My own Lean Startup story explains why I created Geneva Lean Startup Group back in June 2012, and why – almost 3 years later – we have grown to be a lively community of over 600 members.
But first the essentials: Geneva Lean Startup is a monthly networking and training event where you’ll find like minded souls and learn about Lean Startup methodology, Value Proposition Design (VPD), Business Model Canvas and Design Thinking.
I recommend 
Sign-up to one of our next training events at Geneva Lean Startup Group
Why Geneva Lean Startup Group is successful.
Participants who sign up for our training are people with ideas (at various degrees of advancement) and a desire to meet local and like-minded souls. They take away practical learning nuggets.
Our workshops last 90 minutes and include plenty of hands-on exercises.
We cover the whole gammut of Lean Startup methodology:
- Run smart customer interviews to find out what our customers really want.
- Find market traction with Value Proposition Design.
- Validate ideas with meaningful hypothesis.
- Create a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) before making our lives (and money purse) a misery… because we want to be perfect too early!
- Move quickly through the Lean Startup Build-Measure-Learn cycles. Setting up experiments and using lean testing tools such as Landing pages, A/B testing, Crowdfunding, AdWords and more.
Each of our workshops are designed with 3 concrete take aways in mind.
We’re always touched to observe how many of our participants proudly store them away in their satchels when they leave.
Join the Geneva Lean Startup group if at least one of these statements applies.
- You are bored in your job but you have a (secret) dream. One day, you would like to run your own business. You have some ideas but don’t quite know how to make a next step.
- You are in career transition. You hesitate to continue as an employee. This is THE good moment to make a bold move and start your own business!
- You’ve already created your startup. You are familiar with the Lean Startup method and would like to get better at applying its principles to your growing company.
- You’re a decision maker in a larger company. People tell you that Lean Startup also works in bigger organisations. You’re curious and would like to find out more, but without taking unnecessary risks.
Recommended! Sign-up to one of our next training events at Geneva Lean Startup Group
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My Story
Who hasn’t failed at least once?
Some years back I needed to transition my long lasting and successful IT Training business to new pastures.
Problem was, you see, that my customer segment – i.e. professionals who held jobs during 1990’s and early 2000’s – started to vanish into retirement.
This was the older generation who enthusiastically bought our highly profitable value proposition: expensive and prestigious 3-day training packages for Word, Excel, PowerPoint (and more).
But the new generation of computer users to which you, dear reader, most likely belong, would not be seen dead in a 3 day Word course!
I realised that I had a value proposition that was no longer relevant and a customer segment that was running dry.
What happened at my first attempt.
I “fell in love” with a new idea.
Lean Startup says: Don’t fall in love with your ideas!
I went “down into the basement”, pouring much of my time and money into conceiving a new and perfect product: only to find out once ready, and to my dismay, that I did not have a product-market fit.
In other words, nobody wanted to buy my wonderful new product!
Lean Startup says: before you make your (perfect) product – you must have a proven product-market fit!
The Lean Startup toolkit saved my bacon!
Around 2008, I discovered Eric Ries’ Lean Startup book and its relevant toolkit which includes Alex Osterwalder’s Business Model Canvas and more recently Value Proposition Design.
If I later succeeded the transition of my company, it was in great part because I learnt how to apply (to my advantage) the tools proposed by Lean Startup methodology.
And what’s more, Value Proposition Design has since become an integral part of my Content (Inbound) Marketing services!
Convinced? Be curious and join us at one of our next training events at Geneva Lean Startup Group.
Looking forward 