EQ Journal

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Things Every Tech Startup Needs to Know about Self-Capitalization

By Bruce M Firestone, B Eng (Civil), M Eng-Sci, PhD Abstract In the five year period leading up to 2010, approximately 91.6% of all tech startups in the US were self-funded or bootstrapped, 8.1% were Angel-backed and just 0.3% were VC-funded. How to self-fund (self-capitalize or bootstrap) new tech enterprises is the subject of this [...]

Renaissance Repair

Ottawa’s Next $100 Million Tech Startup? (Portions of this article originally appeared in Ottawa Business Journal, April 16, 2012: http://www.obj.ca/Opinion/Bruce-Firestone-5444.) When you first meet Len Anderson in his company’s bustling headquarters—a capacious Kanata office building on Leggett Drive which looks more like a warehouse once you are inside—you are struck by his sense of humour [...]

IOE, Institute of Entrepreneurs

IOE5100, Advanced Business Models Exploriem.org’s Institute of Entrepreneurs presents IOE5100, Advanced Business Models for Entrepreneurs, Intrapreneurs and Artpreneurs, an MBA level course (For available dates and times as well as more information, please contact: Ms. Theresia Scholtes, tscholtes @ exploriem.org or @tclsholtes) Come study with Prof Bruce, a leader in designing and building business models [...]

Institute of Entrepreneurs

Introduction Exploriem.org is launching the Institute of Entrepreneurs (IOE) this year. Why? To bring advanced research, education and mentoring to student entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs from self-capitalized and forward-looking enterprises across Canada and around the world. IOE provides access to research, education and a network of high achievers that you just can’t get anywhere else. The [...]

25 Steps to Entrepreneurial Success

I am often asked: “What are the keys to success?” I have developed some ideas on this over the years and, like any list in this area, mine is incomplete. Worse than this, many of these ideas for success are contradictory. Things that I learned from my Dad, Professor O. J. Firestone, like “Never take [...]

Case Study: Digicel’s Decision to Enter Haiti Cell Phone Market

(Undergrad Mid Term Exam) I reproduce below a case study we did on Digicel’s decision to enter the cell phone market in Haiti. It was a controversial decision by Digicel CEO Denis O’Brien to go into Haiti, by far the poorest country in the western hemisphere. Digicel already had 11 million customers in 32 other [...]

Bootstrapping Myself to a Vancouver Condo

(Guest article by Jennifer Schweers, Founder, urbanlensphotography.ca) I was in my last year of University, in my final semester, when by chance I signed up for a course on Entrepreneurship given by Prof Bruce. While I had some interest in it, I was mostly looking for a JOB with an important title when I finished [...]

The Parallels between Product Manager and Entrepreneur

Guest Post by Alan McNaughton, Associate Director – Internet Product Development – Bell Internet Prof Bruce: I’ve had the opportunity to review your course outline*, support material and entrepreneurial tools that you make available to your students. My initial reaction is that students who register for 6298 will have every opportunity to succeed academically especially [...]

Build Leverage into your Business Models

When you build leverage into your business model, you have deployed a means to multiply the force exerted by your own efforts, time and brains: you will also have a greater opportunity to succeed. Leverage in your business model comes primarily from ten sources: i. great HR, ii. using OPM, iii. forced savings, iv. innovation, [...]

Cash Conversion Cycle, CCC

Plus How the CCC Affects Your Internal Rate of Return, The Power of Leverage to Work for You and Against You, and Effectively Manage your Enterprise by Measuring your Cash Position Entrepreneurs intuitively understand the importance of the old saw: “Collect early, pay late.” Most SMEEs are bootstrapped and most bootstrapped SMEEs are chronically short [...]

GTBMR

Get.The.Business.Model.Right: so the harder you work, the more money you make! “You can think your way to wealth a lot faster than you can work your way there,” Prof Bruce. Why do People become Entrepreneurs? a. Can’t get other work, b. Hate their boss, c. To work fewer hours, d. To create more interesting work [...]

Bootstrap Capital—The Last Word

Introduction How can you start a great business with no money down? How do you get ‘table stakes’ so you can have a place in the game? The rule today is, if you have cashflow, you will get financed, not the other way round. There really are no ‘no money down startups’; there are only [...]