Kévin Poireau

Crowdfunding

Kévin Poireau — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 19:00:00 GMT

The book provides an overview of the various crowdfunding solutions, whether in the form of rewards-based donations, loans, or equity. The different solutions are presented mainly with the cooperation of the platforms in question. While I understand this perspective, as the actors have a good understanding of crowdraising processes, the fact that only a few actors are mentioned, and one of them is developed for an interview, puts too much emphasis on the latter at the expense of others. I would have appreciated if the book had a table for each type of fundraising comparing the different platforms, instead of just stating that it is important to compare them. When we buy a book on crowdfunding, implicitly, we expect some initial guidance.

What I was most looking for in this book was testimonies from project owners who have succeeded, as well as those who have failed, and knowing why they failed. Strangely, a series of testimonials from seven project owners appear at the end of the book, after the conclusion. I find this choice less than judicious for the book's structure; it is what I was looking forward to the most, and I found it after the conclusion. It is a real disappointment.

As for the main points I gathered about crowdfunding in this book, first and foremost, what the authors regularly remind us of is that platforms like Kickstarter are self-collection tools. It is up to us to seek out contributors; the platform community does not come to us. Conversely, savings sites rely much more on the platform community.

But in reality, the truth is more complex. Fundraisings are often a mix of these strategies. The launch will be with family, friends, and enthusiasts (early adopters…) to reach a threshold that will leverage the rest.

Investing in communication, responding to each contributor, for example, is crucial. Do not rely on the platform site to create the desired community for you; it is up to you to do it well before launching a campaign.

Fundraisings are time-consuming; one should not underestimate the investment it represents both before, during, and after the campaign.

The timing and duration of the campaign are important; the most active periods are often the first and last week of the campaign. Campaigns should not be too long; for this, platforms are often the best advisors to estimate the optimal duration.

Fundraising campaigns not only generate money but also validate market studies, viability, and open doors to clients and partners.

The book is structured into seven chapters:

Discovering the crowdfunding universe for companies
Understanding the keys to crowdfunding, savings or self-collection site
The world of donation
The loan world
The world of equity
The different professions of crowdfunding
Preparing and succeeding in your collection

Publisher: Eyrolles
Release Date: February 11, 2016
Pages: 180
Price: €22

Holacracy: A New Operating System for Business

Kévin Poireau — Sat, 26 Mar 2016 20:00:00 GMT

Brian Robertson, a former entrepreneur who is now involved with HolacracyOne, is the originator of this book, "Holacracy." It is a method of corporate governance that goes against the hierarchical system we already know. It starts from the premise that the person at the top is often the most removed from the problems faced at the bottom. Additionally, in a company, it's not just your boss who relies on you, but also other people like your colleagues and clients, hence the relevance of another organizational model.

To do this, Holacracy proposes a profound change, that of assigning roles rather than people to a task. For this purpose, it introduces the concept of circles, where the company is broken down into several circles, for example, marketing. These circles, based on the needs of the company, can be broken down into sub-circles and so on. Within each circle, the concept of roles is found. For example, in our marketing example, roles like social media, advertising campaigns, etc., can be found. In each circle, there is also the concept of linkages; for example, marketing may consult the "website maintenance" role to avoid launching an advertising campaign during maintenance. There are no departments in the traditional sense, but rather a cloud of circles. The roles within the circles can evolve through governance meetings.

"Holacracy does not try to improve the person, make them more compassionate, or expand their awareness. And it does not ask them to create a particular culture or behave with others in a certain way. But it is precisely because it does not try to change people or culture that it allows personal and cultural development to occur more naturally."

The Holacracy approach is contrary to the agile principle like scrum. In this approach, sprints are set with fixed durations, typically two, three, or four weeks. With Holacracy, it's different; there are actions but no deadlines. The principle is that nothing can be predicted in advance, priorities can evolve, and what was initially planned to be done first may be done second because in the meantime, a more important element has arisen.

The Holacracy process emphasizes data over opinions. This is especially true in the case of circle meetings. The way meetings work is highly structured, and the author's presentation of it can be dictatorial. In fact, the author emphasizes these rules; they must not be violated. It's like in a team sport; you must respect the rules for the match to proceed properly. The functioning of meetings is quite similar whether in operational or governance meetings. The process proposed by the author aims to quickly resolve issues and, if possible, at their source, thanks in part to this principle of roles. Consensus is not sought at any point. According to the author, consensus does not address every tension.

That is to say, the reaction round during meetings is used to gather all viewpoints and not opinions on others' viewpoints. And it's up to the person who initiated the topic to decide among the different viewpoints of circle members.

Mobile User Experience

Kévin Poireau — Fri, 25 Mar 2016 21:01:00 GMT

This book is simply wonderful.

Amélie Boucher explores and dissects several dozen applications, many of which are well-known to the general public and therefore used by us. She analyzes them in depth, so even people who design applications on a daily basis will necessarily learn something from it. This is not my first book on UX, and I don't regret it at all; the reading is quick, clear, and concise.

I didn't expect a book of such high quality when I saw the cover; perhaps the cover is the least successful part of this book.

This book addresses mobile in several chapters:

Sensory Experience
Content and Navigation on Mobile
Experience at the Heart of Mobile Experience
Waiting Experience
User Pedagogy and Engagement
Emotional Experience

One regret, however, is that the book focuses solely on smartphones. Personally, I use my iPad daily in mobility contexts. My use is different from that of my iPhone and MacBook Pro. I hope the next edition will take this format into account.

Unlock the Magic Within You!

Kévin Poireau — Fri, 25 Mar 2016 20:57:00 GMT

In her latest book, "Big Magic," Elizabeth Gilbert, author of, among other works, "Eat, Pray, Love," guides us into the depths of her creativity. It's the kind of creativity that resides deep within you, sometimes elusive, and that may dissipate if not captured in the moment.

Most of the time, when an author writes a book, it's for others, with the intention of imparting knowledge. Elizabeth Gilbert makes it clear that this book, like her others, is first and foremost for herself, and it's a bonus if others happen to love it too.

Don't expect to read a list of chapters that provide the rules of creativity. No, the author offers a series of stories from her life and explains how she found creativity and how she overcame her difficulties. She doesn't seek to draw parallels in artistic fields but rather focuses on her role as an author.

I must admit that I'm disappointed in this aspect. I expected more openness from a book dedicated to creativity. Similarly, interviewing other people would have added value to this work. Personally, I didn't get what I was expecting from this book. Certainly, it may inspire aspiring writers, but my overall feeling is one of disappointment. I believe that creativity arises from the meeting of improbabilities, which is lacking here.

However, you can easily take her advice into your artistic endeavors; many are interdisciplinary.

The Facebook Revolution

Kévin Poireau — Wed, 16 Mar 2016 20:31:00 GMT

Like many people interested in Facebook, I watched the movie The Social Network. The vision portrayed by David Fincher's screenplay is a resounding success. Certainly, the image of Mark Zuckerberg is not very glorifying; we see him drawing inspiration from the Winklevoss brothers. However, during that same period, the decisions made by Zuckerberg seemed very interesting to me, such as the open graph. It was far from the portrait painted in this film.

This book offers a vision closer to reality. First and foremost, it is written with the help of the main players, starting with Mark Zuckerberg. What I liked most is that Facebook is far from being a peaceful stream. For example, we learn that once it had taken off among high school students, Facebook ventured into the corporate world, and it was a total flop. Even more surprising, while Facebook was expanding on early campuses, Mark Zuckerberg devoted a significant portion of his time to another file-sharing project.

In this book, the author shares the early years of this company, the initial fundraising, monetization, hiring… The various changes that the company undergoes in order to become a business are also discussed. The arrival of Sheryl Sandberg is also mentioned, where she shares her point of view.

Although this book may now be a few years old, it remains interesting as it delves into the early years of the company that now connects all human interactions.

From Zero to One, Peter Thiel's Book

Kévin Poireau — Tue, 23 Feb 2016 19:57:00 GMT

Peter Thiel needs no introduction; this investor, who was also the co-founder of Paypal, summarizes in this book what he taught at Stanford University. It is, in fact, based on the support of one of his students that this book is written.

The first point Peter Thiel teaches us is to have a certain modesty and to adopt smallness. That is to say, it's better to have 100% of a market of 100 people than 1% of a market of a million people. In the first case, you can continue to grow, whereas in the second, you'll be swallowed by those who have 99% of the market.

The second point to remember is the pursuit of 1, not n. From zero to one expresses the most important phase of a business, which is to find a viable and scalable solution to an identified problem, and then be in a position to become a monopoly.

The third point is that the essential thing is not necessarily to do something new at all costs, but to do it better than others. Google was not the first search engine, but it was the best. Facebook was not the first, but it was the best.

The fourth point is that monopolies often enjoy exclusive technology, network effects, economies of scale, and brand image.

The fifth point is that being the first is not necessarily the best thing. What matters is being the first to be able to generate flow. If you can't do that, you'll certainly be displaced by the latest entrant.

Peter Thiel also devotes a very interesting chapter to the team, which he calls the "Foundation". Without a good foundation, any building collapses. Having studied Civil Engineering, I can certify that the slightest differential settlement in one place can cause a lot of damage, not only in that small place. In the world of business, it's the same. It's better to start alone than to be surrounded by the wrong people. If the project works, then people will want to work for you. Peter Thiel takes the example of the "Paypal mafia," one of whom is Elon Musk, another co-founded Linkedin, another Youtube… But these young people had many common characteristics when they joined the Paypal adventure.

His discourse differs from that of Eric Reis and others who advocate for successive iterations. Peter Thiel has a clearer vision; you must be able to project yourself into the distant future. "Forget about 'minimum viable products.' We must set goals. Iterations of minimum viable products are not enough. To conquer large markets, you must innovate, take risks."

Finally, Peter Thiel poses a series of questions that everyone must answer to create a startup:

Are you capable of creating disruptive technology instead of making simple progressive improvements?
Is the timing right to launch a business like yours?
Are you entering with a large share of the market?
Do you have the right team?
Do you have the means not only to create but also to deliver your product?
Will your market position be defensible in ten or twenty years?
Have you identified a unique opportunity that others haven't seen?

Peter Thiel advocates for monopolies; this argument will provoke some people who advocate for competitive markets where multiple actors engage in fierce battles. However, monopolies are wanted by the market, and the market is you.

You can buy it on Amazon right now.

Elon Musk, Biography of the Founder of the Hyperloop

Kévin Poireau — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 19:31:00 GMT

Elon Musk is still unknown to France. Yet, his work today designates him as the result of a fusion between Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Co-founder of Paypal, he then became a key figure at Tesla Motors, SolarCity, Hyperloop, and SpaceX, the company that embodies him according to the author. He also served as a model for the Iron Man movie, where Tony Stark is nothing but an interpretation of Elon Musk.

It traces Elon Musk's journey accompanied by numerous testimonies from his close collaborators, current and recent employees, and the interested party himself. Despite the contribution of the interested party, the journalist maintains his independence. Throughout the book, one can appreciate the confrontation of the positions of his close ones with those of Elon Musk.

The work begins with his difficult childhood in South Africa, then moves on to his arrival in Canada, which was only a step to go to the United States. The book continues around the Paypal adventure, which resulted from the merger of his company with Peter Thiel's. Then, the majority of this book is dedicated to SpaceX and Tesla Motors. SpaceX is probably the most interesting because it reflects Elon Musk's personality. From his desire to impose unattainable deadlines on his employees, to achieving the impossible, his management of human resources, which can be criticized. "What was clear was that the people who worked for him were treated like ammunition and used for a given task until exhaustion; then they were disposed of," comments a former employee.

Through these experiences, we discover the difficulties that Elon Musk encounters, whether in his private life or with his associates. The book also emphasizes that Elon Musk's success was far from guaranteed in advance; on several occasions, his companies were on the brink of bankruptcy, but Elon's determination combined with the hard work of his employees, some of whom, notably engineers at SpaceX, work 90-hour weeks to meet Musk's deadlines.

However, I have a regret about this book; it only briefly mentions the Hyperloop project in the last pages. Personally, Musk's project interests me the most. It is a new means of transportation. It resembles pneumatic networks found in hospitals or large stores. To confuse it with the train would be a mistake; it is by no means a much faster TGV. "The tube should operate under low pressure and the pods float on a cushion of air produced at their base by skis. The pods would be propelled forward by an electromagnetic thrust, relayed if necessary by motors placed along the tube. They could thus travel at nearly 1300 km/h and connect Los Angeles to San Francisco in about thirty minutes. The entire system would of course operate on solar energy, between cities less than 1,600 kilometers apart."

In conclusion, Ashlee Vance, the author, paints a portrait of a man who is both fascinating and terrifying. Fascinating because he is changing the rules of the automotive, aerospace, and energy industries. Terrifying because his management of human resources is very different from our French culture, but the portrait that the author paints makes his relationship with others understandable.

- Title: Elon Musk
- Author: Ashlee Vance
- Publisher: Eyrolles
- Publication Date: February 11, 2016
- Number of Pages: 366
- Price: €24.90