Startup Alley is the place to be at TechCrunch Disrupt 2021 on September 21-23. The sold-out expo area is the virtual home to hundreds of innovative startups ready to demo their tech and talent. While exhibiting offers plenty of opportunity for all, a VIP experience kicked off in July for 50 startup exhibitors the TechCrunch staff chose to form the first Startup Alley+ cohort.

Part of that experience includes a series of master classes in the run-up to Disrupt. Case in point, on August 24, Dan Olsen will lead a master class called “How to Create Product-Market Fit.” Now, we’re ready to share the next presentation, and it’s another great one, folks.

On August 17th, John Lynn, co-founder of CELA Innovation, and Jade Kearney, Lean Startup expert and co-founder and CEO of She Matters, will present a master class called, “The Key Principles of the Lean Startup Methodology.”

A quick tangent: If you’re not already familiar with CELA or what it does, the NYC-based company matches early-stage startups to world-class accelerators and incubators that align with a startup’s vertical and business goals. Last year, at Disrupt 2020, CELA connected the winners of our Pitchers and Pitches mini pitch-off competitions with an accelerator to boost their business.

Meanwhile, back at the master class: Change — positive or negative — is inevitable, and this master class will focus on what founders can do when change arrives on their doorstep. Examples of change can include receiving funding, running out of funding, losing a co-founder or a key customer or anything else that’s shaking up their situation.

John and Jade will help each cohort founder produce a Lean Startup transformation for one current business situation. Founders can then use it as a template for optimizing anything in their business the next time change comes calling.

The session begins by examining why you should use the Lean Startup methodology at inflection points — when there is a sudden change to your company, good or bad.

You’ll learn how you can use the Lean Startup methodology to create resources when you are overwhelmed by opportunity or just feel like you have gone as far as you can go with what you have.

Next, John and Jade will show how this methodology makes the difference between knowing what you want to build and learning what you need know about your customers, industry or product.

Lastly, Team CELA will isolate some of your key business activities as they exist right now. Then they will walk you through a process to turn that activity into a Lean Startup experiment that produces insights, new value and new opportunities.

TechCrunch Disrupt 2021 takes place September 21-23. Don’t miss your opportunity to meet the Startup Alley+ cohort and hundreds of other innovative startups in our expo area. Opportunity is knocking — buy your TC Disrupt 2021 pass and go kick down the door.

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