# S2 E3: Strategic Planning for Hardware Success with Pete Blake

- Show: [The Builder Circle](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-builder-circle)
- Published: 2023-12-25
- Length: 1h 03m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-builder-circle/2023-12-25-s2-e3-strategic-planning-for-hardware-success-with-pete-blake
- Listen: https://rss.com/podcasts/thebuildercircle/1277712

## Summary

Pete Blake, a strategy advisor at Sapphire Steel and Techstars All-Star Mentor, explains how hardware founders can leverage ecosystem partnerships to bridge the gap between research and productization. He emphasizes holding tight to the customer problem while keeping the solution light, using Pasteur's Quadrant to balance pure science with application, and defining a clear role in the value chain to avoid spreading resources too thin. Blake details the three threads of a product roadmap—product, commercial, and operational—and warns against the 'corporate petting zoo' where startups fail to secure committed pilot partners. Finally, he advocates for governance for growth, urging founders to build diverse, active boards that drive strategic milestones rather than just serving as status reports.

## Outline

1. Introduction: Pete Blake and Sapphire Steel
2. Holding Tight to the Problem: Pasteur's Quadrant and Ecosystems
3. Defining Core Competencies and Value Chain Role
4. The Three Threads: Product, Commercial, and Operational Roadmaps
5. Avoiding the Corporate Petting Zoo: Pilot Commitment and Warning Signs
6. Hardware Horror Stories: Wave Energy and Smart Home Failures
7. Governance for Growth: Boards, Diversity, and Mentorship

## Topics

- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Hiring & workforce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/hiring-and-workforce)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Sapphire Steel (company)
- Techstars (company)
- Royal Academy of Engineering (other)
- Equinor (company)
- Imperial College London (other)
- Royal Institution (other)
- Carbon13 (other)
- Google Home (product)
- Alexa (product)
- Airbnb (company)
- Facebook (company)
- Google (company)
- Brad Feld (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [#063 - Your (hardware) product is not your product - think in terms of business models, with your host Balint Horvath, Switzerland](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2018-10-24-063-your-hardware-product-is-not-your-product-think-in-terms-of-business-models) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [216: 5 Key Tips For Starting Your Product Development Journey](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2024-03-11-216-5-key-tips-for-starting-your-product-development-journey) (Product Startup)
- [#066 - How to apply lean startup principles to hardware, with Ash Maurya of Leanstack, USA](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2019-01-16-066-how-to-apply-lean-startup-principles-to-hardware-with-ash-maurya-of-leanstac) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [166: Storytelling Tips for Hardware Product Launches](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-03-09-166-storytelling-tips-for-hardware-product-launches) (Product Startup)
- [#011 - Accelerate with an IoT accelerator, with Bay McLaughlin of Brinc, Hong Kong](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2017-02-01-011-accelerate-with-an-iot-accelerator-with-bay-mclaughlin-of-brinc-hong-kong) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)

## Citing this page

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