Tech Zulu Event

NOVEMBER 30, 2012

James (chairman of the Althea Foundation) and appointed Adam Sroka as Senior Vice President of Technology in a move to make business transactions simple and secure. . Jackson , “This financing round, coupled with hiring Adam Sroka as our head of technology, puts CapLinked in a position to further enhance our enterprise product offerings.”.

Technical Review 88

Technical Review Software Review Bertelsmann Technology 88

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 5, 2022

You may be convinced that your technical expertise, and your passion for the product, will allow you to succeed without reliance on team members, but in my experience, I have seen many careers and businesses fail due to lack of team synergy, or even in-fighting and dysfunction. Live by your team mission and company values.

Startup 119

Startup Technical Review Activity Social Media 119

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 29, 2010

Well, aside from it showing discipline and intelligence – we always get flooded with emails when we recruit and when you have to manage volume you need to go for obvious filters. If this isn’t you, we’d probably still have a look if you did something truly exception – probably at startup or tech firm.

Venture Capital 290

Venture Capital Technical Review GRP Partners Email 290

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 28, 2011

Guy’s latest book, Enchantment , was released in March of 2011, to overwhelmingly upbeat reviews. Of the 225 customer reviews currently posted on Amazon, over 90% are highly positive. I enjoyed the book as well, as evidenced by the review I wrote at the time of its release, which you can read HERE. It wasn’t the Guy fan base.

Santa Barbara 262

Santa Barbara Technical Review Social Media Startup 262

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 2, 2011

It’s apropos because there is so much noise these days with email, Twitter, Facebook, blogs, web shows, etc. If I check Twitter it’s usually because I’m waiting for a meeting to start and I never write posts during the day. He’s committed to getting through every email. I read 95% of my email.

Email 287

Email Blogging Venture Capital Writing 287

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

I had a recent email dialog with the founder of a company looking for a CTO for their startup. We had several emails back and forth where he provided basic details on the concept. And do I fit as a Part-Time CTO , Technology Advisor , CTO Founder , Acting CTO ? Go to tech (or other relevant industry) events.

CTO Hire 241

CTO Hire CTO Coach Equity Develop 241

SoCal CTO

MARCH 3, 2011

Many of the founders of these companies are surprised to learn that I'm willing to review what they are doing (maybe an hour) and get on the phone for an hour with them and provide free advice. What are related products/companies? What's you believe is your biggest technology risk, if any? What Is This? Send brief bios.

CTO Hire 264

CTO Hire Startup Technical Review Development Team Review 264

SoCal CTO

MARCH 3, 2011

Many of the founders of these companies are surprised to learn that I'm willing to review what they are doing (maybe an hour) and get on the phone for an hour with them and provide free advice. What are related products/companies? What's you believe is your biggest technology risk, if any? What Is This? Send brief bios.

CTO Hire 259

CTO Hire Startup Technical Review Development Team Review 259

TechCrunch LA

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

When should you start a company? What company should you start? When should you join a company? Anyone who has worked in a large company further knows that timing a product launch or a new marketing strategy has more to do with internal politics than reading market forces. When should a VC invest?

Venture Capital 202

Venture Capital Startup Technical Review Invest 202

SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 1, 2010

I continue to collect great content that is the intersection of startups, products, online and technology. aka: An Open Letter to the Next Big Social Network) - 500 Hats , November 1, 2010 I've held off writing this post for a long time, because I couldn't quite get my head around all the issues. but: Something is Still Missing.

Technical Review 175

Technical Review Startup Product Technology 175

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 4, 2012

Too Techie - Tone down emphasis on the technology underlying your venture; an interested investor will perform tech diligence at the appropriate time. The Company. Who do I write the check to and where do I send it? No VC Fit - Match your venture with appropriate funding source. Opportunity. Share and Enjoy.

Venture Capital 211

Venture Capital Summary Technical Review Template 211

InfoChachkie

MARCH 18, 2013

Ideally, such early-stage investors should have the experiences and motivation to help their ventures establish a sustainable business model, rather than simply writing a check before moving on to their next investment. In such instances, take their money and work diligently to convert them into a disengaged investor. Share and Enjoy.

Angel 217

Angel Technical Review RSS Entrepreneur 217

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

Huge thank you to Steve De Long for the write up. My initial desire to blog came from something that’s always been my approach to investing – I’m a nerd and I love to play with the technology and part of my approach has really been to understand things both at a user level and at a reasonably deep tentacle level. Brad on blogging.

Venture Capital 288

Venture Capital Startup Technical Review Software Review 288

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 23, 2015

This latest round valued the company in excess of a billion dollars, entering them into the overly-hyped Unicorn Club. In contrast, low-volume, high-conviction investors like Rincon only invests in a handful new companies each year, making it much more costly (in dollars and effort expended) to invest in a loser. > -jeff.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Southern California 100

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 13, 2014

I wrote a version of this post four years ago but given the hectic nature of today’s tech markets I thought it was worth revisiting and updating. I wrote directly to his assistant asking why he had cancelled and made it clear that I had not attended a conference in town due to my having accepted this meeting.

Conference 369

Conference Startup Century City Email 369

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2014

It’s super hard not to want to spend more time with these companies. I reviewed a deal for a friend of mine tonight. He wanted to know what I thought of his technology deal. My email back to him was a version of. I always ask when somebody sends me a deal, for example, are you already a shareholder in the company?

Venture Capital 333

Venture Capital Startup Technical Review Email 333

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2010

Like you, I struggle to return everybody’s emails because I get too many. So I often try to stay off of email during the day. It made me laugh because the technical world has this exact phrase to talk in computing sense about the need to block out interruptions in order to complete a task.

Product 280

Product Startup Email Technical Review 280

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2016

Next comes the more arduous process of reviewing every applicant, looking for key attributes including the following. On a business team, the ability to communicate verbally and in writing is more important than technical depth. For new businesses, communication inside and outside the company is critical.

Technical Review 56

Technical Review Coach Training Screening 56

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2019

I have been writing a series on how startup boards get selected, who sits on them and what to avoid. I started this series in part to help entrepreneurs but also to help newer investors because I’ve know with so many new companies you have so many new board members and many people are trying to figure out there respective roles.

Startup 251

Startup Help Technical Review Writing 251

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 15, 2012

There are many paths into the VC world, but they can generally be lumped into two categories: (i) serial entrepreneurship, and (ii) tech-oriented investment banking. I define a "VC" as, "a professional investor who deploys third-party funds into relatively early-stage companies." Microscopic Industry. Manipulate Your Odds.

Venture Capital 242

Venture Capital Technical Review Invest RSS 242

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 2, 2015

I even wrote about my experiences attending Web Summit , something I rarely ever write about. ” So how should you feel about Web Summit, DreamForce, TechCrunch Disrupt, CES, SxSW or any of the myriad of tech events that are put on every year? His company had recently moved from Germany to the US.

Web 150

Web Conference Technical Review Class 150

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 25, 2010

I’ve been meaning to write about this for a while and was going to use AngelList by Nivi & Naval as the basis for my example and the perfect prompt came yesterday when I read Fred Wilson’s blog post on AngelList. Before booking a hotel I always check out Trip Advisor and read reviews. So how does this apply to you?

Guide 293

Guide Funding Venture Capital Technical Review 293

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 27, 2011

This is a blog post I really didn’t want to write. I didn’t want to write it because I have mixed feelings about AngelList. I didn’t want to write it because the bloggosphere doesn’t always do nuance well. So why I am writing it then? As Shervin said, it’s just email. A few reasons.

Venture Capital 267

Venture Capital Writing Blogging Startup 267

Eric Greenspan

FEBRUARY 2, 2010

I’ve remained a skeptic about the BBB and as a result of an email I received a couple of weeks ago from them, I have raised the skepticism threat level. So here’s the email I received: Eric, My name is Chad Ratliffe emailing from the Better Business Bureau. That’s how we do business at Make It Work.

Santa Barbara 265

Santa Barbara Technical Advisors Email Technical Review 265

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 17, 2011

So I thought I’d write a post about how I drive my personal creativity. (A This applies equally to VCs, startups & big company executives. The key is channeling what you learn when you drive onto paper for retention purposes so you have to write it down soon afterward. So no whinging about what a long post this is!

Writing 356

Writing Startup Ideas Summary 356

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 10, 2010

If you’re not familiar with the term it’s basically trying to help all of us who are deluged with technology to find ways to cope with the masses of information without having it ruin our lives. Want to take a year pursuing your dream to write a screenplay, travel through Asia, run a triathlon or start your own fashion line?

Startup 295

Startup Email Technical Review Course 295

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 8, 2009

Now there are some firms that have strict rules about not funding pre-revenue companies – that’s different. They get positive product reviews on TechCrunch, GigaOm or Paidcontent.org. It’s marketing 101 for tech companies in terms of how you market to customers. They hire key staff. They make progress.

Venture Capital 309

Venture Capital Guide Startup Technical Review 309

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 13, 2011

For the next four days if you’re in the tech industry you’re going to hear a non-stop stream of information about SXSW. They have fun & meet tons of interesting people and they confuse this with the need to do be at every major tech event. Write them in advance and request meetings.

Conference 289

Conference Startup Technical Review Writing 289

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 5, 2011

Seattle should be the envy of any non Silicon Valley tech community in the country. It really wouldn’t take much to turn a great technology ecosystem into a truly electric one. I’ve always been a big believer that just a couple of key individuals make all of the difference in a company’s success.

Venture Capital 317

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Press 317

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

They’re not in search of price fixing or collusion, they’re in search of diligence information about the company. When I was fund raising for my second company we had agreed a company-wide deal with Salesforce.com to use our product. Two emailed Marc Benioff directly. People call each other.

Pricing 292

Pricing Entrepreneur Technical Review Venture Capital 292

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 20, 2011

One example is that they introduced a program where their founders can pool together shares from their company and exchange them for a small portfolio of other First Round Capital companies. As a courtesy if you enjoyed his write-up please check out his startup company, ChannelStack. I'm a huge fan of this innovation.

Capital 284

Capital Venture Capital Technical Review Startup 284

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 22, 2010

When you are selected you share the stage with 49 other companies (in the case of TechCrunch50. Most people pay attention to the first 5 companies. By company 22 it’s hard to remember what any of them did. Many other great companies are not. - It’s no wonder many companies don’t get good coverage.

Tips 307

Tips Startup Press Blogging 307

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 7, 2011

Sometime around 2003/04 my technology team turned me on to “Spolsky on Software&# a periodic newsletter served up blog style from Joel Spolsky of FogCreek Software, a maker of bug-tracking software. Blogs weren’t popularized yet so it was an oddity for me to read the founder of a software company spewing out advice.

Software Review 285

Software Review Software Blogging Startup 285

Tech Zulu Event

JUNE 28, 2012

He kicked off the fest with his opening keynote, saying LA is a unique city of mash-ups, where tech, startups and entertainment – plus creativity, cultures, and passion – mix with successful results. RT @OEInnovation #SBF why I live in #LA: intersection of #beach #tech #entrepreneur #entertainment. & Women 2.0:

Hollywood 67

Hollywood Technical Review Startup Rustic Canyon 67

Tech Zulu Event

SEPTEMBER 22, 2012

It’s unbelievable how often start up founders stifle their company from growing by not knowing how to effectively communicate their brand. In order to prepare for TechCrunch Disrupt 2012 I reviewed company bios via the official site and read taglines that said “cool” rather than what the company does. 1 Pre Planning.

Press 97

Press Startup Technical Review Email 97

InfoChachkie

JUNE 11, 2012

Mark Zuckerberg – “The dynamic of managing people and being CEO in a company is a lot different than being college roommates with someone.”. Although it may be comfortable to start a company with your friends, it is a mistake, unless your friend(s) happens to be ideally suited to their role in your venture.

Tips 279

Tips Startup Education Entrepreneur 279

InfoChachkie

JUNE 4, 2012

As an entrepreneur, I helped create companies which achieved two IPOs and two trade sales totaling $385 million. Value is created through diligent hard work. No one has heard of you, your company or your solutions. Your commitments to investors must be significant enough to compel them to write you a check. Fallacy: Yes.

Entrepreneur 272

Entrepreneur Outsource Ideas Technical Review 272