SoCal CTO

MARCH 4, 2010

I’ve worked with 30+ early-stage companies in all sorts of capacities (and spoken to many, many more), so I thought it might be worthwhile trying to classify the various ways that I’ve engaged in different technology roles in startups. It depends on the business, people, technologies, etc. Each situation is just a bit different.

Technical Review 170

Technical Review Technical Advisors CTO Coach Startup 170

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 19, 2013

And of course the most successful technology companies: Google, Facebook, Salesforce.com [duh], Oracle, Microsoft all have loads of sales people. The most important way to sell a product for an early-stage business (or frankly any stage) is to have strong referenceable customers. How do you get referenceable customers?

Startup 403

Startup Sales Software Review Technical Review 403

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2020

When globalization or technology shrinks distances (Internet), painful missing needs become evident, and opportunities abound. Other countries can provide e-commerce with different business models, outsource manufacturing at low cost, and a huge market for new products. Truly “disruptive” technologies. Existing infrastructure.

Customer 167

Customer Custom Startup Outsource Development 167

socalTECH

OCTOBER 30, 2008

Los Angeles-based Ciena Solutions LLC, a provider of SAP integration management services, has been acquired by NetSol Technologies. NetSol, which provides business outsourcing and enterprise application development, did not disclose financial terms of the buy. NetSol Technologies is based in Emeryville, California.

Technology 113

Technology Ticketmaster Outsource Development Southern California 113

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 2, 2009

Irvine-based Wave Technology Solutions Group, a systems integrator, has acquired fellow solutions provider and software developer Radianta, the firm disclosed this morning. Radianta provides custom software development in the customer relationship management and related areas. Financial terms of the buy were not disclosed.

Technology 100

Technology Outsource Development Outsource Custom Software Development 100

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 5, 2011

Some really great stuff in 2010 that aims to help startups around product, technology, business models, etc. First Principles. Steve Blank , January 25, 2010 10 Tips for Adding Game Mechanics to a Non-Gaming Service - ReadWriteStart , September 21, 2010 Startups & VCs: Learn How to Design, Market, & Eat Your Own. -

Startup 378

Startup Venture Capital Blogging CTO Coach 378

InfoChachkie

JUNE 4, 2012

Once you prove that a substantial number of people are willing to pay more for your solution than it costs you to provide it, you can then consider licensing your underlying technology. Fallacy: Startup ventures tend to evolve, especially after you begin speaking with pesky customers and demanding partners. Grant Exclusivity.

Entrepreneur 272

Entrepreneur Outsource Ideas Technical Review 272

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 6, 2012

Customer service has always been reactionary, meaning someone to wake up and answer website email requests. That’s just not sufficient to hold today’s fickle, less loyal, and ready to jump customer. Self-service technologies, social media, and smart phones have created a new set of expectations for high-tech consumers today.

Customer 97

Customer Custom Services Startup 97

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 28, 2011

I never invest in: - business people who outsource tech dev to 3rd parties (“to speed up time to market”)” If you like that feel free to go vote it up on Quora - it fell back a bit in the rankings. Is extraverted and pleasant and has great “bedside manner” with customers, investors, press, recruits, etc.

Startup 325

Startup Outsource Press Marketing 325

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2011

In the initial phases of any new market you’re developing a product (hopefully with a minimal set of features), getting feedback from customers, refining your product based on user feedback and then re-launching your product. We technology leaders also make this mistake. Rinse & repeat. It seemed to be purely speculative.

Development Team Review 374

Development Team Review Technical Review Startup Resource 374

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 13, 2014

In addition to obvious economic challenges, the emerging generation of customers is determined to radically change the rules for customer engagement. He makes a convincing argument that it’s time for every company to get prepared for the next customer generation, or your company is heading toward life support.

Customer 96

Customer Custom Social Media Outsource Development 96

socalTECH

MARCH 5, 2014

So, how do you help ease enterprise customers into the cloud--or at least, help them use cloud technology to help them with their business goals? It''s all custom, technology agnostic, and very flexible. Companies were saying--we want to outsource these kinds of things, because they''re not our core competency.

Cloud Computing 217

Cloud Computing Outsource Development Outsource Startup 217

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2014

The days are gone when a techie or a genius could build things in his garage and customers would find and buy the product, based purely on the “wow factor” of the technology. New technologies are everywhere today. People have seen so much that they are blasé, or actually fear pure technology.

Customer 99

Customer Custom Startup Content 99

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 2010

Since my background includes software development, I often get the question about when to build a solution in-house, versus outsourcing it to a local company, near-shore service, or off-shore organization in China, India, or Eastern Europe. Don’t outsource your core competency. Technology level. Product or services.

Outsource Development 51

Outsource Development Outsource Software Offshore 51

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 1, 2015

In addition to obvious economic challenges, the emerging generation of customers is determined to radically change the rules for customer engagement. He makes a convincing argument that it’s time for every company to get prepared for the next customer generation, or your company is heading toward life support.

Customer 97

Customer Custom Social Media Outsource Development 97

SoCal CTO

APRIL 2, 2012

Hiring seems to be the preferred use of seed funds (by investors and founders), whereas I'd prefer a focus on customer acquisition. They most often really just need either a Part-Time CTO or Technology Advisor , and then some combination of hiring and/or outsourcing (on-shore or off-shore).

CTO Hire 205

CTO Hire Outsource Development CTO Coach Develop 205

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 18, 2019

Crowdstrike said the partnership will see Wipro offering up CrowdStrike's Falcon platform to its customers worldwide. Wipro provides information technology, consulting, and business process outsourcing. Financial details of the partnership were not announced. READ MORE>>.

Outsource Development 124

Outsource Development Outsource Platform Software 124

socalTECH

DECEMBER 12, 2014

We provide a turnkey, back end, managed service offering for brands and retailers on an outsourced basis. We do everything from picking, packing, and shipping to customer service, fulfillment, and providing the technology that powers the e-commerce site, online marketing, creative design, and digital imaging and photography.

Commerce 203

Commerce Venture Capital Internet Brands Startup 203

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 8, 2023

If you have a software development background like mine, I’m sure you often get questions about when to outsource, versus building the solution in-house. Outsourcing is defined as contracting the work to another company, usually located in a developing country, like India, China, or Eastern Europe. Marty Zwilling.

Software Review 114

Software Review Technical Review Outsource Development Outsource 114

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2013

Customer service has always been reactionary, meaning someone has to wake up and answer website email requests. That’s just not savvy enough to hold today’s fickle, less loyal, and ready to jump customer. This exemplary customer service is just savvy marketing. Respect your customer’s view of usability.

Customer 89

Customer Custom Services High Tech 89

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2011

They have created two internal technology “products&# and wanted to figure out how they could turn their services business into a product business that could be financed. They feel very confident they can hit $18 – 20 million in 2012. This team is talented. They wanted advice. You own the IP you create.

Services 332

Services Venture Capital IP Startup 332

TechCrunch LA

APRIL 23, 2019

Former President of BMW manufacturing, Clemens Schmitz-Justen also joined the company as its head of manufacturing — overseeing the contract manufacturing strategy, which will see the company outsource production of vehicles in the U.S. and China, according to one person with knowledge of the company’s plans.

Outsource Development 191

Outsource Development Startup Outsource San Diego 191

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2012

I often hear the qualms of business-smart but non-technical entrepreneurs, wondering if they really have a chance in this high-technology marketplace. I tell them that if their idea or solution is technology intensive, they clearly need technology strength on the team. Outsource your technical requirements.

Technical Review 92

Technical Review Technology Startup Outsource Development 92

TechCrunch LA

APRIL 10, 2019

Publicly traded sensor technology developer, FLIR Systems , is investing in a strategic round of funding for the outsourced drone imaging company, DroneBase. The two companies are also partnering to provide FLIR’s thermal imaging technology and training services to DroneBase’s stable of pilots.

Training 147

Training Outsource Development Outsource Capital 147

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2016

If you have a software development background like mine, I’m sure you often get questions about when to outsource, versus building the solution in-house. Outsourcing is defined as contracting the work to another company, usually located in a developing country, like India, China, or Eastern Europe. Marty Zwilling.

Outsource Development 53

Outsource Development Outsource Software Review Technical Review 53

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 22, 2019

TaskUs recently reached 15,000 employees , by offering up a range of customer service and business process outsourcing services. The two received the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2019 Award in the Services category, one of only 11 categories awarded in the E&Y program. Ruan and Hudson just sold Honey to PayPal for $4 billion.

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Southern California Outsource Santa Monica 124

socalTECH

OCTOBER 7, 2008

El Segundo-based iRise has signed on automotive giant General Motors as a customer for its application simulation software, the firm said Tuesday. According to iRise, General Motors is deploying its visual modeling technology as part of developing new IT systems at the company. Financial impact of the customer win was not disclosed.

El Segundo 113

El Segundo Outsource Development Outsource Software 113

socalTECH

MAY 24, 2018

Los Angeles-based TaskUs , which provides outsource customer support and back-end support services for many startups and other technology companies, has named Joe Buggy as its new Chief Operating Officer, the first for the company. TaskUs said that Buggy has more than 30 years of experience.

Outsource 113

Outsource Los Angeles Services Customer 113

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 5, 2023

Technology is so key to every business these days that experienced business-smart but non-tech entrepreneurs are feeling deeper and deeper in the hole. Startups succeed most often when the founding partners know how to build and run a business, rather than how to build and run technology.

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Technology High Tech Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 3, 2020

For example, both need to provide exemplary customer service, build customer loyalty, and provide real value for a competitive price. If you don’t have a high level of commitment and passion, you customers won’t seek you out. Customers can touch and see a great product, but services are a bit ethereal. Marty Zwilling.

Startup 174

Startup Training Services Writing 174

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 8, 2014

If you have a software development background like mine, Im sure you often get questions about when to outsource, versus building the solution in-house. Outsourcing is defined as contracting the work to another company, usually located in a developing country, like India, China, or Eastern Europe. Marty Zwilling.

Outsource Development 95

Outsource Development Outsource Offshore Software Review 95

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 21, 2020

She describes a new generation of entrepreneurs that is highly collaborative, quick and alert when it comes to new technologies, and hell-bent on changing the world in general. It's far less expensive to nail down repeat business from your existing customers than it is to land new ones. Focus on your core competency.

Geni 172

Geni Layoffs Entrepreneur Outsource 172

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 24, 2018

In addition to obvious economic challenges, the emerging generation of customers is determined to radically change the rules for customer engagement. He makes a convincing argument that it’s time for every company to get prepared for the next customer generation, or your company is heading toward life support.

Demand 71

Demand Customer Custom Tips 71

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 19, 2020

I see too many business plans that are really product plans for customers, touting free services and long feature lists. No product, even with a large opportunity, is ready to scale until you can show it working, with multiple customers paying the full price, to validate the business model. Word-of-mouth does not scale.

Startup 154

Startup Outsource Ideas Research 154

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 25, 2023

New digital technologies, business models, and regulatory rulings are forcing all of us to think outside of our silos and rethink what it means to operate effectively. Outsourcing the entirety of building a new system. It is fair to bring in outside technology to reduce the risk and speed the implementation.

Outsource Development 140

Outsource Development Outsource Startup Metrics 140

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2021

It wasn’t so many years ago that starting a new e-commerce business on the Internet was a complex custom development project, usually costing a million dollars or more. You can now skip the mandatory office space rental, with secretary and bookkeeping staff, or outsourcing. Use the cloud and subscriptions for computing technology.

Entrepreneur 162

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Outsource Development 162

socalTECH

OCTOBER 20, 2011

The idea was they were going to create their own interactive voice response (IVR) technology, which we would keep in house and allow us to open up a nationwide call center to handle taxi calls. Back in 2003 and 2004, we were focused on the international market, and started outsourcing to India and the Philippines for call center services.

Outsource Development 190

Outsource Development Startup Outsource Altadena 190