Element #1 - The 5 stages of company growth:
All companies starting up must pass through the following four predictable, measurable, sequential growth stages.
Stage 1: Concept (0-? Months) - The Company's starting point. Can be initiated for a market need, technology need or product need, but it requires the drive of a core group.
Stage 2: Seed - (3-6-12 months) - The purpose of this stage is 3 fold. Usually lasts 6 months.
*Entrepreneurs must ensure that any critical technology is under control to move to stage 3.
*They must create a cursory product definition so that the market can be assessed
*They must product a realistic business plan, which ties cost/revenues together.
Stage 3: Product Development - (6-23-37 months) - Hire staff, specify and plan the product, and design and produce the actual working product. Might take an average of just under 2 years for this stage. This stage consists of the following 4 sub-stages:
*Hiring and planning - team is hired to generate a detailed plan and product spec.
*Designing and building - the product is designed and built
*Alpha testing - the product is tested in-house
*Beta testing - tested by users
Stage 4: Market Development - Entry into this stage is marked by the first customer shipment, and exit is usually marked by company acquisition or IPo. Once in this stage, the company must spend more money to product, market, and sell the product.
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