NEXT is a comprehensive curriculum rooted in Steve Blank's Customer Development methodology, built around in-person interactions with potential customers, and delivered by an accredited NEXT instructor.
NEXT is a five-week program that combines a workshop-style classroom structure with independent assignments.
Each week, participants will complete required video lectures provided by Steve Blank and supplemental readings from the course Instructor.
In addition, participants will meet for a weekly, three-hour workshop led by the Instructor. During workshops, participants will present their customer discovery insights and receive critical feedback from the course Instructor, team of mentors, and their peers.
This curriculum thrives on active, in-person customer validation, and participants will be expected to engage with customers.
NEXT is the only entrepreneurial curriculum dedicated to immersing participants in Customer Discovery. By the end of the five week course, participants will be fluent in the methodology, thoroughly understand how to validate future ventures, and be proficient at talking with customers.
This curriculum is unique because it relies on peer accountability; the most effective and direct way to expose potential risk areas for ventures and challenge any pre-existing assumptions that participants may have.
NEXT participants are afforded a valuable opportunity: access to established ecosystem leaders and innovators as well as peers who are experiencing the same entrepreneurial challenges.
Steve Blank is a seasoned Silicon Valley entrepreneur. Translation: he has failed and, more often, succeeded, in a 21-year career building 8 Valley startups, including several with major IPO’s. Along the way, he’s learned an incredible amount and has spent the last decade sharing what he’s learned with entrepreneurs all over the world.
Startup Weekend is a global network of passionate leaders and entrepreneurs on a mission to inspire, educate, and empower individuals, teams and communities. Come share ideas, form teams, and launch startups.
TechStars is a global, mentor-driven accelerator network which provides seed funding from over 75 top venture capital firms and angel investors, as well as intense mentorship from hundreds of the best entrepreneurs in the world. For NEXT, TechStars will be using its broad and unparalleled network of mentors to provide coaching to teams.
The Startup America Partnership supports a national network of startup communities dedicated to advancing the success of American startups. Hundreds of passionate founders, entrepreneurial leaders, investors, mentors and executives, (Startup Champions), are working together to strengthen their local communities and help young companies grow.
Udacity’s mission is to bring accessible higher education to the world. They seek to empower their students to develop their skills and to advance their careers.
GAN is the global champion of the seed-stage, mentorship-driven accelerator model and includes over 50 of the most respected accelerators from six continents around the world.