Feld Thoughts

NOVEMBER 18, 2013

Ari Newman is an entrepreneur, mentor, investor, and a friend. He works at Techstars where his responsibility is to ensure that the connections between alumni, mentors, and staff are as robust as they can be – helping entrepreneurs “ do more faster ” day in and day out. Three months in, the burn is now at $70k/month.

Burn Rate 152

Burn Rate Equity Software Review Early Stage 152

Steve Blank

JULY 1, 2014

. — As Selections Committee chair for our Sacramento Angels investor group, I review applications from dozens of startup entrepreneurs looking for investment. For investors this is a big idea. In our Angel investor group, our Applicant Selections process ranks applicant companies relative to the other applicants.

Sacramento 306

Sacramento Framework Customer Development Lean 306

Steve Blank

JANUARY 20, 2014

When Customer Development and the Lean Startup were just a sketch on the napkin, Dino Vendetti, a VC at Bay Partners, was one of the first venture capitalists I shared my ideas with. Over the years we brainstormed about how Lean entrepreneurship would affect regional development. Part 1: Bend, Oregon Ecosystem and Entrepreneurs.

Silicon Valley 312

Silicon Valley Oregon Lean Venture Capital 312

The Next Web

MAY 4, 2013

Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Stefano Bernardi, who is on the founding team of Betable , where he heads Customer Development. He is a part-time hacker, angel investor, and product advisor, and was selected from more than 300 people to “shadow” Dave McClure at 500 Startups.

San Francisco 159

San Francisco Europe Technical Review Due Diligence 159

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 31, 2014

But if you want to build a scalable startup you need to be asking how you can you get enough customers/users/payers to build a business that can grow revenues past several $100M/year. I’m in Australia and just spent time with some great entrepreneurs in Melbourne. With 317 million people the U.S. Regional Ecosystems. Trip 2 to the U.S.

Global 335

Global Australia Silicon Valley China 335

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 15, 2008

So far, I have found "lean startup" works better with the entrepreneurs Ive talked to than "agile startup" or even "extreme startup.") The application of agile development methodologies which dramatically reduce waste and unlock creativity in product development. Labels: customer development , lean startup 8comments: Amy said.

Lean 168

Lean San Francisco Startup Continuous Deployment 168

Steve Blank

AUGUST 8, 2016

If you don’t value your product neither will your customers. Values – who and what founders and customers hold dear – were the focus on today’s Entrepreneurs are Everywhere radio show. In the early days of building Qualtrics, Ryan tried giving the product away to entice customers to use it.

Cofounder 145

Cofounder New York City Entrepreneur New York 145

Steve Blank

JULY 15, 2010

If you take funding from a venture capital firm or angel investor and want to build a large, enduring company (rather than sell it to the highest bidder), this isn’t the decade to do it. The Golden Age for Entrepreneurs and VC’s. What Does it Mean to an Entrepreneur? Here’s why. Yet while the U.S.

Venture Capital 297

Venture Capital IPO Liquidity Event Entrepreneur 297

Steve Blank

AUGUST 8, 2016

If you don’t value your product neither will your customers. Values – who and what founders and customers hold dear – were the focus on today’s Entrepreneurs are Everywhere radio show. In the early days of building Qualtrics, Ryan tried giving the product away to entice customers to use it.

Cofounder 120

Cofounder New York City Entrepreneur New York 120

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 30, 2015

That was the message from the latest guests on Entrepreneurs are Everywhere , my radio show on Sirius XM Channel 111. David Lerner is an entrepreneur, angel investor and director of entrepreneurship at Columbia University. Entrepreneurs are Everywhere airs Thursdays at 1 pm Pacific, 4 pm Eastern on Sirius XM Channel 111.

Artificial Inteligence 120

Artificial Inteligence Entrepreneur Silicon Valley New York 120

Steve Blank

APRIL 13, 2013

In the few days I was in China I met with several VC’s, angel investors, business press and spoke to hundreds of entrepreneurs. We had a fireside chat with a room full of eager entrepreneurs. If it’s driven by profit then the ecosystem needs both entrepreneurs as well as Venture Finance. innovation in the U.S.

Silicon Valley 267

Silicon Valley China Venture Capital Merger 267

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 14, 2013

“The results of programs like 500 Startups, Techstars, and Y-Combinator are well known, but due to the culture here in Europe there’s still a lot of unknowns in terms of the track record for follow on funding and results of accelerator programs based in Europe,” says Don Ritzen, co-founder and CEO of Rockstart Accelerator.

Silicon Valley 231

Silicon Valley Europe Venture Capital Incubator 231

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 9, 2013

Babson Entrepreneur Resource Center. Lean Startup Circle Boston – Meetup dedicated to the lean startup and customer development methodology. Koa Lab – Shared workspace in Harvard Square founded by serial entrepreneur Andy Palmer. Greentown Labs – Entrepreneur community and accelerator focused on Cleantech.

Boston 71

Boston Technical Review Community Cofounder 71

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 11, 2016

We followed every test and experimental process from the get-go but we didn’t tell our investors we were doing that. When they found out, they questioned my decision-making and me as an entrepreneur. And not keep investors informed about changes to your business model can have serious consequences.

Columbus 245

Columbus Entrepreneur Ohio Cofounder 245

Steve Blank

AUGUST 5, 2010

I think you can blame Customer and Agile Development for a small part of it. It’s because the startups are doing something very new that make them “Lean&# : These startups embrace customer and agile development that Eric Ries has been evangelizing. Quickly iterate the product in front of customers.

Lean 258

Lean Internet Silicon Valley Venture Capital 258

Steve Blank

APRIL 13, 2013

In the few days I was in China I met with several VC’s, angel investors, business press and spoke to hundreds of entrepreneurs. We had a fireside chat with a room full of eager entrepreneurs. If it’s driven by profit then the ecosystem needs both entrepreneurs as well as Venture Finance. innovation in the U.S.

Silicon Valley 159

Silicon Valley China Venture Capital Merger 159

Steve Blank

JUNE 2, 2011

A revolution has taken hold as customer development and agile engineering reinvent the Startup process. The process they use to guide their search is customer development. Yet even with all these tools, early stage startups still need to physically meet with advisors and investors. Victor Hugo. 4) Geography.

Silicon Valley 281

Silicon Valley Business Model Early Stage Venture Capital 281

Steve Blank

JUNE 1, 2011

As customer and agile development reinvent the Startup, it’s time to ask why startup board governance has not kept up with the pace of innovation. 3) An experienced board brings an extensive network of customers, partners, help in recruiting, follow-on financing, etc. What is the entrepreneur supposed to be doing?

Silicon Valley 290

Silicon Valley Business Model Venture Capital Balance Sheet 290

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 1, 2013

Christie is director of New Media Ventures , the first national network of angel investors supporting media and tech startups that disrupt politics and catalyze progressive change. 3) Customer Development: In the social change space, the customer who "pays" (e.g. That is humbling, even daunting.

Lean 167

Lean San Francisco Metrics Angel Investor 167

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 11, 2016

We followed every test and experimental process from the get-go but we didn’t tell our investors we were doing that. When they found out, they questioned my decision-making and me as an entrepreneur. And not keep investors informed about changes to your business model can have serious consequences.

Columbus 120

Columbus Entrepreneur Ohio Cofounder 120

Steve Blank

JUNE 1, 2011

As customer and agile development reinvent the Startup, it’s time to ask why startup board governance has not kept up with the pace of innovation. 3) An experienced board brings an extensive network of customers, partners, help in recruiting, follow-on financing, etc. What is the entrepreneur supposed to be doing?

Silicon Valley 258

Silicon Valley Business Model Venture Capital Balance Sheet 258

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 15, 2011

The process they use to guide that search is "Customer Development" ; and to track their progress startups now have a scorecard to document their week-by-week changes – the business model canvas. Yet even with all these tools, early stage startups still need to physically meet with advisors and investors.

Silicon Valley 118

Silicon Valley Startup Early Stage Business Model 118

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 13, 2011

As customer and agile development reinvent the startup, it's time to ask why startup board governance has not kept up with the pace of innovation. The process, which Blank detailed in his book, "The Four Steps to the Epiphany," uses customer feedback to refine and improve a product before scaling a business. Angels In America.

Silicon Valley 117

Silicon Valley Balance Sheet Metrics Early Stage 117

SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 1, 2010

The 11 Harsh Realities Of Being An Entrepreneur - OnStartups , November 1, 2010 There's always talk about the end game in the form of an acquisition, funding announcement, or eventual flame out. love to find great products and services made by entrepreneurs who are trying to change the world. This doesn’t make sense.

Technical Review 175

Technical Review Technology Product CTO Hire 175

rob.by

MARCH 8, 2012

If a software geek really wants to try building something for no pay, they’re going to work for themself instead of following another cashless entrepreneur. It means they have to deal with finances and customers and investors and other things that aren’t what they love to do, which is building software.

Technical Cofounder 42

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Software Engineering Fractional CTO 42

viniciusvacanti.com

SEPTEMBER 7, 2010

Home About Contact Me How To Make It as a First-Time Entrepreneur Vinicius Vacanti Guide to Finding a Technical Co-Founder September 7, 2010 | View Comments Steve Job's Technical Co-Founder “I’ve got this HUGE idea. In many ways, good technical co-founders and angel investors are looking for the same thing.

Cofounder 43

Cofounder Technical Cofounder Founder Ruby 43

The Next Web

DECEMBER 30, 2012

These are with no doubt worthwhile goals, but I’d like to pose an important challenge for founders: Make learning and development your key resolution in 2013. How to Build a Startup (EP245) by Steve Blank: You’ll learn the key steps of the Customer Development process.

Artificial Inteligence 156

Artificial Inteligence Founder Private Equity Ruby 156

www.instigatorblog.com

MARCH 2, 2010

[link] Ben Yoskovitz @Mike: If you look at YCombinator they have tons of high quality advisers … so even 20 year olds can get involved with top quality, experienced entrepreneurs/VCs/advisers to help them out. As such, advisory board members will often become customers or help you find customers. link] Ken Great post.

Advisory Board 40

Advisory Board Startup Cofounder Equity 40

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

He blogs to 10,000 web entrepreneurs at Software by Rob and co-hosts the podcast Startups for the Rest of Us. While I agree that many VCs are crummy seed investors, I think there are some that are excellent seed investors. They are: Fred Wilson: Lead Investors, Dipshit Companies, and Funding Every Entrepreneur.

Startup 191

Startup CTO Hire Cofounder Venture Capital 191

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 25, 2013

A Lean Startup methodology offers entrepreneurs a framework to focus on what’s important: Business Model Discovery. Teams use the Lean Startup toolkit: the Business Model Canvas + Customer Development process + Agile Engineering. Over 10 weeks each team gets out and talks to 100 customers.

Oakland 326

Oakland Incubator Lean Metrics 326

www.instigatorblog.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Chris is putting out a ton of great content, and encouraging exceptional debate and discussion on startups and investing.

Equity 41

Equity Employee Startup Vesting 41

Up and Running

MAY 23, 2016

To give you a better idea of what entrepreneurs in this industry are thinking about during each phase of the startup process, I interviewed SaaS entrepreneurs from all over the world, including our own COO Noah Parsons. Also, make a bullet list of the marketing activities that will drive customers to your door.

Software Review 74

Software Review Software Delaware Forecast 74

Startup Lessons Learned

JANUARY 10, 2011

We still have some collective scar tissue: the idea conjures up the hordes of dot-com hopefuls that descended on VC’s and angel investors with little more than a business plan. One of my beliefs is that such a theory should be addressed to entrepreneurs and the people who hold them accountable. I also frequently see the reverse.

Silicon Valley 167

Silicon Valley San Francisco Lean Investment Bankers 167

The Next Web

JANUARY 27, 2013

Up until today, I consider all four a must-read for any entrepreneur or anyone looking into entrepreneurship. You’ve probably heard them far too often bragging about how close they are to signing customer X, who happens to be a publicly listed NASDAQ company. For me, these books were great guides. Every now and then I run into them.

Netherlands 159

Netherlands Technical Review Software Review Cofounder 159

www.women2.org

MARCH 8, 2012

Lessons learned from female founders and women entrepreneurs. After quitting my job and starting Sorced , I spent a few months validating my business concept by creating the product mockups and doing customer development. Consequently, I either needed a tech co-founder or to pay someone to develop the product.

Cofounder 47

Cofounder Technical Review San Francisco Founder 47

crowdSPRING Blog

NOVEMBER 2, 2012

Small Business and Startups: Slice & Dice Your Customer Service Data | crowdSPRING Blog - [link]. Is The Only Purpose of Customer Service To Change Feelings? How Customers evaluate your product | StartupCFO – [link]. Using mTurk to interview 100 customers (in 4 hours) | Customer Development Labs - [link].

Social Media 93

Social Media Small Business Design Media 93

maplebutter.com

JANUARY 8, 2013

If you’re an Entrepreneur, you can do it from any place in the world. Near shoring development with your team (ex: your team is based in Canada / India) is cool, but not outsourcing. Outsourcing is something a big company, with a known customer / problem (that has revenue & traction) does to save cost. We need more.

Technical Review 44

Technical Review Startup Cofounder Software Review 44