups
Startups Transition
Large
Company
Search Build Execute
ENTR 100 ENTR 101
ENTR 102 ENTR 103
ENTR 104 ENTR 105
ENTR 106 ENTR 107
ENTR 150
Lean LaunchPad
Experiential Entrepreneurship
ENTR 200 (or ENTR 090 for 5-day)
Agile Development
Lean Engineering
ENTR 108
New Ventures In
Corporations
User Design
Web/Mobile U/I
ENTR 109
ENTR 300
Lean LaunchPad
Corporate
ENTR 202
Finding Fuel
Funding for Startups
ENTR 110
Business School Curriculum
• Finance Gov’t& Law
• Leadership  Supply Chain
• Org Behavior  Ethics
• Operations  Global Business
• Marketing  Accounting
• Strategy  Global Mgmt
•EntrepreneurshipSmall Business

33. Design Thinking vs. Lean
• Customer discovery is not design thinking
– design: Search the problem space
– Lean: Test product/market fit
• Both can lead to breakthrough ideas, just
different startup points & philosophy