Mapping the Gap

I often interchange the terms “startup” and “new product development”. 

A startup without a product doesn’t exist while established companies who want to create new products often have to take on the characteristics of a startup to increase their chances of success.

One skillset I think startup entrepreneurs and new product developers need to work on is how to better bridge the gap between what their product or startup is today (the current state) and where it needs to get to to be successful (the future state).

Typically, entrepreneurs layout a product development program along a timeline with the tendency of looking forward with how the product development, launch and operations will roll out. 

On the other end of the timeline (or future state), the company usually sets the financial and operating goals that equate to the return on investment metrics that shareholders need to compensate for the risk of the investment – and all within a certain timeframe. 

Through my work as an angel investor, startup mentor and helping companies spin out new products, it’s been my experience the process can fall apart when the current and future states are not clearly linked to together.  The gap between the two states is ill-defined and especially related to timelines. 

To address this, I use a planning exercise called Mapping the Gap which links the current and future states together. 

The exercise is best done on a large whiteboard with the key development activities starting from today (the current state) on the left side and the key components of what the future state needs to look like on the right side.  On the bottom is a timeline that reflects the promises that have been made for when the future state will be achieved.

The participants then map out the key activities on a timeline between the two states (this is a very manual process and is best done with a facilitator)

The exercise has two objectives.

First, it creates two timelines – one moving forward from the current state and the second moving backward from the future state.  As milestones and key dates are identified (moving in both directions), the fundamental question is asked of whether or not they are aligned.

As an example, I worked with a scaleup company that was launching a product that had a hardware component they were assembling themselves.  They were getting good traction from customers and significant orders were on the horizon.  However, when we did the Mapping the Gap exercise, they realized they should have signed a lease a few months previous to set up the needed manufacturing capacity.  They hadn’t realized how long lead-times would be and if the orders came to fruition, they wouldn’t be able to deliver within the time frame needed. 

The second objective of the exercise is to translate into words specific action items and what work needs to be done and by when.  As an investor, I do this exercise with entrepreneurs before seriously considering an investment.  We map out what it takes to build a company after the investment is made – whether it be hiring; the physical or digital infrastructure that needs to be put in place, or all of the key business relationships that need to be established.  It is essentially the nuts and bolts of how a business is run after it’s launched. 

One of my vivid memories doing this with a young entrepreneur about five years ago.  We laid out on a white board all of the things in his pitch deck that he would need to accomplish.  After an hour of mapping it out, he sat back in his chair and had a slightly concerned and overwhelmed look on his face.  Until that moment, he had not fully comprehended how many things he would be responsible for and was clearly uncomfortable with the realization. 

A few weeks later, he called to tell me that he and his partner had decided to do a “pivot”.  They ended up starting more of a “lifestyle business” which turned out to be a good thing as he wasn’t comfortable starting and building a VC-backable business (i.e all of the things he laid out in the deck he show me).  Frankly, it was much better to figure that out upfront than after receiving investment dollars.  As a post-script, I have kept in touch with the entrepreneur and he has a great little business going (not venture-backable) but he is very happy.

Mapping the Gap has proven time and time again to be a valuable adjunct to the startup and product development planning process.  If you are not doing it already, give it a go.