'Tech' is so extremely un-inclusive; there are so few women, non-technical, or professionals, or business-development people, for that matter. They are not representative of all classes of entrepreneurs (but then again, neither are plumbers).
What really is a 'tech' startup, anyway?
Some will tell you that its a bunch of post-pubescent hoody-wearing, 'whiz-kids' all sitting together with laptops, building something 'cool'.
Or perhaps someone with an online store, that sells widgets direct to the world from their garage? (That widget business must be booming).
Still others say that its a Venture Capital-backed (VC), technology-based company, based out of Silicon Valley, who are writing code, so that they will one day take over the world (or some other grandiose phrase).
No, a tech startup is simply a stage of a business entity, which predominately uses technology as the basis of its product, service delivery, or marketing mechanisms. (Which hopefully excludes fish & chip shops, franchises, management consultancies and life coaches).
I've come to recognise that 'tech-startup' really means "digital, disruptive, scalable and "enterprise-ready" businesses. (Note the emphasis on the last).
What about online businesses. aren't they tech startups too?
So often, even an online retailer will be lumped into the category of 'tech startup', though for $100, you can buy a trading & domain name, get a web-hosting account, setup a free online store, buy a cookie-cutter template and call yourself one.
Most of the industry reports analysing the startup space exclude them, though strangely, they are highly prevalent in pitching competitions and in VC reports like TechCrunch.
So what about Google, Twitter, eBay, Paypal, Shoes of Prey etc. ? Aren't they innovative tech startups?
Well no, but many of them once were 'tech startups' (more on this in a minute).
Sure, there are many new form of innovation that come with those business models, but its are hardly 'innovation' in its purest sense.
Consider this. Isn't Google (who make their money primarily from selling advertising), just the Yellow Pages online? Isn't Twitter just SMS for anyone with a smartphone? eBay just an online version of the old 'Trading Post'? (any 'The Castle' fans will be chiming in right here); Paypal just an electonic version of a passbook savings account? Or Shoes of Prey just Williams the Shoeman online?
(Now before you get all up in arms, I'm am being a bit tongue-in-cheek here)
But, a solar/electric car, or clean fuel, or hi-speed rail, or cold-fusion, or break-through medical technologies that cure cancer or help paraplegics walk again etc? These are real forms of innovation. Its unfortunate that we see so few of these. (Though perhaps not for long).
So will I have to learn to code to become part of this 'digital revolution'?
I believe, that this is short stage in a larger cycle of growth, has occured in the same way as any other product or market lifecycle. The 'whiz-kids' are just the early-adopters of new business models, and methods of reaching or creating new markets.
And this phase has been held artificially held over by the barriers to entry of technical capacity. Its not that young graduates have better or more ideas; they simply have the life circumstances and the skills to build something and risk failure, where other more experienced people cant.
When the rest of the business world catches up (as it has and will throughout history) those 'whiz-kids' will either have to run keep pace, or they will be over-run or swallowed up by those more experienced, more connected, more-capable and higher-achieving in the business community. And with it will go the ridiculous valuations (high & low) which seem to predominate the tech news cycles.
By the way, I am in no way suggesting that we will be returning to the era of pre-industrial revolution. I do however recognise that we are at the dawn of a new era of revolution - the Age of the Entrepreneur.
And now the barriers are coming down. I can hire a development team in Croatia, a sales team in Norway, a server in the cloud, a customer service team in the phillipines, a virtual assistant, and handle all of my marketing, advertising, PR, billing, accounting & administration online, all for less than a couple of full-time employees. Soon, the rest of my business needs, like strategy, legal & advisory will go that way too.
At a very real and discernible point in the near-future, the focus of entrepreneurship in digital (tech, if you can't yet see it), will switch, driven by funders, founders and governments alike, to people who have the skills & capacity to imagine, build & scale an enterprise-ready business, not write code in a garage.
So forget learning to code.
Instead, learn to imagine, dream, build relationships, connect with people, prioritise, teach, develop products, build teams, identify & reach markets, solve real-world problems, share stories, and in doing so, live your dreams.
This is how we will cure cancer, travel to stars, heal our planet, feed & clothe the world, and claim back our planet & our heritage, and become the people we were always meant to be.
Because instead, in spending your time learning to code (as the advocates are now so loudly telling you), you could just be shortchanging your own, your family's, and the world's future.
So what makes you such an expert on these things?
Actually, I'm not.
I'm not a VC - few of those who are, have never risked their own money, or themselves spilt their blood, sweat, tears & years to build a startup (apologies for including those that have, eg @Hunterwalk).
I don't write code for a job, although I learnt to code as a teenager, and cut my teeth on Fortran, Pascal, Basic, Cobol before most whizkids' parents were out of high school. (And I know my way around HTML5/CSS & UX/UI).
What I have done, is 15+ Startups since '97, In social networking, hospitality, broadband, logistics, financial services, manufacturing, web-development, and hell's-bell's, even politics. And four not-for-profits.
Before this, I had a long professional career in marketing and business development in business services, through the IT, manufacturing, logistics and building industries (industries which, despite what you may read in the tabloid press, will remain mainstays of our economy for decades to come).
I don't claim to speak for the 'startup' industry as it currently stands. (In fact, most of what I talk about is at odds with it). I talk about the views, values, perspective & experience, as someone who has actually walked the startup path that so many aspire to.
My audience, or 'tribe', are experienced professionals, who have a great idea, and arent sure what to do next.
If that's you, there I'd love to hear your idea, tell your story & help your achieve your vision of innovation.
We might even change the world together.
Twitter & Facebook: StartupFoundtn
Web: StartUpFoundation.com.au
Podcasts: RisingSTARtupS
MeetUps: Startling StartUp Ideas
LinkedIn: StartUp-Foundation-AU
Note the quasi-legal disclaimer: all brands mentioned here are property of their respective legal trademark owners, and no affiliation, validation, mis-representation or commercial promotion is here-by claimed or intended (even if it seemed like it).
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