Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

In those years I learned to properly build product, price products, sell products and serve customers. SEEING THINGS FROM THE VC SIDE OF THE TABLE While I was a VC in 2007 & 2008 those were dead years because the market again evaporated due the the Global Financial Crisis (GFC).

Venture Capital 466

Venture Capital Startup Marketing Pricing 466

TechCrunch LA

JULY 19, 2022

Ghost is not alone in developing technology focused on inventory. Last week, Syrup Tech raised $6.3 Syrup Tech bags $6.3M She went on to write, “Dee and Josh are the exact right team to tackle it. to develop some sweet inventory-planning software.

Product 191

Product Funding Technical Review Equity 191

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 23, 2015

Even when you do sign-up initial customers it’s still not clear that your company will be a success and you’re still likely paying yourself under market rates. He or she has worked at some very successful big technology or media companies and went to a great school. I saved my main point for last.

Technical Review 150

Technical Review Startup Venture Capital IP 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2020

Leading edge technology software and manufacturing require constant course corrections and iterative restarts. Customer-facing services, like call centers, should rarely be outsourced. Internal services, like marketing and accounting, are more manageable and have less customer visibility. Marty Zwilling.

Outsource Development 122

Outsource Development Outsource Software Review Technical Review 122

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

So I know I’m getting myself into a bit of trouble by writing this. Many times they also pick up product and tech, too. Often times you find the CEO who really just likes to do product or tech. Similarly I talk to CEOs who can’t do a sales pipeline review with me.

Startup 325

Startup Technical Review Sales Report 325

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

The main thrust of the post is that with YouTube taking a 45% of revenue and talent taking 70% of the remaining revenue, YouTube Networks didn’t have sustainable businesses unless they invested heavily in technology as a tool to increase margin and provide defensibility. That is the definition of Disruptive Technology.

Company 339

Company Companies Technical Review Content 339

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2015

“Scope creep” (or feature creep) is an insidious disease that kills more new business solutions than any other, especially high-tech ones, and yet most founders (who may be the cause) never even see it happening. Define milestones for cost review and sign-off. Change requests must be visibly reviewed by executives frequently.

Technical Review 104

Technical Review Product Software Review High Tech 104

Eric Greenspan

MAY 29, 2010

Using social media to increase your company’s touch and reach with each of your customers may be the most important reason to jump in to this game changing strategy. Social media can help bridge a long standing gap between customers and the companies they trust with their hard earned cash. 40,000) to join me on Facebook.

Social Media 214

Social Media Customer Custom Media 214

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2013

“Scope creep” (or feature creep) is an insidious disease that kills more good startups than any other, especially high-tech ones, and yet most founders (who may be the cause) never even see it happening. Define milestones for cost review and sign-off. Change requests must be visibly reviewed by executives frequently.

Technical Review 110

Technical Review Startup Software Review High Tech 110

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 30, 2019

What every entrepreneur needs more than anything else, after they have built an innovative new product or service, is visibility, credibility, and trust by customers, potential employees, and future business partners. Yet, most good business people I know agree, but don’t know where to start.

Writing 19

Writing Technical Review Entrepreneur Advertising 19

socalTECH

AUGUST 6, 2012

Santa Monica-based Demand Media (www.demandmedia.com) has seen its share of ups and downs as one of the highest visibility technology and media companies to come out of Southern California's technology ecosystem in recent years. But, they could not write, and did not know what to write from the travel perspective.

Demand 240

Demand Media eHow Content 240

Tech.Co

MAY 26, 2020

Jeff Bezos didn't get to be the world's richest man by writing a lot of checks, and one recent way to keep Amazon's profits healthy has been to cut its affiliate commissions scheme. A host of bloggers and publishers are seeing their revenues massively dented, from tiny BBQ grill review sites to the hugest media organizations around.

Technical Review 129

Technical Review Buzzfeed News Networking 129

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. Who's the customer? What's you believe is your biggest technology risk, if any? Do I have to write up the overview? What Is This?

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. Who's the customer? What's you believe is your biggest technology risk, if any? Do I have to write up the overview? What Is This?

CTO Hire 259

CTO Hire Startup Technical Review Development Team Review 259

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2022

After some review of available resources, I’m convinced that problem solving is a learnable trait, rather than just a birthright. If you can explain the problem to a mentor, or even write it down, you will more likely get to the root cause quickly, and avoid emotional and blame-infused responses.

Startup 135

Startup Mentor Entrepreneur Technical Review 135

socalTECH

JULY 22, 2016

Rufus Labs is one of a number of hardware startups which have started to proliferate in the community, due to low cost hardware, 3D printing, and crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. Gabe Grifoni: At Rufus Labs, we are focused heavily on building wearables and technology in a wearable platform for the enterprise.

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Startup Software Review CTO Hire 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 6, 2011

“Scope creep” (or feature creep) is an insidious disease that kills more good startups than any other, especially high-tech ones, and yet most founders (who may be the cause) never even see it happening. Define milestones for cost review and sign-off. Change requests must be visibly reviewed by executives frequently.

Technical Review 96

Technical Review Startup Software Review High Tech 96

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. What does your pain reliever look like, how is it implemented by the customer and what future products do you expect to roll out? Distribution and Sales.

Venture Capital 211

Venture Capital Summary Technical Review Template 211

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2012

“Scope creep” (or feature creep) is an insidious disease that kills more good startups than any other, especially high-tech ones, and yet most founders (who may be the cause) never even see it happening. Define milestones for cost review and sign-off. Change requests must be visibly reviewed by executives frequently.

Technical Review 75

Technical Review Startup Software Review High Tech 75

InfoChachkie

APRIL 25, 2011

If you are a leader at a startup and you are reading a business book, you are not closing customers, raising capital, improving your product, or spending time with your loved ones. The short version of my review is: “Enchanting? At the beginning of the index, Guy writes, “I hope Robert Cialdini checks this index.” Positive ROI.

Technical Review 279

Technical Review Blogging Class Entrepreneur 279

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2010

If I’m interested I get to spend more time with them, if I’m not I don’t have to – A few companies per month come in that have fascinating business ideas that warrant my spending more time trying to understand their people, company, technology and market. I get paid to network – I love meeting people.

Venture Capital 312

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Entrepreneur 312

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2013

Here are some key ones they look for: Talks and writes well. Successful entrepreneurs already have a visible network of trusted suppliers, potential customers, partners, and even investors. Allows sufficient time to find capital, including due diligence time for investors. Listens before answering questions.

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Entrepreneur Course Patents 109

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

Thus, I’m more impressed with entrepreneurs who ask me to review their implementation plan, rather than listen again to their idea. In my experience, the key steps I look for always include the following: Testing the idea against customers who have money to spend. Prepare your marketing story for customers and investors.

Ideas 94

Ideas Slides Technical Review Patents 94

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2012

Here are some key ones they look for: Talks and writes well. Successful entrepreneurs already have a visible network of trusted suppliers, potential customers, partners, and even investors. Allows sufficient time to find capital, including due diligence time for investors. Listens before answering questions.

Entrepreneur 117

Entrepreneur Technical Review Course Patents 117

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 15, 2009

This can often happen when there is a good product built but no real customer adoption yet. We hired a head of technology, a head of customer service, a head of marketing, a head of strategy (which no startup should ever hire) a CFO and, ugh, 33 developers. I’m not trying to take credit beyond where credit is due.

Startup 299

Startup Venture Capital Technical Review Training 299

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 23, 2015

I recall being impressed with Jeff, but I was concerned that he was creating a platform, which often requires a significant amount of capital, takes an extended amount of time to establish and can be subject to margin pressure as the enabling technologies become commoditized. Tech Diligence - Consider The Source.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Southern California 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 8, 2014

Leading edge technology software and manufacturing require constant course corrections and iterative restarts. Customer-facing services, like call centers, should rarely be outsourced. Internal services, like marketing and accounting, are more manageable and have less customer visibility. Marty Zwilling.

Outsource Development 95

Outsource Development Outsource Offshore Software Review 95

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 12, 2019

You find that you need to be near major customers, or employee transportation hubs, where rents are higher than you ever anticipated. These days, computer hardware also extends to smartphone subscriptions, iPads, and laptops as your employees and customers expect mobile operation. Ramp-up facilities and utilities required.

Startup 105

Startup Software Review Technical Review Social Media 105

InfoChachkie

AUGUST 10, 2010

One is obvious, without protection, such IP might prove to be of little worth, as other companies can mimic the technology without recourse. The very nature of formal IP approval process ensures that some level of vetting has been performed to assess whether the IP is infringing on another company’s technology. Provisional Approach.

IP 256

IP Patents Company Companies 256

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. He listed all of the product releases that were up coming, the customers that were in the pipeline and where he saw his competition moving.

Venture Capital 317

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Press 317

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2015

Thus founders seeking funding for a good cause or a new technology often seize on grants from universities, government agencies and philanthropic organizations as free money to solve their problems. After months of preparation, you should expect another six to nine months for reviews and funding cycles. Technology is not enough.

Pricing 100

Pricing Equity Technical Review Research 100

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 9, 2010

For decades the “layering&# of technology has allowed us to develop IT systems and networks in a specialized way that let’s best-of-breed technology solutions to emerge at each layer of the stack and to allow people with different skill sets to specialize in key areas without having to have competence in every technology arena.

Startup 343

Startup Technical Review S3 Services 343

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 17, 2011

So I thought I’d write a post about how I drive my personal creativity. (A The key is channeling what you learn when you drive onto paper for retention purposes so you have to write it down soon afterward. I want to know how many people, their level of tech sophistication, their age and their interests.

Writing 356

Writing Startup Ideas Summary 356

SoCal CTO

MARCH 18, 2010

Vince: In addition to my management writing I’ve interview many CEOs and innovators. I’d love to get your thoughts at some point about writing for these publications vs. on your own blog. I know Jim, Mark, Kurt (see Los Angeles Technology Connector – Kurt Daradics ).

Startup 225

Startup Los Angeles Social Network Twiistup 225

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2010

Here are some key ones they look for: Talks and writes well. Successful entrepreneurs already have a visible network of trusted suppliers, potential customers, partners, and even investors. Allows sufficient time to find capital, including due diligence time for investors. Listens before answering questions.

Entrepreneur 96

Entrepreneur Angel Technical Review Course 96

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2016

Leading edge technology software and manufacturing require constant course corrections and iterative restarts. Customer-facing services, like call centers, should rarely be outsourced. Internal services, like marketing and accounting, are more manageable and have less customer visibility. Marty Zwilling.

Outsource Development 53

Outsource Development Outsource Software Review Technical Review 53

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