Business Model Experts

In the world of business planning, there are many different ways to model a business plan. There are a couple people I found interesting. Their business models were easy for me to understand and they are both great business owners.

Steve Blank is successful business owner and teacher of 35 years, from New York. He is the founded of E.phipany, the marketing software company. He has taught at many schools including U.C. Berkley, Stanford University and Columbia University. After retirement, he wrote a book called Four Steps to the Epiphany.  The book basically highlights his five steps to a business model proposal. Each step is a question one asks about his or her business. What did you think was your initial business model or hypotheses? What did you do or build? What did you learn or what parts of the business model were wrong? How did the business change? The fifth step is simply to repeat the steps again. These four questions can help anyone succeed with his or her business. It helps people stay focused on all aspects of the business and to learn as the business progresses. It also shows that no business will ever stay the same from when it was first started, and neither will a business plan.

Carlos Slim is a successful business owner and billionaire from Mexico City, Mexico. As of March 2013, Carlos Slim is worth $73 billion. He is the richest man in Mexico and has six children. Slim has a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. Carlos Slim has many different business perspectives. He believes that companies should have a simple organization structure and should start small with only necessary assets. A business owner should reinvest the profits back into the company and be positive, creative and hard working.

These things Steve Blank and Carlos Slim inquire in their business plans are key to a business plan for many reasons. Most of these reasons are obvious, such as being positive, creative, working hard and to reinvest. A business will never grow or even last if these elements are not included. A simple business structure should be inquired in every small business plan. The questions that Steve speaks of are good to ask regularly because it keeps the owner aware of the business progress and allows for him or her to make note and change the issues. Also, starting off with necessary assets is smarter than buying everything at once, because not all the startup capitol should be used at the beginning. These are great tips to keep in mind when starting or owning a business. 

Resources:

Blank, S. (n.d.). About steve. Retrieved from

http://steveblank.com/about/

Burhoe, S. (2012, August 9). Steve blank and carlos slim business models. Retrieved

from http://bpexpertviews.blogspot.com/2012/08/steve-blank-business-models.html

Clark. (2010, November 22). World’s wealthiest man carlos slim interview: no scarcity

for slim. Retrieved from http://therisetowealth.com/?p=607

Crunch Base. (2014). Steve blank. Retrieved from

http://www.crunchbase.com/person/steve-blank

Forbes. (2013, March). Carlos slim helu & family. Retrieved from

http://www.forbes.com/profile/carlos-slim-helu/