Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2022

Being the leader doesn’t mean more equity, nor does it mean the leader will necessarily be CEO. A sales fanatic on the founder team helps to contain that risk. The rest can come from early hires (with stock options to assure commitment), equity investors, or even strategic partners. The industry veteran. The sales professional.

Technical Advisors 123

Technical Advisors Startup Outsource Development High Tech 123

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2018

These collective sets of documents form the basis of what somebody looking at investing would call “financial due diligence.” What happens is 18–20 firms access the data room and download all of your documents. I hired a sales coach named Kai Krickle who helped me figure out how to close more deals. It doesn’t.

Funding 336

Funding Venture Capital Startup Email 336

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 10, 2021

What used to be an “A” round in 2011 is now routinely called a Seed round and this has been so engrained that founders would rather take less money than to have to put the words “A round” in their legal documents. at this scale it’s easier for us to help fund a seed extension. You have seed rounds but you now have “pre-seed rounds.”

Venture Capital 471

Venture Capital Writing Invest Pricing 471

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

This time by the efforts of Adeo Ressi to introduce a new kind of structure called “ convertible equity.” My initial reaction to Adeo when we spoke was that while it may have solved some issues (debt versus equity) it didn’t solve the ones that I’ve been warning entrepreneurs about most loudly.

Startup 354

Startup Pricing Equity Venture Capital 354

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 6, 2019

On the plus side, it’s an opportunity to get in early and really help make things happen that will change an industry, or change the world. Today most startup investors still register with the SEC as “ accredited ” investors before they buy any startup equity in the U.S. Join an existing angel investor group.

Invest 89

Invest Entrepreneur Startup Equity 89

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 9, 2020

Being the leader doesn’t mean more equity, nor does it mean the leader will necessarily be CEO. A sales fanatic on the founder team helps to contain that risk. The rest can come from early hires (with stock options to assure commitment), equity investors, or even strategic partners. The industry veteran. The sales professional.

Technical Advisors 123

Technical Advisors Outsource Development Startup High Tech 123

SoCal CTO

APRIL 28, 2014

I just need you for a few hours to help me move this weekend.” Other Topics Covered I also covered topics that are covered more thoroughly in the following posts: Document Your MVP for a Developer. Read Document Your MVP for a Developer for all of the detail that you really need to provide.

Develop 280

Develop Development CTO Coach CTO Hire 280

SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 13, 2013

Equity-Only CTO and Equity-Only Developers Technology Roles in Startups Want to Know the Difference Between a CTO and a VP Engineering? In this talk, we spent most of our time on Technical Advisors: Every Web/Mobile Startup Must Have One and how they should be helping you: Specify the right things to be built.

Technical Review 338

Technical Review CTO Hire CTO Coach Software Review 338

socalTECH

JUNE 21, 2013

Instead of equity, the company is aimed at profiting profitable small businesses with business debt funding from investors, to help those businesses grow and get to the next level. Why did you decide to focus on debt, not equity? All entrepreneurs put pressure on yourself, because it helps them persevere.

Startup 247

Startup Software Review Entrepreneur Equity 247

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2017

On the plus side, it’s an opportunity to get in early and really help make things happen that will change an industry, or change the world. Today most startup investors still register with the SEC as “ accredited ” investors before they buy any startup equity in the U.S. Join an existing angel investor group.

Invest 73

Invest Startup Equity Incubator 73

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2020

Just because you want to start a business doesn’t mean you are entitled to outside equity, loans, or crowdfunding. Get in the habit of documenting all agreements and terms. You have to find your customers, and people who can help you – they won’t find you. Keep the initial scope within bootstrapping limits.

Custom 125

Custom Customer Tool Writing 125

SoCal CTO

MARCH 2, 2015

This includes links to CTO Salary and Equity Trends, Technology Roles in Startups , Initial Conversation with a CTO or Technical Advisor , Finding a Technical Cofounder for Your Startup , Hiring a CTO for Your Startup and many others. So, the bottom line these days is that I’m not doing these introductions. My general answer is “no.”

CTO Hire 150

CTO Hire CTO Coach Los Angeles Angel 150

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 5, 2011

Some really great stuff in 2010 that aims to help startups around product, technology, business models, etc. 500 Hats , February 1, 2010 When to Use Facebook Connect – Twitter Oauth – Google Friend Connect for Authentication? . -

Startup 378

Startup Venture Capital Blogging CTO Coach 378

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 25, 2019

For example, one of the first decisions that most of you entrepreneurs face is how much equity to give to early investors, co-founders, and key new hires. It doesn’t help to blame the other side when negotiations don’t go as expected, and you only have gut instinct to fall back on. Allowing biases, emotion, and ego to overrule logic.

Entrepreneur 96

Entrepreneur Pricing Startup Demand 96

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 22, 2009

He’s joining you because your company offers him/her the hope of the big equity package but likely the step forward in his career that he’s been looking for. I was able to hire the former European head of sales for the largest document management player in the world. I had given him a small equity stake in my company.

Startup 327

Startup Sales Class CIO 327

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2015

Being the leader doesn’t mean more equity, nor does it mean the leader will necessarily be CEO. A sales fanatic on the founder team helps to contain that risk. The rest can come from early hires (with stock options to assure commitment), equity investors, or even strategic partners. The industry veteran. The sales professional.

Technical Advisors 105

Technical Advisors Outsource Development Startup High Tech 105

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 6, 2015

On the plus side, it’s an opportunity to get in early and really help make things happen that will change an industry, or change the world. Today you still need to be registered with the SEC as an “ accredited ” investor to legally buy any startup equity in the U.S. Join an existing Angel investor group.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Startup Invest Incubator 102

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2019

When an entrepreneur takes on investors who take equity (i.e. The board is where large equity investors get their representation. It’s not a requirement but it certainly helps when they’ve had to deal with the kinds of issues you will face. then your situation may resonate less with them than it might for other candidates.

Startup 187

Startup Writing Venture Capital Oracle 187

socalTECH

MARCH 31, 2014

I helped to grow that to a major player in ecommerce and online advertising, which is used to find and buy chips use in your iPhone, in your computer, and everything else today. To give you an overview, there are something like 6,000 equities in the U.S. which are super actively traded, those stocks that we all trade.

Orange County 245

Orange County Startup News IBM 245

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 18, 2018

Being the leader doesn’t mean more equity, nor does it mean the leader will necessarily be CEO. A sales fanatic on the founder team helps to contain that risk. The rest can come from early hires (with stock options to assure commitment), equity investors, or even strategic partners. The industry veteran. The sales professional.

Technical Advisors 57

Technical Advisors Startup Outsource Development High Tech 57

Berkonomics

JANUARY 16, 2014

Taking on a business partner can be an excellent strategic decision in helping move the business forward. Example: salary, equity, joint venture, etc… Can the business afford it? It is highly recommended that legal document are created and/or reviewed by a business transaction attorney.

Technical Review 204

Technical Review Startup Examples Metrics 204

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 7, 2013

CapLinked also netted in new customers such as Thomson Reuters, Sun Capital, and Equity Partners, NextView Ventures and crowd-funding service AI Verified which will take advantage of its iPad compatibility, bulk uploading, and reporting tools. According to Eric M.

Mobile 91

Mobile Report Pricing Tool 91

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 11, 2014

Being the leader doesn’t mean more equity, nor does it mean the leader will necessarily be CEO. A sales fanatic on the founder team helps to contain that risk. The rest can come from early hires (with stock options to assure commitment), equity investors, or even strategic partners. The industry veteran. The sales professional.

Technical Advisors 98

Technical Advisors Startup Outsource Development High Tech 98

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 29, 2016

On the positive side, friends and family probably won’t be as demanding on your financial projections as a professional investor, and they likely will be satisfied with an initial offer of a convertible note (loan with option to convert to equity later), so you don’t have to give away the store before you get started.

Funding 60

Funding Startup Ideas Slides 60

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2013

On the plus side, it’s an opportunity to get in early and really help make things happen that will change an industry, or change the world. Today you still need to be registered with the SEC as an “ accredited ” investor to legally buy any startup equity. Startups are private companies with no common document filing requirements.

Startup 87

Startup Invest Incubator Ideas 87

socalTECH

MARCH 26, 2014

What that means, in more simple terms, is we''re able to help doctors with scheduling, medical billing, managing health records electronically, with a patient portal, and analytics--really a one stop shop for running their entire practice. We''ve raised around $72 million now in equity capital. Thanks, and good luck! READ MORE>>.

Startup 160

Startup El Segundo CTO Hire Outsource Development 160

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 27, 2012

If you can’t get the message across in ten minutes, more time and more charts won’t help. The approach I recommend is to build the investor presentation first, by iterating on the bullets with your team, and then fleshing out the points into a full-blown text-based business plan document. Give the “elevator pitch” for your startup.

Slides 99

Slides Competition Sample Sales 99

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 24, 2012

On the plus side, it’s an opportunity to get in early and really help make things happen that will change an industry, or change the world. Today you still need to be registered with the SEC as an “ accredited ” investor to legally buy any startup equity. Startups are private companies with no common document filing requirements.

Startup 91

Startup Invest Incubator Ideas 91

socalTECH

JUNE 17, 2009

We caught up with Greg Brogger , the firm's CEO, to understand the service and how it might help private investors. We came to it, because we'd been around private equity, and it's always surprised me how inefficient the marketplace is. tools available, not to mention the growth and size of the private equity market--it's a 2.5

Startup 124

Startup Zag Venture Capital Equity 124

Xconomy

OCTOBER 20, 2016

It’s closed a $40 million Series A round led by Arch, with participation from the venture arm of Johnson & Johnson, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, and several other investors. BlackThorn’s contribution to the toolkit is called Inform, a method of, as it says in a press release, “linking brain physiology to behavior.”

Research 40

Research Study Press Equity 40

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2017

Since this document is outward facing, it is important to keep the terminology and tone consistent with that of your customer set, investors, and business partners. When sizing your funding request, be aware of the value of your startup today, since most investors expect an equity share for their contributions.

Startup 65

Startup Writing Patents Competition 65

Tech Zulu Event

NOVEMBER 19, 2012

That being said, if you find yourself in any of the following situations, you will typically need to have an audit: When it is required by an equity investor. You want to make sure you’re documenting your processes and controls for all of your financial transactions — even those that don’t directly affect your cash balance.

Report 78

Report Equity Organization Sales 78

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 10, 2011

If you can’t get the message across in ten minutes, more time and more charts won’t help. The approach I recommend is to build the investor presentation first, by iterating on the bullets with your team, and then fleshing out the points into a full-blown text-based business plan document. Give the “elevator pitch” for your startup.

Slides 93

Slides Competition Sample Sales 93

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2016

Over the years, I have identified ten key principles and disciplines that every entrepreneur must understand and practice to minimize surprises and failures in this area: Failure to document cash flow projections is a disaster. Neither banks nor investors will help you on this one. You can be on budget, and still run out of cash.

Startup 64

Startup Sales Layoffs Slides 64

Tech.Co

OCTOBER 24, 2017

Jennifer: I am a corporate attorney who has spent that past 13 years working with entrepreneurs, venture firms, private equity firms, and high-growth, privately held companies to make acquisitions, grow their businesses and complete successful exits. What are some of the inputs that have helped your ecosystem grow?

Startup 70

Startup Platform CIO Entrepreneur 70

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 4, 2012

Remember that up to this point, the investor has primarily seen and talked to the founder and CEO, and studied written documents. All private equity groups go about due diligence in their own way, but there are a few key areas of focus that entrepreneurs should always expect: Team strength and health. Market need and size validation.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Startup Writing Competition 94

InfoChachkie

MAY 16, 2011

As an entrepreneur and startup investor, I have helped create companies which achieved two IPOs which collectively raised over $100 million, as well as two acquisitions which totaled $385 million. However, it is my hope that this article will help you avoid learning the following lessons the hard way. 8 ) Grant Exclusivity.

Startup 242

Startup Outsource Development Outsource Sales 242