13 0827 session 1

Editor's Notes

• #8: Progressive de-risking of company from concept to a venture that will achieve investment and/or sustainable revenueTraining materials, activities & workshops are integrated with these 10 steps Product-Market Fit helps each company ensure that they have identified the correct market for their product(s)/service(s) and are ready to make appropriate adjustments. 2) Technology Validation ensures that their product(s)/service(s) will credibly meet the requirements of investors and customers. 3) Business Model covers all key aspects of who and how and where money will be made, and how the product will be delivered. 4) Markets and Getting to Them covers the key, crucial steps needed to get a new product into the market (an enhanced version of ‘Go To Market Strategy’). 5) Finances & Funding focuses on producing credible financial projections. 6) Legal provides an introduction to intellectual property protection and the corporate structure required to minimize risk and provide the legal underpinnings for success (important steps often overlooked by entrepreneurs). 7) Execution and Team to Execute introduces the importance of building a strong, relevant team with the specific skills needed to hit the major milestones needed as the startup grows. 8) Sustainability introduces the importance of business practices that will improve the company’s profitability while reducing its environmental impact. 9) Presentation works on the content and skills for excellent investor/customer presentations. 10) Assessment & Review guides each entrepreneur through the importance of careful review, and provides the platform for review and refinement of the programs themselves.Physical and virtual business clinics are one-on-one sessions for each participating startup with experts from sectors such as law, marketing, design, manufacturing and finance.
• #13: Assessment:Compiling an inventory of relevant energy and material inputs and environmental releases • Evaluating the potential environmental impacts associated with identified inputs and releases • Interpreting the results to help decision-makers make a more informed decision.1. Goal Definition and Scoping - Define and describe the product, process or activity. Establish the context in which the assessment is to be made and identify the boundaries and environmental effects to be reviewed for the assessment. 2. Inventory Analysis - Identify and quantify energy, water and materials usage and environmental releases (e.g., air emissions, solid waste disposal, waste water discharges). 3. Impact Assessment - Assess the potential human and ecological effects of energy, water, and material usage and the environmental releases identified in the inventory analysis. 4. Interpretation - Evaluate the results of the inventory analysis and impact assessment to select the preferred product, process or service with a clear understanding of the uncertainty and the assumptions used to generate the results
• #14: Develop a data collection system and data management plan – identify sources of data and quantify as much as possible.
• #15: The life cycle of a product begins with the removal of raw materials and energy sources from the earth. For instance, the harvesting of trees or the mining of nonrenewable materials would be considered raw materials acquisition. Transportation of these materials from the point of acquisition to the point of processing is also included in this stage.
• #16: Manufacturing During the manufacturing stage, raw materials are transformed into a product or package. The product or package is then delivered to the consumer. The manufacturing stage consists of three steps: materials manufacture, product fabrication, and filling/packaging/distribution.Materials Manufacture - The materials manufacture step involves the activities that convert raw materials into a form that can be used to fabricate a finished product.Product Fabrication - The product fabrication step takes the manufactured material and processes it into a product that is ready to be filled or packaged. Filling/Packaging/Distribution - This step finalizes the products and prepares them for shipment. It includes all of the manufacturing and transportation activities that are necessary to fill, package, and distribute a finished product. Products are transported either to retail outlets or directly to theconsumer. This stage accounts for the environmental effects caused by the mode of transportation, such as trucking and shipping.
• #17: Use/Reuse/Maintenance This stage involves the consumer’s actual use, reuse, and maintenance of the product. Once the product is distributed to the consumer, all activities associated with the useful life of the product are included in this stage. This includes energy demands and environmental wastes from both product storage and consumption. The product or material may need to be reconditioned, repaired or serviced so that it will maintain its performance. When the consumer no longer needs the product, the product will be recycled or disposed.
• #18: Recycle/Waste Management The recycle/waste management stage includes the energy requirements and environmental wastes associated with disposition of the product or material.