Speed of Innovation

It’s hard to imagine the speed a start-up can have when innovating. Today’s story is about the parallel universe of a start-up and an enterprise working on the same project with the intent of cooperating.

The Setup

The start-up would love to work with Enterprise to conquer a client. They get their meeting with the managerial level of the Enterprise that has an established relationship with the client. A Win-Win, that was the conclusion of the meeting from both parties. Let’s push this as fast as we can.

Week 1 — Start-up

The start-up is creating the pre-sales documentation to pass through the Enterprise’s tech risk assessment. They finish all the documentation the same day and forward it to the manager.

Week 1 — Enterprise

The manager is trying to get together a project team. Unfortunately, it’s not only his division. So, he sets up a meeting for the next week.

Week 2 — Start-up

They got a meeting with the client as the solution seems important to the client. Unfortunately for the start-up, it was at a low level, a tech person.

Week 2 — Enterprise

The meeting takes place, and the two managers set up the team that is scheduled for a kick off meeting next week.

Week 3 — Start-up

They are in talks with the client, and things escalate to C level. Another meeting is set for week 4, now with the decision makers.

Week 3 — Enterprise

The kick off meeting happens. Responsibilities are divided among the participants, and they realise this project can’t be administered in the system. The pre-sales team doesn’t want to book hours on the client as the turnover will go to another division. This division (let’s call it Services) would give money to the pre-sales division, but the estimate of making the risk assessment is beyond budget (it’s the 2-year burn rate for the start-up, which makes the services division upset). So, managers get involved with the administration issues to make money for the project to cover the pre-sales hours.

Week 4 — Start-up

The client is amazed by the solution, but some technical details are missing, which poses a risk. But they also understand the huge amount of money they can make with it. The start-up needs an infusion of 20k to make this happen.

Week 4 — Enterprise

The managers escalate the problem to the C level and come up with a solution. (This takes two months in real time, but let’s give some advantage for the Enterprise here).

Week 5 — Start-up

The start-up asks for a letter of intent from the Client to help raise the 20k or get a loan for it. They get it.

Week 5 — Enterprise

Nothing happens. It’s the last two weeks of the quarter, reporting, meetings, crunching the numbers.

Week 5 — Start-up

The start-up hustles for the money. As it will bring a turnover of 1 MM USD over the next year (if they can do it), the banks obviously pass. No land, no car, no assets. But the families put together the money by the end of week 6.

Week 6 — Start-up

The money is collected.

Week 6 — Enterprise

Nothing happens. It’s the last two weeks of the quarter, reporting, meetings, crunching the numbers.

Week 7 — Start-up

They work on the project full time, hiring people to move the project faster.

Week 7 — Enterprise

Status meeting (where were we last time?). They set up a meeting with the board for next week.

Week 8 — Start-up

They organise a meeting with the client for the next week.

Week 8 — Enterprise

The board discusses the idea and approves of the technical risk assessment.

Week 9 — Start-up

The start-up is making the final presentation at the client site.

Week 9 — Enterprise

The tech team meets and starts working.

Week 10 — Start-up

The start-up closes the deal and starts working on the contractual details.

Week 10 — Enterprise

The tech team finishes the assessment; the start-up passes with flying colours.

Week 11 — Start-up

The start-up signs the finished contract.

Week 11 — Enterprise

The client cancels all contracts related to the start-ups service with the Enterprise.

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