Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 26, 2013

If your startup is great enough to get a term sheet from angel investors or a venture capitalist, the next step for the investor is to complete the dreaded due diligence process. Some startups do nothing to prepare for the due diligence process, assuming the people and business plan documents will speak for themselves.

Technical Review 97

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Summary 97

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 18, 2021

If your startup is great enough to get a term sheet from angel investors or a venture capitalist, the next step for the investor is to complete the dreaded due diligence process. Some startups do nothing to prepare for the due diligence process, assuming the people and business plan documents will speak for themselves.

Technical Review 152

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Summary 152

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 4, 2012

This is the dreaded “due diligence” process. In my view, understanding due diligence can only improve information flow, and leads to a better long-term partnership with your investor. Technical due diligence typically starts with a full one or two day review with the engineering and product marketing staff.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Startup Writing Competition 94

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2010

This is the dreaded “due diligence” process. In my view, understanding due diligence can only improve information flow, and leads to a better long-term partnership with your investor. Technical due diligence typically starts with a full one or two day review with the engineering and product marketing staff.

Technical Review 90

Technical Review Writing Competition Tips 90

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2012

If your startup is great enough to get a term sheet from angel investors or a venture capitalist, the next step for the investor is to complete the dreaded due diligence process. Some startups do nothing to prepare for the due diligence process, assuming the people and business plan documents will speak for themselves.

Technical Review 98

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Training 98

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 11, 2020

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 124

Technical Review Funding Innocal Offshore 124

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 28, 2010

If your startup is great enough to get a term sheet from angel investors or a venture capitalist, the next step for the investor is to complete the dreaded due diligence process. Some startups do nothing to prepare for the due diligence process, assuming the people and business plan documents will speak for themselves.

Technical Review 91

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Summary 91

TechEmpower

JULY 31, 2023

These two questions/answers can help define the early proof points for your company. Proving your Business Model Works - Build, Define, and Review But how do you prove your numbers? Finally, review the numbers with your partners. Apply costs to each channel. We need to make sure we have these numbers.

Metrics 260

Metrics Startup Slides Technical Review 260

SoCal CTO

MARCH 9, 2010

In my post, Technology Roles in Startups , I described some of the different ways I engage with startup companies such as CTO Founder , CTO , Part-Time CTO , Acting CTO , Consultant, Advisor and Advisory Board Member. Now, most often technical advisors are part of a broader advisory board. In Why assemble an advisory board?

CTO Coach 150

CTO Coach Technical Review Technology CTO Hire 150

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 30, 2014

The practical uses for uBeam technology is limitless. Did anybody hold patents that would prevent us from using this technology? I seldom hire patent attorneys during due diligence but this was too important. We hired IP specialists to review prior art. Did the physics actually work? Was it safe? It was impressive.

Technical Review 418

Technical Review Software Review CTO Hire IP 418

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2018

You company is the product and you’re selling an equity ownership in your company but much more broadly you’re selling trust & confidence that you’re going to build something enormously valuable and that you’re going to be enjoyable to work hand-in-hand with over the coming decade of each other’s lives.

Venture Capital 314

Venture Capital Technical Review Invest Slides 314

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

SoCal CTO

APRIL 9, 2013

What I didn''t discuss was how you should go about selecting the right company. I just got an email asking about exactly this: I''m with a new company that needs some software built, but doesn''t need (or have the resources for) a large staff of software developers. Are there particular technologies or platforms involved?

Web Development 204

Web Development Web Develop Development 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

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

We are often asked how companies get funded, why VCs make the decisions we make and what we’re looking for in entrepreneurs. On August 26th I had an equally effusive intro from Ynon Kreiz, also a friend, trusted source and also the CEO of portfolio company Maker Studios. But I’m guessing the narrative is similar elsewhere.

Funding 373

Funding Technical Review Startup Screening 373

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

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 17, 2013

The most likely outcome if you manage to interest the senior exec (for the sake of this post let me call her the CEO) is that she will refer you down the organization to somebody who would be involved in the decision. We will have to build (or buy) technology in this area.” The benefits of this are clear: 1.

Sales 375

Sales Technical Review Organization Case Study 375

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 21, 2013

So when I meet with GRP portfolio companies that do enterprise sales I try to emphasize the following: 1. In the Ad Tech world PS revenue often means providing “media services” as a value-add to using your product. Everything needs to be part of a holistic company strategy. rollout support. configuration.

Software Review 321

Software Review Software Services Company 321

socalTECH

OCTOBER 22, 2020

Krisztina Holly: We are an early stage fund, known for our ability to discovery and cultivate very complex science and technology deals. We just launched a third, $100M fund focused on seed to Series A investments in transformative science and technology companies. They have built 18 companies now, worth billions in value.

Southern California 124

Southern California Capital Technical Review Startup 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2022

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. There are other chasms out there just as deadly as the technology one, such as the ones below: Market requirements chasm. Product development chasm. Marketing and sales chasm.

Startup 150

Startup Technical Review Customer Custom 150

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2022

As a potential investor, I always think of the high rate of failure of disruptive technologies, due to the longer learning curve of customers, infrastructure change consistently required, and higher marketing costs. Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security by an initial innovation that has served your company well so far.

Technical Review 101

Technical Review Metrics Resource Software Review 101

InfoChachkie

JULY 7, 2016

Note: I invest almost exclusively in b-to-b software companies. This approach provides me with a view that is more representative of how a typical customer is introduced to the company’s value proposition. In turn, we receive unfiltered, frank feedback regarding the company’s product, team and value prop. Don’t Demo Me Bro.

Venture Capital 176

Venture Capital Product Software Review Technical Review 176

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.

Southern California 173

Southern California Technical Review High Tech San Diego 173

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 2, 2022

Many entrepreneurs think that adapting to the new technologies, like smart phones and Internet commerce, are the key to attracting new customers. High-technology product startups, without customers, don’t make a business. The result is that over 60% of online shoppers are brand loyal due to other online satisfaction data.

Customer 122

Customer Custom Social Media Technical Review 122

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Leave the world of new computer chips and new drugs to the big companies, and people with deep pockets.

Startup 136

Startup Technical Review Equity Incubator 136

socalTECH

AUGUST 12, 2015

Los Anngeles-based RadPad , the online job marketplace led by Jonathan Eppers, said Wednesday that it is offering up a $10,000 referral reward to anyone who helps land the company an engineer. RadPad also said that it would pay a $10,000 bonus to any engineers who are hired as a result of referring themselves to the company.

Flipagram 100

Flipagram Snapchat Technical Review Invest 100

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

Portfolio company support & analysis. Industry reviews. Associates often shadow partners at board meetings so that they can help follow up with the company on important initiatives between board meetings. Ability to source information easily to help build a thesis around companies / industries / competition.

Help 365

Help Invest Venture Capital Technical Review 365

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 2, 2017

Many entrepreneurs think that adapting to the new technologies, like smart phones and Internet commerce, are the key to attracting new customers. High-technology product startups, without customers, don’t make a business. The result is that over 60% of online shoppers are brand loyal due to other online satisfaction data.

Technical Review 55

Technical Review Technology Social Media Social Network 55

Tech.Co

APRIL 15, 2020

However, despite the company's success with capitalizing on a catastrophe, Amazon isn't protecting the workers who have built the company's fortune. The company has fired two tech workers, Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa, for fundraising to provide protective equipment to limit the spread of coronavirus in the company's warehouses.

Sites 139

Sites Technical Review Startup Guide 139

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 fact that Kara doesn’t have what my wife likes to refer jokingly as my “Y chromosome problem” is beside the fact. He’s helped me run the Upfront holding company activities for all of these years and will continue to do so. Just you watch.

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

Positioning pitches, one-line descriptions of a company''s value proposition and relative placement within its ecosystem, are the first step in achieving such balance. The type of business, the nature of the investor audience and the company''s relative maturity all influence the relevancy of a company''s positioning claim.

Product 208

Product Yammer Technical Review Google 208

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 7, 2014

I spend a lot of time with startups and thus hear many companies talk about their approach to sales and their interactions with customers. Who else is going to tell a VC if he got a bad reference from an entrepreneur or fellow VC? They are sometimes the only people who can tell you hard truths about your business or yourself.

Customer 341

Customer Custom Venture Capital Software Review 341

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 2022

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Leave the world of new computer chips and new drugs to the big companies, and people with deep pockets.

Tips 104

Tips Startup Technical Review Equity 104

InfoChachkie

MARCH 23, 2015

As crazy as this scenario sounds, it is very similar to the “scoring process” companies engage in when they track Net Promoter Scores. A company''s Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a beloved metric slavishly tracked and reported by product marketing and customer support executives of both established and nascent enterprises.

.Net 100

.Net Startup Satisfaction Technical Review 100

Tech.Co

AUGUST 22, 2017

Adams developed Levium following his experiences founding several tech companies. How have your experiences with anxiety affected your career in tech? During my time as a tech founder I experienced this profoundly at a personal level and also saw it far too frequently in others whose lives were essentially taken over by anxiety.

Technical Review 51

Technical Review Competition Startup Design 51

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2010

A good early-stage CEO needs to be accessible, to be accountable for producing results and should be establishing the cultural norms of the company through direct leadership at all levels. But issues do arise as your company grows. I see two common mistakes in companies (not just in startups, in fact).

Startup 308

Startup CTO Coach Technical Review CTO Hire 308

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 26, 2010

Social proof is defined as “looking for others to guide our decisions&# and is also one of the most important techniques in acquiring customers in your company. It influenced a generation of tech marketers. The book popularized the technology adoption lifecycle curve that originally came out of Iowa State University shown below.

Marketing 294

Marketing Customer Custom Technical Review 294