This document discusses how traditional startups can be improved upon using agile principles of continuous customer interaction, low burn rates, and rapid iteration. It proposes that startups should: 1) Continuously interact with customers through development to test hypotheses and uncover unknowns rather than assume knowledge up front. 2) Have revenue goals from the start and limit scaling until revenue is achieved to keep burn rates low. 3) Use agile product development principles like continuous integration and minimum viable products to get feedback faster than competitors. 4) Parallel this agile development with continuous customer validation, discovery, and building to turn market risk hypotheses into facts with measurable gates for investors.

1. Agile Startup
Low Burn by Design not Crisis
By Robin Low

2. Timing is everything.
Adaptability is key, not the
business plan.
Traditional startups are
fighting yesterday’s war.

3. TRADITIONAL STARTUPS
• High burn rate
• Swing for the fences
• Full management teams
• Assume customer is known
• Assume features are known
• Assumes growth is by execution
Traditional

5. Boyd: Winning is about Agility
Rule The OODA Loop
1 • Observe
• Orient
• Decide
• Act

6. Boyd Redefines the Rules to Win
Rule • Agility requires a
continuous cycle of
2 interactions with the
Environment
• But you can’t do it from
a desk

7. Winners are Those Who Can Move
Faster Than Their Competitors
Rule • Winning requires
constant assessment of
3 change and ways to
mitigate risk
• Iterating faster than
competitors yields
substantial advantage

8. Facing Reality at Today’s Startup
There is no 2nd Place
Rule • Uncertain environment
• Rapid, unanticipated
4 changes that lead to
disorientation
• Constant threats to any
initiative
• Burn rate (time, fuel,
bullets, dollars) limits
window of opportunity

9. Using OODA to Create “Agile Startups”
And Changing the Startup Rules
Customer
Development
Agile Product
Development

10. Agile Startups
Building a New Wave of Companies
Customer • Continuous customer interaction
Development
• Revenue goals from day one
• No scaling until revenue
• Assumes customer and
Agile Product features are unknowns
Development • Low Burn by Design – Not Crisis

11. Agile Startup Principles
Extraordinary Value at Low cost in Little Time
• Leverages:
Customer
Development - Technology commoditization
- Agile management practices
- Customer Development
Agile Product • Designed to test hypothesis
Development
and answer the unknowns

12. The Agile Startup
Agile Product Development
• Continuous cycle of Product
Development
- Product release cycle in
hours not years
- Tightly coupled with customer
Agile Product development
Development
- Minimum feature sets,
maximum customer coverage

13. The Agile Startup
Customer Development
• Continuous cycle of customer
Customer
Development
interaction
- Rapid hypothesis testing about
market, pricing, customers, …
- Extreme low cost, low burn,
tight focus
- Measurable gates for investors

14. The Agile Startup
Customer Development Parallels Agile Development
Agile Development
Business Agile Continuous Continuous
Concept Development Test Ship
Customer Development
Customer Customer Customer Customer
Discovery Validation Creation Building

15. Customer Development
Turns Market Risk/Product Fit Hypothesis into Facts
Customer Customer Customer Customer
Discovery Validation Creation Building

16. Agile Startup Advantages
• Builds low-burn companies by
Customer
Development
design
- Low cost market risk testing
• Organized around learning and
discovery
Agile Product • Right model for current
Development conditions

17. It is up to you to build the next wave of capital
efficient startups
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