Everything you need to Launch and Run your tech startup efficiently....in 10 weeks

TechSpeak an expert-led 10-week virtual Accelerator gives you the essential technical knowledge and understanding, competence, and confidence to make the right decisions, at the right time.

We have a proven 10-step process, with frameworks and personalized coaching with a seasoned CTO, and will guide you step-by-step, putting you in control, systematically reshaping your approach to product development, executing faster, and paving the way to your success.

Next cohort starts February 20

Choose your pathway to success

  • Idea Stage Path

  • MVP Optimization Path

Validate your idea, learn the tech process, and become pitch ready in 10 weeks.

We will walk you through every step to validate your idea and build and test a clickable prototype of your solution. We will also help you level up as a founder, make it easier for you to attract the right talent for your team, and teach you all the steps of the development process so you are prepared to manage your team. You will be able to build your tech product effectively and efficiently without wasting thousands of dollars to mistakes...extending your startup’s runways. No prior tech experience required!

Weeks 1 - 4

VALIDATE AND REFINE THE IDEA & IDENTIFY EARLY ADOPTERS

Many companies invent new products and develop features that they think, hope, and pray, their customers will use… and pay for…and very often, they’re wrong. After spending months building and perfecting their ideas, only a few of their customers end up using them…that’s a lot of wasted of time, money, and resources.



Not validating your feature ideas and functionality with your customers BEFORE you code them is probably the most costly mistake you can make. When you jump straight into coding without validating, you’ll end up building a lot of unnecessary features and functionalities that customers won’t end up using… resulting in a lot of wasted development.



In fact, the cost of not validating has a CASCADING EFFECT. First, you’ll waste time, money and resources in the development stage, and then more time, money and resources, at the sales and marketing stage. You will spend extra time and money at every stage…possibly for features and functionalities that no one will ever use.



In weeks 1-4, our goal is to help you identify and refine the problem that you are solving and identify the exact early adopter customers who will pay for your possible solution.

You'll learn the step-by-step blueprint for how to talk to customers properly so you can identify painkiller ideas and the entire framework for conducting customer development (aka problem interviews)…including, how to identify what hypothesis to test and how to formulate your interview questions so they are connected to the hypothesis you’re testing. You’ll learn to ask better, smarter, and more focused questions and get better and more nuanced insights. And, you’ll learn how to set up and conduct the interviews so you receive genuine responses and you’re not simply leading users to your solution.

Week 7

LEARN THE PROPER WAY TO PLAN & PREPARE FOR DEVELOPMENT

In week 7, you will continue to refine your idea and the solution.

This week, we will also start teaching you the proper way to plan and prepare for development of your Minimal Viable Products (MVPs).
 
When defining Minimal Viable Products (MVPs), what most people think is correct is to reduce the number of features (for example from 10 features to 5 features), but it is not enough to simply reduce the number of features.  We will teach you how to define your MVPs based on your time and cost constraints.


Have you ever wondered how the exact same project can be estimated to cost $10K and $50K and both estimates can be completely valid and legitimate?  


The details of WHAT and HOW you build your product matter a lot.


You must plan your MVPs based on your time and cost constraints so you can launch quickly and inexpensively, and so you don’t build more than is necessary. For this to work, your development teams, whether in-house or outsourced, need to be trained in how to build products with Lean and Agile methodologies.


Your team will need to understand how to make decisions from the Learn early, learn often, learn cheap perspective…and many technical people are very uncomfortable doing this…they want to build the perfect solution that scales to millions of users, or use the “shiny new” technology that THEY want to learn and get experience in. But what you need to do is determine the minimal viable product that you can launch with and launch as quickly as possible and then refine, scale, and iterate from there.


You will also continue to improve and refine your pitch and pitch deck.

Week 8

LEARN HOW TO HIRE & HOW TO MANAGE YOUR DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

In week 8, you will continue to refine your idea and the solution.
 


This week, you will learn how to hire A-player developers that fit into your company culture and if you decided to outsource or off-shore the development, how to ensure that you don’t lose your money.

Every person in a startup is essential and when one is not performing to their full capacity, it creates delays and often times results in the decrease of the entire team’s morale, diminishing everyone’s productivity potential.



We will teach you our 7-Step Hiring Process that you can use to hire technical people, even as a non-technical person. You will also learn our framework for creating a culture for your startup and tips and techniques for working with outsourced and offshore development teams.
 



This week, you will also learn how to manage your development process using the agile project management frameworks that I’ve refined over many years, to make sure you can deploy code quickly and efficiently and have the flexibility to be able to adjust the product roadmap if the need arises.  

The idea here is to increase the rate at which you are releasing new product features and/or improved functionality.  You will learn how to go from releasing every 3-6 months to 2 weeks to 1 week, to multiple time a day product releases, so you can launch early and often, which allows you to learn and iterate a lot faster.


You will continue to improve and refine your pitch deck.

At the end of the 10 weeks you will

Become a Tech-savvy Leader

Manage & hire the right people who are willing to work within the Learn early, learn often, learn cheap culture that you set, and be able to spot the red flags early and often and address them before they become giant and expensive problems. 



Validate Your Idea

Ensure that your idea is a painkiller.
Identify early customers and understand how to best monetize your idea.

Build & Test a Clickable Prototype

Build a click-through prototype without writing any code! And then refine your solution with customers before you write code. 



Budget & Estimate Effectively

Learn to strategically plan product releases and optimize for best cost and fastest delivery so you can launch as quickly as possible and refine and iterate from there.

Create a Plan for Building Your MVP

Learn to plan an mvp based on your time and cost constraints. Reduce it to the most minimal version using the cost reducing strategies you will learn so it’s optimized for best cost and fastest delivery.



Refine Through Rapid Iterations

Learn to remove the guesswork from product improvements. Use data to make data driven decisions, preventing you from spending a lot of resources building the wrong things.

See Red Flags Sooner & Avoid Costly Mistakes

Learn how to optimize your Agile practices so your team has daily product releases and executes like a well-oiled machine.



Become Pitch Ready

Work on your pitch slide deck, practice and refine your pitch, get feedback on your pitch and identify pitch competitions/investors.

We've got you covered...start to finish.

10 Steps

Use TechSpeak 10-step process to build your tech startup. Become more lean, agile, focused, and efficient.

10 Weeks

In 10 weeks, validate your idea and potential solution before investing thousands into development

Our Graduates Say TechSpeak is a Must for All Entrepreneurs

Meredith Oppenheim

Founder and CEO, NurtureMed

Armed with TechSpeak information I can now play offense rather than defense. I now know how to hire the right people, ask the right questions and get the technology development and deployment process right from the start.

John Oelze

Co-Founder of Invenire.org

TechSpeak was invaluable and would save any entrepreneur time and money! Few things in life can offer that much in such a short period of time. I spent a lot more time and money on/in college and came out with a lot less than I did from ONE day of class with Nelly!

Liz Kressel

Founder of Collectors Quest

TechSpeak had my mind reeling from day 1 - not just of costly mistakes that could have been avoided but of how I could improve things in my company immediately."

Josef Ruef

CEO of Verical.com Mentor at Founder Institute

Had I known the information I learned at TechSpeak before, I wouldn't just have a good exit, I would have had a GREAT exit and it would have happened a lot sooner!

Mai Ling Chan

Founder of YappGuru

This is a fantastic resource for tech entrepreneurs at ANY stage of development. Unexpected, revolutionary and empowering system to truly take control of the development process and ultimately save valuable time and money

Ben Vides

VP, Strategy Development at Acceller

I have a strong background in software & product development, but I still learned an enormous amount. Even if you are technical and work at a big company, you'll learn tons of practical & innovative concepts that you can put to use immediately in your organization.

"The TechSpeak process is designed to remove as much GUESSWORK and as many ASSUMPTIONS as possible and is optimized for LEARNING early, often, and cheaply, so you don’t WASTE too much time and money going in the wrong direction, see the red flags sooner, and minimize mistakes."

Nelly Yusupova

Creator of TechSpeak for Entrepreneurs

Join the next cohort on February 20

$3,995

$400/week

Reserve your seat below with a $500 deposit

TEAMS


2 - 5 people (save 5%)

6 + people   (save 10%)

  • 10-step Techspeak Framework
  • Live support with Nelly
  • Private Slack Support
  • Templates, guides, checklists
  • Long term skill building
  • Access to Product Expert
  • Access to CTO Expert
  • Founder Community

Frequently Asked Questions

What is TechSpeak?

TechSpeak is an online learning program developed by a seasoned CTO, Nelly Yusupova, where she teaches entrepreneurs the most efficient & effective way to manage development teams and projects…all based on time-tested strategies and methodologies that she uses every day, on every feature, on every project, with every developer.

TechSpeak is a fast-paced, information filled program that will take you from apprehension and trepidation to energized and empowered. It will provide you with a roadmap to avoid costly technology mistakes and provide you with clarity, vision, and the ability to execute consistently on the right strategies…fast-tracking your success and save you years of expensive trial and error.

Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned entrepreneur with a tech team, you will be able to learn a proven roadmap to accelerate your time to market. Every improvement in your process and team communications will have a great impact on your company's efficiency, speed, and bottom line.

All of the course materials including steaming videos, demos, PDF guides, checklists, and templates are within the online member portal so you can participate from anywhere.

What is the difference between the TechSpeak Self-Paced program and the TechSpeak accelerator?

The TechSpeak Self-Paced Program is designed for entrepreneurs and teams that want to learn the TechSpeak 10-step process and move through the learning as fast as possible…they create their own pace.  Self-paced learning program allows more flexibility as to pacing of the learning and they themselves take on the responsibility to remain focused and disciplined through it all.

In the self-pace program, individuals and teams go through the curriculum and the frameworks on their own and when ready, join the weekly personalized group coaching sessions (currently happening every Friday at 11am EDT).  


During the weekly coaching calls, they get answers to their questions, receive guidance and gain clarity, become highly motivated achievers. They become a part of a thriving community of like-minded professionals going through the TechSpeak self-paced program.  Students also have access to discounted 1:1 support with a fractional CTO, if they need it.  You can self-enroll in the TechSpeak Self-Paced program at any time.
 
The TechSpeak Accelerator is designed for entrepreneurs who would like to have a more direction oriented and structured experience with personalized guidance, advice, and accountability.  This means that it runs on a set schedule with a seasoned CTO guiding you every step of the way.
Every week, you will be assigned coursework where you will learn the materials and take decisive action on what you learn. You will be given templates, guides, and checklists so you can save time and focus on doing the work.
You will then bring your work and questions to our live group sessions where you will be working with a facilitator (currently me) who will check your work, give you feedback, and answer any questions you may have to further your momentum and to ensure you’re not getting stuck.

We will run the accelerator experience a few times a year.  The next cohort starts on October 10, 2024  

What is the time commitment and expected workload to complete the program?

The Idea Stage Path & MVP Optimization Path of the TechSpeak accelerator will run in parallel and require participation in live sessions (which will be also available as recordings), working on assignments, and community interaction throughout the 10-week duration.
 
Every week, you will be assigned coursework where you will learn the materials and take decisive action on what you learn. You will be given templates, guides, and checklists so you can save time and focus on doing the work.

You will then bring your work and questions to our live group sessions where you will be working with a facilitator (currently me) who will check your work, give you feedback, and answer any questions you may have to further your momentum and to ensure you’re not getting stuck.

This way of learning is very effective as you will be able to watch the videos as many times as you want, pause when you need to, do your work at your own pace, and come to the live session prepared with concrete questions, or examples of what you want to accomplish, and with your personal sticking points.

We anticipate the following minimum commitment each week:
2 - 3 hours of live sessions
6 - 9 hours of work outside of live sessions
Total of at least 8-12 hours per week.

What if I can't attend a live session?

No worries! We’ve got you covered! Although we encourage live session participation, we do understand that things may come up and you may not be able to attend all live session. If you miss a session, a recording will be available to you.

What types of products do you consider to be Tech?

The program is focused on software products from any industry and we believe that nearly any all expertise can be automated, systematized and scaled with software. 

Therefore businesses providing any type of services, consulting, or freelance that wants to build a tech product is a good fit.

What if I don't have an idea for a specific tech product or I have multiple ideas for tech products?

If you don’t yet have a solid idea to pursue but would like to learn the skills necessary for when you have solidified your idea, the TechSpeak self-paced program is most likely a better option for you.

The 10-week accelerator pace and hands-on approach does not afford you the time you would need to validate and test multiple ideas. If you fall into this category, we recommend that you join the TechSpeak self-paced program.

If I follow the Idea Stage Path, will I be ready to build my solution by the end of the program?

Yes! In the Idea Stage Path, we’ll walk you through every step to validate your idea and build a clickable prototype of your possible solution. You'll also level up as a founder and learn all the steps of the development process and prepare you to manage a tech team effectively and efficiently.

I have an MVP in the market. Can this program help me?

Yes. If you already have an MVP in the market, you should choose the MVP Optimization Path of the accelerator to become leaner, more agile, more focused, and efficient, cutting your development costs by up to 50%.

We’ll teach you how to systematically revamp your product development process and iterate to success faster. Learn how to optimize your startup’s product development, manage your teams better, and cut your costs by up to 50%.

“Even though I have worked in Technology for years, I learned a huge amount of usable advice that I can apply straight away to improve my latest business. I would recommend this bootcamp to anybody either in or contemplating a startup".
James Sowry
Director, Radix Software

“I have a strong background in software & product development, but I still learned an enormous amount. Even if you are technical and work at a big company, you’ll learn tons of practical & innovative concepts that you can put to use immediately in your organization.”
Ben Vides
VP, Strategy Development at Acceller
“I’m a developer yet I learned a lot of leadership, CEO things at TechSpeak. This workshop is not just for “non-techie” people, it’s also for developers who don’t want to remain “code monkeys” for ever!
Shiva Manjunath
Full stack developer & entrepreneur 
“Had I known the information I learned at TechSpeak before, I wouldn’t just have a good exit, I would have had a GREAT exit.”
Josef Ruef
CEO of Verical.com & Mentor at Founder Institute

Do you recommend that I join with my team and do you offer team discounts?

Yes! The team that learns together executes with one mind!  One of the biggest benefits of learning the TechSpeak process with your team is that you will all speak the same language (and process) and can hit the ground running by efficiently implementing the strategies that you all learn.

Yes, you can learn this process on your own and try to teach it to everyone else on your team, but not only is this going to be very hard because there are a lot of details in this training and this information is very difficult to teach, unless you are deeply familiar with the process...it is also time consuming to take on the responsibility for teaching everyone, rather than everyone learning the process at the same time on their own and be able to very quickly start working with the same set of principles.

Everyone on your team will have different experiences and will pick up different key elements from the same information and what I find is that when people learn this process together in parallel, they can teach each other these different key elements during planning and implementation of the concepts...pushing each other forward faster.

Team discounts:
2-5 people get 5% discount each
6+ people get 10% discount each


“I rescheduled surgery and missed an important family function to attend with no regrets. I’m sorry that I didn’t bring my entire staff!”
Susan Perry – CEO, Taylannas
“This is an entire soup-to-nuts workshop of everything you need to know to build a startup. This workshop would be great for the whole team!”
Ivy Eisenberg – Lean Customer Research/UX, Our Idea Works LLC

How is TechSpeak different than other Accelerators?

I’ve worked and mentored many entrepreneurs who have graduated from over 10 different accelerators and consistently see that entrepreneurs lack the knowledge of being able to execute on product development effectively…. accelerators assume that founders know it.

Unfortunately, most entrepreneurs:

  • Don’t have the time to go to school or scour the Internet to learn all of the skills of product managers and project managers.
  • Have technical leaders who don’t know an effective process based on Lean and Agile methodologies. This creates confusion, miscommunication, over building, delays, and dysfunction within their entire team.

Some entrepreneurs might know the Lean Startup terminology, but don’t actually know how to turn it into a process that their entire team can follow and execute on.

TechSpeak was designed specifically to address all of these issues and give founders and their teams a practical, actionable process that anyone from a team of 1 to a team of 50, or more, can execute and find product-market fit faster.

Our goal is to help our entrepreneurs learn these crucial skills without giving up ownership in their businesses and as such, we don’t offer funding nor require an equity stake in your company…you gain all of the knowledge and you keep all of your equity.

I'm a complete newbie and have no technical background, will TechSpeak go over my head?

No. Any past experience will help, but, it’s, most definitely, not necessary.

The program is fast paced, but, I break down each process step-by-step and make sure everyone understands the material and as the curriculum is 100% online, you will be able to watch the videos as many times as you want, pause when you need to, do your work at your own pace, join the online sessions and get all of your questions answered and all of your concerns assuaged.

Again, you DO NOT need technical experience to participate. When I developed the program, I wanted to make sure that all entrepreneurs walked away with an entire product development process – starting with validating an idea, though planning & development, setting the company tone and culture, executing your plans, and using analytics to improve your product and scale.

I’m based outside of the US.  Can I join?

Yes. The content of the program is location independent. We also will schedule the live sessions to accommodate as many time zones as possible.

What is the goal of the pitch demo?

Our goal is to have you pitch-ready so you can raise money to build your validated product…if you choose too.  You will be prepared to enter pitch competitions, pitch angel investors and/or friends and family, or even apply for grants.  We will provide you with resources to help you identify pitch competitions, investors, and grant opportunities.

Throughout the 9 weeks, you will be developing your pitch, practicing it, and refining it.


On week 10 you will be able to pitch your idea at demo day.

Also, as an intentional byproduct, throughout the 10-week program you will gain an understanding of how to sell and market to your customers, how to acquire customers, your sales and business model, and so much more.

What happens after the accelerator finishes?

After completing the Techspeak Accelerator program, you will continue to be a part of the online TechSpeak community of entrepreneurs through our Slack group. Our Slack group is a forum with other entrepreneurs who have gone through the TechSpeak self-paced or Accelerator program, so you can continue provide each other support and accountability. 

You will also continue to have lifetime access to the TechSpeak curriculum and the frameworks, templates, guides, and checklists so you can keep on working on them and optimizing your process as you continue to grow and scale.

Is there support available after the 10-week program?

Yes! After completion of the Techspeak Accelerator program, you will have an opportunity to join our weekly group coaching sessions at $97/mo.

You will also have access to discounted fractional CTO services that are available to all TechSpeak graduates.  The cost to graduates is $250/hr (vs $450/hr to everyone else) and there are no retainer minimums for graduates. Which means, you can book a session for as little as an hour when/if you need unbiased, high level, strategic advice from a Fractional CTO.

Does TechSpeak have a guarantee?

Yes! At TechSpeak, we are confident that you’ll get enormous benefit from the experience and we’re happy to back that up with our 90-day money back guarantee. See our refund policy for details.

If you follow and implement every one of the 10 steps in the process, it will help you think differently and on a whole new level. It will shift your thinking and shorten your timeline toward success. You will learn a lot of new concepts, terminologies, technologies and processes. So get ready to grow and have shifts in the way you lead, think, and work.

Can I expense this training as professional development or can my employer help pay for this?

For Entrepreneurs:
If you own your own business, you may be able to expense the cost of the TechSpeak Accelerator as a business expense. Professional development, especially training that enhances your ability to run your business more efficiently, can often be considered a deductible business expense. This could include learning how to manage tech projects, improve your product development processes, and lead your team more effectively—all key components of the TechSpeak Accelerator.

To do this, you’ll want to ensure the expense is categorized correctly in your accounting software or records, typically under “Professional Development” or “Training.” Consulting with your accountant or bookkeeper can help confirm that this training qualifies as a business expense and is deducted properly on your taxes.

Investing in your skills through the TechSpeak Accelerator not only benefits you personally but can also contribute to the overall success of your business—making it a smart and justifiable expense.

For Employees:
Many companies support their employees’ professional development and offer reimbursement for training programs that enhance job-related skills. The TechSpeak Accelerator is designed to equip you with essential skills in managing tech projects and teams, making it highly relevant to roles in product management, project management, and leadership.

You can present this program to your employer as an investment in your ability to contribute more effectively to the company’s tech initiatives. It’s worth checking with your HR department or manager about the possibility of expensing this training as part of your professional development. If your employer has a budget for continuing education or training, they may be willing to cover some or all of the costs. I can also provide any documentation or details you need to help make the case to your employer. Just let me know!

I still have further questions. Is there someone I can talk to decide if the program is right for me?

Absolutely!  ! And, we look forward to the conversation book a call with Nelly by clicking here.

Nelly Yusupova is a CTO, with over 18 years experience, leading companies to technical excellence. She is a start-up tech advisor, outsourced CTO, and the creator of TechSpeak for Entrepreneurs Academy.

Nelly is on a mission to help entrepreneurs minimize technology mistakes and through her online masterclass TechSpeak for Entrepreneurs, she provides the roadmap to successfully manage technology teams and projects, even if your are not technical or know how to code.



Nelly was included in Fast Company’s, “League of Extraordinary Women”, and has been at the forefront of the women’ s movement online since 1999.  She was also named Wall Street Journal’s “Woman on the IT Fast Track”.

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