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“Where there’s mystery, there’s margin.”   

Berkonomics

Here’s a phrase I created in the early 1980’s to describe what I clearly saw as the last chance to make high margins on the sale of computer hardware to businesses. In the day of the mainframe and then the minicomputer, margins for manufacturers exceeded 35% and dealers were granted a 35% margin as well. Even with the usual discount of 10%, the margins on hardware were high, especially when applied to prices that exceeded $30,000 per sale.

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SSD Tech Report Recap Episode 6 – Tech Happenings, Funding & Shifts in Workforce

Startup San Diego

The latest Startup San Diego Tech Report Livestream dropped two game-changing announcements that could innovate how local entrepreneurs fund and staff their ventures. Cheryl Goodman, Vice Chair of Startup San […] The post SSD Tech Report Recap Episode 6 – Tech Happenings, Funding & Shifts in Workforce appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Last Fridays – All About Accelerators with Ryan Kuder – Recap, Photos, & Video

Startup San Diego

Last Friday’s StartupSD session was a goldmine of practical advice, thanks to Ryan Kuder dropping some serious knowledge about the funding world. This guy knows his stuff—he’s the former managing […] The post Last Fridays – All About Accelerators with Ryan Kuder – Recap, Photos, & Video appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Overall VC Fundraising Drops 33%, But AI Investment Surges

Tech.Co

AI investments were responsible for a full 64% of all deal value going into US startups across the first half of the year, a new PitchBook report finds. It’s part of a huge 75.6% increase for the sector during that period, putting 2025 in line to be the second highest year ever for US startup deals. OpenAI’s recent $40 billion round certainly didn’t hurt.

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Can You Ask for Office Rent Relief? How to Manage Your Lease During COVID-19

Office leases are one of companies’ largest expenses, and if your whole team is working from home with no clear end in sight, you may be wondering what to do about your lease.

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Are you ready to scrap the system and restart?  

Berkonomics

There is more money lost in businesses today from inefficient processes than any other single area. Yet this is not a place where most managers feel comfortable deconstructing and rebuilding. Somewhere out there is a consultant or future employee (or even suggestions from present employees) that will provide the roadmap toward making your processes run more smoothly, more quickly and more inexpensively.

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Honor Pet opens a Comfort Center to reshape pet farewells in Los Angeles

StartUp Beat

Honor Pet, the company reimagining pet end-of-life care, today announces the opening of its Comfort Center in downtown Los Angeles. Located at 717 Mateo St, in the city’s vibrant Arts District, this 10,000-square-foot facility is the first of its kind in the United States, offering a serene, supportive environment where pet parents can say goodbye […] The post Honor Pet opens a Comfort Center to reshape pet farewells in Los Angeles appeared first on StartUp Beat.

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Key Takeaways from The FirstWave Innovator Workshop: Recap, Photos & Video

Startup San Diego

We recently hosted an insightful FirstWave Innovator Workshop at C3bank focused on alternative financing for founders. This panel brought together three financing experts to discuss non-traditional funding solutions that help […] The post Key Takeaways from The FirstWave Innovator Workshop: Recap, Photos & Video appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Framework Benchmarks Round 23

TechEmpower

As the Director for Open Source Solutions at TechEmpower, I am excited to share the latest results from our Framework Benchmark suite. This round marks significant improvements overall, as our sponsor Microsoft has generously provided new hardware that is making jaw-dropping performance improvements. New Hardware and Upgrades Our new setup includes updated servers and network hardware: ProLiant DL360 Gen10 Plus servers Intel Xeon Gold 6330 CPU @ 2.00GHz (56 cores) 64GB of memory Mellanox Technol

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Small Business Grants You Can Apply For in March 2025

Tech.Co

If your business requires a cash injection, but you don’t want to risk falling into debt cycles from private loans , it might be time to consider business grants. By providing crucial funding for specific projects, and giving your business much-needed visibility, grants can be a great way to take your venture to the next level. It only takes a couple of minutes to apply to most opportunities too, allowing you to throw your hat in the ring without investing heaps of time and energy.

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Cash Home Buyers in Los Angeles: How They Work

AllTopStartups

You want to sell your Los Angeles home fast. Cash home buyers offer a direct, no-frills approach that gets you moving quicklyno endless listings or showings. They present offers, pay… The post Cash Home Buyers in Los Angeles: How They Work appeared first on AllTopStartups.

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Hackfrontier: Borderless Builders – Recap, Photos, and Video

Startup San Diego

Over 100+ builders came together for a 16 hour hackathon to solve industry challenges, connect with the San Diego-Baja developer community, and use some of our technical partners’ latest tech. […] The post Hackfrontier: Borderless Builders – Recap, Photos, and Video appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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5 Reasons to Join Hackfrontier: Borderless Builders on July 9 – 10

Startup San Diego

Hackfrontier brings together the brightest developers, designers, and innovators from across Southern California for 16 hours of intensive collaboration and creation.

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Featured Startup Ecosystem Resources for 1st Mondays in August!

Startup San Diego

With 1st Mondays – Summer Social and Startup Ecosystem Showcase at Kiln just four weeks, we’re excited to announce the first round of lightning talks that will be showcasing and […] The post Featured Startup Ecosystem Resources for 1st Mondays in August! appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Announcing Panelists for the FirstWave Innovator Workshop: Alternative Financing Solutions for Founders

Startup San Diego

​We’re excited to announce the featured panelists who will be joining us for the FirstWave Innovator Workshop: Alternative Financing Solutions for Founders, presented by C3bank happening Wednesday June 25th! Learn […] The post Announcing Panelists for the FirstWave Innovator Workshop: Alternative Financing Solutions for Founders appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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We’re Excited to Announce the New Startup San Diego Membership Portal!

Startup San Diego

Now there’s an easier way to stay connected, informed, and involved in San Diego’s growing startup ecosystem. The Startup San Diego Membership Portal is your personalized hub to access exclusive […] The post We’re Excited to Announce the New Startup San Diego Membership Portal! appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Faster is sometimes more valuable than better.   

Berkonomics

And doing both well usually wins the day. This is one of those arguable insights, where both sides win. Dell is a great example of emphasis upon fast, creating a customized computer in 48 hours or less, bringing in assemblies and components just-in-time to make the assembly line. However, if Dell quality were poor and returns high, the company surely would not have survived on speed of response alone.

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All 5 Locations Across San Diego – Baja Confirmed for San Diego Startup Week 2025

Startup San Diego

It’s official, all five locations for five days of San Diego Startup Week 2025 are locked in! Join us across San Diego – Baja from October 6-10, 2025, for a […] The post All 5 Locations Across San Diego – Baja Confirmed for San Diego Startup Week 2025 appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Are YOU the bottleneck in your business?

Berkonomics

Every business has bottlenecks At many board meetings, I can be counted upon to ask , “Where’s the bottleneck this month?” Senior management is usually prepared with an answer, and a good discussion of resource availability and application follows. Sometimes, the bottleneck is not so visible to the CEO. In those instances, I follow with: “Do you notice people waiting at your door, telling you that they were waiting for your response or decision, even if you were unaware of this?

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Bet the farm only when the crops are on fire!

Berkonomics

How much risk you and your company are willing and able to tolerate over time? Most people believe that early stage companies should take risks aggressively because there is less to lose and much more to gain with each risky bet or decision. Common thinking goes on to address large, public corporations by expressing that the relative tolerance to risk is decreased, in favor of protecting the brand or financial health of the enterprise.

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What’s your business “end game?” 

Berkonomics

Ever think about growing your business with the plan to sell it someday, cashing in on your hard-earned work over the years? Or if you’re an employee with stock options, are you aware of the increases in value you can make with your efforts? Then again, you may be an architect or doctor or other professional managing your business, knowing that the end game value of your client or patient list is small and not easily transferred to any buyer without attrition.

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StartupSD 1st Mondays Summer Social & SD Startup Ecosystem Showcase

Startup San Diego

Join us for our 1st Mondays Summer Social and Startup Ecosystem Showcase at Kiln Rancho Bernardo on Monday, August 4th! During this event, local accelerators and incubators, investors, university, college […] The post StartupSD 1st Mondays Summer Social & SD Startup Ecosystem Showcase appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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What if your business runs out of money?   

Berkonomics

Money in the bank is like oil in the car. Certainly, you have many ways you are pulled every day, both tactical and strategic. But when money is the issue, your time, energy and focus are drained from other important areas of your life or business. Running out of money is not always synonymous with going broke. Many great businesses in their growth periods find themselves stretched for cash.

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Three magic questions to increase your sales:   

Berkonomics

Why buy IT? Why buy MINE? Why buy NOW? What a powerful set of three questions. These are so succinct, so well defined, so precise that everyone in sales and everyone involved in marketing must be able to answer these three questions without pause, and convincingly. Turning these into statements instead of questions provides a framework for the sales presentation from the highest levels of collateral materials and marketing support, to the salesperson on the front line.

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Entrepreneurs: Employment law is not on your side!  

Berkonomics

A punch in the gut Small companies most often scrape by with borrowed or invested funds, doing everything possible to grow and prosper with limited resources. So, it is like a punch in the gut when an employee makes a claim against the company for a perceived or actual violation of a law or regulation. Or when a former employee strikes out with a suit claiming discrimination for one of a thousand causes.

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Last Fridays Lunch & Learn – Recap, Video, and Photos – April 2025

Startup San Diego

We had an incredible time at our Last Fridays Co-Working Day and Lunch & Learn at Downtown Works Mission Valley. Marketing expert Kendra Pennington, who has been helping businesses find […] The post Last Fridays Lunch & Learn – Recap, Video, and Photos – April 2025 appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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April 2025 1st Mondays – Recap, Video, and Photos

Startup San Diego

April marks Earth Month and also the start of our quarterly 1st Mondays – Networking and Expert Panel events. For this 1st Mondays we focused on all things cleantech and […] The post April 2025 1st Mondays – Recap, Video, and Photos appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Meet the Exhibitors for the Upcoming 1st Mondays – April 2025

Startup San Diego

1st Mondays is a quarterly event that brings over 250+ startup community members together for a night of networking, connections, community building, and innovation. Were excited to introduce seven San […] The post Meet the Exhibitors for the Upcoming 1st Mondays – April 2025 appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Announcing the 1st Mondays Featured Panelists & Speakers April 2025

Startup San Diego

Were excited to announce the featured speakers and panelists joining us for the upcoming 1st Mondays – Networking and Expert Panel presented by San Diego Community Power, happening April 7th […] The post Announcing the 1st Mondays Featured Panelists & Speakers April 2025 appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Spotlight on Our Food Sponsor: Prometheus AI

Startup San Diego

Startup San Diego is thrilled to thank Prometheus AI for generously sponsoring the food at our upcoming 1st Mondays – Summer Social & Startup Ecosystem Showcase at Kiln Rancho Bernardo. […] The post Spotlight on Our Food Sponsor: Prometheus AI appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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Have you made the mistake of hiring too soon?   

Berkonomics

Well, you may not be alone. Many executives and managers have made the mistake of using the financial and sales forecast to plan and execute hiring of new employees – so that they could be trained and up to speed when the demand arrives. The balance between preparedness and cost Although hiring early does add to overhead by bringing employees aboard before they become economic contributors to the bottom line, there is much to be said about consistent or improved service quality by having t

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How could your growth call for more cash?  

Berkonomics

It sure is not intuitive. Here we must do a little math calculation together to make a point. Even if your business collects a full years revenue up front, you are still going to get hit with this. Heres the math and a wake-up call: Assume that your gross margin from sales is 50% for ease in calculation. Assume 30 days to collect receivables from completed work, and 30 days to complete the work.

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You are watched, mostly when decisions are tough!

Berkonomics

If you have been in management or an entrepreneur long enough, you will have experienced the gray area of decision-making where ethics, the law, your needs and expediency all collide. This is the time when you are paid the big bucks, and when others aware of your plight will be watching most carefully. It is also the time when you demonstrate your true courage to your contemporaries.

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Overwhelmed with email and paper?   

Berkonomics

We all experience it to our own detriment. So, lets make a pact that we will try, if not succeed, to handle our incoming messages more efficiently. Personal time management helps immensely to make a better manager of you and me. All of us have time management tips and tricks to help us get through the day. I have a mantra I try to live by, and it has helped me more than you know over the years.

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Can you stop a talented employee from leaving for a new career?

Berkonomics

Wed all like to retain our best managers and employees forever or at least for as long as possible. But sometimes our corporate wants and needs conflict with what is best for an employee and their career development. We cannot legally stand in the way of an employee resigning to pursue a dream, but we can leave a bad taste with that person and chip away at our corporate culture by not cooperating or even helping the employee move on.

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You are your company’s moral compass!

Berkonomics

Heres yet another story that you may identify with or have yet to experience in your business life. Its one of those that define your leadership for all to see, sometimes based upon decisions made in the moment such as this one. A story of a CEOs snap judgement call Years ago, when I was CEO of my record manufacturing company in Hollywood, I happened to walk around the plant into the press room just as Bobby, one of the employees favorite coworkers, was offering stolen merchandise to his fello

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STOP and celebrate each victory!

Berkonomics

Here comes another story. Of course. This one may be like one or more you have experienced in your company. It is a story about focus upon the customer, first. And about reinforcing the culture of the company in support of that important focus by senior management, and by all employees who see that leadership in action Some examples of celebration you can use Growing companies give rise to many events that great managers will take advantage of to create and shape the culture of the company itsel

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