CO.STARTERS Core Business Training: Special STEM and R&D Focus

To register for the cohort, click here.

Thanks to our sponsor, Beckley Area Foundation, the price has been drastically reduced to $52. Regular price is $500!

Over the course of ten sessions, you will identify your assumptions about why and how your businesses will work and then talk to customers in order to validate your ideas. This approach enables you to rapidly uncover flaws in your concept and find viable models more quickly. You’ll leave the program with a deeper understanding of how to create a sustainable business, articulate your model, and repeat the process with your next great idea.

This is a 10 course entrepreneurship development course that will have special content geared towards people in the STEM and R&D fields who are at the beginning stages of launching a business. We will go over how to get funding, federal contracts, and certifications that will propel you forward. Including but not limited to: HubZone, Exporting, SBIR/STTR, and Patent 101. This course is very interactive and your attendance to each session will be required for your success.

• October 3rd – Kickoff Session 1: Knowing Yourself – Introduction, Assumptions, Working Styles, Team Building, Obstacles (This session will be in person at the WV Hive offices, located at 205 S. Kanawha Street, Beckley WV) If participant is unable to attend in person, accommodations for virtual attendance can be made.

• October 10th – No class this week

• October 17th – Session 2: Knowing Your Customer – Customer, Problem, Alternatives, Idea Testing

• October 24th – Session 3: Finding the Right Solution – Solution, Benefit, Advantage, Starting Small, Brand Identity

• October 31st – Session 4: Getting the Relationship Right – Marketing & Message; Getting, Keeping & Growing Customers

• November 7th – Session 5: Building Blocks – Distribution, Revenue, Typical Offering, Price

• November 14th – Session 6: Structures & Systems – Legal & Accounting Considerations

• November 21st – No class this week

• November 28th – Session 7: Discovering the Bottom Line – Startup & Ongoing Needs, Fixed & Variable Costs, Break-Even Point

• December 5th – Session 8: Financial Modeling – Break-Even Point, Sales Projections, Cash Flow, Raising Capital

• December 12th – Session 9: Planning for Growth – Growth Plans, Goal Setting, Celebration Prep

• December 19th – Session 10: Celebration – You have come a long way! It is time to be recognized and to celebrate with your peers. Your group gets to decide how this happens.