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ETEC 522 – Ventures in Learning Technologies
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  • W01: Emerging Markets
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    • Global Dynamics
    • Who is the Customer?
    • What is a Venture?
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    • A Game with Three Pitches
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  • W05-12: Opportunity Forecasts
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esthertester

esthertester

I am originally from Wales but am now based on beautiful Prince Edward Island. I manage an e-learning production team at JKN, Inc. and run my own digital publishing company.

imageI am a wife to serial entrepreneur, Stuart Duncan, who runs a mobile games company, with offices in Charlottetown and Toronto. Together we have two fantastic children and enjoy a busy, but fulfilling, life.

CompanyCAVU: Micro-learning onboarding ​for smart businesses

By esthertester on July 30, 2016

I am excited to share with you my venture, a SaaS micro-learning onboarding program called CompanyCAVU. CompanyCAVU is targeted at companies who are looking to fully engage their employees from day one. While there is fierce competition in this sector, CompanyCavu stands apart from the competition by focusing on employee growth instead of gains in […]

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Microlearning: Why smaller delivery can equal bigger impact for learners

By esthertester on June 19, 2016

I invite you all to read my EVA report on microlearning. As you’ll discover, this approach which may initially be interpreted as a simple repackaging of educational content is in fact providing new opportunities for companies to define e-learning products that are more suited to the way in which our modern learners live and work. […]

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Week #5 – Activity 3: Digital Textbooks (Publish This)

By esthertester on June 5, 2016

Through the internet, we have seen many large industries change almost overnight. Professional content creation is easier now than ever before, even through our handheld devices.  Distribution is equally as accessible and we are seeing more artists such as musicians and videographers electing to skip the middle-man and deliver their product directly to the consumer. […]

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Week #5 – Activity 2: Digital Textbooks (Positive Prospector)

By esthertester on June 5, 2016

As an Entrepreneurial Venture Analyst, skepticism comes with the territory, especially in light of the threats to the digital book industry. In this activity, however, we ask you to consider the positive possibilities of digital textbooks. In your line of work (outside of your assumed role of EVA in the course), consider how a digital […]

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Week #5 – Activity 1: Digital Textbooks (Creating Buy-In)

By esthertester on June 5, 2016

After reading through the content of The Textbook Reimagined, Anatomy of a Digital Textbook and the Implications it has for all agents involved, describe how you, as an entrepreneur, would make an argument to district and school administrators that shifting to a digital textbook would be beneficial to their organizations and provide value to their […]

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Welcome to Week #5: DIGITAL TEXTBOOK [R]EVOLUTION

Welcome to Week #5: DIGITAL TEXTBOOK [R]EVOLUTION

By esthertester on June 5, 2016

We are very excited to share our OER with you. DIGITAL TEXTBOOK [R]EVOLUTION focuses on the evolving marketing of digital textbooks. We’ll take you through an insightful journey that shows you the product and discusses the impact of this transformative medium on the players and the stakeholders. Follow along as we’ll show you why this […]

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Yardstick CEO

Chris LaBossiere, CEO of Yardstick Training & Testing

By esthertester on June 2, 2016

Yardstick (http://www.getyardstick.com) are posturing to become a direct competitor to JKN, the company I am employed by. The Justice Knowledge Network (JKN) is currently the dominant player in the space of e-learning products and solutions for Canadian police. JKN also owns a piece of the Canadian private security training and real estate sectors as well. […]

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eBook created for Holland College's Paramedicine Program

Hello classmates!

By esthertester on May 12, 2016

Hello All, My name is Esther Duncan. I am the Director of Innovation & Learning for The Justice Knowledge Network, a PEI-based company focused on technology-driven educational services and products for a number of verticals, including the Canadian police services and real estate associations. I also run a small digital publishing company called Magnus & […]

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6 Aug Posted on Hi Esther, Good points and Rodney had th…

It does - thanks for that, Laurie. This is interesting stuff. I think the re-use is key here. I didn't consider that (although I should have) during my review. Curious to know if you have a particular app in mind to use? Have you tested out a few already? Sorry for the multitude of questions. Your pitch is the most relevant to the work I am currently pursuing.

6 Aug
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esthertester @estherdu

It does - thanks for that, Laurie. This is interesting stuff. I think the re-use is key here. I didn't consider that (although I should have) during my review. Curious to know if you have a particular app in mind to use? Have you tested out a few already? Sorry for the multitude of questions. Your pitch is the most relevant to the work I am currently pursuing.

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6 Aug Posted on Hi Esther, Yes, one of the risks is not…

The business model of libraries is a mystery to me, but it seems that there should be a way in. Hope I wasn't too cutting in my review of your dream team. That certainly wasn't my intention. Sometimes trust trumps the CV, Briar. I get that and I wouldn't fault you for it.

6 Aug
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esthertester @estherdu

The business model of libraries is a mystery to me, but it seems that there should be a way in. Hope I wasn't too cutting in my review of your dream team. That certainly wasn't my intention. Sometimes trust trumps the CV, Briar. I get that and I wouldn't fault you for it.

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6 Aug Posted on FEEDBACK: I found it difficult to review…

Hi Chris, I likely should have gone into a bit more detail on the microlearning bit. Microlearning is really as it sounds. It refers to e-learning delivered as small chunks of information, generally broken down into 10-minute modules, focused on one specific concept. Microlearning is often referred to as mobile learning, m-learning, or “just in time learning” as it's designed to be consumed on-the-go, accessed by learners as and when needed. You can learn more about microlearning by visiting my A1 assignment at https://etec522m.sites.olt.ubc.ca/2016/06/19/microlearning-why-smaller-delivery-can-equal-bigger-impact-for-learners/

6 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Chris, I likely should have gone into a bit more detail on the microlearning bit. Microlearning is really as it sounds. It refers to e-learning delivered as small chunks of information, generally broken down into 10-minute modules, focused on one specific concept. Microlearning is often referred to as mobile learning, m-learning, or “just in time learning” as it's designed to be consumed on-the-go, accessed by learners as and when needed. You can learn more about microlearning by visiting my A1 assignment at https://etec522m.sites.olt.ubc.ca/2016/06/19/microlearning-why-smaller-delivery-can-equal-bigger-impact-for-learners/

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6 Aug Posted on Hello Esther, I found your pitch to be v…

Hi Cole, Thanks for your review and inquiry. While it wasn’t specified in the pitch, I see CompanyCAVU being more suited to start-ups as it is specifically these early phase companies that tend to move at a much faster paced than established organization that need to light a fire within their employees. It is these new venture that also need to develop and exploit as much of their people’s talent and energy as they can in order to survive. In terms of start-up costs, I would expect a few round financing to be in the $350K mark to take us to beta phase of the product, although I would be inclined to go after innovation funding in the early days and look at giving in up a piece of the company later on when we’re talking more serious dollars.

6 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Cole, Thanks for your review and inquiry. While it wasn’t specified in the pitch, I see CompanyCAVU being more suited to start-ups as it is specifically these early phase companies that tend to move at a much faster paced than established organization that need to light a fire within their employees. It is these new venture that also need to develop and exploit as much of their people’s talent and energy as they can in order to survive. In terms of start-up costs, I would expect a few round financing to be in the $350K mark to take us to beta phase of the product, although I would be inclined to go after innovation funding in the early days and look at giving in up a piece of the company later on when we’re talking more serious dollars.

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6 Aug Posted on Hi Esther, I used to work in Human Resou…

Hi Briar, Thanks for your review. You touch on some great points. I left pedagogy out of this due to the target investment audience who I believe to be more focused on other areas. It is clear I missed some detail on the “how this actually works” part of my pitch. I am regretful of that as there were many ideas. I think some of that woul have filled in the gaps for you. This is a fictional company, but some of the concepts (particularly microlearning) are aligned with some ideas I am brewing and certainly some of the research I did may be applied to a venture in the future. To address your questions about the affiliate revenue model. This would be a revenue model that I would expect to bring into play by year 3 of roll-out. The basic concept is to partner with services that are offered through the company’s benefit plan (eg: eye exams, massage) and select particular companies who would pay CompanyCAVU for advertising in the app. If an employee clicked on a coupon or ad from the CompanyCAVU app for that service with that particular company, CompanyCAVU would recieve a referral fee.

6 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Briar, Thanks for your review. You touch on some great points. I left pedagogy out of this due to the target investment audience who I believe to be more focused on other areas. It is clear I missed some detail on the “how this actually works” part of my pitch. I am regretful of that as there were many ideas. I think some of that woul have filled in the gaps for you. This is a fictional company, but some of the concepts (particularly microlearning) are aligned with some ideas I am brewing and certainly some of the research I did may be applied to a venture in the future. To address your questions about the affiliate revenue model. This would be a revenue model that I would expect to bring into play by year 3 of roll-out. The basic concept is to partner with services that are offered through the company’s benefit plan (eg: eye exams, massage) and select particular companies who would pay CompanyCAVU for advertising in the app. If an employee clicked on a coupon or ad from the CompanyCAVU app for that service with that particular company, CompanyCAVU would recieve a referral fee.

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6 Aug Posted on Hi Esther, I think your elevator pitch i…

Hi Michael, My apologies about the confusion around the term. Onboarding is simply the process by which a new employee starts a company or a new position. It is often thought to run around 90 days, as this is seen to the term of assimilation into a company’s culture and practices. Here’s a quick read that gives you a good sense of onboarding: http://employer.careerbuilder.com/jobposter/small-business/article.aspx?articleid=atl_0192onboardingtips_s

6 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Michael, My apologies about the confusion around the term. Onboarding is simply the process by which a new employee starts a company or a new position. It is often thought to run around 90 days, as this is seen to the term of assimilation into a company’s culture and practices. Here’s a quick read that gives you a good sense of onboarding: http://employer.careerbuilder.com/jobposter/small-business/article.aspx?articleid=atl_0192onboardingtips_s

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6 Aug Posted on Esther, may I first say how wonderful yo…

Hi Tomek, many thanks for your kind review. Regarding costs, I did go fairly deep into the research for this assignment and spoke with a sales rep. from both ClearCompany and iCIMS Onboard, 2 of the 3 competitors To CompanyCAVU that I listed. They were both offering subscription models. iCIMS Onboard was priced at $5-7 USD per employee, plus a set-up cost. ClearCompany had a subscription pricing based on admins, with ~$6K USD per year for 2 admin seats. Neither company offered any creative services to help as they were very focused on forms and process. CompanyCAVU would stand apart from this as being a more creative service, with process bits woven in. Therefore, our pricing would be based on company sizes (S,M,L) and then a fee for the creative consulting and development team.

6 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Tomek, many thanks for your kind review. Regarding costs, I did go fairly deep into the research for this assignment and spoke with a sales rep. from both ClearCompany and iCIMS Onboard, 2 of the 3 competitors To CompanyCAVU that I listed. They were both offering subscription models. iCIMS Onboard was priced at $5-7 USD per employee, plus a set-up cost. ClearCompany had a subscription pricing based on admins, with ~$6K USD per year for 2 admin seats. Neither company offered any creative services to help as they were very focused on forms and process. CompanyCAVU would stand apart from this as being a more creative service, with process bits woven in. Therefore, our pricing would be based on company sizes (S,M,L) and then a fee for the creative consulting and development team.

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6 Aug Posted on Esther, congratulations on the interesti…

Many thanks for your review, Stephen. I realize, as others have pointed out, that my pitch may have been missing some detail. To answer your direct question of how it would be implemented, I envision that CompanyCAVU would make available to employees a branded app that they can run on their phones, tablets or access via the web. The app would contain the journey (the story) along with some tasks to achieve along the way. The would be options for companies on how this could be implemented which would reflect their company culture. For example, this could be an animated story, a video, text-based or an audio story with images. The value that CompanyCAVU would offer is the platform for distribution and the consulting arm that can work with the company to create the content.

6 Aug
1 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Many thanks for your review, Stephen. I realize, as others have pointed out, that my pitch may have been missing some detail. To answer your direct question of how it would be implemented, I envision that CompanyCAVU would make available to employees a branded app that they can run on their phones, tablets or access via the web. The app would contain the journey (the story) along with some tasks to achieve along the way. The would be options for companies on how this could be implemented which would reflect their company culture. For example, this could be an animated story, a video, text-based or an audio story with images. The value that CompanyCAVU would offer is the platform for distribution and the consulting arm that can work with the company to create the content.

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4 Aug Posted on ONCON Inc. – Online Conference Venue and Event Management Services

Hi Briar, Nicely done. Here are few points that stood out for me: Your phased start-up chart was very insightful. It read as a view into your thought process for this venture, which was nice. Identifying the need to put a MVP (minimum viable product) out the door was great to see as this is often overlooked. The key to the success of this business seems to be proliferation and getting your numbers up. In this vain, how you are approaching the marketing of your product was a bit confusing for me. Getting right in front of everyone who's trying to access journal articles is what you're after here. Would this not be through library systems? If you could figure out how to partner with large libraries, or even cosy up to the software companies and form a partnership, perhaps you'd achieve that end. While your dream team has a very polished presence, but the qualifications of your COO and in particular your CMO don't seem very strong given the undertaking you are looking to pursue. This poses a potential credibility problem for investors. I would be inclined to look for people with expertise in marketing for a marketing position. You did a great job with this venture pitch. I am keen to know if you're going to run with it. Regards, Esther

4 Aug
1 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Briar, Nicely done. Here are few points that stood out for me: Your phased start-up chart was very insightful. It read as a view into your thought process for this venture, which was nice. Identifying the need to put a MVP (minimum viable product) out the door was great to see as this is often overlooked. The key to the success of this business seems to be proliferation and getting your numbers up. In this vain, how you are approaching the marketing of your product was a bit confusing for me. Getting right in front of everyone who's trying to access journal articles is what you're after here. Would this not be through library systems? If you could figure out how to partner with large libraries, or even cosy up to the software companies and form a partnership, perhaps you'd achieve that end. While your dream team has a very polished presence, but the qualifications of your COO and in particular your CMO don't seem very strong given the undertaking you are looking to pursue. This poses a potential credibility problem for investors. I would be inclined to look for people with expertise in marketing for a marketing position. You did a great job with this venture pitch. I am keen to know if you're going to run with it. Regards, Esther

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4 Aug Posted on Framework: An App that Redefines Homework

Hi Aaron, This is a very strong venture pitch. You are very credible - I am was extremely impressed with the concept and your presentation and I would certainly entertain an investment. Your phased approach to roll out is very smart. Offering the freemium model on year 2 is also a good way to allow for trying out the app before committing. I am wondering, however, if teachers are the most desirable buyers for this app. Would there be more benefit to targeting a higher level buyer instead? Also, what about outside of schools such as publishers, libraries and museums? Had you thought about these markets instead of or in addition to schools? You've left me with little fault to find. Many thanks for sharing your idea. I am keen to know if you plan to pursue it. Regards, Esther

4 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
esthertester @estherdu

Hi Aaron, This is a very strong venture pitch. You are very credible - I am was extremely impressed with the concept and your presentation and I would certainly entertain an investment. Your phased approach to roll out is very smart. Offering the freemium model on year 2 is also a good way to allow for trying out the app before committing. I am wondering, however, if teachers are the most desirable buyers for this app. Would there be more benefit to targeting a higher level buyer instead? Also, what about outside of schools such as publishers, libraries and museums? Had you thought about these markets instead of or in addition to schools? You've left me with little fault to find. Many thanks for sharing your idea. I am keen to know if you plan to pursue it. Regards, Esther

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