Block II - Business Project
A major learning component of this CAS centers on the application of knowledge and skills within a real-life business projects.
A core philosophy of this block is the individual and custom-tailored trajectory coaching, fitting to the needs of the type of business project the CAS student chooses.
- ETH Pioneer Fellows will be coached and mentored through experienced coaches in their fellowship program (coordinted by Dr. Tomas Brenner) who will also facilitate outreach and further contacts in the local ecosystem.
- Other CAS participants will be coached by experienced faculty mentors of the CAS pogram who will also facilitate outreach and connection with mentors in the local ecosystem and exntrepreneurs in residence where appropriate.
Generally, we wil guide participants in the achievement of individually defined goals, i.e. tailored to your specific project.
To protect confidentiality and proprietary information, non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) will be put in place with the coaches and the CAS cohort.
Modules in this Block
- Business Development in Technology Ventures HS (Fall term), 2 ECTS
- Business Development in Technology Ventures FS (Spring term), 2 ECTS
During their second semester, participants will defend/pitch their project. the specific form of this defense will be defined based on type of project.
Module Leaders: Prof. Bart Clarysse, Dr. Tomas Brenner, Dr. Jana Thiel
Method of Instruction: Online materials, coaching meetings (online or face-to-face)
Assessment: Progress reports & coaching/milestone meetings
Block Credits: 4 ECTS
Contents:
In this block, participants will work on the practical application of knowledge in a specific real-life venture or innovation project. The goal is to further develop entrepreneurial business skills and competencies.
Experienced coaches and mentors are available to guide participants on how to strategize and implement compelling business cases, to feedback on specific challenges and participants' activities with the goal to strenghten the ability of the participant to mobilize needed resources for their undertakings.
Together with the coaches, participants will determine specific goals and milestones of the innovative business project (either a venture development or equivalent innovative business development project within the company). Coaches and participant define and regularly review progress against these goals. The coach will also recommend, if need be, additional components or modules for the participant to build skill and knowledge.
This module will enable participants:
- To reflect upon and integrate important and relevant elements from the CAS into the venture project
- To identify key unknowns and important progress measures for their respective business case and implement effective means and tools to further develop their business case
- To understand the view of potential customers and implement their feedback to improve the business case
- To effectively communicate and enrol other important venture constituents (mentors, advisors, employees, investors, etc.) in the venture
- To obtain follow-on resource for venture formation and/or growth
- To practice effective business communication and venture pitching skills
- To receive and handle challenging feedback from important venture constituents
Prototypical Business Project Trajectories
We usually distinguish different kinds of business project trajectories, each coming with its unique challenges and progress criteria that will be considered in bespoke coaching processes. Obviously, different types of ideas and contexts will require participants to focus on different actibities to advance their projects. Your coach will help you defining and channeling key focus and acitvities.
This type of project typically comes from life or natural sciences, with the likely avenue of applying these scientific discoveries to known markets through a clearly identifiable commercial model.
Key Activities:
- Managing the advancement in science & proof of concept
- Building defendable IP portfolios
- Demonstrating market interest in scientific approach
- Team building
- Funding through non-dilutive science grants or dilutive equity funding
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):
- Science value
- IP strength
- Strategic acquisition value
Typical projects in this trajectory start with a novel scientific invention, typically protected by formal IP, and a set of potential applications, each of which has some unknown economic potential.
Key Activities:
- Application experimentation in development partnerships with potential customers
- Learn about technical efficiency frontiers and technology-application-fit
- Explore potential business model options and identify a validated application
- Funding, typically through non-dilutive (competition) grants or dilutive equity funding
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):
- Application portfolio value (based on validated application interest & performance)
- Proven development capability and Technology Readiness Level advancement
Typical projects in this category start with a more or less well-defined customer problem or market need. They search for suitable state-of-the-art technologies, often in the digital IT space, to solve the problem. The core challenge for these projects is to identify whether the application of choice enables a viable operational model and economic organization.
Key Activities:
This project trajectory typically benefits from the Lean Startup method of new venture development:
- Lean canvas development
- Customer discovery and development
- User prototyping and MVP design experiments
- Business model experiments
- Funding typically comes either from customer revenues or dilutive growth capital
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):
- User adoption, revenues
- Willingness to pay
- Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
- Scaling and production ramp-up
Typical projects in this category aim to leverage innovative (but somewhat proven) technologies to create new strategic value for the company (Alstom, GE, Bühler, Geberit …) through new products or services that build on or extent the core business model of the focal company. CAS ELTV participants are motivated to create value in their corporate settings, take on more leadership responsibility and want to develop their entrepreneurial skills.
While it might be easiest to join the CAS ELTV with a clear project idea, this coaching trajectory will facilitate an extended ideation phase during the first semester.
Key Activities:
- Understanding key aspects (capabilities & strategy) of the chosen company
- Deep dive into innovation opportunities in the respective industry
- Strategic (technology) options analysis and solution concept development
- Internal stakeholder management and resource acquisition
- Idea validation if applicable, proof of concept or prototyping for application idea
Key Performance Indicators:
- Validated idea
- Strategic options alternatives
- Internal & external stakeholder interest
- Implementation plan
- Budget line secured