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.

Dollar Shave Club 272

Dollar Shave Club Technical Review Santa Monica Southern California 272

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 20, 2014

According to a recent Forbes article , UC Santa Barbara''s Technology Management Program offers students a superior startup education over the University of Pennsylvania (home of Wharton), as well Harvard, Northwestern and even its acclaimed southern neighbor, the University of Southern California. Want to be an entrepreneur? Techpreneurs.

Santa Barbara 258

Santa Barbara Technical Review Startup Venture Capital 258

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 8, 2011

The tech market is filled with many stories of early-stage funding. The science of finding recoveries is based on computer-based algorithms that flag high-potential errors and trained technicians that then review these claims. It’s even more exciting when you can report an exit of a company that is a major win.

GRP Partners 285

GRP Partners Technical Review Truecar Invest 285

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 12, 2013

In a bid to change that, there are a few groups working on helping women entrepreneurs, investors, and others, including the Pipeline Fellowship (www.pipelinefellowship.com), which recently launched itself into the Los Angeles market. My participation has been on the impact investing and education side, where I''ve been involved as a mentor.

Angel 276

Angel Invest Mentor Technical Review 276

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2021

Fight the urge do more things, to attract more customers in a broader market. In reality, too many choices actually dilutes customer interest in your existing market, and makes your job of production, marketing, and support much more complex. The company has since gone public, and is still a market leader.

Technical Review 160

Technical Review Technical Advisors Startup Mentor 160

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 23, 2011

In a bid to help research from the University of Southern California reach the market, the USC Stevens Institute for Innovation said Wednesday afternoon that it is awarding $439,000 in gap funding to seven projects from USC, which have a high potential to spin out of the school. READ MORE>>.

USC 170

USC Funding Southern California Technical Review 170

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2019

During the holiday season, our tradition over the last few years has been to post reflections on the past year and some predictions for 2019 from Southern California's technology industry. We continue to have a steady stream of industry and thought leaders raising their hands to be mentors for our upcoming cohorts.

Technical Review 157

Technical Review Software Review Startup Coach 157

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 6, 2014

I admit that I haven’t yet read it but I’ve had numerous discussions with Brad over the years about board structure & conduct and consider him a mentor on the topic. Reviewing financial & operational performance. how to market our products and company. In the Early Days. Mentorship. As You Start to Mature.

Startup 325

Startup Sales Technical Review Software Review 325

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 13, 2012

Running that effort is Kevin Hell , the founder of DivX, who we caught up with to learn more about EvoNexus and how the group is trying to help grow technology startups in San Dieog. They've provided a completely free facility, furniture, Internet access, mentoring, sponsorship--all of those things are provided for free.

Incubator 212

Incubator San Diego Technical Review Development Team Review 212

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 18, 2015

There’s too much PR and too many tech blogs and too many newsletters and aggregators and Twitter summarizers to even try to catch everything that’s going on and equally there’s so much noise that it becomes harder to be heard. I often tell people that in some ways it’s easier to build great companies in down markets.

Software Review 398

Software Review Startup Venture Capital Invest 398

InfoChachkie

APRIL 25, 2011

The short version of my review is: “Enchanting? Ask For Mentoring. Field Manual – Enchantment is a practical how-to book that entrepreneurs can repeatedly refer to when tackling specific issues, such as; “How To Overcome Resistance”, “How To Use Push Technology” or, “How To Enchant Your Employees.”. Underpromise, Overdeliver.

Technical Review 280

Technical Review Blogging Class Entrepreneur 280

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 22, 2011

After 10 minutes I felt like we were old buddies because we had both been through the trenches of startup tech land and had had similar experiences. He founded the company, raised a bunch of money, built the product and established a good reputation and market position. That initial product became a market leader in its area.

Startup 418

Startup Yahoo Ideas Technical Review 418

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

The core of the investing job of course is investing dollars into startup companies and helping as a mentor, advisor and board member on the companies in which you’ve invested. Marketing, recruiting, building data products & tools, event management, analyzing the portfolio, etc. So What Does All This Mean? Wait, What About Yves?

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

Xconomy

NOVEMBER 13, 2016

View the Slideshow A little more than a year ago, amid a resurgence in San Diego’s software sector, Xconomy identified a baker’s dozen of local tech companies to watch in 2016. I met with Seed San Diego partners Taner Halicioglu and Eric Gasser, who also reviewed the companies and provided their feedback. I widened my net this year.

San Diego 105

San Diego Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Startup 105

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2022

If you are like most entrepreneurs I know, there just aren’t enough hours in a day to get all your own work done, as well as run the many one-hour meetings each team member seems to demand for decisions and mentoring. For one-on-one coaching from the startup founder, I call this approach five-minute mentoring. Marty Zwilling.

Mentor 154

Mentor Technical Review Coach Slides 154

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 1, 2011

You need to be great at something: technology back-end, front-end design, usability, sales, marketing, quantitative analysis, leadership –> whatever. But if you’re not uber talented there is always a “Justin Bieber of technology&# waiting to kick your ass. Consider Usher a hard-working early-stage VC.

Entrepreneur 398

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Blogging 398

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2013

I have never felt prouder of the team & product at awe.sm ( please visit to check out our latest & be ready for our next big product announcement due out in next month or so) and yet we just brought in a new CEO to the company, Fred McIntyre. ” We had inbound M&A requests from some of the biggest names in tech.

Startup 303

Startup Technical Review Product Blogging 303

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

Almost every entrepreneur and new business owner I mentor is certain that his/her idea has a very high probability of success, and all find it hard to believe that ninety percent of startups ultimately fail. Bill Gates was the technical genius, but Steve Ballmer, from Procter & Gamble, ran the business side of the equation.

Technical Review 131

Technical Review Case Study Mentor Software Review 131

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

My initial desire to blog came from something that’s always been my approach to investing – I’m a nerd and I love to play with the technology and part of my approach has really been to understand things both at a user level and at a reasonably deep tentacle level. Brad on blogging. How did you start blogging? “My Human Computer Interaction.

Venture Capital 289

Venture Capital Startup Technical Review Software Review 289

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 20, 2015

Every entrepreneur with a new technology tells me that his innovation will be industry-disrupting, meaning that it will render the existing technology obsolete, and create a new market. Entrepreneurs tend to look for big changes and big markets when seeking disruptive opportunities, when the opposite may be more effective.

Marketing 102

Marketing Technical Review Entrepreneur Customer 102

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2020

In my role as a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I find that most have the technical challenges well understood, but many are a bit short on some basic street smarts , or basic business realities. Even the best solutions require marketing to survive. My answer is that no competitors means no market, or you haven’t looked.

Entrepreneur 173

Entrepreneur Patents Startup Technical Review 173

Tech Zulu Event

JULY 8, 2011

For those who still might be wondering what Spotlight: LA Tech is all about, It’s a screening room for new technology homegrown in our region. It’s a gathering of friends and tech enthusiasts of all stripes. This Spotlight takes place Thursday, July 14, at The California Institute of Technology (CalTech).

CalTech 100

CalTech Technical Review Company Companies 100

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 23, 2012

1) Get A Mentor. "I By always thinking like a newcomer, you can avoid the Innovator's Dilemma, in which the market leader eventually loses a new, disruptive solution. Develop a solution for a problem, market and/or user group about which you are passionate. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series.

Startup 268

Startup Tips CTO Coach Technical Review 268

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. Challenge yourself to delivering a technical innovation. Sharing is a lot more effective with customers than selling and marketing.

Technical Review 143

Technical Review Coach Mentor Customer 143

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 22, 2019

Most of us have blind spots in our ability to build a business, due to lack of experience, too much ego, over-confidence, or unjustified faith in a subordinate. If I suggest your technology needs validation in the market before scaling, it’s fair to ask how long and how expensive that test could be.

Technical Review 127

Technical Review Activity Mentor Entrepreneur 127

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 25, 2021

Every entrepreneur with a new technology tells me that his innovation will be industry-disrupting, meaning that it will render the existing technology obsolete, and create a new market. Entrepreneurs tend to look for big changes and big markets when seeking disruptive opportunities, when the opposite may be more effective.

Technical Review 157

Technical Review Entrepreneur Marketing Customer 157

socalTECH

APRIL 10, 2012

One of the most original, subscription startups to come out of Southern California's tech accelerator boom emerged last week, looking to disrupt not just another retail sector or e-commerce category, but something else entirely: the airline industry. We take your application and review it. What's the idea behind SurfAir?

Startup 240

Startup Mentor Technical Review Santa Barbara 240

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 23, 2014

I reviewed an email from Kara Nortman, the CEO of Moonfrye who is working on putting together venture debt. I then traded emails with two former senior tech professionals in LA. Let’s say your a junior developer, marketer, product manager, biz dev person at a startup or well-established technology company.

Networking 366

Networking Startup CTO Coach Email 366

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 25, 2021

Partially due to the pandemic, but also due to longer, healthier lives and changes in job tenure, Boomers are now expected to stay in the labor force longer, and according to projections , could actually dominate the labor market by 2024. Immigrants represent 27.5

Technical Review 126

Technical Review Technical Support Entrepreneur Startup 126

socalTECH

APRIL 12, 2013

There''s been a lot of activity over the past two years in the Southern California accelerator/incubator market, with numerous groups (Amplify, EvoNexus, K5, LaunchpadLA, MediaCamp, Science, StartEngine, and many, many others) looking to help entrepreneurs start and fund their companies. But, how successful have they been?

Southern California 222

Southern California Incubator Report Startup 222

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Many entrepreneurs I have mentored make big mistakes in this area, by hiring low-cost friends and family, with minimal skills or training, and expecting them to have the same work ethic , passion, and business knowledge as the founder. Direct customer-facing non-technical roles should be the last ones outsourced. with experience.

Outsource 123

Outsource Startup Technical Review Training 123

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2021

Expert mentoring and training. In addition to the formal mentoring, the peers you’ll be working alongside at startup incubators provide much more than emotional support. Then it’s time for due diligence on the incubators in your area, to see who has the track record and credentials you need. Peer support. Learn by doing.

Incubator 146

Incubator Technical Review Entrepreneur Mentor 146

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2019

Partially due to the economy, but also due to longer, healthier lives and changes in job tenure, Boomers are now expected to stay in the labor force longer, and according to a USNews article, will likely dominate the labor market by 2024. Here are some indicative entrepreneurial facts from recent Kauffman studies and others.

Startup 119

Startup Technical Review Technical Support Entrepreneur 119

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2022

Based on my own mentoring and investing experience, the best entrepreneurs are pragmatic problem solvers. After some review of available resources, I’m convinced that problem solving is a learnable trait, rather than just a birthright. Listen to your customers to arrive at acceptable and marketable solutions.

Startup 135

Startup Mentor Entrepreneur Technical Review 135

Tech Zulu Event

JUNE 7, 2013

Stained Glass Labs (SGL), the first Glass and wearable technologies accelerator has launched the world’s first comprehensive app directory and a self-service app publishing portal for Google Glass pre-launched applications. Comprehensive App Directory. SGL says the Comprehensive App Directory launched is a simple 2 step process.

Google 87

Google Technical Review Press Software Review 87

socalTECH

JANUARY 2, 2019

During the holiday season, our tradition over the last few years has been to post reflections on the past year and some predictions from Southern California's technology industry. One company that we have mentored, invested in and serve on the board of, is in lending and has hit a very exciting tipping point.

Capital 113

Capital Southern California Technical Review SaaS 113

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 16, 2018

As the rate of change continues to increase in business and technology, the more I’m convinced that marketing is the primary key to success for a new venture. Yet I find that many technical founders don’t feel they need it at all, or at best point to one person on the team who is marketing.

Marketing 71

Marketing Tips Technical Review Social Media 71