Free Startup Consulting?

So you’ve got a problem, there’s a process and you just can’t seem to understand how to get around that process while keeping that something vital to your business model. You talk to your partners, they’re stumped as well, friends and family can’t help, and colleagues just don’t have the time to devote to the problem.

What do you do? Get a consultant. Sounds great except for the fact that these guys can charge a couple of hundred an hour and as a startup the last thing you have is a a few spare grand laying around that you can throw at someone who may not be able to provide you with an adequate solution. But there is good news.

And that good news is you’ve got access to consulting clubs and entrepreneurship clubs at universities and MBA programmes. Most majour cities will have at least one university that has a good enough MBA programme, and those students who are in those clubs will be more than eager to tackle any real world entrepreneurship, or consulting issues you may have. Why? Simple, it’s real world experience, and they’re learning from the real – day to day – problems of your company. Not only that they’ll be able to slap that bit about helping you on their CV’s and it’s sure to look good.

But aside from just contacting a club and saying “hey, I’ve got this issue” – turn it into something more, propose presenting your company to these students, and then pose your problem, ask them how they would fix it. If you’re a non-business type entrepreneur where you’ve just recently learned about i.e. business plans & P&L’s, but know how to say… rectify colon cancer (no pun intended), then the business help from these lads and ladies may be exactly what you need and are looking for.

Why not hire a MBA intern?

There’s even a chance that the person you’re pitching to could spend a few good months over the summer with you getting you an your company ready to pitch to the right people. If the relationship between your company and the school and some of the students is a good one, consider hiring a MBA intern.

In terms of a consulting club, this is a bit of a different approach as these guys are going for the MBBB (McK, Booz, BCG, Bain) group, and you should pitch your problem as a possible project for them. They’ll get hands on experience, and you’ll get a report that otherwise would have cost you a nice chunk of change.

Remember, as entreprenerus, we have to be resourceful, and utilize those resources around us effectively, and efficiently. Business schools are a great place to find those resources, the students are motivated and yearn for hands on real world experience. Why not give them what they need?

If interested in working with MBA’s – or if a MBA and interested in working with Startups – contact us – info @ f3fundit.com – we’ll put you in touch.

“Entrepreneurship is like porn, it’s hard to describe but you know it when you see it.” is what came out of the mouth of Kenneth Morse – co-founder of 3Com and former Managing Director of the MIT Entrepreneurship Center at the ESADE Forum in Barcelona yesterday, where he is currently teaching and I must say it was a welcome and fresh experience.

The sad truth is that Entrepreneurship in Europe as well as the methodology behind investing and the general mindset lags behind the US not just by a few years, but at what seems at time by decades which is one of the reasons that the team behind this site, 1/2 American, and 1/2 British decided to put it together.

But instead of blabbering on about the European scene, let’s have fun this Friday and convery some of the more exciting, and even funny things that Ken mentioned during his

1. First is first. A line of bull and a power point presentation is no longer enough

DAD > MBBB (Down And Dirty > McK, BCG, Bain & Booz)

2. What are the characteristics of an Entrepreneur?

Integrity, leadership, impatience, quick clock speed, modest ego, willingness to be different, pragmatism, no petty jealousies, drive to solve problems.

3. Five Additional Quotes from Ken Morse

“Don’t Let a good recession go to waste.”
“Sales is the difference between an average company and a great one”
“It’s character building to have one foot in bankruptcy and the other on a banana peel.”
“The ph of an entrepreneur is 1-2 standard deviations from the norm.”
“Engineers need to understand that sales people are not a lower life forms.”

And that’s that for today.

Do you need a MBA? If you’re a startup entrepreneur the most important thing is knowing the ins and outs of your industry. If you’re starting something new in publishing, know publishing, if you’re starting something new in biotechnology, know biotechnology, if you’re starting a new service that offers someone something, know that something and those someone-ones. Get it?

But what if you just happen to have a damn spiffy idea but don’t know the industry? You could of course try and get a job, lear everything you can, and then take the plunge – or you could simply just go get a good business education.

Why? Well the skills you pick up at a MBA are invaluable and will give you the necessary skill set to effectively tackle any problem, but only that, a MBA changes the way you approach problem solving and business in general. In all it’s a wonderful tool for anyone to have. This isn’t saying that a MBA is the end all answer to all business problems, but it sure is the next best thing.

However, even if you are a specialist in your industry, it doesn’t mean you have good business acumen. Let’s take an example of a group of engineers that developed an iris scan for a mobile phone platform. The initially decided to market the product through an app store directly to the population.

But the question begs, what on earth will the average Joe need an iris scan on his mobile for. In all likelihood nothing, but who may – the military, enterprises, biotech, etc…

Thing is, this group of engineers were excellent at what they did, but when it came to business, they didn’t know a business model from a hole in the wall.

So did these guys need a MBA? As individuals maybe not, you could clearly see that they had a passion for technology more than business, but one thing is certain, a MBA in the team would have been able to align them, point them in the right direction, save them what we can only assume were hours trying to formulate a distribution strategy that was faulty from the onset.

So to answer the question we started off, do I need an MBA. No, you don’t, but it would be a pretty good idea to get one, and if you’re not passionate enough to get it yourself, get someone on the team with one. Remember, the team that founds any project should complement itself.

“Xavier Flores (ESADE MBA, ‘09) is one of the founders and the Managing Partner for Latin America and Europe for The XV Global Development Group, a Barcelona-based company that develops strategies and provides support, investment and fund-raising for the international growth of Spanish SMEs through our global network of trustworthy collaborations and strategic alliances”

For many, business school provide knowledge and experiences that go beyond books and lectures, for others who have no interest in business school this knowledge can be hard to attain, and often results in years of on the job learning. However, that’s not to say that when winding down after a long work session you can’t hone your skills in some of the more vital business material that can help you better manage your startup.

Although the recommendations here do not cover all possible subjects included in most MBA programs, they do complement many of the topics learned in Business Schools around the world. Here is a brief description of some film-supported teachings that every budding entrepreneur should learn.

Subject: Entrepreneurship

Startup.com: (2001; Directed by Chris Hegedus and Jehane Noujaim; Kaleil Isaza Tuzman, Tom Herman, Kenneth Austin, et al) Topics covered: Finance for entrepreneurs, capital raising, growth management, entrepreneurship skills, team building, management skills…

Catch Me If You Can
(2002; Directed by Steven Spielberg; Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks) Topics covered: Entrepreneurship skills, creativity and innovation, perseverance, business vision, personal sales techniques, entrepreneurial funding sources…

Lord Of War
(2005; Directed by Andrew Niccol; Nicolas Cage, Bridget Moynahan, Jared Leto, et al) Topics covered: Entrepreneurship skills, emerging markets, creative problem solving, crisis management, negotiation techniques, building customer loyalty, competitive strategies, geopolitics…

Subject: Finance

Wall Street
(1987; Directed by Oliver Stone; Charlie Sheen, Michael Douglas, et al). Topics covered: Corporate finance, portfolio management, capital markets, investment law principles, mergers and acquisitions, company valuations, business ethics…

Rogue Trader
(1999; Directed by James Dearden; Ewan McGregor, Anna Friel, Yves Beneyton) Topics covered: Derivatives, corporate valuation, financial reporting, capital markets, emerging markets, business ethics…

Subject: Human Resources Management

The Office – v.UK
(2001; Directed by Rick Gervais and Stephen Merchant; Rick Gervais, Martin Freeman, Mackenzie Crook, et al). Topics covered: Personnel management, recruitment, crisis management, empowerment and delegation, employee appraisals, corporate culture, multi-team integration, sexual harassment, non-discrimination policies, conflict resolution, negotiations skills…

Twelve Angry Men
(1957; Directed by Sidney Lumet; Henry Fonda, Edward Binns, Lee J. Cobb, et al) Topics covered: Negotiations techniques, persuasion methods, conflict resolution, consensus building…

Office Space
(1999; Directed by Mike Judge; Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, David Herman, Gary Cole, et al) Topics covered: Corporate culture, mentoring, career development, leadership, work-life balance, personnel retention, team-building techniques, management of information technology…

Subject: Corporate Strategy

The Godfather Trilogy
(1972, 1974 & 1990; Directed by Francis Ford Coppola; Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Rober deNiro, et al). Topics covered: Competitive strategies, key personnel retention, corporate take-overs (friendly and hostile), alliances, mergers and acquisitions, corporate succession, long-term corporate diversification…

The Usual Suspects
(1995; Directed by Bryan Singer; Stephen Baldwin, Benicio Del Toro, Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, et al) Topics covered: Leadership consolidation, power and influence, long-term business strategy, collaboration, risk-and-reward compensation, entrepreneurial skills, innovation and creativity, consolidation of branding, marketing, operations and logistic planning and execution…

Subject: Accounting and Financial Reporting

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
(2005; Directed by Alex Elkind; Peter Coyote as Narrator) Topics covered: Accounting reporting (basic, advanced and innovative), consolidation of reports, off-shore diversification, off-balance sheet accounting, agency problem, business ethics…

Subject: Marketing and Sales

How To Get Ahead In Advertising
(1989; Directed by Bruce Robinson; Richard Wilson, Rachel Ward, et al) Topics covered: Marketing strategy, advertising know-how, market segmentation, branding…

The Devil Wears Prada
(2006; Directed by David Frankel; Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, et al) Topics covered: Branding, sales techniques, importance of print media, career development…

Thank You For Smoking
(2005; Directed by Jason Reitman; Aaron Eckhart, J.K. Simmons, Robert Duvall, et al) Topics covered: Public relations, marketing and advertising campaigns, crisis management, corporate communications, effective negotiations skills…

Glengarry Glen Ross
(1992; Directed by James Foley; Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, Kevin Spacey, et al) Topics covered: Sales techniques, customer relationship management, negotiations and deal closings…

Subject: Law

The Merchant of Venice
(2004; Directed by Michael Radford; Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, et al) Topics covered: Contract negotiations, mercantile law, risk assessment, business law principles…

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
(1964; Directed by Stanley Kibrick; Peter Sellers, Geroge C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, et al) Topics covered: International relations, geopolitics, influence and leadership…

Subject: Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Ethics

Erin Brockovich
(2000; Directed by Steven Soderbergh; Julia Roberts, David Brisbin, et al) Topics covered: Social responsibility, sustainable business models…

Rainmaker
(1997; Directed by Francis Ford Coppola; Matt Damon, Danny DeVito, et al) Topics covered: Social responsibility, business ethics, business law…

Think there’s something vital missing? Let us know.