Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2020

In my experience, even in startups, longer-term strategy often gets pushed off the agenda due to current challenges. Every business team becomes inwardly- focused by default, comparing themselves only emotionally to others they know within the organization. Hone your process for due diligence and integrating these new elements.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Layoffs Social Media Metrics 124

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 19, 2022

In my experience, the good news is that everyone is becoming more and more comfortable with relationships via the new media and technology. Maximize online referrals and positive service reviews. I still find too many service organizations that ignore or discount online reviews and satisfaction surveys.

Services 121

Services Technical Review Social Media Case Study 121

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Customers like leaders, not followers.

Resource 121

Resource Metrics Entrepreneur Customer 121

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 26, 2010

I’ve been having discussions with several people recently about the role of the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) in very early stage companies. Of course, I have an advantage because I organize the LA CTO Forum. What are the biggest areas of technical risk? What technology research is required? How can we address this risk?

Fractional CTO 225

Fractional CTO CTO CTO Hire CTO Coach 225

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 24, 2022

If you think it’s hard to get the technical systems to talk to each other, I have found that it’s even harder to bridge the gulf between the various professionals who interpret them. You must have a strong Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) with a clear strategy for spending, and metrics to gauge results.

Customer 100

Customer Custom Acquisition Technical Review 100

socalTECH

JUNE 11, 2018

For our interview this morning, we caught up with Scot Lawrie , the President and technical Co-founder of Los Angeles-based Coverfly (www.coverfly.com), and John Rhodes , Coverfly's head of Marketing and Business Development, to learn a bit more about the early stage, bootstrapped startup focused on Hollywood script writers. What is Coverfly?

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Hollywood Platform Competition 100

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2020

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Customers like leaders, not followers.

Entrepreneur 129

Entrepreneur Resource Metrics Customer 129

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2015

In a new book, “ The Leadership Capital Index ,” Dave Ulrich, a best-selling author, business consultant, and business school professor, provides some real insights and metrics on what makes up the elements of goodwill in the minds of top valuation experts. I have paraphrased his key points here as follows: Leader personal impact.

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Organization Coach Invest 100

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

Nearly every successful tech startup I’ve observed over the past 20 years has gone through a similar growth pattern: Innovate, systematize then scale operations. The best CEOs realize that they need to build organizations and hierarchy and delegate decision making while still holding their teams accountable.

Startup 286

Startup Technical Review Customer Custom 286

Tech.Co

FEBRUARY 18, 2021

The Dashboard offers a bird's-eye view of projects, letting you see key metrics such as due dates, assigned cards, and cards-per-list so bottlenecks can be prevented before they begin. The Calendar displays start dates, due dates, and advanced checklist items at-a-glance so you can see exactly what needs doing and when.

Software Review 149

Software Review Guide Technical Review Class 149

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2016

Sets goals and milestones, with metrics to track progress. They define metrics for each goal, and diligently track themselves against these metrics. I still hear too much focus on disruptive technologies, making more money, and working less. Tie executive titles and organizations to business roles.

Entrepreneur 106

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Metrics Ideas 106

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 27, 2019

My simple answer is that they keep their focus on customers, rather than technology. They present a convincing story that every entrepreneur has the same potential, but most get sidetracked and bogged down by their technology, competitors, and internal organization. Incorporate AI-powered data and metrics systems.

Marketing 123

Marketing Technical Review Customer Custom 123

TechCrunch LA

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

The whole point of delegating investment decisions to a GP is to empower them to organize their firm to win deals and get stuff done. Pro tip: take on the mantle of book editor for a major tech publication, and the publishers will mail you books for free. Quality tech news from around the web. What a boring mess.

Venture Capital 202

Venture Capital Startup Technical Review Invest 202

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 25, 2014

A while back, I spotted a new book for change management leaders in large organization, and I realized that many of the issues they face are the same as ones faced in every growing startup. Here are ten of the key questions that apply equally well to the world of startups and entrepreneurs, as they do to large organizations.

Startup 108

Startup Resource Metrics Technical Review 108

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 5, 2019

Technology enhances experience, not impedes it. The marketing metrics covers support as part of experience. If your marketing metrics and budget ignore the fact that you have call center queues thirty minutes long, or no coverage of online reviews or social media, your customer service is not keeping up with competitors.

Customer 84

Customer Custom Company Companies 84

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

Thus, I’m more impressed with entrepreneurs who ask me to review their implementation plan, rather than listen again to their idea. Some dreams sound great, but may not yet be viable or proven with today’s technology. There are lots of resources available for the challenge of that activity, including the Internet and mentors like me.

Ideas 94

Ideas Slides Technical Review Patents 94

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

If we are able to get a customer to test out our technology in a live, proof of concept, we are able to win nine out of every ten POCs, against incumbent competitors, including companies like Akamai, Imperva, or F5. They have helped to continue to scale the organization. Thats so important to get success and expand our customers.

Startup 113

Startup Funding Technical Review Software Review 113

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2015

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Customers like leaders, not followers.

Startup 115

Startup Resource Metrics Entrepreneur 115

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2017

A classic article in the Harvard Business Review “ The Truth About Customer Experience ” defines it as your customer’s end-to-end journey with you, not just the key touchpoints or critical moments when customers interact with your organization. One metric now commonly used is called the Net Promoter® Score (NPS).

Customer 85

Customer Custom Product Marketing 85

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2013

Recently I spotted a new book for change management leaders in large organization, and I realized that many of the issues they face are the same as ones faced in every growing startup. Here are ten of the key questions that apply equally well to the world of startups and entrepreneurs, as they do to large organizations.

Startup 101

Startup Resource Metrics Technical Review 101

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 23, 2016

Now it’s all about how fast you recognize and adapt to market change, new competitors, and new technology. Too many entrepreneurs start fast, but lose momentum and the ability to change as the organization grows. Define and use market metrics to tune your plan. Regularly update internal process tools and technology.

Social Media 67

Social Media Metrics Startup Technical Review 67

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 27, 2014

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Customers like leaders, not followers.

Startup 113

Startup Resource Metrics Entrepreneur 113

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2017

Of course, nobody really knows all of what tomorrow will bring, in terms of globalization, digital technology, or demographic shifts, but most experts agree that certain elements are already obvious, and things must be done today to get your business ready in time. Data technology facilitates more fact-based decisions.

Company 55

Company Companies Artificial Inteligence Technical Review 55

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2018

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Customers like leaders, not followers.

Resource 64

Resource Metrics Entrepreneur Customer 64

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 28, 2012

According to a recent Harvard Business Review article , only 60% of companies today use social media for marketing, and only 12% of those feel that they are using it effectively. Successful people don’t wait for their kids to teach them about new technologies, or wait to be the last one on the block to try new things.

Social Media 115

Social Media Media Startup Social Network 115

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 15, 2011

I review these tenets with my entrepreneurial students at UC Santa Barbara at the beginning of each quarter to reinforce many of the key topics we will cover in the following weeks. But we do it anyway, because we believe that the short-term metrics probably aren’t indicative of the long term.”. Don’t Chase The Quick Buck.

Tips 279

Tips Startup Framework Customer 279

LATechDigest

MAY 12, 2016

With our refined machine learning technology and massive data set, Cornerstone leads the field in people analytics,” said Adam Miller, founder and CEO of Cornerstone OnDemand. Cornerstone View provides the fastest and simplest way for organizations to gain more meaningful insight into their employees and solve complex workforce issues.

Cornerstone OnDemand 40

Cornerstone OnDemand Product Artificial Inteligence Organization 40

InfoChachkie

AUGUST 24, 2010

Someone must define the universe of ideas to be reviewed at the outset of the process, otherwise the task is impossibly inefficient. Motown’s system was not just efficient, but it also allowed the company to avoid the cronyism that can infect organizations as they mature. Evaluate each of the following metrics on a scale of 1 – 10.

Ideas 187

Ideas Resource Technical Review Startup 187

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 10, 2011

Due to poor record keeping and the proliferation of DOOM knockoffs, it is impossible to know exactly how many copies of DOOM were downloaded. Keep your organization nimble by monitoring return-driven metrics, such as profit per employee, cost per customer, life time value per customer, profit per location, profit per square foot leased, etc.

Entrepreneur 230

Entrepreneur Software Review Allegis Metrics 230

SoCal CTO

JULY 23, 2012

What are the biggest areas of technical risk? What technology research is required? What technologies will we use? What do we need to do to make sure we can survive technical due diligence by investors and partners? What specific technical innovations might make sense? How can we address this risk?

CTO Coach 231

CTO Coach CTO Hire Outsource Development Develop 231

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 9, 2022

Lack of accountability can permeate an entire organization. Of course, at all levels of an organization or business, there are opportunities for accountability that can make or break your career or your leadership perception in the eyes of others. Setting your own metrics, and measuring yourself , will facilitate accountability.

Activity 109

Activity Organization Mentor Training 109

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2013

It is what is commonly referred to as “vanity metrics” as in, “Look at how many more followers I got us! But until recently we had not made these tools available to non-technical people – namely marketers who want to control their campaigns without necessarily wanting to call in the IT team to implement tools.

Marketing 307

Marketing Technical Review Startup Tool 307

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2019

More and more customers these days are doing their own marketing research, scanning internet reviews and feedback from friends, rather than trusting messages that you push out through advertising. Implement marketing metrics based on inbound data. Update your website to make it totally customer-focused.

Marketing 94

Marketing Social Media Technical Review Customer 94