The document describes 5 tools for answering the business viability question: 1) traditional business plans, 2) blue ocean strategy, 3) design thinking, 4) discovery-driven planning, and 5) lean startup method. Each tool is described in terms of its objective, stages/roadmap, criteria for progress, and strengths and weaknesses for addressing risks for new projects at both mature companies and startups. The lean startup method emphasizes carrying out low-cost experiments, using real options thinking, and continuously validating learning through a build-measure-learn loop.

1. 5 TOOLS FOR ANSWERING
THE BUSINESS VIABILITY QUESTION
(BVQ)
Will our Business Project Succeed?

2. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
DELIGHT (+)
PAIN (-)
MATURED COMPANIES STARTUPS
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?

3. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
RIGIDLY Plan,
Build, and Launch
Full-Scale Product
and CUSTOMERS
Will Come
(According to
Business Plan
ProjecHons).
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
q Alpha-product
q Beta-product
q Full-scale
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; NPV
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
q Trend Analysis
q Market Analysis
q ConXngency
Analysis
q Gap Management
DELIGHT (+) Scaling Projects
PAIN (-) Inflexibility; Poor
Risk Management
MATURED COMPANIES STARTUPS
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?

4. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
RIGIDLY Plan,
Build, and Launch
Full-Scale Product
and CUSTOMERS
Will Come
(According to
Business Plan
ProjecHons).
RIGOROUSLY
Validate,
Analyze, Plan,
and Execute
POSITIONING
Strategy for
Achieving
Desired Goals.
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
q Alpha-product
q Beta-product
q Full-scale
q Improvement
q DisrupXon
q Winner
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; NPV
PROFIT (MAR-
GIN): ROI; NPV
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
q Trend Analysis
q Market Analysis
q ConXngency
Analysis
q Gap Management
q Scenario
Thinking
q Wargaming
q (Field/Ind.
ValidaXon)
DELIGHT (+) Scaling Projects Scaling Projects
PAIN (-) Inflexibility; Poor
Risk Management
Inflexibility;
Poor Risk Mngt
MATURED COMPANIES STARTUPS
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?

5. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
RIGIDLY Plan,
Build, and Launch
Full-Scale Product
and CUSTOMERS
Will Come
(According to
Business Plan
ProjecHons).
RIGOROUSLY
Validate,
Analyze, Plan,
and Execute
POSITIONING
Strategy for
Achieving
Desired Goals.
Discover and Solve
HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEMS Especially
Using Field Observa-
Hons, Prototyping, and
Customer ValidaHon.
Then, Launch Full-
scale Product.
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
q Alpha-product
q Beta-product
q Full-scale
q Improvement
q DisrupXon
q Winner
q Pretotype
q Prototype
q Pilot; Full-scale
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; NPV
PROFIT (MAR-
GIN): ROI; NPV
USEABILITY
(Customer AdopXon)
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
q Trend Analysis
q Market Analysis
q ConXngency
Analysis
q Gap Management
q Scenario
Thinking
q Wargaming
q (Field/Ind.
ValidaXon)
q Customer Discove-
ry/ValidaXon
q ExperimentaXon
and TesXng Using
Prototypes
DELIGHT (+) Scaling Projects Scaling Projects Tame/Wicked Projects
PAIN (-) Inflexibility; Poor
Risk Management
Inflexibility;
Poor Risk Mngt
Weak at operaXonal
mngt and scaling
MATURED COMPANIES STARTUPS
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?

6. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
RIGIDLY Plan,
Build, and Launch
Full-Scale Product
and CUSTOMERS
Will Come
(According to
Business Plan
ProjecHons).
RIGOROUSLY
Validate,
Analyze, Plan,
and Execute
POSITIONING
Strategy for
Achieving
Desired Goals.
Discover and Solve
HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEMS Especially
Using Field Observa-
Hons, Prototyping, and
Customer ValidaHon.
Then, Launch Full-
scale Product.
Carry Out LOW-
COST EXPERIMENTS
to Test AssumpHons
While Funding and
Reviewing Project
Using Real OpHons
& Disciplined
Disengagement.
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
q Alpha-product
q Beta-product
q Full-scale
q Improvement
q DisrupXon
q Winner
q Pretotype
q Prototype
q Pilot; Full-scale
q OpXons Por]olio
q Pilot; 4 Stages to
Disengagement
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; NPV
PROFIT (MAR-
GIN): ROI; NPV
USEABILITY
(Customer AdopXon)
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; OpHon-Learning
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
q Trend Analysis
q Market Analysis
q ConXngency
Analysis
q Gap Management
q Scenario
Thinking
q Wargaming
q (Field/Ind.
ValidaXon)
q Customer Discove-
ry/ValidaXon
q ExperimentaXon
and TesXng Using
Prototypes
q Reverse Financial
q TesXng of Bus.
Model Engine
q Real OpXons
q Benchmarking
DELIGHT (+) Scaling Projects Scaling Projects Tame/Wicked Projects Wicked Projects
PAIN (-) Inflexibility; Poor
Risk Management
Inflexibility;
Poor Risk Mngt
Weak at operaXonal
mngt and scaling
Inadequate tools
for project mngt
MATURED COMPANIES STARTUPS
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?

7. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
RIGIDLY Plan,
Build, and Launch
Full-Scale Product
and CUSTOMERS
Will Come
(According to
Business Plan
ProjecHons).
RIGOROUSLY
Validate,
Analyze, Plan,
and Execute
POSITIONING
Strategy for
Achieving
Desired Goals.
Discover and Solve
HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEMS Especially
Using Field Observa-
Hons, Prototyping, and
Customer ValidaHon.
Then, Launch Full-
scale Product.
Carry Out LOW-
COST EXPERIMENTS
to Test AssumpHons
While Funding and
Reviewing Project
Using Real OpHons
& Disciplined
Disengagement.
ConHnuously Validate
Learning, Hypotheses,
and Decisions by Using
a BUILD-MEASURE-
LEARN LOOP with a
Minimum Viable
Product (MVP) as well
as Bus. Model Engine.
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
q Alpha-product
q Beta-product
q Full-scale
q Improvement
q DisrupXon
q Winner
q Pretotype
q Prototype
q Pilot; Full-scale
q OpXons Por]olio
q Pilot; 4 Stages to
Disengagement
q Problem-SoluXon Fit
q Product-Market Fit
q Business Model Fit
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; NPV
PROFIT (MAR-
GIN): ROI; NPV
USEABILITY
(Customer AdopXon)
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; OpHon-Learning
VALIDATED LEARNING
(Business Model Engine)
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
q Trend Analysis
q Market Analysis
q ConXngency
Analysis
q Gap Management
q Scenario
Thinking
q Wargaming
q (Field/Ind.
ValidaXon)
q Customer Discove-
ry/ValidaXon
q ExperimentaXon
and TesXng Using
Prototypes
q Reverse Financial
q TesXng of Bus.
Model Engine
q Real OpXons
q Benchmarking
q Technical Risk Mngt
Min. Viable Product
q Financial Risk Mngt
ProporXonal Inv.
q Analogs; AnXlogs
DELIGHT (+) Scaling Projects Scaling Projects Tame/Wicked Projects Wicked Projects Wicked Projects
PAIN (-) Inflexibility; Poor
Risk Management
Inflexibility;
Poor Risk Mngt
Weak at operaXonal
mngt and scaling
Inadequate tools
for project mngt
Lacks concrete tools for
project management
MATURED COMPANIES STARTUPS
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?

8. World-class Coaching on Business Periodic Table (BPT), 4P-Diamond, and Kanban InnovaJon Dashboard (KID)
Ambidextrous Growth Strategist. Dr. Rod King. rodkuhnhking@gmail.com & hNp://businessmodels.ning.com & @rodKuhnKing
TOOL
OVERVIEW
TRADITIONAL
(WATERFALL)
BUSINESS PLAN
COMPETITIVE
(BLUE
OCEAN)
STRATEGY
DESIGN THINKING
(HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEM SOLVING)
DISCOVERY-
DRIVEN
PLANNING
(CHECKPOINTS)
LEAN STARTUP
METHOD
(INNOVATION
ACCOUNTING)
OBJECTIVE
(PROPOSAL/
LEAP OF FAITH)
RIGIDLY Plan,
Build, and Launch
Full-Scale Product
and CUSTOMERS
Will Come
(According to
Business Plan
ProjecHons).
RIGOROUSLY
Validate,
Analyze, Plan,
and Execute
POSITIONING
Strategy for
Achieving
Desired Goals.
Discover and Solve
HUMAN-CENTERED
PROBLEMS Especially
Using Field Observa-
Hons, Prototyping, and
Customer ValidaHon.
Then, Launch Full-
scale Product.
Carry Out LOW-
COST EXPERIMENTS
to Test AssumpHons
While Funding and
Reviewing Project
Using Real OpHons
& Disciplined
Disengagement.
ConHnuously Validate
Learning, Hypotheses,
and Decisions by Using
a BUILD-MEASURE-
LEARN LOOP with a
Minimum Viable
Product (MVP) as well
as Bus. Model Engine.
STAGE GATES
(ROADMAP: PHASES;
CHECKLIST)
q Alpha-product
q Beta-product
q Full-scale
q Improvement
q DisrupXon
q Winner
q Pretotype
q Prototype
q Pilot; Full-scale
q OpXons Por]olio
q Pilot; 4 Stages to
Disengagement
q Problem-SoluXon Fit
q Product-Market Fit
q Business Model Fit
CRITERION/UNIT
OF PROGRESS
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; NPV
PROFIT (MAR-
GIN): ROI; NPV
USEABILITY
(Customer AdopXon)
PROFIT (MARGIN):
ROI; OpHon-Learning
VALIDATED LEARNING
(Business Model Engine)
FAILURE OR RISK
MANAGEMENT
FOR BUSINESS
MODEL ENGINE
q Trend Analysis
q Market Analysis
q ConXngency
Analysis
q Gap Management
q Scenario
Thinking
q Wargaming
q (Field/Ind.
ValidaXon)
q Customer Discove-
ry/ValidaXon
q ExperimentaXon
and TesXng Using
Prototypes
q Reverse Financial
q TesXng of Bus.
Model Engine
q Real OpXons
q Benchmarking
q Technical Risk Mngt
Min. Viable Product
q Financial Risk Mngt
ProporXonal Inv.
q Analogs; AnXlogs
DELIGHT (+) Scaling Projects Scaling Projects Tame/Wicked Projects Wicked Projects Wicked Projects
PAIN (-) Inflexibility; Poor
Risk Management
Inflexibility;
Poor Risk Mngt
Weak at operaXonal
mngt and scaling
Inadequate tools
for project mngt
Lacks concrete tools for
project management
DELIBERATE PROBLEM SOLVING EMERGENT PROBLEM SOLVING
UPSPM MENU FOR FACILITATING BUSINESS PROJECT VIABILITY, EXPERIMENTATION, AND EXECUTION
Will the Vision, Plan, Strategy, and/or Business Model Engine of a Given Project Succeed: Short/Medium/Long-term?