Tech for Non-Techies

Learning notes from this episode:

• As a non-technical founder, you don't need a technical co-founder, but you do need a web of tech experts to advise you.
• Learning to admit that you don't have all the answers is a far more useful skill for non-technical founders than learning to code. "Put those engineering books aside and make sure you've got the strength to be vulnerable. That's the most important thing," says Alexandra.
• Working with an outsourced product team can be a great way to build your business. Alexandra worked with Goody Labs at Triptease and recommends them.

If you have a brilliant idea for tech venture, but no tech skills to build it, then the What Non-Technical Founders REALLY Need to Know About Tech course is for you.

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Learning notes from this episode:

• Outsourcing can be done in 3 ways: with an agency (focus on design), a development shop (focus on engineering) or a product studio (holistic approach to the entire product).
• Make sure whoever you hire uses agile methodology and adapts the product specifications as you learn.
• An MVP should take no more than 6 - 8 weeks to develop. Knowing this can help you plan your costs.

Say hi to Igor Moliver on LinkedIn.

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Learning notes from this episode:

• Prepare to pitch to a technical co-founder as you would to an investor: have a plan, understand your market and know your target customer
• Choices developers make early on about the tech architecture can have a serious impact later on. Non-technical founders should learn some basic tech concepts to ask the right questions from the start.
• Before you look for a technical co-founder, understand what kind of technology you need to build. Then you will be able to target the right people for your venture

Say hi to Andrew on Twitter.

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Say hi to host Sophia Matveeva on Twitter.

Learning notes from this episode:

• Networking is key to making a career transition. Meet people who are doing the job you are interested in and learn from them.
• To transition into a PM role, start by working on digital initiatives first. This will be your stepping stone to get to PM.
• Take courses to understand what developers are working with. Amber recommends AWS certification.

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Say hi to host Sophia Matveeva on Twitter.

Learning notes from this episode:

• If you want to transition into Big Tech from a non-technical career, start by working on digital initiatives
• Use storytelling and public speaking to stand out in front of Big Tech recruiters
• When Bruce led Twitter for EMEA, his job was divided into 3 sections: brand management, user growth and revenue growth. Can you bring one of these specialities to a tech company?

If you want to hear more from Bruce and his take on how to bring more joy to work, sign up to his newsletter.

To hear the full session, join Tech for Non-Techies membership. You'll get access to all the recordings, live events, a mini course and monthly Q&A with Sophia.

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Check out Parth's book Swipe to Unlock: The Insider's Guide to Tech and Business Strategy.

Learning points from this episode:

• Product strategy sets the vision of the future trends for your business
• Product management implements that vision with a specific product
• The three factors that firms use to decide whether to build, borrow or buy new innovation are: team, product and users

If you are interested in the Tech for Non-Technical Founders course Sophia mentioned at the start of the show, sign up to the TFNT newsletter and we will let you know about the next enrolment.

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Say hi to host Sophia Matveeva on Twitter.

Learning notes from this episode:

• Product managers define "the what, the when and the why of the product," - what the product is, what the priorities are within the product and why it needs to exist.
• Product managers do not need to code, but taking some basic coding courses can help product managers work better with developers.
• Constant learning is a feature of a good product manager's job: learn via industry newsletters, online courses and books.
• To make a career transition, don't only do courses, but also get some practical experience. For example, do volunteer user research for a startup.

If you are interested in the Tech for Non-Technical Founders course Juliet mentioned, sign up to the TFNT newsletter and we will let you know about the next enrolment.

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Say hi to host Sophia Matveeva on Twitter.

Key learning points from this episode:

• The tech sector is growing exponentially, so the time to invest in tech is now.
• A decade ago only 1 company out of the top 10 companies in the world by market capitalisation was a tech company. Today, 7 out of the top 10 are tech companies.
• The Techquisition process Paul describes consists of 12 steps.
• The first step to making the right acquisition is clarity of vision of what the corporate needs.
• Red flags in startups include under-prepared financials and conflict between founders.
• Startups can prepare themselves for acquisition by working with potential acquirers years before acquisition is on the horizon, e.g. as customers or partners.

Read Go Tech, or Go Extinct: How Acquiring Tech Disruptors Is the Key to Survival and Growth for Established Companies to get the full 12 step process.

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Key learning points:

• AI is already changing industries and the economy by making simple operations run faster
• A business model is how a company aims to create and capture value
• An operating model is how the company delivers that value to the customer. Prof Iansiti calls this "the hard part"
• AI is already being used by companies like Ant Financial to take humans and cost out of their operating model, by putting an AI factory in the core of their business
• COVID has accelerated the adoption of AI across industries

For more insights, get the book Prof Iansiti co-authored Competing in the Age of AI: Strategy and Leadership When Algorithms and Networks Run the World

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Key Learning Points:

• The International Standardisation Organisation defines user experience as "a person's perceptions and responses that result from the use and anticipated use of a product, system or service."
• UX is so important that you shouldn't put it on the shoulders of just the designer
• The main thing about UX design is that it's USER experience, NOT YOUR experience
• A good UX designer considers the technical feasibility of a design and understands engineering concepts
• UX designers question founders and Product Managers and conduct usability studies and user interviews

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Forbes: What User Experience Designers Do And How To Become One
• Tech for Non-Techies membership
• The Design of Every Day Things by Donald Norman
• A Project Guide to UX Design: For user experience designers in the field or in the making
• Apple's Human Interface Guidelines
• Google Developer Guidelines: Design for Android

Say hi to Sophia on Twitter