The Rules of the Game (on Startups and Kitchen Tables)

Being the CEOof a startup is a hard and complex job. You’re constant running the numbers,spending at least 75% of your personal time on your pet project.

Only 1% ofstartups attract funding. Figures that venture capitalists toss around do notlook much different – starting up a company is a tough racket. Of 10 startupsfunded, only three or four fail completely. Another three or four return theoriginal investment, and one or two produce substantial returns. Obviously,knowing how to pitch (angel) investors and venture capital guys is key.According to the AngelList founders Naval Ravikant and Nabak Bivi, pitchingworks best, if startups have at least one of the following: Traction, showinggrowth in users or customers, social proof through a known committed investorsor advisors, a beautiful product and – last but not least – a killer team, withdeep domain experience, technical skills, startup experience or best of all,previous exits.

This lecture isall about pitching your project to investors and business partners. Variousstructural approaches to pitch decks, its key success factors as well as thedos and don’ts of pitching to top investors will be discussed.

To win over hard-to-impressinvestors, you will finally realize that traction and execution is the maindifference maker. It’s all about communicating momentum through metrics andexamples. There is also no one-solution-fits-all for investor pitches. Accordingto Dave McClure, entrepreneurs should think problems first, then solutions.That helps to establish emotional context with the person listening. As ageneral rule of thumb, the more time you spend speaking, the less time theyspend listening. This means organizing your information by priority.

Innovation, like creativity, requires discipline andis based on a discrete set of skills; consequently, it can be learned. It isnot a personality or cultural trait. You might also realize that setting up astartup is a career and lifestyle option. Entrepreneurship does not hurt at all.

It's a verydynamic, practical, and hands-on type of course where you are given theopportunity to both practice what they've learned throughout the lecture - and evenpractice what you haven't yet learned. A great attitude, creativity, and asense of thinking different are required for personal success in this skillseminar.

Best (industry) practicesas well as the lecturer’s own pitch decks will be shared in order to fullyunderstand the importance of pitching the right message to the right investor.

This course utilizesa combination of interactive lectures, in-class discussions as well as casestudies. Working in small groups will be stressed throughout the course, so you will be able to demonstrate effective problemsolving and creative-thinking skills in real start-up contexts.

There are no prerequisite requirements for thislecture. You can go through some optional readings before class if interested.

OnlyCEMS MIM students are eligible to enrol to this seminar. Minimum 10, maximum20 students. First come, first serve. There will be also a wait list (ifneeded). Full participationrequired for course creditation.

Only CEMS MIM students are eligible to enrol to this seminar. Minimum 10, maximum 20 students. First come, first serve. There will be also a wait list (if needed). Full participation required for course creditation.

All relevant course material will be distributed inclass.