Be What’s Next.
Lab 1250 helps leaders bring their ideas to life faster, cheaper and safer by challenging the assumptions that stand in their way.
Experiences
We love talking shop with big thinkers and entrepreneurs. If you’re working on something big we’d love to connect.
See how Lab 1250 brought Over The Edge Adventure from concept to reality.
Workshop
Visioneering
WorkNicer Railyards
Calgary, AB
December 4, 2023
The Lab 1250 Method™
Lab 1250 offers a unique process that will bring your entrepreneurial vision to life. We collaborate closely with you throughout four distinct phases, continuing to validate and build traction for your innovation as we move forward.
Question
We dig deep, asking every crucial question and outlining the Five Bold Steps to guide your venture.
We study the new venture, poking it with sticks, asking every question we can think of, ruthlessly cataloging every assumption we have about it. The end result of our Question Phase is our Five Bold Steps plan, which outlines the five bold steps the entrepreneur will have to take in order to get the new venture from the lab to self-sustaining.
Discover
In the Discover Phase, the team at Lab 1250 crafts research to validate each of the assumptions uncovered in the Question Phase. We utilize three primary forms of market research in order to build a comprehensive strategic plan that contains data and facts, as opposed to gut feeling and best guesses.
Experiment
In the Experiment phase, we meticulously validate every assumption about the new venture. Using agile design thinking, we build minimal viable solutions aligned to the vision of the new venture that allows us to test and validate those assumptions.
Execute
We continue to work on our minimal viable products developed in the Experiment Phase, utilizing our build, measure, learn feedback loops to continually validate assumptions in design sprints that always end with real-world customer validation.
Work with Our Team 1-on-1
Our premium service expertly navigates you through the complete Lab 1250 journey, fast-tracking the path from ideation to successful commercialization. We simplify the process, leading to cost reduction and validation of core assumptions.
- We collaborate with four entrepreneurs every six months.
- Our selection process involves thoroughly assessing companies based on their level of innovation readiness.
- For those who are not chosen, our Residency and Workshop programs offer excellent opportunities to prepare and further develop.
5 Day Off-Site
Lab 1250 Residency offers a transformative five-day innovation lab, uniting our experts with your groundbreaking ideas, guiding you through every step of the Lab 1250 process.
- Each cohort is limited to a maximum of four companies.
- See our upcoming Residencies listed below.
- When reviewing applications, we consider entrepreneurs’ preparedness to commercialize the innovation.
- Residencies are overnight immersive experiences, and the price includes food and accommodation for the week. Transportation is not included.
We often talk about innovation as the magic pixie dust that can turn your business into the next Fortune 500 company. However, innovation is challenging and often painful. At times, it will even feel like your company’s immune system is working to rid itself of anything new.
And there’s some truth to that. But we’re here to help. In Workshop, you’ll bring your idea and an open mind. We’ll bring the tools and some guidance. Like an old shop teacher.
NOTE: Workshops are not seminars or masterclasses. They’re workshops. So, get ready to work to take your innovation to the next level.
Visioning
$599
Half-Day
Our Visioning workshop caters to entrepreneurs who aspire to cultivate innovation within their existing businesses.
PROCESS: QUESTION
You’ll Feel:
Confident
Excited
You’ll also walk away with:
Your vision thoroughly conceptualized and documented with clarity and precision.
A comprehensive list of assumptions in your vision.
A 5-Bold Steps Action Plan
Validating
$1999
Full Day
Our Validation workshop gives you the tools to begin validating the assumptions in your vision. Over this full-day course, you’ll find the product/market fit for your innovation and ensure you’re heading in the right direction.
PROCESS: DISCOVER
You’ll Feel:
Empowered
Motivated
You’ll also walk away with:
A Market Research Toolkit
Data that will fuel your innovation commcerialization
Venturing
$4999
THREE DayS OVER SIX WEEKS
Often, our first question is “What do you think of my idea?” The answer is fairly predictable. A better question is, “Will you give me $1000 for my idea?” The answer will provide you with much better insight into the value of your idea.
Our Venturing workshop is all about developing a minimally viable version of your idea and getting customers to pay you money for it.
PROCESS: EXPERIMENT & EXECUTE
You’ll feel:
Pumped
Like you're seeing your dreams come true
You’ll also walk away with:
A marketable version of your product
A minimally viable marketing plan
A proven pathway to commercialization
Assumption validation
Our Thoughts
We’re passionate about the world of ideas, business and the collision that happens when bold leaders, such as yourself, wildly abandon the status quo in search of something different. Something better. So we write about it. And we don’t let grammar get in the way.
End-User Value
Innovation is about bringing a vision to life, creating something new that disrupts the way we do things. It’s about pushing boundaries, exploring possibilities, and taking risks. But while vision is important, it’s not enough to make ideas succeed. Execution is what separates the dreamers from the doers, and it all starts with understanding your end user. In this post, we’ll explore the power of end-user value and how it can help make your vision a reality.
Succeeding Fast Means Failing Faster
Failure is a daunting word. It’s often associated with negative feelings like disappointment, shame, and fear. But when it comes to innovation, failure is actually a healthy and necessary part of the process. As innovators, it’s important that we learn how to deal with failure, learn from it, and thrive off of it. That’s why we started the Lab – to provide a safe space for innovators to take risks and fail without fear of judgment. In today’s blog post, we’re going to explore how failure is inevitable in innovation, how we should approach it, and how it can ultimately lead us to success.
Pivot or Perish
In the business world, change is the only constant. In a highly competitive market, it is essential to stay on top of trends and be agile enough to pivot when necessary. While every company begins with a specific vision, it is vital to be open to change, adapt to trends, and pivot accordingly. Companies that do not embrace a pivot risk becoming obsolete. In this blog post, we will discuss how to respond to data that suggests a pivot is necessary.
Delivering Value
Innovation is a wonderful thing. It gives birth to ideas that can change the way we live our lives. However, it can also be a double-edged sword, as not all great ideas turn into money-makers. This is why some people argue that a mechanism should be put in place to identify bad ideas before they waste valuable time and resources. On the other hand, focusing on the value that an idea can generate, rather than the idea itself, may be a better way of ensuring success. In this blog post, we will dive into the importance of staying focused on delivering value, rather than just the initial vision.
Start with the End
In today’s fast-paced business world, innovation is key to staying ahead of the competition. But with so many great ideas bouncing around, it’s easy to get lost in the rush of creating new products or services. This is where the concept of a minimal viable solution comes into play. But how do you ensure that your minimal viable solution will actually achieve the desired outcome? The answer is simple: start with the end in mind. In this blog post, we’ll explore why starting with outcomes is crucial to building a successful minimal viable solution and how to validate those outcomes.
Sometimes you have to go Over the Edge.
Charlie thought he was building a snowmobile rental company. Working with him to uncover his passion for adventure led him down a completely different path.
“Working with Lab 1250 brought clarity and trajectory I’ve never had before”.
Charlie Roy
Over The Edge
“Lab 1250 brought the necessary tools we needed to get FrankHR to its full potential.”
Kristan Strate
FrankHR
Workshop
Visioning
Calgary, Alberta
February 14, 2024
8:30am – 12:00pm
WorkNicer Red Mile
$299 FREE
Take the Innovation Readiness Assessment
Uncover the underlying assumptions in your next big idea.
TIME TO COMPLETE: 15-20 MINUTES
About
Land
We acknowledge that we are building our company on Treaty 6 and 7 territory, a traditional meeting grounds, gathering place and travelling route to the Cree, Saulteaux (So-toe), Métis, Dene (De-nay), Nakota Sioux (Sue), Blackfoot Nations including Siksika (Sick-sick-ah), Piikani (Pee-can-ee), and Kainai (Kigh-a-nigh), the Tsuut’ina (Soot- ina) Nation and Stoney Nakoda First Nations. We acknowledge all the many First Nations, Métis, and Inuit whose innovative nature have lead the way for entrepreneurs.