Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 10, 2014

In a VC business when you raise additional capital you need to “level up” and act the round you are. Of course I’m not preaching crazy, irrational spend or having Kid Rock at your next company party. I’d say 20% of startups I see level-up early after their A round. Act your stage. But at what cost?

Startup 381

Startup Resource Venture Capital Activity 381

Berkonomics

AUGUST 8, 2024

How to define “success” for a startup? Everyone has a vision when starting a business. Email readers, continue here…] The best advice to anyone considering this course of action is to measure one’s ability to take the risk. Then again, with the fifty percent rule, aren’t all entrepreneurs a bit insane to start?

Startup 317

Startup Entrepreneur Course Capital 317

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.

Mentor 297

Mentor Training Startup Course 297

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

There are certain topics that even some of the smartest people I talk with who aren’t startup oriented can’t fully grok. It’s common cocktail party chatter to hear people confidently pronounce that some well known startup is sure to blow up because, “How could they succeed when they’re not even profitable!”

Startup 227

Startup Venture Capital Sales Course 227

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 3, 2014

Most technology startups seem to be funded by product people or business people. My first startup was no different. They are the lifeblood of many companies yet they are different than the traditional technology startup DNA so the ways that you hire, motivate, compensate and assess performance of these individuals will be different.

Sales 382

Sales Help Startup Pricing 382

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

Even bigger is the desire to stick one’s middle finger up at all of the people who doubted you all along. Of course the naysayers are out again. Of course backbencher has also become a slang term for “someone who exaggerates their actual power, influence, or importance, usually for nefarious purposes.”

Technical Review 417

Technical Review Startup Software Review Course 417

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 31, 2020

Yes, of course in moderation and certainly not every day. I’m going to make this post pretty high-level because my goal is to help anybody who wants to get started quickly. I’m going to follow up with a series of detailed posts about what I did so that if you want more information, help, support or insights I can go deeper.

Startup 526

Startup Course Writing Help 526

TechEmpower

AUGUST 7, 2023

What does it mean to be a CTO for a startup? Should a startup CTO spend their time programming? Here’s a graphic from Socal CTO that illustrates the roles as they change over time: In its earliest days, a startup’s top need is often to produce a product. This is a safe choice, of course - but is it the best choice?

CTO Hire 260

CTO Hire Development Develop Fractional VPE 260

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 26, 2022

We remain confident in the long-term trend that software enables and the value accrued to disruptive startups; we also recognized that in a strong market it is important to ring the cash register and this doesn’t come without a concentrated effort to do so. Venture capital is a talent game, which starts with the team that’s inside Upfront.

Startup 408

Startup Venture Capital Writing Invest 408

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2014

If you’re a technology startup you need to excel at product, of course. The starting point of product IS marketing, which is what a lot of young entrepreneurs that never studied business don’t realize. The start of marketing is figuring out a market need and a way to solve that need better than anybody else.

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 10, 2021

If you want to get in better shape and haven’t read that you might start there. I started advice with the premise that no amount of exercise or food eating plan would help with long-term fitness or weight goals unless you first had a mental plan and a set of measurements to track your progress. I want to share with you how I did this.

Coach 538

Coach Startup Guide Journal 538

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 29, 2014

I often describe “chutzpah” as being able to skate right up to the line of acceptability without crossing over it. And being persistent I believe is the most important attribute for success in an entrepreneur (assuming of course that you have all the other requisite skills). It’s your job to persist.

Venture Capital 389

Venture Capital Email Startup Conference 389

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 19, 2017

One of the hardest decisions entrepreneurs make when they start a company and raise outside capital is figuring out what an acceptable “burn rate” is. The Basics The starting point — the 101 — is knowing the difference between gross burn and net burn. You start from the basics, which is if you raise $2.5

Startup 212

Startup Venture Capital .Net Capital 212

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 19, 2013

The era of VCs investing in successful consumer Internet startups such as eBay led to a belief system that seemed to permeate many enterprise software startups that hiring sales or implementation people was a bad thing. If you’re an early-stage enterprise startup services revenue is exactly what you need. We like software.

Startup 403

Startup Sales Software Review Technical Review 403

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 2, 2014

Of course it’s a universal lesson and one that I’m doomed to learn over and over. ” But I started thinking more about the role of a VC and the founding team or CEO. I think it’s healthy and ok to voice your opinion and stand up for what you believe. Startup Lessons' And I lost twice.

Venture Capital 346

Venture Capital Course Startup Examples 346

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 15, 2014

Of course this can be done and of course I am a big proponent of the rise of startup centers across the country as the Internet has moved from the “infrastructure phase” to the “application phase” dominated by the three C’s: content, communications and commerce.

Companies 369

Companies Company Startup Snapchat 369

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 29, 2014

I hope to publish that deck and a full write up in the next 10 days in partnership with Dan Primack at Fortune (if my write up doesn’t suck, I guess ;-)). Of course the concentration of capital in growth firms and the intense competition to fund the best deals leads to some risks. Startup Lessons'

Venture Capital 362

Venture Capital Capital Startup Writing 362

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

Do you need a board when you first start you company? If you haven’t raised any money or if you raised a small round from angels or friends & family I would suggest you avoid setting up a formal board unless the people who would join your board are deeply experienced at sitting on startup boards.

Startup 236

Startup Venture Capital Tips Capital 236

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

One of the vivid memories I have from being a startup CEO is the feeling that most people in your company have a look in their eyes that like they can do your job as well as you. But if you level up , raise capital and grow customers, revenue and staff – life changes. You course correct. Startup life. Engineering?

Entrepreneur 385

Entrepreneur CTO Hire Startup Sales 385

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 13, 2014

Let me start with the news that I’m excited to share with you. Startup CEO experience (Founded P.S. XO along with my good friend Soleil Moon Frye. She rolls up her sleeves and helps get tasks done rather than just directing people. But there are tons of great startup folks so you need a narrower filter.

Venture Capital 408

Venture Capital Startup Outsource Development CitySearch 408

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 8, 2014

Let me start with the obvious baseline that most people probably know instinctively: Los Angeles is the 3rd largest technology startup ecosystem in the US. Given how efficient markets are when a large market like LA starts to blossom it attracts capital pretty quickly. Of course that’s not disputable.

Entrepreneur 376

Entrepreneur Snapchat Startup Google 376

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 9, 2014

Of course passion isn’t enough. I really want to start my journeys only with people with whom I want to work closely with for the next 5-7 years or more. So of course I want (need) to make money for my investors (LPs). But the two can of course go hand-in-hand. It’s even a direct quote in my Twitter bio.

Venture Capital 373

Venture Capital Startup Course Entrepreneur 373

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2020

As a mentor to startups, I see more startups that are really an individual professional, marketing themselves as a consultant or freelancer in this new gig economy. Of course, entrepreneurs delivering services have existed for some time, including business consultant, independent contractor, and freelancer titles.

Startup 164

Startup Social Media Course Entrepreneur 164

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

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 was telling him that it was much easier when I started because there were fewer deals, life was less public and somehow the world seemed to be spinning more slowly. Web Summit.

Venture Capital 374

Venture Capital Invest Press Startup 374

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 25, 2014

Very few investors understand this and even fewer startups. When you’re an early-stage business every dollar matters and because many startup teams these days are very product & technology centric they often miscalculate the importance of PR. Ironic, of course. They are silent. It doesn’t work that way.

Press 415

Press Google Course Writing 415

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 25, 2019

This is part of a series on a Board of Directors at a Startup. High Functioning Startup Boards High-functioning boards have a tight-knit relationship between all members based on mutual trust and admiration. They are able to divide responsibilities and work to gain consensus on tough decisions that every startup inevitably faces.

Startup 269

Startup Venture Capital Layoffs Resource 269

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 21, 2013

It is of course why immigrants power so many successful businesses in the US and why we need to embrace them. I was never into spicy foods growing up but after living in the UK for nearly a decade and having so much great Indian food around me all of the time I developed more of a taste for it. Startup Advice' Where was it from?

Entrepreneur 415

Entrepreneur Startup Pricing Product 415

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 20, 2014

It is the bane of every startups existence because it takes up so much time, it is so competitive to sign people and it feels like unproductive time because it’s not moving the ball forward on product, engineering, sales, marketing, biz dev, fund raising. Set up calls for VCs to welcome her to the team.

Press 341

Press Startup Email Sales 341

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 5, 2014

She started with a story — a parable — as Jewish people are wont to do. Of course the dirty one took the shower.’ You should be asking yourself … how could two boys go down the chimney and one ended up dirty and the other ended up clean?!’ ’ ‘No. How can you say that?

Entrepreneur 337

Entrepreneur Technical Advisors Startup Venture Capital 337

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 8, 2021

These days I see a surge of new startups as businesses seem to be recovering from the pandemic. If you are not starting one yourself, the next best thing is joining one as a partner, or as an early employee. Of course experience is the best teacher, but you need to get the job to get the experience.

Tips 168

Tips Startup Coach Networking 168

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 22, 2014

It’s a fantastic startup that has had a amazing impact on society. It’s not just about people like me who can (and do) turn up in nearly any city in the US and immediately book a ride. They were a little too fierce in their competitive practices against Lyft to sign up drivers. Is Uber evil? That’s silly.

Press 418

Press Journal Startup Competition 418

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2020

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. It’s helpful to think of startups as proceeding through several stages, which I have defined a long time ago from a funding perspective. Don’t waste your resources on the wrong ones.

Resource 171

Resource Startup Organization Incubator 171

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 21, 2019

Managing Your Startup Board?—?A My talk was about “ managing your startup board ” and the full deck is on that SlideShare link and embedded below. I also wrote an entire series on the topic of Startup Boards if you want to do any more reading that link has several articles you can dig into. link] Managing Your Startup Board?—?A

Startup 234

Startup Slides Venture Capital Course 234

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

Associates often shadow partners at board meetings so that they can help follow up with the company on important initiatives between board meetings. a really wide angle view of the tech industry since you see so many concepts / so many pitches and REAL data points on how startups perform financially. Startup Advice'

Help 365

Help Invest Venture Capital Technical Review 365

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

If you’re funding the same stuff as everybody else and if you started your activities when the clues were obvious you’re much less likely to drive enormous returns. In other words, if it seems this obvious to us then it must be this obvious to many other investors and probably to many other teams gearing up to compete.

Funding 362

Funding Technical Review Ideas Startup 362

Tech.Co

JUNE 29, 2021

You know what a startup is, right? Or at least you have an idea of what a startup is like to work in? That is, of course, until the small, ambitious startup is acquired by a larger, more traditional company in its sector, or the small startup goes public with angry shareholders and regulators asking difficult questions.

Startup 159

Startup Course Coach Demand 159

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

and of course a relentless pursuit of helping founders succeed. Kara said “no” because she wanted to start her own company, which she did and I backed. In any job you either find leadership opportunities for your best people BEFORE they ask or other people start asking them to become leaders somewhere else.

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361