Jim Panttaja

Thinking more about the SVASE event earlier this week – it becomes clear that technology is not enough. It is always interesting (especially as someone who considers himself a technologist), but it isn’t enough.

Several of the companies presenting at Launch Silicon Valley had no customer related problem they were trying to solve. This was reinforced yesterday with a meeting we had with Chris Brody in New York yesterday. He was an investor in the company I have recently left, Sapias, Inc.

We have received much advice as we discuss what we are going to do next with our favorite investors, VCs, colleagues and advisers. But the best is focused on making sure that we know who the customer is and what problem we are trying to solve. As technologists, that isn’t always the easiest advice to follow – you want to do something that is ‘way cool’.

To be clear, sometimes you think you know who the customer is, and what problem they have that needs to be addressed – only to find that your solution is for a different customer and solves a different need. But you need to make sure that these filters are applied early and often: Is there a customer? Does he have a problem that you can address?

Chris Brody, offered us his set of ‘five questions’. Without explanation of the numeric inflation involved, there were seven questions on the list of five questions when he handed them to us. The first two were the two listed above.

His list will be tacked to my wall – and the rest of the questions may be fodder for future blogs.