Playbooks are the strategies, tactics, and processes we use to build companies. We've organized the content by functional area:
FactoryX rapidly creates new companies through several overlapping cycles.
Our product development cycle lasts ten weeks. The first three weeks - what we call Combine - are about creating and testing many different products. The following seven weeks - what we call Deep Dive - are about refining just one idea.
Each combine week is an independent exploration of new products. Our schedule is:
- Monday Morning - Brainstorm potential ideas and self-organize into two or three teams to prototype solutions
- Monday Afternoon / Tuesday Morning - Teams create prototypes, sometimes working apps, sometimes clickable mock-ups
- Tuesday Afternoon - Test the prototypes with potential customers
- Wednesday / Thursday Morning - Create a new iteration of the product based on user feedback
- Thursday Afternoon Test the new version of the product with users
- Friday Make some changes to the product based on feedback and debrief
After three weeks of combine, we select the most promising product based on user feedback and market potential.
During the Deep Dive, we spend seven weeks developing one product. We build out the codebase and maintain our aggressive cadence of twice-weekly user testing. By the end of the product cycle - we aim to have a stable product with confidence that it solves the problems of at least one customer segment.
At the end of the ten weeks, the product development team begins its cycle anew.
As a product matures through the Deep Dive, our Marketing, Monetization, and Distribution (MMD) team conducts experiments to better understand the business opportunity.
The MMD team uses a plethora of techniques to validate customer segments, optimize messaging, understand distribution channels, and hone monetization strategy.
Once the product is stable, distribution channels are understood, and early revenue is attained, the company is ready to spin out. We find executives who have the right skills and culture and help them raise capital.