How do you bridge the ‘valley of death’? Bring a ladder.
Summary
When thinking about how to cross the valley of death, instead of a bridge, a better metaphor may be a stepladder; taking measured steps that include sizing the market, honing the product and ensuring that existing revenue is going toward funding product development that enables solutions to chart a path out of the “valley.” The reason transition is so difficult is that the expectations that accompany new concepts and technologies undermine the commitment to long-term efforts to adopt the capability. Exacerbating the issue, the companies driving the development and adoption of these maturing technologies also face heightened competition for follow-on rounds of venture capital funding. Conversely, you can take advantage of their infrastructure and contract vehicle options, and perhaps even squat at their office when visiting your growing customer base — COVID-19 be damned! As noted defense analyst Eric Lofgren has shared, this does not necessarily involve “winning” that big contract but rather developing solutions that can then be sold through Part 8 of the federal acquisition regulations using operations and maintenance funds. Many startup offerings may fall into this category, supporting larger companies that raised the venture funding necessary to compete for the program of record outright.