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. Of course we fancy ourselves as the best sales people in the company. These are always mistakes in a growing company. ” PR.

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Startup Sales CTO Coach Course 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2015

I saw him on stage at the event talking about how he used social media to engage audiences. And after one meeting they started asking for his advice about marketing, customer engagement, product design, monetization – whatever. Five-and-a-half years ago I first met Chamillionaire at a tech conference in LA.

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Conference Slides Social Media Summary 150

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 19, 2015

We have made 5 online video investments in total – some we will talk about later this year. YouTube takes too high of a revenue split (45% vs. 30% that Apple and many other distribution companies take – FWIW, YouTube argues this is because their costs are much higher since they host and stream the video). But think of this.

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Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 23, 2012

In case you don’t know, they are one of the biggest media companies in the world. I asked Andrew how companies can best work with Condé Nast and he gave the answers in the episode. He also covered how “traditional media companies” think about the future and how they view disruption. Watch: [link].

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 11, 2010

Modern investors love to first read a two-page summary of your business plan, formatted like a glossy marketing collateral sheet, with text well laid out in columns and sidebars, and a couple of relevant graphics. You may have already found several articles, web pages, or books about writing the perfect executive summary.

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Summary Writing Competition Metrics 55

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 28, 2013

One 11-year study of over 200 companies, detailed in “ Corporate Culture and Performance ,” found that those working on their culture improved revenue by 516%, and increased net income by 755%. times the return of other companies over the last 10 years. Business ethics are more about religion than management or leadership.

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Software Review Summary Examples Offshore 100

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 5, 2022

As a business consultant with experience in large companies as well as startups, I often hear about dysfunctional management hierarchies, as well as the value provided by exceptional ones. We have all heard about the successes of flattened management organizations in the last decade at Facebook, Valve, Zappos, and others.

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Outsource Training Organization Social Media 133

TechEmpower

AUGUST 21, 2023

At TechEmpower, we’ve conducted more than 50 technical reviews for companies of all sizes, industries, and technical stacks. Other common scenarios that we’ve seen: Scaling and new markets: Your company and product are established, and now you’re scaling or going after new markets. Will they resent scrutiny from the outside?

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Technical Review Development Team Review Software Review TechEmpower 260

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2022

One 11-year study of over 200 companies over a decade ago, detailed in the book “ Corporate Culture and Performance ,” found that those working on their culture improved revenue by 516%, and increased net income by 755%. I saw a good summary of these in the classic book, “ Ethical Leadership ,” by Andrew Leigh, an expert in this area.

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Entrepreneur Software Review Summary Examples 116

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 17, 2010

First, I’d like to quote (paraphrase) Brad Feld speaking at Twiistup in LA in 2009, “I keep hearing people in LA talking with a chip on their shoulders about building a tech business here relative to Silicon Valley. But we have a great city for building technology companies. I have one message for you, ‘get over it!’

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Company Companies Technology Startup 290

socalTECH

MAY 17, 2013

Here are some of the highlights from this week from socalTECH''s video section , where we''re currently featuring community videos from and about local startups: What is Privlo''s private mortgage marketplace about? Privlo video explains how the company is launching its own private mortgage marketplace. Image courtesy BigStock.

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Summary Santa Monica SoCalTech Los Angeles 153

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2021

For aspiring entrepreneurs, or if your last startup failed, it’s all about standing out above the crowd of others like you, and demonstrating your readiness. Successful startups are all about the right people with the right stuff. Executive summary glossy. Pitch your company, not your product. Written business plan.

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Entrepreneur Tips Funding Startup 156

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 3, 2023

She brings more than twenty years of experience building and working with globally dispersed teams and Fortune 500 companies around the world. It’s all about contributing and being connected to team and company values for improving the lives of customers, or possibly a higher-level purpose, such as saving the environment.

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Startup Summary Coach Metrics 113

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 4, 2012

Most sophisticated investors ignore them, focusing their attention on an entrepreneur's pitch and presentation materials, financial forecast and executive summary. As such, the primary goal of your executive summary is to open the door to an in-person meeting. Entrepreneurs routinely seek my advice regarding their executive summaries.

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Venture Capital Summary Technical Review Template 211

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2022

I was impressed with his summary of the top ten outsourcing mistakes made by entrepreneurs, followed by real guidance on how they can and should be avoided. As with real estate, it’s still about location, location, location. Relying totally on a virtual team implies they are managing your company, not you. Marty Zwilling.

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Outsource Development Outsource Summary Training 138

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 2013

The best advocates do this because they care about you as a person, not because of personal aspirations. When the relationship is appropriate, condoned by the company, and welcomed by both parties, it can be positive from a personal and even a work perspective. Workship - Advocate. Workship - Trailblazer.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 3, 2023

Serious investors, on the other hand, look for a professional business plan or summary first, and hardly ever look at the product plan. Now let’s talk about the basic components of a business plan. Is it any wonder why so few entrepreneurs ever find the professional investors they seek? That means they invest first in a set of plans.

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Product Summary Activity Entrepreneur 112

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 3, 2022

These now provide better quality, better paying, and more exciting jobs than big companies. You need to step out of your comfort zone to socialize, meet new people, and collaborate with peers, company leaders, and mentors. Internally, you may need a video summary report of monthly value.

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Social Media Summary Startup Mentor 125

TechCrunch LA

MAY 11, 2018

In the battle royal to become the last dock-less scooter startup standing ( and un-besmirched by poop ), Bird has inked what it is characterizing as exclusive deals with Ninebot (the parent company of Segway ) and Xiaomi ( yes, that Xiaomi ), for rights to their supply of scooters for ride-sharing in the U.S.

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Santa Monica San Diego Summary Los Angeles 228

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 30, 2014

When I meet other VCs I’m constantly asking how they decide which investments to make, when to pass, when to do follow-on rounds, when to sell a company vs. when to go long, etc. On sales I often talk about “ Why Buy Anything, Why Buy Now, Why Buy Me ” as a tool to think about a sales process. Fund raising ?

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Startup Framework CTO Coach Sales 407

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 25, 2019

Here are some observations I have from this exposure: If a company moves from strength-to-strength with predictable outcomes, easy financings, low staff turn-over, limited competitive threats then the composition of the board probably doesn’t matter as much. In the best cases boards come together to help the company get through its trough?—?in

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Startup Venture Capital Layoffs Resource 269

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2010

Burstly, a Santa Monica based company, provides an open and free ad management platform that helps mobile application developers better monetize their inventory. As I naturally get asked all the time why we invested in Company A or Company B, I thought I’d just put forth my thesis in writing. What does it do?

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Mobile Invest Company Companies 282

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2023

If you sold your last startup for $800 million, you probably already know how to build a business, and even conservative investors won’t worry about the quality of your next business plan.

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Startup Writing Mentor Sample 102

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 15, 2021

For example, I once worked for a small software company selling a sophisticated enterprise workflow solution. As small companies, neither startup could afford to extend their product alone, but through creative leadership, we were able to negotiate a win-win strategic partnership for a joint product. We both often lost as a result.

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Startup Outsource Development Examples Customer 173

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 6, 2022

There are many books written about failure in startups, and I don’t recommend any of them. Growing a business is like a marathon, you don’t want your company to be a flash in the pan. Be realistic about what you can expect of yourself and don’t over-commit. Manage growth wisely. Look for collaborative opportunities.

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Summary Entrepreneur Activity Resource 147

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2023

I found some good insights and details on this approach in the classic book, “ How To Be A Great Boss ,” by Gino Wickman and René Boer, who speak from years of experience working with leadership teams of both small and large companies. As an entrepreneur, executive, or team member, you are most impacted by the people you gather around you.

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Training Startup Entrepreneur Summary 116

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 20, 2014

But of course great teams build great companies and great startup leaders know that they must always be recruiting. Yet most startup companies I’ve ever worked with or observed make one crucial mistake: They assume that their recruitment process for a candidate is over when that person accepts his or her offer.

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Press Startup Email Sales 341

Berkonomics

FEBRUARY 14, 2019

My answer always varies as I examine each deal, sometimes deferring and passing on an investment because of an uneasy feeling about the entrepreneur, even if the business plan seems able to capture the market. And great management can morph a company to adopt without destroying the culture of the company in the process.

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Venture Capital Entrepreneur Ideas Summary 120

Berkonomics

FEBRUARY 14, 2019

My answer always varies as I examine each deal, sometimes deferring and passing on an investment because of an uneasy feeling about the entrepreneur, even if the business plan seems able to capture the market. And great management can morph a company to adopt without destroying the culture of the company in the process.

Venture Capital 120

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Ideas Summary 120

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 13, 2014

This concise summary can be comfortably told during the duration of a reasonably brief elevator ride. Too often in social situations, entrepreneurs launch into a diatribe about their companies, when the person they are speaking with is more interested in better understanding the person with whom they are chatting.

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Summary Education Startup Networking 248

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 6, 2013

I am fond of quoting that about 70% of my investment decision of an early-stage company is the team. How you build out your team in the first few years can have a huge impact on the trajectory of your company. How you build out your team in the first few years can have a huge impact on the trajectory of your company.

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Startup Slides Outsource Development Sales 388

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2011

I found a good summary of the relevant keys to business operational excellence in a new book by Faisal Hoque, called “ The Power of Convergence.” His focus is on repeatable practices to maximize business opportunities in large companies, but I’m convinced that these apply equally well to startups: Clearly define your value chain.

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Startup Ideas Summary Competition 100

InfoChachkie

JULY 21, 2011

Paige is a gifted communicator and my summary does not do him justice. He offers a number of worthwhile tips and tricks that I was not able to capture in the textual summary, so the 14-minute audio file is well worth your time. What follows is a summary which paraphrases Paige’s responses. Click here to listen to the Audio File.

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Summary Tips Sales Entrepreneur 246

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 6, 2019

If you want the whole deck you can find it on SlideShare but I’ve written up a short summary with commentary below. The best way of thinking about this “value capture” accrued to VCs and not public-market investors is to look at what happened a generation ago. trillion in value.

Venture Capital 292

Venture Capital Capital Startup Funding 292

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 7, 2021

I have to point out that the rest of the world looks for you online before visiting your business, finds talk about you on Yelp and social media sites, and what they see can make or break your business. When you get emotional about a situation or negative feedback, you are likely to react defensively, instead of with intention and clarity.

Social Media 144

Social Media Media Summary Satisfaction 144

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 21, 2019

Hearing views from Bill Gates on how the world deals with issues like climate change, Jack Dorsey talk about the role of social platforms and government and discussions with Kevin Systrom (Instagram), Todd McKinnon (Okta), etc were fascinating. What Should We Talk About at Board Meetings? I think this analogy can hold for boards.

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Startup Slides Venture Capital Course 234

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 14, 2022

Here is my summary and interpretation of the ten strategies that he outlines for driving the disruptive innovations that entrepreneurs and startups all dream about: Establish the engine of leadership. These are about being true, honest, and teaming with others, inside and outside the company. Connect with “why” (purpose).

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Startup Entrepreneur Summary Organization 134