Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

Struggling entrepreneurs are often so happy to get a funding offer that they neglect the recommended reverse due diligence on the investors. Taking on equity investors to fund your company is much like getting married – it is a long-term relationship that has to work at all levels. It’s no fun for either side. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 103

Technical Review Innocal Offshore Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2017

In my experience working with startups, the best approach these days is to find and use a good mentor (been there, done that). Of course, mentoring is not new – it’s been the favored way to learn arts and crafts since way back in the middle ages. But I assert that mentoring in business is making a comeback.

Mentor 61

Mentor Technical Review LAMP Coach 61

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2021

New entrepreneurs, especially technical ones, are excited by early adopters, and tend to focus on their feedback, which will always suggest more product features and options. The company has since gone public, and is still a market leader. Utilize outside expertise and mentoring. Focus on the mainstream customer majority.

Technical Review 160

Technical Review Technical Advisors Startup Mentor 160

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2013

How to find a startup mentor. Southern California's Most Popular Tech Stories. LaunchpadLA Opens Up Spring Applications. Broadcom Powering New Mac Wireless. Surf Air Gets First Aircraft. In our features section: Interview with Blair Harrison of Frequency. 9 Ways socalTECH Can Help You With Your New Year's Resolutions.

Southern California 168

Southern California Technical Review SoCal San Diego 168

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2019

During the holiday season, our tradition over the last few years has been to post reflections on the past year and some predictions for 2019 from Southern California's technology industry. There was no monetary reward for those who participated (and Startup Boost does not take fees or equity from the companies that we help).

Technical Review 157

Technical Review Software Review Startup Coach 157

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2022

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. These authors reference real cases and real business leaders, based on their decades of experience in building companies and executive coaching.

Technical Review 143

Technical Review Coach Mentor Customer 143

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 2, 2019

Most of you aspiring entrepreneurs have no idea how dramatically your own role has to evolve as you develop a solution, start a business, and expect it to scale into a successful self-managed company. Lead and mentor team members to run all business areas. All teams must be motivated and engaged by your leadership and mentoring.

Company 99

Company Companies Technical Review Startup 99

Berkonomics

JANUARY 16, 2014

community in many ways, including his weekly Internet TV program on entrepreneurism, and participation in several mentoring programs. . Access to new technologies. Perform preliminary due diligence: Review the business plan including marketing, sales strategies and financial needs.

Technical Review 204

Technical Review Startup Examples Metrics 204

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 27, 2016

Struggling entrepreneurs are often so happy to get a funding offer that they neglect the recommended reverse due diligence on the investors. Taking on equity investors to fund your company is much like getting married – it is a long-term relationship that has to work at all levels. It’s no fun for either side.

Technical Review 63

Technical Review Innocal Offshore Entrepreneur 63

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2017

Most business mentors tell me that the single biggest problem they have to deal with in small companies is the lack of open, honest, and effective communication, both from the top down and from the bottom up. Technical semantics and jargon. Some entrepreneurs forget that talking is not communicating. Information withheld.

Mentor 61

Mentor Technical Review Entrepreneur Guide 61

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 25, 2021

Partially due to the pandemic, but also due to longer, healthier lives and changes in job tenure, Boomers are now expected to stay in the labor force longer, and according to projections , could actually dominate the labor market by 2024.

Technical Review 126

Technical Review Technical Support Entrepreneur Startup 126

Tech.Co

MARCH 8, 2018

Fortunately, for those headed to SXSW, Startup Night SXSW 2018 , presented by the Kauffman Foundation and TechCo, will be filled with investors from a multitude of industries who are looking to discover and fund startups building the latest solutions and tech innovations. Blackwell, iTech Program Executive & OCT Innovation Liaison, NASA.

Technical Review 70

Technical Review Startup Software Review Entrepreneur 70

Tech Zulu Event

JULY 8, 2011

The Spotlight is shining down these amazing LA companies! For those who still might be wondering what Spotlight: LA Tech is all about, It’s a screening room for new technology homegrown in our region. It’s a gathering of friends and tech enthusiasts of all stripes. It’s a gallery of great entrepreneurship.

CalTech 100

CalTech Technical Review Company Companies 100

socalTECH

JANUARY 2, 2019

During the holiday season, our tradition over the last few years has been to post reflections on the past year and some predictions from Southern California's technology industry. What was the biggest news for your company in 2018? We continue to focus on companies with Recurring Revenue (SaaS, Subcription) and in FinTech.

Capital 113

Capital Southern California Technical Review SaaS 113

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 17, 2022

During my many years of mentoring professionals and entrepreneurs in business, I more often see people focusing on how to get their ideas heard , than how to promote themselves. Technical skills are important, but your ability to build and nurture relationships with others is more important for leadership growth and career advancement today.

Tips 121

Tips Social Media Mentor Technical Review 121

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2021

By way of a definition, a business or startup incubator is a company, university, or other organization which provides resources to nurture young companies, usually for a share of the equity, hoping to capitalize on their success, or at least strengthen the local economy. Expert mentoring and training. Peer support.

Incubator 146

Incubator Technical Review Entrepreneur Mentor 146

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Many entrepreneurs I have mentored make big mistakes in this area, by hiring low-cost friends and family, with minimal skills or training, and expecting them to have the same work ethic , passion, and business knowledge as the founder. Direct customer-facing non-technical roles should be the last ones outsourced. with experience.

Outsource 123

Outsource Startup Technical Review Training 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2022

One of the things I’ve learned over my years as a business mentor and investor is that life isn’t fair when it comes to succeeding in business. These authors speak from their own wealth of experience in creating and growing technology startups, marketing, and fundraising. Use friends and mentors with extensive experience to gauge both.

Help 130

Help Mentor Paramount Technical Review 130

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 3, 2010

We thought today for our interview, that we'd get an update on the angel investment environment here in Southern California from Scott Sangster , the incoming President of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Tech Coast Angels , the biggest angel investment group in Southern California. It was actually a really good year last year.

Tech Coast Angels 182

Tech Coast Angels Technical Review Angel Southern California 182

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2022

Yet I find, as a mentor and outside consultant, that many of you focus only on working conditions and compensation as the key factors determining team engagement , health, and productivity. I will summarize these here, with my insights, for your review and implementation: Physical health. Spiritual connections.

Technical Review 141

Technical Review Mentor Social Media Customer 141

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Kara said “no” because she wanted to start her own company, which she did and I backed. The core of the investing job of course is investing dollars into startup companies and helping as a mentor, advisor and board member on the companies in which you’ve invested. So What Does All This Mean? And all the platform stuff.

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2020

In a larger public company, it’s all about making your quarterly numbers, versus investing in strategic growth alternatives that may not pay off until several quarters later. In my experience, even in startups, longer-term strategy often gets pushed off the agenda due to current challenges. Cote, former Chairman and CEO of Honeywell.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Layoffs Social Media Metrics 124

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 2, 2015

Sometimes entrepreneurs are so focused on making change happen for others, that they forget that continually changing themselves and their company is equally important. Everyone and every company needs to continually learn from their experience and adapt to a changing world to thrive. Find mentors who have the skills you lack.

Technical Review 99

Technical Review Marketing Mentor Entrepreneur 99

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 20, 2014

According to a recent Forbes article , UC Santa Barbara''s Technology Management Program offers students a superior startup education over the University of Pennsylvania (home of Wharton), as well Harvard, Northwestern and even its acclaimed southern neighbor, the University of Southern California. Want to be an entrepreneur? Techpreneurs.

Santa Barbara 258

Santa Barbara Technical Review Startup Venture Capital 258

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2020

In my role as a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I find that most have the technical challenges well understood, but many are a bit short on some basic street smarts , or basic business realities. Although Elon Musk doesn’t talk about it very much, he owns over 350 patents through Tesla, just one of his many companies.

Entrepreneur 173

Entrepreneur Patents Startup Technical Review 173

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 23, 2014

Sometimes entrepreneurs are so focused on making change happen for others, that they forget that continually changing themselves and their company is equally important. Everyone and every company needs to continually learn from their experience and adapt to a changing world to thrive. Find mentors who have the skills you lack.

Entrepreneur 105

Entrepreneur Technical Review Mentor Summary 105

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 4, 2022

Most business mentors tell me that the single biggest problem they have to deal with in small companies is the lack of open, honest, and effective communication, both from the top down and from the bottom up. Technical semantics and jargon. Some entrepreneurs forget that talking is not communicating. Information withheld.

Technical Review 137

Technical Review Entrepreneur Guide Mentor 137

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2018

Sometimes entrepreneurs are so focused on making change happen for customers that they forget that continually changing themselves and their company is equally important. Everyone and every company needs to continually learn from their experience and adapt to a changing world to thrive. Find mentors who have the skills you lack.

Technical Review 59

Technical Review Mentor Entrepreneur Customer 59

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

I started my first company in 1999 and was admittedly swept up in all of this: Magazine covers, fancy conferences, artificial valuations and easy money. Between 2006–2008 I sold both companies that I had started and became a VC. Starting in 2009 I began writing checks consistently, year-in and year-out.

Venture Capital 466

Venture Capital Startup Marketing Pricing 466

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2019

Partially due to the economy, but also due to longer, healthier lives and changes in job tenure, Boomers are now expected to stay in the labor force longer, and according to a USNews article, will likely dominate the labor market by 2024. These trends seem likely to persist.

Startup 119

Startup Technical Review Technical Support Entrepreneur 119

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 26, 2010

I’ve been having discussions with several people recently about the role of the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) in very early stage companies. I used an image from Roger Smith that describes the varying roles of a CTO as the company matures. What are the biggest areas of technical risk? What technologies will we use?

Fractional CTO 225

Fractional CTO CTO CTO Hire CTO Coach 225

Xconomy

NOVEMBER 13, 2016

View the Slideshow A little more than a year ago, amid a resurgence in San Diego’s software sector, Xconomy identified a baker’s dozen of local tech companies to watch in 2016. The idea was to feature early stage companies in the region that have not attracted much attention or raised a substantial amount of startup capital.

San Diego 40

San Diego Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Startup 40

socalTECH

DECEMBER 30, 2020

Every year, we feature the year end reflections of founders, CEOs, investors, and others in Southern California's high tech community. What was the biggest news for you/your company this year?  It's been a tough year for many due to the pandemic; how have you or your company adapted to the business environment?

Southern California 113

Southern California Technical Review Santa Monica Invest 113

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 18, 2010

We will be selecting 10 startup companies to participate. Applications are due April 6th, 2010, the form is on the website and the Twitter address is @launchpadlad. Encourage the most successful LA tech entrepreneurs who had previously started companies to get involved as mentors, instructors or just informal advisors.

Technical Review 259

Technical Review Venture Capital Southern California Tech Coast Angels 259

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2022

They couldn’t possibly understand the new social media culture, new technologies, or have the determination to beat their younger counterparts in the market. They include people like Sir Richard Branson , born in 1950, who has founded over 400 companies, and claims to be just getting started. Personnel Manager.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Software Review Entrepreneur Report 147

socalTECH

DECEMBER 27, 2012

For the last week of the year, we're featuring the thoughts and reflections of some of the movers and shakers of Southern California's high tech community. We asked the same four questions of a variety of top technology entrepreneurs, investors, and others, to hear what they're thinking about, and are sharing it here over the next week.

Dollar Shave Club 272

Dollar Shave Club Technical Review Santa Monica Southern California 272

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2022

You can review all the specifics of this approach in the classic book by Nathan Furr and Paul Ahlstrom, appropriately titled “ Nail It then Scale It: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Creating and Managing Breakthrough Innovation ,” but I will net it out here. Great businesses begin with a customer problem that has a big and monetizable pain point.

Technical Review 143

Technical Review Customer Custom Entrepreneur 143