Start-ups aren’t just for technical

Start-ups aren’t just for technical folks anymore. Entrepreneurs with good ideas come from all disciplines, and can partner with developers to turn their vision into a product or service. Folks who are able to recognize and analyze communication processes and needs (hey, listen up, comm majors!) are in a great position to invent great apps.

Michael Cusumano gives some great advice to would-be entrepreneurs as well as to their potential funders and investors. He lists 8 things that should be used to evaluate the strength of a start-up proposal:

A Strong Management Team
An Attractive Market
A Compelling New Product or Service
Strong Evidence of Customer Interest
Overcoming the “Credibility Gap”
Demonstrating Early Growth and Potential
Flexibility in Strategy and Technology
Potential for a Large Investor Payoff
This is a fairly wide ranging list, and each element is important. When I work with students–whether they are studying communication, computer science, or media design–I challenge them to think more deeply and strategically about two items on this list: developing something compelling, and providing evidence that people will want what you’re offering.