Empowering Startups: Key Insights from the Boostmeup Program

The participants are individuals, divided into teams, and have a business idea to present. The teams go through several stages: first, they attend lectures, then pitch their ideas, followed by working with mentors to prepare for market entry. It’s not a conference; it’s more of a competition to determine who will receive support for the best idea, and Aleksa Simic (CEO and co-founder of Aetherius Solutions) was invited to give a speech.

Why was Aleksa's speech important for startup founders?

We had previously been in contact with the main organizer, and it was a special honor when he invited Aleksa as one of the program’s lecturers. He thought of Aleksa because he wanted someone who had gone through all these stages and could, from experience, best share knowledge and advise participants on potential mistakes and challenges they may encounter.

The topic discussed was “Agile methods for product development”.

Agile methods are crucial for startup founders because they allow teams to adapt quickly, respond to market feedback, and iterate efficiently on their products. Startups often operate with limited resources and under high uncertainty, so Agile’s flexibility helps them manage changing requirements and optimize their time and budget.

Through iterative development and regular feedback cycles, founders can adjust their products based on real user input, creating a solution that better meets customer needs. Agile also promotes cross-functional collaboration, which is beneficial for startups when team members might have to do multiple jobs.

You can check here the most common mistakes our clients made during the development phase.

As someone with years of experience working with startups, Aleksa gave them a step-by-step guide on starting and dealing with challenges.

Main benefits for participants were:

• Practical lessons learned:

With firsthand experience in guiding startups through agile product development, Aleksa shared valuable lessons on overcoming obstacles specific to early-stage companies. This helped participants gain a clearer understanding of effective solutions in product development.

• Knowledge of implementing agile strategies:

Startups often benefit from an agile approach, but knowing how to apply agile methods to achieve real impact is key. Participants in the Boostmeup program had a chance to hear about these strategies in the context of startup needs, making agile principles more actionable for those just getting started.

• Market-ready mindset:

Participants can learn how to prioritize and execute based on market feedback. It is a skill that helps refine their ideas into competitive products. Hearing from someone who has helped startups reach market readiness motivates founders aiming to succeed in competitive environments.

• Inspiration from a trusted person:

Aleksa’s experience and success story provide a motivating example of how the right methods and mindset can lead to growth and success. For founders, especially, hearing from someone who has achieved similar goals can reinforce their commitment and inspire them to push forward.

Key takeaways from the speech

• Iterative development and flexibility

Agile methods provide startups with more control and predictability in the development process. This approach allows for product iteration and continuous improvement, which is ideal for evolving startup needs.

• Focus on MVP (Minimum Viable Product)

By starting with an MVP, startups can release a basic version of their product within two to four weeks. This method emphasizes building a defined set of core functionalities, enabling quick market entry and customer feedback.

• Product-market fit

Agile encourages focusing on one key feature that solves a core problem for users. This approach helps startups achieve a product-market fit faster, validating the product’s market relevance with each iteration.

• Team collaboration and responsibility

Agile promotes clearly defined roles and responsibilities within the team, fostering a collaborative and supportive work environment. Regular communication and productive meetings are emphasized to keep the project aligned with goals.

• Real-world application of agile

Sharing examples of both Agile and non-agile projects demonstrated how Agile methods led to faster development times, improved team satisfaction, and higher app store rankings. This real-world contrast illustrated the tangible benefits Agile brings to startups.

• Customizing agile for the team’s needs

While Agile provides a structured approach, there’s no one-size-fits-all. The speech highlighted the importance of adapting Agile principles to fit the specific team and project for the best results.

If you’d like to have Aleksa’s presentation, which he prepared and used to share his knowledge with those who had the opportunity to attend, you can download it here.

How do we approach app development for startups?

We know the journey from idea to app can be exciting and scary, so we make it as smooth and supportive as possible. We start by working with you to validate your idea, focusing on the things that will make your product stand out. If you already have an app idea and want to validate it before starting with development, do it here completely free. Once we finish the core features, we build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that can be launched in just 60 days, and then you’ll get real user feedback. That way, you can test the idea early on without committing too many resources and then adjust and fine-tune it based on real user feedback.

The process is designed to keep you flexible and responsive, allowing you to adapt as your vision evolves. For startup founders, this approach means faster, budget-friendly development, with a partner you can truly rely on. Developers at Aetherius Solutions have years of experience and love what they do, which is very important to have in your team because when someone has both knowledge and a desire for progress, as well as being motivated, it increases the chances of success by 70%.

Don’t let your innovative ideas stay on paper - our dedicated team is here to guide you through the MVP development process!