Pre-Startup Skills: Workshop #3 - Introduction to Industry Analysis

This workshop will introduce the fundamental tool of Industry Analysis which companies use for strategy development. For startups, understanding the industry is a critical step in determining market entry and market positioning. The Five Forces Framework will be presented and applied to during an exercise.

Pre-Startup Skills: Workshop #4 - Foundations of IP and Patent Searching

This workshop will demystify and explain the various form of intellectual property (IP), namely, patents, industrial designs, copyright, trademarks, and trade secrets. We will then do some actual patent searching using the DERWENT worldwide patent database. 

Pre-Startup Skills: Workshop #5 - Market Research and Analysis of Competition

This workshop will provide an overview of the different types of market research, how to analyze the competition, and the resources available at McGill to perform market research. Our market research librarian will walk us through some of those resources using a new market research canvas tool.

Pre-Startup Skills: Workshop #6 - Customer Discovery

This workshop will provide an overview on the customer discovery process and then delve deeper into how to conduct customer interviews and how to iterate on your business model canvas.

Date: Oct. 21st, 2026 Time: 12:00 - 1:00 pm Location: in-person @ Engine Seminar Room - FDA 3 (Accessibility Map)