CRITICAL EVALUATION
From the perspective of an Educational Venture Capitalist, I can say that this is an ambitious project that both has its weaknesses and strengths. The entrepreneur wants to start this project in Turkey, a country that has a young population, with half of its population is under the age of 3, and both the young population and the educators support high-tech technologies in schools. However, as it is seen in the past, it is possible to pause or cancel ambitious projects due to policy changes and/or financial issues. If the second stage of this venture can not be realized due to circumstances beyond their control, they should prepare a Plan B, which I can not see at the moment.
The experiences of the team can start and carry on this project through its incubation phase but I would suggest adding a junior software developer and a marketer on the team, after they will start using their product in private universities, I foresee that they will meet with challenges since the infrastructure and the senate members of these universities are in great variation. Another challenge they might face can be related to the size of the project and the fact that it involves both the product and the services. I expect that after the initial phase they will either require extra members in their team or make alterations in their plans.
The experiences of the team can start and carry on this project through its incubation phase but I would suggest adding a junior software developer and a marketer on the team, after they will start using their product in private universities, I foresee that they will meet with challenges since the infrastructure and the senate members of these universities are in great variation. Another challenge they might face can be related to the size of the project and the fact that it involves both the product and the services. I expect that after the initial phase they will either require extra members in their team or make alterations in their plans.
REFLECTION
During the preparation of this venture I had most difficulty in the money related issues. It is interesting and refreshing to understand that, as an interior architect and a teacher I’ve never had to think about the costs of the tools that create my designs. Until this day my priority so far was to create cost-efficient, aesthetic designs, but I have never thought about the production process of the tools that make that possible for me. Throughout the preparation of this pitch, I have realized that a business without a financial forecast and plan is a “one-legged stool” that can not realize the ambitious assertions of the business idea. From now on, when I have read through an article about a “brand new technology” I will immediately look at the company’s board, its phase (whether it is in incubator phase or mass-production) and its revenue.
It was very fun to work with Canva, an online application I have learned thanks to the OERs my classmates have prepared. Mixing and matching the slides with IMovie and making the layout of the website was a very visually satisfying experience for an interior architect, who is self-taught in movie editing.
It was very fun to work with Canva, an online application I have learned thanks to the OERs my classmates have prepared. Mixing and matching the slides with IMovie and making the layout of the website was a very visually satisfying experience for an interior architect, who is self-taught in movie editing.