Engineering A High Tech Business

This book provides actual entrepreneurial stories giving insight into the pitfalls and successes one might find in starting or even continuing with a small high-tech business. Insights into innovative, speculative, and (largely) successful new ventures, as experienced by those who went through the process, are complemented by comments and observations from others in the field including researchers, economists, investors, regional development agencies, technology transfer organizations, and universities.The book is recommended to entrepreneurs in all high technology disciplines and in particular for students and early career professionals. It can be also useful for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in entrepreneurship, which many institutions are currently introducing, and to those who are interested in how a high-tech business might develop.

Written by an experienced business lawyer in the technology, scientific and engineering community, this publication is for the engineer with an innovative high-tech idea or concept who needs those crucial business insights and strategies to move that idea forward. It offers key analysis on how to leave a current employer, gain access to technologies and potential talent, and considers other issues that can reduce problems down the road. It even includes a step-by-step guide for accessing and protecting intellectual property at the earliest stages. To assist in the fundraising process, this resource explores all the available options to capitalize a business – from self-funding, to bootstrapping, to angel investors, to venture capital to government grants, to bank loans, to joint ventures. It also looks at the best ways to form a company so as to take advantage of various tax and business strategies, discusses compensation of employees with stock options or restricted stock plans, explains how an emerging company can expand internationally, and covers some key exit strategies such as an IPO or a merger/acquisition. It covers most everything a new technology business will face including hiring, firing, contracts, leases, loans, and product warranties. As you read, you will find this book is full of the stuff that engineers love: statistics, data, tools, spreadsheets, and research. But it also full of the anecdotal evidence and practical advice needed to stay the course. Now is a tremendous time for entrepreneurship. Although there have been periodic slowdowns in the economy, if you believe in a future, high-tech is the future in which to believe. This book is part of the Taylor & Francis/CRC Press series "What Every Engineer Should Know About... . Like the other books in the series, it is designed to provide you with important knowledge that will help you along your career path. This one will also help you make that path your own.

Thinking of starting your own business in high-tech? Do yourself a huge favor by reading this book first. The authors, both veterans of many start-ups, address topics vital to your start-up success, such as: Finding start-up opportunities Leaving your current employer but keeping your ideas Protecting your intellectual property Managing the five critical elements of a successful start-up Securing start-up financing Dealing successfully with venture capitalists Writing a winning business plan Creating a management team Handling employment and compensation--who to hire and how to pay them Avoiding the most common mistakes entrepreneurs make Understanding company valuation and exit strategies James Swanson and Michael Baird lay out all the basic concepts clearly, step by step. They demystify the start-up process with frank advice, insiders' tips, and "been there" examples. On-point case studies show you what to do--and what to avoid. An expanded list of resources steers you to help when you need it. You'll learn what it takes for you to create and manage a start-up, and the personal characteristics required to be successful in your new venture. In good economies and bad, entrepreneurs will continue to lead the way to new markets, new ventures, and new technologies. With this comprehensive new guide, you have a great start to start-up success! _____________________________ Since 1975 more than 2 million people preparing for their engineering, surveying, architecture, LEED�, interior design, and landscape architecture exams have entrusted their exam prep to PPI. For more information, visit us at www.ppi2pass.com.

This two-volume set has been written primarily for engineers, technicians, and scientists who are contemplating the unknown but attractive world of technological entrepreneurship, a key driver of economic growth in developed countries and critical in stimulating growth in developing countries. The purpose is to prepare these professionals as members of teams focusing on commercializing new technology-based products. The material has also been used to introduce engineering students to the processes involved in technological entrepreneurship. Volume one provides a background of fundamentals and theory to prepare the reader for the venture launch. Topics include the entrepreneurial process, the venture team, developing and marketing high tech products, and launching the new venture. Volume two goes into detail in critical areas such as intellectual property protection, legal forms of organization, financial projections, and business plan preparation and delivery. The primary emphasis is focused on creating lean and agile organizations capable of recognizing opportunities, quickly developing introductory products for small test markets to better define the opportunities, and using the results of those test markets to arrive at a product with wide acceptance capable of driving growth.

Annotation It's been widely reported that over 90 percent of all startups, including high tech ventures, fail. In spite of this statistic, entrepreneurship remains a vibrant force in most economies, and engineering startups continue to play an important role in economic and quality of life growth. This new two-volume book is written for engineers who desire to start their own companies and are looking for guidance in the entrepreneurial process. The goal of the book is to turn the engineer into an entrepreneurial engineer, an individual who keeps one foot solidly planted in the engineering profession while guiding the process of moving a product or service idea to the marketplace. It explains that planning, developing and launching any new tech business requires all the skills of entrepreneurship, plus a thorough understanding of tech industry products, markets, and customer needs. The second volume focuses in in greater detail in recognizing new opportunities for product development, testing the hypothesis for a new product idea, and how to create an effective business plan for the new product or products. It also lays the ground work on how to conceptualize a new tech enterprise, from the initial value proposition to the product planning and preparation, including the business plan, funding, and launch, and initial business operation. It highlights typical pitfalls, and how to manage the usual risks associated with any new enterprise, but particularly a high tech enterprise. It also points the way to managing growth through internal expansion, as well as acquisitions and licensing.

A highly successful design engineer, who is also a marketeer, gives us the benefit of his years of experience in helping to market high-tech products profitably. A unique feature of the book is the Model Proposal-a detailed presentation of a marketing sequence on a successful bid effort, to assist you in developing a winning proposal. Strock outlines the role of each team player in getting a successful sales contract: the product designer, the customer, the marketing director, the engineer in a part-time marketing role (the marketeer), the proposal manager, and the service team. Engineering for Profit provides information for marketing such high-tech products and systems as airplanes, computers, electronic instruments, engines and turbines, satellites and other space vehicles, lasers, medical equipment, navigation systems, and numerous other devices. Two hypothetical companies, DACCO and WACKY, are used to illustrate specific examples of mistakes and corrective actions. Although there are no such companies as DACCO and WACKY, all the example mistakes and successes are real!