Tech.Co

JUNE 5, 2024

We round up seven grants that you should know about right now – including their eligibility criteria and funding amount. Learn more about the CO-100, and apply here 2. Learn more about the Creative Business Boost Initiative and apply here 4. Learn more about the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready and apply here 5.

Coach 141

Coach News Funding Design 141

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2016

Gregg Johnson, CEO of Invoca For the first 5 years or so after I became a VC I didn’t talk much about what I thought a VC should be excellent at since frankly I wasn’t sure. It’s easy to think the role of a VC is to have strong opinions about markets, trends, tech dynamics and so forth. I don’t think this is the job.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Capital CTO Coach Startup 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 11, 2021

Authors Adrian Gostick and Chestor Elton, with their deep backgrounds as executive coaches and organizational consultants, recommend some simple methods, consistent with my own beliefs, to reduce the pain of uncertainty, and increase productivity, in your teams and employees: Make it okay for them to not have all the answers.

Marketing 148

Marketing Coach Startup Product 148

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2013

And we wanted a head of global marketing. When Ethan was considering leaving Google we talked about it. I acted as the occasional mentor, advisor and coach to Ethan. I wanted them to have a market lead before others could try and build what Ethan was working on. What do we like about OpenTable?

CTO Coach 359

CTO Coach Google CTO Hire Yammer 359

Berkonomics

JULY 3, 2010

Business coaches come in all sizes and shapes. How do you pay a coach? If the coach is also a significantly large investor such as a VC fund, the board member-coach will offer a limited amount of time outside of board work at no extra cost, all for the good of the investment. Email readers continue here.]

Coach 179

Coach Organization Resource Equity 179

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

How might our next phase of the journey seem brighter, even with more uncertain days for startups and capital markets? And then in the late 90’s money crept in, swept in to town by public markets, instant wealth and an absurd sky-rocketing of valuations based on no reasonable metrics. Nobody cared about our valuations any more.

Venture Capital 466

Venture Capital Startup Marketing Pricing 466

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2019

Marketing is everything these days. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. I like the guidance from marketing coach David Newman’s classic book “ Do It! Don’t fall into the marketing-speak trap. Good marketing is not rocket science.

Marketing 97

Marketing Entrepreneur Startup Technical Review 97

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 16, 2015

recently wrote a post talking about how some VCs meddle in operating company decisions or some executive teams are too reliant on VCs to jump in and make hard calls for them. In practice it can be a fine line between sparring partner / coach and stepping over the line to brute-force persuasion. ” Of course I agree with this.

Startup 150

Startup Sales CTO Coach Course 150

Berkonomics

MARCH 28, 2024

Some investor board members are also member of boards for companies that may overlap in markets or even compete directly, although rare. Should board members therefore withdraw and not participate in corporate planning, coaching the CEO and other issues not related to the duty of care or duty of loyalty? Of course they should not.

Class 282

Class Coach Invest Sales 282

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

Should I trust my instincts for founders and products or should I be more focused on the market size or business plan? I’m not saying that lawyers were my screening process – simply that they knew about deals early on and they had voted with their time and pocketbooks so I knew I had a degree of filtering. What price?

Startup 361

Startup Venture Capital Pricing Technical Review 361

Berkonomics

MAY 13, 2021

important point of that book, which was written to prompt discussion between entrepreneurs, professional managers, and their boards of directors about issues that could unite them or strain the relationships between them. Expert help and good planning can reduce the time to market, saving cash in the process.

Resource 156

Resource Coach Activity Invest 156

TechCrunch LA

MAY 29, 2019

Most of the buzz about esports focuses on high-profile professional teams and audiences watching live streams of those professionals. This is like talking about the NBA and the value of its sponsorships and broadcast rights as if that is the entirety of the basketball market in the US.

Startup 204

Startup Coach Competition Los Angeles 204

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2015

Most business managers preach that the key to success is holding employees accountable for actions, but I have found that successful entrepreneurs are all about holding themselves accountable. They skip the blame and complain game, and make things happen despite major obstacles.

Startup 116

Startup Entrepreneur Class Coach 116

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 5, 2014

Marketing is everything these days. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. I like the guidance from marketing coach David Newman’s recent book “ Do It! Don’t fall into the marketing-speak trap. Good marketing is not rocket science.

Technical Review 103

Technical Review Tips Marketing Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 11, 2022

Works with other team members on mutual aspirations (coach metaphor). It is not about leaders becoming coaches; it’s about leaders letting themselves be coached by others – advisors, team members, and even customers. Think about who could help you reflect-on-action.

Coach 114

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 114

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2017

Marketing is everything these days. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. I like the guidance from marketing coach David Newman’s classic book “ Do It! Don’t fall into the marketing-speak trap. Good marketing is not rocket science.

Tips 75

Tips Marketing Technical Review Startup 75

Berkonomics

MAY 31, 2018

Sometimes you can be the coach, helping them even if it means losing them. It doesn’t take much to publicly wish a departing employee well, to throw a small celebration, to coach the outgoing person if asked, and to listen and receive fair criticism at the moment of the exit interview. Feel good about the former employee’s success.

Email 226

Email Coach Invest Equity 226

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2022

Instead of sizing up new opportunities and actively courting every new customer, you start worrying about cutting costs, repeatable processes , and overtaking known competitors. The challenge is that the future is much harder to quantify than existing competitor markets. How about in your industry?

Startup 154

Startup Artificial Inteligence Metrics Netflix 154

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 3, 2021

These days, I seem to often hear from entrepreneurs who are struggling to find a mentor, or complaining about their lack of effectiveness. They don’t think about this process requiring an investment on their part, both in nurturing the relationship, and really listening, without being defensive, to advice given. Marty Zwilling.

Mentor 151

Mentor Coach Entrepreneur Press 151

TechCrunch LA

MARCH 29, 2021

It was here that she spotted a gap in the EV charging market. It was here that she met Ellis, a career coach at LACI who also worked at the Long Beach Job Corp Center. During her time there, she worked with 12 manufacturers, which gave her knowledge into inner workings and common problems with the chargers.

Incubator 287

Incubator Outsource Development Los Angeles Startup 287

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 1, 2022

Think about the questions that you are asking your advisors. I expect questions about how a business works, or what are best practices, but I really can’t help you with removing doubts on your abilities, or providing a sure-fire idea and formula for success in business. Leadership in business starts with making good personal choices.

Capital 114

Capital Coach Satisfaction Ideas 114

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 19, 2013

Marketing is everything these days. Yet I see many entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. They skimp on the design of their website, procrastinate on the rollout to make sure the product is perfect, and get so excited about technology features that they forget about creating value for customers.

Startup 103

Startup Marketing Social Media Technical Review 103

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 9, 2021

In my view, the most effective entrepreneurs are those with a background of an array of real-life experiences, both positive and negative, as well as good academic and coaching activities. Depth in a specific business area, such as marketing or accounting, is important in understanding the internal and external processes of a business.

Entrepreneur 149

Entrepreneur Tips Writing Coach 149

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 2, 2014

Thus I hear many talk about “radical transparency” when virtually ever experienced operator in my inner circle talks knowingly about that naiveté. It’s why I called out the importance of “executive coaches” in this post. I was thinking about this over the holiday. Foursquare? Noah Glass.

Startup 385

Startup Coach Course Snapchat 385

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 4, 2022

If you aren’t yet adapting to the market and your customers, you are falling behind. In other words, change in your business has to become the accepted norm, just like it is in your market. Be proactive rather than reactive to market change. New blood and new ideas are keys to agility.

Competition 148

Competition Metrics Demand Customer 148

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2019

They also have to be willing to lead by example, while not being afraid to show vulnerability and honesty about their limitations. They also have to practice solid communication and invite other points of view, and evolve company culture as the market and product realities change. READ MORE>>.

Technical Review 157

Technical Review Software Review Startup Coach 157

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2022

These authors reference real cases and real business leaders, based on their decades of experience in building companies and executive coaching. I offer here their summary of purposes and inspirations that have motivated existing business leaders, with insights from my own mentoring and coaching experience.

Technical Review 143

Technical Review Coach Mentor Customer 143

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 30, 2023

I’m fully convinced that success is all about you rather than the market. In this context, I was impressed with the insights provided in a new book, “ Stay Sane In An Insane World ,” by peak performance coach Greg Harden. Take time to charge your batteries regularly. Stop being afraid of taking any business risk.

Mentor 104

Mentor Startup Coach Satisfaction 104

Berkonomics

MARCH 2, 2017

As an early stage investor, the first test for me is whether “my” entrepreneur is flexible in both the plan and execution of his or her vision (since from experience almost everything about a business plan changes over time), and whether s/he, no matter what age or experience, is coachable. Doctoral theses have been written on this subject.

Coach 120

Coach Entrepreneur Press Ideas 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 26, 2021

The best new idea for any entrepreneur should first be based on their own personal interests, skills, and lifestyle, rather than the characteristics of a given market or technology. The next step is to do homework on the business issues that are common to all ideas, such as market size, business models, and marketing.

Satisfaction 145

Satisfaction Ideas Entrepreneur Activity 145

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

I was having dinner with a friend last night and we were chatting about venture capital and a bit about what I’ve learned. I started in 2007 with a thesis that my primary investment decision would be about the team (70%) and only afterward about the market opportunity (30%). I don’t.

Venture Capital 374

Venture Capital Invest Press Startup 374

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 17, 2019

Works with other team members on mutual aspirations (coach metaphor). It is not about leaders becoming coaches; it’s about leaders letting themselves be coached by others – advisors, team members, and even customers. Think about who could help you reflect-on-action.

Coach 96

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 96

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 10, 2013

TechCrunch interviewed me and asked me to talk about failure. So I spoke for 12 minutes about my own failures. I made many classic first-time mistakes which serves both as my warning signal of which teams to avoid funding (if I perceive they will make critical mistakes often led by hubris) and also as my source for coaching others.

Startup 412

Startup Press Course Entrepreneur 412

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

So I thought I’d write about out with what I would look for in a VC knowing what I know now and why. VCs should be more of a coach than proscriptively telling you what to do. SEO marketing vs. social marketing. I wrote about this a long time ago and if you didn’t read it I highly recommend it.

Venture Capital 364

Venture Capital Coach Writing SaaS 364

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2021

Most business managers preach that the key to success is holding employees accountable for actions, but I have found that successful entrepreneurs are all about holding themselves accountable. They skip the blame and complain game, and make things happen despite major obstacles.

Startup 164

Startup Class Entrepreneur Coach 164

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2022

Their experience as executive coaches and entrepreneurs gives real credibility to their assessment of some new leadership approaches that are required in business today. As a business advisor, I’m always looking for guidance on leadership practices that work, and I was impressed with the classic book, “ The Leadership Mind Switch ,” by D.

Customer 152

Customer Custom Coach Satisfaction 152

TechCrunch LA

OCTOBER 7, 2021

An edtech startup called Entity Academy — which provides women with training, in areas like data science and software development; mentoring; and ultimately job coaching — has raised $100 million on the heels of strong growth of its business, and an ambition to improve that ratio. Thankfully, now that appears to be changing.

Mentor 297

Mentor Training Startup Course 297