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How Much Information Should you Give VCs for Due Diligence?

Both Sides of the Table

I have seen some entrepreneurs go into first meetings willing to share almost anything about their company. I’ve seen this back fire on entrepreneurs who say things like, “Well, we’re not talking financials with investors yet.”. Another VC called the co-founder & tech head – Parker Harris. The First Meeting.

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How to Make Better Reference Calls

Both Sides of the Table

Reference calls. Ask for at least 5 references. As your candidate for at least 5 references. Ask for at least 5 references. As your candidate for at least 5 references. Don’t worry about the fact that these are the references that the candidate has hand-picked – that’s part of the process.

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6 Sources Of Purpose To Drive Business Success Today

Startup Professionals Musings

In my work with entrepreneurs, I have concluded that finding and communicating that purpose is often more important than the solution offered. He found that the return was far greater than the cost of donated shoes, and his team became intensely loyal, due to the opportunity to travel and deliver shoes in other countries.

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5 Attributes Of People Who Will Grow Your Business

Startup Professionals Musings

The reality is that entrepreneurs usually don’t have the money or time for executive recruiters to do the filtering and selection for them. Next comes the more arduous process of reviewing every applicant, looking for key attributes including the following. Get it reviewed and approved by peers, including salary and perks.

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People Management: Startup Teams Should Dip but not Skip

Both Sides of the Table

You’ll get sales information from your VP of Sales, marketing information from your VP Marketing, tech information from your CTO and so on. Similarly I liked to keep myself apprised of the technical decisions we were making. Dipping: As a decision maker you rely on information being passed to you by the people who report to you.

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Why You Should Enlist a Business Mentor, Or Be One

Startup Professionals Musings

Yet in this age of technology, many seem to favor tools and data to get the edge, or can’t find the time to talk to real people. Each time I mentor an entrepreneur, I learn new things about their technology, customers, and business domain. Regularly review progress and adjust focus (Review and Renewal).

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How Boards Need to Evolve Over Time

Both Sides of the Table

And here’s an important point that I think modern entrepreneurs often forget: Investors are “co-owners” of your business. Reviewing financial & operational performance. There are just as many bad entrepreneurs who do bad things. Defections of large swaths of talented employees due to low morale.

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