Trending Articles

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Would you pay a high achiever more than yourself?

Berkonomics

Here’s a case study for yourself: Recently I was asked to review an offer letter for a senior director of business development. The CEO was concerned that he was offering far too much in the form of incentive compensation, with bonuses that could greatly exceed the base salary if all the bonus items were achieved. The critical question… I asked the CEO to imagine what the company would look like if all those bonus-expensive items were completely achieved in one year.

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Framework Benchmarks Round 22

TechEmpower

We’re pleased to announce Round 22 of the TechEmpower Framework Benchmarks! The TechEmpower Framework Benchmarks project celebrates its 10th anniversary, boasting significant engagement with over 7,000 stars on GitHub and more than 7,100 Pull Requests. Renowned as one of the leading projects of its kind, it benchmarks the peak performance of server-side web application frameworks and platforms, primarily using tests contributed by the community.

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A heartbreaking story about time and money.

Berkonomics

First, think about your time as money! We’ll get to my heartbreak in a minute. But first… There is a relationship between time and money that is more complex than most managers think. Fixed overhead for salaries, rent, equipment leases and more make up the majority of the “burn rate” (monthly expenses) for most companies. Since this number is budgeted and pre-authorized, managers tend to focus upon other things such as sales, marketing and product development issues.

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Robotaxi pushback grows in Los Angeles as Cruise loses permits

TechCrunch LA

Less than a month after Waymo’s Los Angeles County expansion, labor organizers and an LA lawmaker are calling for new autonomous-vehicle regulations. On Tuesday, the office of LA Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez said he will introduce a motion “urging officials in the state to address public safety concerns around autonomous vehicles and reign in the expansion […] © 2023 TechCrunch.

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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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What Is Claude AI and Anthropic? ChatGPT’s Rival Explained

Tech.Co

You’ve probably heard of both Bard and ChatGPT by now. However, another highly capable chatbot burst onto the scene earlier this year called Claude. It comes courtesy of Google and Amazon-backed startup Anthropic, which was only founded in 2021. Claude is definitely one of the most impressive chatbots to be launched in the last 12 months. More than 350,000 people signed up to the waitlist to use Claude 2, the most recent version of the language model.

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LA CxOs

SoCal Tech Calendar

Friday, November 17, 2023 -- Leadership - How to think about it and How it Grows and Impacts your company. Attendance is limited to qualified C Suite Executives. Confirmed RSVP required. NO service providers admitted.

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Los Angeles demands robotaxi rulemaking powers

TechCrunch LA

Mayor Karen Bass says Los Angeles — not a state agency — should have the power to decide how robotaxi companies expand in the city. The impact of the mayor's calls may extend well beyond LA. © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

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Claude 2.1: Anthropic's ChatGPT Rival Gets New Killer Feature

Tech.Co

As OpenAI hits the headlines for all the wrong reasons, Anthropic has turned Claude into an "industry-leading" AI tool.

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RECURRING REVENUE CONFERENCE

SoCal Tech Calendar

Thursday, November 9, 2023 -- Southern California's premier SaaS and Subscription conference, our one-day event draws top founders, executives, investors, and Cloud experts. Experience a dynamic program with 20+ sessions, including keynotes, fireside chats, breakout sessions, and roundtable discussions. This year's insights span AI, metrics that matter, scaling strategies, making a pivot, and more.

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Generative AI – The End of Empty Textboxes

TechEmpower

We recently completed a web-based application that uses a unique algorithm to match professionals with new career opportunities. As part of the onboarding process, the app asks both job seekers and employers what they’re looking for - in a text box - while providing a few suggestions in a pop-up. If you’ve ever used a similar application, (or if you’ve ever used the Internet at all) you’ve probably seen this approach before.

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Be careful about equity and options!

Berkonomics

Here is the warning: The execution of equity allocations and of a good incentive program using equity is often mismanaged, damaging the corporate capitalization structure and even affecting the outcome of subsequent investment into the company. … and here is the usual early-stage trap… First, a brand-new enterprise is often formed from the efforts of several “partners”, each with an expertise valued by the others.

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Robotaxis ‘do not belong in the city of Los Angeles,’ lawmaker says

TechCrunch LA

Robotaxi oversight is now a priority at Los Angeles City Hall. At a press briefing on Wednesday, Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez told Waymo and Cruise that their robotaxis are not welcome. “The purpose of this press event is to send a very clear message about robot taxis, and say that they do not belong in the […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved.

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10 Keys To Success Despite Accelerated Market Change

Startup Professionals Musings

Most experts agree that the pace of business change is increasing , and all the business owners I know are struggling to keep up, much less surpass the wealth of global competitors now entering the market. Based on my own experience as a business executive, I believe it’s time to be more proactive in preparing for change, rather than just reacting to the latest growth crisis.

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SoCal Startup Day

SoCal Tech Calendar

Wednesday, November 8, 2023 -- SoCal Startup Day is back! Join us at the largest startup event of the year. SoCal Startup Day is on Nov 8th in Hangar 244 at the Irvine Great Park. This years event will host over 2,000 attendees, hundreds of investors and over 50 exhibitors. The 2023 SoCal Startup Day will feature startups, VCs and Angel Investors from all over Southern California, to meet, network and help startups raise capital.

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The Top 20 Symptoms of a Weak Development Team

TechEmpower

When speaking with founders and CEOs, we often hear concerns like this: My project manager is losing confidence in the development team. The PMs are seeing late deliveries and bugs that suggest the devs just aren’t capable enough. I think that poor communication and differing team cultures might be part of the problem, but how can I know for sure? It’s a good question.

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Why we should fire fast, not last!

Berkonomics

Our first reaction to marginal performance. Here is one that takes a real leap for a younger manager or CEO to believe. After hiring someone with all the attendant enthusiasm followed by the training and learning curve, if an employee shows signs of weakness in the job or problems dealing with contemporaries, it is the natural tendency for most of us to go first into coaching mode and reset the observation clock to see if our excellent coaching does the job.

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Startup San Diego Showcase Founders at Qualcomm, SDSU, Carlsbad and Tijuana

Startup San Diego

This article was originally posted on Business of San Diego by Fred Grier on November 6, 2023. During the last week of October, four hundred people converged at Qualcomm’s headquarters in Sorrento Valley on a Friday evening, to conclude its annual “Startup Week” extravaganza organized by non-profit Startup San Diego. The week-long conference, celebrated the city’s […] The post Startup San Diego Showcase Founders at Qualcomm, SDSU, Carlsbad and Tijuana appeared first on Startup San Diego.

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4 Keys To A Successful Integrity Check With Investors

Startup Professionals Musings

For the elite startups and entrepreneurs who manage to attract the investor they dream of, and survive the term sheet negotiation, there is still one more hurdle before the money is in the bank. This is the mysterious and dreaded due diligence process, which can kill the whole deal. In reality, it is nothing more than a final integrity check on all aspects of the business and the team.

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Generative AI

SoCal Tech Calendar

Tuesday, October 24, 2023 -- Generative AI and technology networking. PMI-LA collaborates with AITP-LA for an in-person, informative, and engaging Industry Networking Meeting with a panel discussion of Chief Technology/Information Officers (CTOs/CIOs) to discuss the implications of emerging technologies and practices. Since 2010, we.

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Hire as if your survival depends upon it.

Berkonomics

Aside from visionary management, this is your most important job. Many of us go through the motions of hiring to fill a position, trying to use our intuition and skills to find the best candidate for the job. Sometimes we use consultants or recruiters; often we use internal talent to fill most positions. A science to hiring? And over the years, we students of business success have learned that there is a science to the hiring process that continues through the life of an employee’s tenure with

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Your fork in the road? Depending upon others.

Berkonomics

I guarantee that there comes a time when growing businesses outgrow the original span of control of the entrepreneur. It is a critical period and is a test of the entrepreneur’s desire and ability to delegate. And I found from experience – after investing in many other entrepreneurial businesses over the years – that this stage typically occurs first at about twenty employees or $3 million in net revenues (or gross profit) for most any kind of company.

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Are you or your business “time bankrupt?”

Berkonomics

Time bankruptcy results from the deliberate over-commitment of core resources. You’d know the symptoms, if not the name. You’re fighting to put out the fires from customer complaints, or incomplete work, or are suffering from an inability to focus upon new development or new customers before cleaning up the mess inside your organization. Why use this term?

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A personal story about quality control

Berkonomics

So, I tell personal stories to show that we all should look for lessons learned by others. Here’s one that is “on me.” As my enterprise computer software company which produced innovative lodging systems for hotels and resorts grew quickly, we found ourselves straining to keep up with the hiring and training of good customer support representatives, a critical part of the equation then and still so today in the 24-hour environment of hotel front desk operations.

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They say “haste makes waste” but…

Berkonomics

Let’s examine the relationship between time, quality and competitiveness. If you are getting the impression from these many insights that complex relationships cause simple problems, you are right. We have heard the “haste makes waste” ditty since childhood. There is little need to reinforce the obvious. On a larger scale, there are epoch stories of giant companies eating massive losses in a recall of product, often based upon limited testing before release.

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Are you meeting your customer’s expectations?

Berkonomics

First customers are critical. Greatly exceed expectations at all costs. There is so much history behind this insight, and so many stories that illustrate this point. Your first customers for any product or service form your reference base, the important group of allies that your marketing and salespeople rely upon when attempting to create buzz and make a mass market for a new product.

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Have you found your “teacher customer?”

Berkonomics

Your customers know what they want more than you do. Find one to teach you. This week’s insight came from personal experience and from a good friend who advanced the notion of the “teacher-customer” years ago. I internalized this phrase, recalling the many times I had partnered with customers to design new feature-functionality into my hotel computer system back when such systems were brand new to the industry.

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Fundraising in Today’s Startup Market

SoCal Tech Calendar

Tuesday, October 10, 2023 -- Fundraising in Today’s Startup Market. Are you looking for guidance on raising capital for your venture? We invite you to our upcoming in-person Founder’s event in Santa Barbara, “Fundraising in Today’s Startup Market." ​Join us for this exclusive event to hear from how Santa Barbara-based founder, Woody Sears at Autio, raised his latest funding round. ​The event will also include investors Julie Henley McNamara (Entrada Ventures), Mike Tucker (ScOp Venture Capit

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4 Key Components Of Every New Business Financial Plan

Startup Professionals Musings

Most aspiring entrepreneurs understand that you can’t build a business if you won’t commit to delivering a product or service, but many are hesitant or refuse to commit to any financial forecasts. Yet every business requires revenue and volumes, as certainly as it requires a product to sell. Thus, financial projections for up to five years are a necessary element in every business plan.

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SURF, SAND, and SECURITY!

SoCal Tech Calendar

Thursday, October 5, 2023 -- SURF, SAND, and SECURITY! Join us at the ISSA-LA Information Security Summit XIII. Ride the wave of knowledge and shore up your defenses at the 13th Annual Information Security Summit, hosted by ISSA-LA. This premier event is a beacon for Southern California's infosec community, drawing a captivating lineup of world-class experts and distinguished leaders from intelligence, law enforcement, corporate, legal, accounting, finance, security, technology, and cyber sector

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10 Strategies For Finding More Work Hours In Your Day

Startup Professionals Musings

Every entrepreneur I know can’t find enough hours in a day to do the good things they want, and yet they often find themselves saying yes to new requests. Perhaps because they are optimists by nature, or they just hate to disappoint others, they end up hurting their health, credibility, and effectiveness by not being able to deliver on everything they promise.

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Insider Insights: Ask Me Anything with Jay Goss and Chris Bostick

SoCal Tech Calendar

Thursday, September 28, 2023 -- Insider Insights: Ask Me Anything with Jay Goss and Chris Bostick. Hosted by The Alliance for SoCal Innovation. This event series is for founders looking to level up their fundraising game and gain insights from investors and experts who can help SoCal founders prepare for fundraising. This month, ask your questions about raising capital to leading healthcare investors Jay Goss at Wavemaker Three-Sixty Health and Chris Bostick at OCV Partners.

SoCal 100
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Face to Face With investors

SoCal Tech Calendar

Wednesday, September 27, 2023 -- Face to Face with Investors Get ready to meet investors up close at "Face to Face with Investors". Special: Maximize Your Startup's Valuation with Actionable Advice. Tech Coast Angels.

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AI and Analytics Discussion and Connecting

SoCal Tech Calendar

Thursday, September 21, 2023 -- AI and Analytics Discussion and Connecting. The WITI AI/Analytics Community invites you to a thought-provoking panel discussion on the applications and potential of Generative AI on September 21st from 12:00 PM PT - 1:00 PM PT on Zoom. Industry veterans Grant Bodley, Kiran Sreewastav, and Dr. Aditi Banerjee will delve into how this pioneering technology continues to reinvent industries, redefine roles, and provide solutions, followed by networking in breakout room

WITI 100
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8 Key Human-Centered Leadership Elements In Business

Startup Professionals Musings

With today’s rapidly changing environment, I see many business leaders reverting to the “ command and control ” leadership model, in an effort to be more responsive, rather than leading with their heads and heart. Yet I find in my mentoring practice that more and more team members prefer the human-centered approach and respond with more engagement and commitment.

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6 Ideas To Recover From Business Resource Challenges

Startup Professionals Musings

Most entrepreneur that fail are quick to offer a litany of constraints that caused their demise – not enough money, time, customers, or support from the right players. Ironically, as a startup investor and mentor, I have seen too many failures caused by just the opposite – too much money spent too soon, taking time to get product perfection, and assuming customers will wait.

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6 Keys To A Winning Business Model For Your Customers

Startup Professionals Musings

How do you convince investors that your business model will really work, before you have a revenue stream that exceeds your expenses? Even if you are bootstrapping your business, and you are the only investor, you should be asking yourself the same question. Too many founders have learned that passion and free beta products do not imply a sustainable business.

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