K J C D i g i t a l
Internal Methodology

How We Build Ventures

A tight, repeatable internal process that takes ideas from concept to independent businesses in 12-20 weeks.

Process Overview

An internal operating system for building ventures

KJC Digital builds and operates its own portfolio of businesses using a rigorous, stage-gated methodology.

Every internal venture follows the same systematic process — from initial idea validation through to independent operation — with clear gates, metrics, and decision points at each stage.

Internal Focus

We build our own ventures using shared infrastructure and methodology

Stage-Gated Process

Clear Go/Kill/Pivot decisions at each gate based on metrics

Shared Infrastructure

Engineering, DevOps, compliance, and operational backbone for all ventures

12-20
Weeks to Graduation
5
Stage Gates
2-6
Weeks to MVP
100%
Production-Ready

Graduation Package: Legal entity, brand kit, data room, investor-ready metrics

Our Process

Stage-Gated Lifecycle

From intake to spin-off in five systematic stages

Stage 0

Intake

1-2 weeks

Goal: Filter for solvable problems and internal resource fit before committing to build.

Inputs
  • • Idea brief
  • • Problem statement
  • • Market scan
  • • Risk checklist
Work
  • • Internal review
  • • JTBD discovery
  • • TAM/SAM/SOM sketch
  • • Compliance check
Exit Gate
  • • Clear customer job(s)?
  • • Early adopter profile?
  • • Non-trivial pain?
  • • MVP feasible in <6 weeks?

Frame

1-2 weeks

Goal: Achieve clarity on value proposition and success metrics before writing code.

Work
  • • JTBD interviews (5-10)
  • • Shadowing sessions
  • • Competitive teardown
  • • Pricing hypotheses
  • • Solution sketch
Decisions
  • • Primary KPI selected
  • • Success/failure thresholds
  • • MVP scope + guardrails
  • • Tech stack choices
Artifacts
  • • Product Requirement Outline
  • • Experiment Plan
  • • Analytics plan (AARRR)
  • • Wireframes/storyboards
Stage 1
Stage 2

Build

2-6 weeks

Goal: Deliver an MVP that measures the right things and can scale.

Work
  • • Thin-slice architecture
  • • Auth/billing/telemetry first
  • • Core feature slice
  • • Staging environment
  • • Observability setup
Quality Bars
  • • Security checklist passed
  • • Privacy compliant
  • • Payment processor ready
  • • Test coverage on core
  • • Uptime target defined
Artifacts
  • • Working MVP
  • • CI/CD pipeline
  • • Runbook v1
  • • Test plan
  • • Billing integration

Validate

4-8 weeks

Goal: Prove that customers use/pay and we can acquire/retain them profitably.

Work
  • • Pilot cohort (10-50 users)
  • • Pricing test
  • • Activation experiments
  • • Support loop
  • • Channel tests
Metrics
  • • Activation %
  • • WAU/MAU ratio
  • • Pay/Use conversion
  • • CAC & LTV
  • • D30 retention
Exit Gate
  • • PMF signals (qual+quant)
  • • Path to CAC<LTV/3
  • • Churn within bounds
  • • 2-3 repeatable channels
Stage 3
Stage 4

Spin-Off

2-4 weeks

Goal: Graduate to an independent company with clean contracts, brand, and operations.

Work
  • • New LLC formation
  • • Bank/processor onboarding
  • • Infrastructure isolation
  • • Data migration
  • • Brand/press kit
Exit Gate
  • • Operating LLC with bank
  • • Tax IDs obtained
  • • Payment providers active
  • • SLAs documented
  • • 90-day GTM plan
Graduation Package
  • • Formation docs
  • • Cap table + SAFEs
  • • Legal templates
  • • Brand kit
  • • Data room
Capabilities

Our Internal Capabilities

Shared infrastructure and expertise across all ventures

Engineering

Full-stack development (web, mobile, APIs), integrations, payment processing, and technical architecture.

Infrastructure

Managed hosting, CI/CD pipelines, monitoring, logging, backups, and 24/7 uptime management.

Compliance

Terms, Privacy, AUP templates; security baselines; processor integration; GDPR/CCPA support.

Go-to-Market

Positioning, messaging, landing pages, onboarding flows, and sales operations setup.

Analytics & Data

AARRR funnel tracking, cohort analysis, dashboards, and data-driven decision frameworks.

Business Formation

DBA setup, LLC formation, bank accounts, payment processors, legal templates, and brand kits.

Decision Framework

Internal Evaluation Criteria

How we evaluate internal ideas for advancement through the pipeline

Greenlight Signals

  • ✓ Pain is frequent and costly to customers
  • ✓ Clear early adopter segment identified
  • ✓ Reachable via 1-2 channels at reasonable CAC
  • ✓ MVP buildable in <6 weeks
  • ✓ No irremediable compliance blockers
  • ✓ Fits within internal resource capacity

Kill Signals

  • ✗ Solution in search of a problem
  • ✗ Customers can't be identified or reached
  • ✗ Requires years of R&D before viability
  • ✗ Illegal or high-risk prohibited activities
  • ✗ Resource requirements exceed internal capacity
  • ✗ Market already dominated by entrenched players
FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Who owns the ventures?

All ventures start as DBAs under KJC Digital LLC. Once a venture proves itself and graduates, it spins off into an independent LLC with its own cap table, governance, and operations.

How long does the process take?

Typical 12-20 weeks from intake to spin-off, depending on complexity and validation velocity. Each stage has clear timelines and exit criteria.

What happens if a venture doesn't pass a gate?

We make Go/Kill/Pivot decisions at each gate. If a venture doesn't pass, we may pivot the approach, pause to gather more data, or shut it down. Killing bad ideas fast is a feature, not a bug.

What happens after spin-off?

The new LLC operates independently with its own legal entity, bank accounts, and payment processors. KJC Digital typically retains equity and may provide ongoing infrastructure and operational support under service agreements.

How do you choose which ideas to build?

We evaluate ideas based on clear problem-solution fit, reachable early adopters, feasible MVP scope, compliance viability, and internal resource capacity. Ideas are reviewed internally and must pass Stage 0 gates before advancing.