FastTrac® TechVenture™ Program Outline

FastTrac® TechVenture™ is an entrepreneurship program that typical spans 10 sessions, on 3.5 hour session per week.  Below is a detailed list of the topics covered in each of the 10 modules:

 
1: Exploring Entrepreneurship
  •  
  • What Is Entrepreneurship?
  • Characteristics of Entrepreneurs
  • Technology and Life Sciences Entrepreneurs
  • The Entrepreneur’s Personal Vision
    • Lifestyle Criteria
    • Professional Criteria
    • Financial Criteria
  • Business Concept Statement
    • The Business Concept
    • Components of a Business Concept Statement
    • Positive Attributes of Technology and Life Sciences Business Concepts
    • Fatal Flaws of Technology and Life Sciences Business Concepts
  • The Elevator Pitch

 

2: Defining the Target Market

  • Market Definition
    • Analyzing Your Market Environment
    • Identifying Markets
    • Segmenting Markets
    • Selecting Target Markets
    • Future Markets
  • Your Industry Profile
    • Current Size and Growth Potential
    • Industry Trends
    • Distribution Channels
  • Your Customer’s Profile
    • Customer Buying Behavior
    • Customer Buying Patterns
    • Marketing Methods
  • Your Competitors’ Profile
    • Competitor Profile
    • Researching the Competition
    • SWOT Analysis
    • Building a Competitive Advantage
  • Market Definition for the Life Sciences
  • Researching Your Target Market
    • Secondary Research Material

 

3: Conducting Market Research and Analysis

  • Purposes of Market Research
  • Market Research Methods Primary Research Creating Customer Surveys Focus Groups
  • How to Leverage Market Research Product Development Estimating Market Share
  • Value Proposition

 

4: Testing Your Business Concept

  • The Model Business
    • Testing the Concept Using the Model Business
    • Product or Service Feasibility Market Feasibility
    • Financial Feasibility
    • Technology Feasibility
  • Deciding the Next Step
  • Executive Summary

 

5: Entering and Capturing the Market

  • Market Penetration
    • The Market Penetration and Sales Plan
    • The Product Adoption Curve
    • Creating an Image
  • Sales Channels
    • Distributors
    • Internal or External Sales Team
  • Your Sales Process
    • The Sales/Service Process
  • Marketing Methods
  • Traditional Print and Media Advertising
      Trade Shows, Direct Mail, Catalogs, Promoting Through Technology, Marketing Alliance, Public Relations, Customer Service
  • Pricing
      The Right Price, Break-Even Analysis, Pricing Products, Pricing Services, Procedure for Pricing

 

6: Planning for Financial Success

  • The Financial Templates
  • Financial Projections .
  • Researching and Collecting Financial Information
  • Entering Data in the Financial Templates
  • Financial Statements
  • The Accounting System
  • The Accounting Equation
  • The Big Three Financial Statements
  • Financial Ratios
  • Profitability Ratios
  • Liquidity Ratios
  • Risk Ratios
  • Efficiency Ratios
  • Ratio Analysis

 

7: Building and Compensating Your Organizational Team

  • The Management Team Organizational Structure and Organizational Charts
  • Board of Directors and Advisory Boards
  • Management Transition Roles
  • Management Team Compensation
  • Recruitment and Selection of Employees
  • Independent Contractors
  • A Positive Work Environment
  • Outsourcing

 

8: Protecting the Business and Your Intellectual Property

  • Introduction to Business Entities
  • Characteristics of Various Legal Entities
  • Intellectual Property
    • Confidential Information
    • Know-How
    • Trade Secrets
    • Patents
    • Trademarks and Service Marks
    • Copyrights
    • Proprietary Materials
    • LicensingTechnology
    • Materials Transfer
    • Barriers to Entry
    • Legal Counsel
    • University Partnerships
  • Protecting Your Intellectual Property from Within
  • Governmental Regulations

 

9: Identifying Funding and Working with Investors

  • Non-Equity Funding Sources
    • Bootstrapping
    • Governmental Grants
    • Debt Financing
  • Equity Capital
    • Equity Capital Sources for Entrepreneurs
    • Devising a Capital Strategy for Growth
    • Understanding Friends and Family Investors
    • Understanding Angel Investors
    • Understanding Venture Capitalists
    • The Process of Raising Money from Equity Investors
  • Presenting Your Business Plan
    • Presenting to Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists
    • Presenting at Venture Forums
    • Presenting through Consultants

 

10: Managing Cash and Operating Your Business

  • Managing Cash and Burn Rate
    • Cash Management
    • Burn Rate
  • Operations Controls
    • Receiving Orders
    • Billing and Collecting
    • Paying Vendors and Suppliers
    • Inventory Control
    • Handling Warranties and Returns
    • Service Level Agreements
    • Security Systems
    • Contingency Plan
  • Program Conclusion

 

Appendix 1: Finalizing the Business Plan

  • The Business Plan’s Final Details
  • Assembling the Business Plan
  • Business Plan Evaluation
  • Business Plan Checklist

 

Appendix 2: Next Steps

  • Thriving in Your Entrepreneurial Role
  • Getting Support
  • Giving Back

 

Appendix 3: Fastlrac® TechVentureTM Toolkit

  • Templates and Glossary
  • Assessments
  • Action Files
  • Guidelines and Sample Documents