Invest in yourself and your venture. TechAlliance in partnership with MaRS Discovery District presents the Everest series. This interactive small group advisory program is for startups to enhance business learnings and boost topic-specific knowledge to help innovation thrive.
Each module is designed to provide focused content to help early-stage ventures understand and manage multiple aspects of creating and running a prosperous venture. Join one or all twelve, and gear up for crucial knowledge and idea exchanges instrumental to success.
- Finding Product-Market Fit | July 13 and 14, 9AM – 11AM
- Customer Segmentation | July 27 and 28, 1PM – 3PM
- Product Marketing | August 18 and 20, 1PM – 3PM
- Capital Strategy | September 7 and 8, 9AM – 12PM
- Growth Strategy | September 20 and 24, 1PM – 3PM
- Finance Fundamentals | November 3, 4, 10, 9AM – 12PM
- Finding Product Market Fit | November 24 and 25, 9AM – 11AM
- Capital Strategy | December 8 and 9, 9AM – 12PM
- Business Model and Customer Discovery | January 18 and 19, 1PM – 3PM
- Metrics that Matter | January 24 and 25, 1PM – 3PM
- Product Marketing | February 24 and 25, 1PM – 3PM
- Finance Fundamentals | March 17, 18, 21, 9AM – 12PM
Business Model and Customer Discovery
A business model masterclass that will explore the struggles founders may be having with various elements of their business model and customer development. In some cases, these struggles may be impeding growth, and in other cases, they may simply need closer alignment with the market so that founders can become more efficient in growing their business. As required, we will investigate elements of your current business model, and the various stages of customer development, including your value proposition.
Capital Strategy
Founders will understand the various types of capital your business may require and identify sources of obtaining this capital. We examine the impact of bringing more owners into the business, key elements of creating more enterprise value and will explore the process and key terms of venture capital financing, convertible debt, and SAFE investments. By the end of the module, you will have a broad understanding of the various stages of the capital lifecycle and assess what type of funding you will look for. You will have the opportunity to test scenarios that may impact your ownership dilution, identify the key milestones for your business, and walk through a sample VC term sheet with the goal of understanding the key aspects that may be important to your business.
Customer Segmentation
Founders will learn how to use the Tornado segmentation process to refine and build beachhead market segments, and how to properly calculate their Total Addressable Market. This module uses Peer-to-Peer methodologies based on Aulet’s work at MIT’s Sloan School of Management.
Dream Team
The starting point of any Dream Team is for founders and partners to understand personal goals and wants, for themselves and for their company. If you are a sole proprietor, then self-reflection will be key. If you are a partnership, then along with self-reflection, understanding your partner’s motivations against entrepreneurial statistically backed questions is important to your success. This module will provide a future basis, and alignment to help you build your Dream Team.
Finding Product-Market Fit
This small-group advisory module is made up of two, 2-hour sessions, designed to help early-stage ventures manage your product for validation and Product-Market Fit and define product strategy beyond the MVP. The tools and frameworks used in the workshop will help startups understand how to prioritize development work and achieve a high degree of Product-Market Fit as quickly as possible.
Finance Fundamentals
Do you understand the financial metrics of your business? Do you want to be ready for the first follow-up on a funding pursuit and be ready with your financial model? Do you want to be able to speak knowledgeably to your accountant, bank, or investors about your company finances? Most importantly do you want to have a plan to ensure that you have the necessary cash available when your business needs it? This module is designed to help entrepreneurs understand basic financial concepts and build a forecasting model to use in running their businesses.
Growth Strategy
Making the decision to grow your business in new geographies, new verticals or new categories will be the focus of this Everest module. As you gain traction, you may find your company faced with more growth opportunities than your resources can absorb. Knowing which ones to make strategic priorities and which ones to say no to can often be the most difficult decision. A strategic prioritization tool will be introduced to help entrepreneurs evaluate specific growth and business model development decisions. Entrepreneurs will walk away with a working knowledge of this strategic tool so it can be deployed amongst their team.
Metrics that Matter
Define KPIs that will help you unlock insights to generate greater traction. Founders will learn to conduct assessments, prepare metrics related to their customers, and use this data to improve customer conversion. This module uses Peer-to-Peer methodologies based on Aulet’s work at MIT’s Sloan School of Management.
Product Manufacturing
This 4-part course takes entrepreneurs through the development steps in preparing a Manufacturing Strategy for their business. Entrepreneurs will learn the basic decisions and elements required for their own lean start manufacturing process, have a Manufacturing Strategy template for their new product, potential manufacturing vendor options for production, and a series of information checkpoints for various implementation steps.
Product Marketing
Focus on go-to-market strategies, including how to acquire, retain and grow your user base. Founders will learn how to set up a “Get-Keep-Grow funnel”, and 2BTesting/InTesting and Pass/Fail Funnel. This module uses Peer-to-Peer methodologies based on Aulet’s work at MIT’s Sloan School of Management.