SchoolManager
A learning management system:
Posted in: Pitch Pool
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David Vogt
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ETEC 522 – September 2012
Ventures in Learning Technology
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Doug Connery 7:31 pm on September 18, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Venture pitch – School Manager
No, I would not invest in School Manager as I am not convinced there is a problem. It is not clear to me that there is an “… information-flow gap between the administrative functions and the classroom” as the pitch mentions.
The founder Keisha Edwards has great credentials and they indicate large potential for growth of the product in the market. I am also not clear how it will be profitable after one year of operation. And finally as a Educational Venture Analyst, I am not sure what they what, money to invest in their system, me to by the system or to feel good that they have developed a reasonable product.
Doug.
cunnian 10:04 pm on September 19, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
No, I would not invest in School Manager. Though the specifics of her platform are lacking, my suspicion is that this product is trying to compete in a market where there are already several major players. I did not get a sense of what makes this product stand out from the others. Unfortunately for the CEO, the other players have been around for a while and have established reputations for service and quality; schools are unlikely to gamble on a new and untested product regardless of whether it is less expensive or not.
The CEO is clearly competent and confident in her venture, but she makes no reference to a team or any other members of this venture. If schools are to use this software, then there needs to be a small army of support personnel to keep things running and help set schools up. This, if not already factored in, would represent a substantial overhead cost that could quickly erode her projected earning of $120 000.
John
sophiabb 10:09 pm on September 22, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
No, I would not invest in SchoolManager. The CEO’s over 21 years of experience in education and software development is admirable; but that may be the only good thing that SchoolManager has going for it. This pitch lacked specificity, clear evidence and an ask.
No clear market gap or problem was identified. The solution indicated a bridging of information flow platforms with no specifics on the proposed platform. No information was presented on the level of competition in this market. In fact, there was no evidence of marketing plan. There was no indication as to how SchoolManager plans on securing the necessary percentage of the market to for it to be profitable. Limited financials were given. A revenue of US$120,000 was projected for year one only. There was no sound basis for it. What is the unit cost for the product? What is the price point? At what point would break-even occur? It would have been great to see an income statement and projections up to 5 years. There was no mention of how much wass needed and no mention of a return on investment.
This seemed to be a one person show and may account for this very weak pitch. Successful ventures need a team of competent and experienced leaders in diverse areas, including marketing and finance.
~Sophia
kstackhouse 12:51 pm on September 23, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I agree with you and others that the amount she presented for the first year’s revenue was very impressive there is no real way of knowing how the venture will get there. This seems highly optimistic for a beginning company as well.