Restartup

Foreword xi

Preface xiii

Acknowledgements xxiii

About the Authors xxv

1 Even Shit Floats in High Tide 1

Introduction 1

The Macros Matter 3

Capitalism: The Pyramid Scheme 4

Tier 0 5

Tier 1 5

Tier 2 5

Tier 3 5

Tier 4 7

Tier 5 8

Role of the Central Banks and Regulators 8

Virtuous Cycles 10

The Wealth Effect 14

An Interplay of Incentives 14

Investor Dilemma 17

Conclusion 20

2 Hindsight's 2020 23

Introduction 23

Structural versus Event-Driven Crises 24

Structural 25

Event-Driven 25

The Crisis Timeline 26

Black Monday 1987 27

Dot-Com Bubble 1999-2000 29

The Great Recession of 2008 31

The Year of Crises - 2020 35

If It Smells Like Funk 38

Greed Is Good, or Is It? 38

Consistent Overvaluation 39

Failed Funding Rounds 39

Down Rounds 40

Funding Gaps 40

Data Collection 42

Ecosystem Pulse 43

Team 44

Product 45

Competition 47

Funding 48

Conclusion 49

3 Be Your Own Shrink 53

Introduction 53

Crisis Is Here 54

Put on Your Seat Belt First 54

The Emotional Gym 56

Organisational Emotional Fitness 60

You and Your Business: A 3D Model 61

Passion 62

Skills 63

Demand 64

Step Away 64

Switch Off or Snooze 65

Mentoring 67

Executive Coaching 68

Connect and Inspire 68

Conclusion 70

4 The Surgical Strike 73

Introduction 73

The Startup Bell Curve 75

A 3D Plan of Action 77

Survive: First-Order Optimisation 77

Normalise: Second-Order Optimisation 77

Thrive: Third-Order Optimisation 78

First-Order Optimisation 79

CashFlow Is Oxygen 80

Soul Searching 81

What's the Heart of Your Business? 82

Where Are You Relevant? 84

Is Your Cost Structure Optimal? 85

Scenario Planning 87

The Soul versus Value Quadrant 88

Cold Decisions, Humane Execution 91

Communication Architecture 92

Clients: Increase Incoming 95

Suppliers and Vendors: Decrease Outgoing 97

The Firm: Align Culture 98

Team: Handle with Care 99

What Next? 103

Conclusion 104

5 Check Your Mirrors 107

Introduction 107

Second-Order Optimisation 108

The Who 110

The Why 112

The How Much 115

The How 118

Ask Them 118

Get Them 119

Understand Them 120

Behaviour versus Value 123

Conclusion 126

6 Map the Trip 127

Introduction 127

Infrastructure 128

Policy Infrastructure 128

Payment Services Directive (PSD 2) 130

Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies 131

India's Aadhaar 132

Drug Discovery 134

Technology Infrastructure 134

Rise of the Machines 135

AWS and Innovation 136

Broadband and Video Genre 137

Ecosystem Infrastructure 139

Talent Infrastructure 139

Funding Infrastructure 141

The Missing Link 145

Conclusion 147

7 From Fiats to Ferraris 149

Introduction 149

The 4D Lens 150

Time: Longevity 151

Time: Velocity 151

Space: Scale 152

Space: Weight 152

The Business Model Barometer 153

Contractually Predictable 155

Enterprise Software 155

Software as a Service (SaaS) 156

Subscription 157

Behaviourally Predictable 158

Advertising 160

Transactional 161

Hybrid 162

Marketplace 162

Mix, Match and Moonshot 164

Conclusion 167

8 Hit Refresh 169

Introduction 169

Third-Order Optimisation 170

The Pirate Metrics 171

Shades of Grey 172

Preserve the Soul 175

Continue Experimentation 176

Build for a Crisis 177

Tip 1: Values Make or Break Firms 179

Tip 2: It's the Team, Idiot 180

Tip 3: Decentralising Decision-Making 181

Tip 4: Data-Driven Accountability 182

Tip 5: Embracing Cost Consciousness 182

Tip 6: Growing Responsibly 183

Tip 7: Tapping into a Support Network 184

Tip 8: Mind the Mind 184

Conclusion 187

9 Winner Winner Chicken Dinner 189

Introduction 189

The Macro Environment 190

What History Tells Us 191

Wear Your Mask First 194

Cold Decisions and Humane Execution 197

Customer Is King 200

Infrastructure Catalysts 203

Business Model Evaluation 206

All Change 208

Conclusion 212

Glossary 215

Index 221