Welcome to Traction Starting a Company

Traction Traction is the interactive start-up simulation game. Traction, is played in two phases. The first phase is pre-revenue where the objective is to assemble a strong company such that its Traction score is high. In Phase II, the players enter the market and build the internal and external environment needed to succeed.

Traction Experience a learning-by-doing environment: Unproven and evolving business situations Decisions in information uncertainty Focus on intellectual capital, innovation and creativity Move through the multi-dimensional space in attempting to build a company. Players need to manage incomplete information and players must be focused on where they are and where they want to go in a changing environment.

Traction – Major Components 1. Intellectual Property Protection 2. Development 3. Management Team 4. Standards 5. funding 6. Business Models 7. Customer Validation 8. Internal Processes 9. Testing 10. Partners

Traction - Concepts Students will apply the following concepts as they play the simulation: Funding Family and friends, government grants, lean start-up, angel/dragon and venture capital investors, for example, emphasis should be placed on quality and the management team. Management Team Leadership styles and the importance of compatibility and complementary skills of team members. Development Using various modes of development.  The importance of improving the product or service.

Traction - Concepts Testing Different types of testing. Intellectual Property Protection The value of copy right, trademarks and patents Customer Interaction The value of early customer interaction to develop ideas and create lead customers using social media and meeting with potential customers. Partners The value of indirect distribution using partners including strategic partners and value added resellers.

Traction - Concepts Business Models The importance business models to generate different revenue streams, for example, subscription and advertising based models. Product Standards The value of adherence to standards as a method to increase market adoption. Internal Processes The importance of building repeatable processes to grow customers from few to many. The processes are both internal and external oriented. Other Concepts  The Adoption of Innovation Theory by E. Rogers Effectual Entrepreneurship concept by Saras Sarasvathy Customer Development Process by Steve Banks

Winning the Game The objective of the game is to have the highest scores:  Customer validation is a measure of how well the company is aligned to customers The traction score is the overall composite score Ability of the company to adapt to changes in the business environment Adoption rate in the market

PHASE I: Pre-revenue Main Screen (Boardroom)

Playing the Game Market News Will be generated each turn. It can effect your decisions for the current turn. Funding In this screen, the player selects funding type, and if applicable, shares to be offered to an investor.  Development The purpose of the game is develop a product/service and introduce it to the market. Introducing the product/service to the market happens in Phase II.

Playing the Game Testing In this screen, players can test their product/service but 1/2 of the development must be complete before testing can begin. Intellectual Property Protection Players can obtain IP protection but some of the product/service must be developed and the product/service have some testing completed before intellectual property (IP) protection be applied for. Market View The follows the customer discovery concept and attempts to align the company with what customers want. Players can do this through social media or meetings with potential customers.

Phase 2 Partners Partners provide the ability to access the market and create a revenue stream for the company. Departments In order to deliver product to the customer and understand the evolving market, internal processes can be implemented. Promotion Department: Players can use general funds or allocated funds obtained from investors. Intelligence Department: Once this department has been completely activated, then revenue can increase since the company is tracking the market. Distribution: Broadens the company’s market reach.

Phase 2 Business Models Business models are important determinant of the company’s multiple revenue possibilities in the market. Players must pay for this with general funds. Funding Objective Obtain funds while minimizing investor ownership. Team This screen contains similar functionality as in phase I, however, team members can now be fired and new ones hired. Continued Development After entering the market, the company can continue development and improvements

Getting Started Payment Access the student payment function and have  your credit card ready http://www.experientialsimulations.com/#!/page_purchase Access the registration and login page at: Do payment and then create a new student account, once payment has been authorized then login to the appropriate game version and enter the passcode send to you by your professor. The passcode is only needed on the first login. http://www.experientialsimulations.com/#!/page_register Note: that payment authorization might take up to 24 hours and that a student game account username similar or the same as your Paypal one is important for authorization.

Playing to Win – Game Metrics Traction Composite score takes into account all your decisions Customer Validation Measures the company’s alignment with customers Adoption Rate Measures the desire of the market for the product/service Ability to Adapt Measures the ability of the company to change with the business environment

Playing to Win – Game Metrics EPS Calculates the earnings per share. Profit Margin Net profit/sales. Efficiency Ratio Expenses/Revenue P/E Ratio Valuation ratio of a company's current valuation compared to its per-share earnings. The Traction score is an overall score that focuses on the player’s ability to achieve growth objectives. While the Efficiency Ratio measures how well they used resources.

Playing to Win Have Fun! Read the user manual Decide on your strategy Remember not all your actions within the game will be successful and you will have adjust your approach as the game progresses. This is the reality of start-ups. Have Fun!

Technical Support Visit http://www.experientialsimulations.com for technical support via Skype, email, or text chat