Haystack

JULY 15, 2018

Recently on this blog, I’ve been attempting to unpack how an investor can sort through deal flow and potential investment opportunities. After writing about “ the quick kill ” to discard of inbound flow, next I wrote about what actually captures my attention and graduates to a meeting. But, I like them.

Founder 60

Founder Syndicate Syndication Deal Flow 60

View from Seed

OCTOBER 16, 2019

Similarly, the best kind of deal flow for a VC is organic deal flow. On the more organic side is when the founder and investor have a pre-existing relationship. Maybe you’ve backed the founder before, or have just known and shown mutual respect for each other for months or years.

Deal Flow 45

Deal Flow Syndicate Syndication Cofounder 45

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2018

If you haven’t yet heard about Female Founder Office Hours it is an initiative you should be aware of whether you’re male, female or any other gender identify. Female Founder Office Hours gives founders the mentorship and the role models to see that it is in not only possible but also to have a plan to make it a reality.

Founder 256

Founder San Francisco Deal Flow Los Angeles 256

David Teten

MAY 29, 2019

Most private equity professionals fail to see even a majority of the potential deals flowing through their target markets, according to the latest research. Nadim Malik, founder and CEO, Sutton Place Strategies. Suggested background: Deal Origination Best Practices. Don’t be one of them!

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Deal Flow Equity LLC 60

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

At the pre-seed stage, when the creator has a concept, the founder’s background, educational qualifications, domain experience, previous ventures, market size, and the complimentary talents brought by the cofounders are some of the most critical variables to consider before investing in a startup.

Seed Stage 124

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 124

View from Seed

DECEMBER 6, 2018

They are disciplined about their time, their strategy, the way they engage with founders, and the way they fight to develop an independent point of view. Seek high-slope founders with great FMF (Founder/Market fit) and FGTMF (Founder/GoToMarket fit). But the best investors I find are not dogmatic.

Early Stage 120

Early Stage Florida Deal Flow Venture Capital 120

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 1, 2011

Rolodex/deal flow (deal sourcing/ability to make connections for the portfolio). an executive who had startup “operating experience” rarely a startup founder/CEO. We want to find someone who has a lot of consumer internet product experience as either product manager, founder, VP Product, etc.

Venture Capital 332

Venture Capital Early Stage Technical Review Startup 332

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Most of these rhyme with what we’ve said in the past, but some have also evolved to fit the changing landscape and our own convictions about what really matters for founders and their investors at the seed stage. Great returns in early stage investing is driven by great deal flow and good picking. Lead investors are few.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 14, 2018

FUND is a national connector of entrepreneurs, VCs, angel investors, and industry experts with a focus on deal flow and making connections. My co-founder (Chad Johnson) and I are both architecture graduates, so housing has always been a passion of ours. Team Info: Co-Founder: Pat McLoughlin. Co-Founder : Chad Johnson.

Chad 111

Chad Illinois Nepal Haiti 111

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 24, 2014

I spent my first year developing proprietary deal flow and learning the business and then the Sept 2008 / Lehman Bros collapse / financial meltdown happened. I become a venture capitalist in September 2007 – exactly 6.5 years ago. That company was Invoca, which just announced a $20 million fund raise led by Accel.

Los Angeles 387

Los Angeles Intellectual Property LP Venture Capital 387

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 28, 2018

The event presenter, FUND, is a national connector of entrepreneurs, VCs, angel investors, and industry experts with a focus on deal flow and making connections. Team Info: Founder: Dana Todd. Dana Todd, Balodana Founder. Fantastic points. Good luck and thank you, Balodana. HQ Location : Chicago, Illinois.

Technical Review 152

Technical Review Software Review Illinois Due Diligence 152

David Teten

APRIL 1, 2021

A well-organized library of best practices for founders in your vertical, which you can share as appropriate. First Round Search , Startupschool , and GSV Passport are examples of comprehensive founder resources from investors. I have developed a founder curriculum on my blog. AskAnything.VC Advantages. Disadvantages.

Private Equity 78

Private Equity Venture Capital Portfolio Equity 78

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2013

Sure, there will always some seed funding (10% of overall deal flow), but you can bet that this money goes to entrepreneurs who have been there before and won. They want founders who have been there and done that before, in the same business domain. Line up a winning team. Both operating executives and top advisors count.

Venture Capital 252

Venture Capital IPO Elevator Pitch Initial Public Offering 252

Steve Blank

MAY 17, 2010

Business models allow agile and opportunistic founders to keep score of the Pivots in their search for a repeatable business model. Venture Firms use the contests as another source of deal flow and talent. Instead of business plans I have suggested that startups use business models. There is no alternative.

Business Plan 312

Business Plan Business Model Customer Development Deal Flow 312

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

” From the hyperbolic Jason Calacanis weighing in that “The petty VC’s did everything to deride [Naval, the co-founder of AngelList]” as though the industry was collectively s g its pants that AngelList was going to put us out of business. founder fighting. Social proof can be helpful. strategic direction.

Syndicate 356

Syndicate Syndication Cofounder Early Stage 356

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 19, 2017

Having recently addressed founders in my chapter “Be Coachable,” allow me please in this essay to address this matter to you providers of help. As you probably know, I prefer advising founders in long, immersive engagements. If you want to share your wisdom to founders, you have many avenues that do not require prior Freudian training.

Incubator 48

Incubator Vertical Deal Flow Technical Review 48

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 12, 2020

One of my founders texted me, “What are you telling people to do about the Coronavirus?” It’s not the telling my story or that of the founders I’ve backed. That’s why I share my deal flow with them free of any additional fees and carry. In January, I pulled myself together and got back out there. He seemed paranoid.

LP 136

LP Technical Review Software Review Valuation 136

David Teten

MAY 9, 2012

VCAP© will be operated through NAIC’s subsidiary, The Marathon Foundation, a business development network that supports entrepreneurial growth, access to capital and deal flow. The Marathon Foundation (TMF) is a business development network dedicated to entrepreneurial growth, access to capital and deal flow.

Venture Capital 154

Venture Capital Programming Accredited Investor New York 154

David Teten

MARCH 14, 2018

Managers of VC funds typically want to grow their business aggressively, just like the founders we back. Among the sites we have found most helpful with practical guides for founders: Biztree , First Search , Foundersuite , Goodwin Founders Workbench , Guides.co , Inc.com , and StartupRocket. .

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Cofounder 60

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

It’s very easy to get caught up in processing your day to day deal flow without leaving enough time to come up for air and do some research. What if you interview a top founder and muddle your way through it, coming off as not particularly knowledgeable? Well, how good a venture capitalist do you think you’re going to be?

Deal Flow 166

Deal Flow Networking Leadership Audience 166

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 3, 2020

The partner at the fund, the VC, gets to do the fun part—the meeting with founders, vetting deals, negotiating, helping, etc. Are investors allowed to come into deals that the fund does side by side with the fund? This creates a source of deal flow for investors who aren’t out there full time creating opportunities.

Portfolio 134

Portfolio Syndicate Syndication Deal Flow 134

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 5, 2023

For me, I have at least two years of active board and observer commitments to roll off of and far more time before all the founders I’ve backed hit (or miss, I suppose) their ultimate goal of returning lots of money to their investors. No more founder pitch meetings. It has been a career that fits my personality well.

Later Stage 218

Later Stage Venture Capital Term Sheet Limited Partner 218

thebarefootvc

JULY 3, 2017

The stories outlined by a number of brave women in the NY Times last week recount investors using their power and position to proposition female founders. Just a week before, Justin Caldbeck, founder of Binary Capital , admitted to sexually harassing a number of women who were seeking investment from his fund.

LP 65

LP Technical Review Silicon Valley Limited Partner 65

VC Cafe

MAY 18, 2023

Honor Thy Founder and Their Vision : Respect the founder’s vision and passion. Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbor’s Deal Flow : It’s easy to get envious of other VCs’ deals. Thou Shalt Not Kill…Time : Time kills all deals. They are the ones in the trenches every day.

Venture Capital 78

Venture Capital Due Diligence Exit Strategy Deal Flow 78

VC Cafe

JULY 31, 2020

A 2018 study by Creandum ventures found that speed, is the third most important factor for entrepreneurs when dealing with VC, but it’s only the 10th on the list for VCs. What’s important to founders vs. VCs ( Creandum ). But being proactive goes beyond just speed. Habit #6 – Synergise!

Venture Capital 183

Venture Capital Deal Flow Silicon Valley Portfolio 183

Version One Ventures

JANUARY 31, 2024

If you start a new fund, you need to be clearly differentiated: what’s your unique insight into a specific opportunity, your unique network that generates deal flow, your unique value proposition that gets you into deals? Too many funds are still pitching themes that aren’t fresh (e.g. generalist focus, operator background).

LP 73

LP Differentiation Deal Flow India 73

Gust

SEPTEMBER 27, 2014

That means they spend a lot less time actively seeking out new deals than they do responding to inbound deal flow. VCs therefore use whatever heuristics they can in order to triage the deal flow. One of the primary ones is the referral source.

Angel Groups 159

Angel Groups Elevator Pitch Software Review Deal Flow 159

Haystack

JULY 4, 2019

Would I hope all founders updated their investors, even if briefly? If a founder I’ve backed simply sends 5-7 bullet points per month with some key stats, metrics, and requests for specific connections and help, then over time I follow their “story” and it becomes a part of my daily vocabulary. Yes, of course.

Early Stage 167

Early Stage Deal Flow Finance Metrics 167

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2010

Access to the best deal flow – I think the most obvious thing you need to be successful is access to the right deals in the first place. Do you have access to that kind of deal flow? Deal flow alone is not good enough. If you do, make sure you’re not the sucker. I could obviously go on.

Silicon Valley 306

Silicon Valley Deal Flow Angel Investor Cofounder 306

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

I’m a female founder. I don’t have a technical co-founder. These are all of the things I heard from a founder that I recently backed. So what about all of the above statements—things that founders widely hold to be true barriers to fundraising? Nearly half of the teams I’ve backed have female founders.

Venture Capital 162

Venture Capital Cofounder Deal Flow Later Stage 162

This is going to be BIG.

JULY 28, 2016

I'm a founder. Founders know that space needs to be something more when they interact with clients and customers, when they onboard people, and when they focus on culture through offsites and events. Sure, I'm an investor, too, but I started Brooklyn Bridge Ventures , the firm I invest out of.

Founder 60

Founder Deal Flow Limited Partner Demand 60

www.paulgraham.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Angelrounds are their whole business, as online video was for YouTube.Whereas VCs who make angel investments mostly do it as a way togenerate deal flow for series A rounds. [ Whichis good news for founders: theyll get to keep more of the company. Speed The other thing founders hate most about fundraising is how longit takes.

Startup 93

Startup Valuation Non-Compete Deal Flow 93

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Most of these rhyme with what we’ve said in the past, but some have also evolved to fit the changing landscape and our own convictions about what really matters for founders and their investors at the seed stage. Great returns in early stage investing is driven by great deal flow and good picking. Lead investors are few.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 13, 2018

FUND is a national connector of entrepreneurs, VCs, angel investors, and industry experts with a focus on deal flow and making connections. Our co-founder/CEO, Kathy Bartlett, has more than 20 years of entrepreneurial experience, holding positions in a range of industries, from finance to restaurants. Sounds like a great team.

Chicago 147

Chicago Illinois New York City Cofounder 147

Feld Thoughts

AUGUST 25, 2015

Jack Tankersley, a long time mentor of mine, co-founder of Centennial Funds, and co-founder of Meritage Funds, wrote me a very long response. As dollars flowed into the industry, cooperation was replaced by competition, to the detriment of deal flow, due diligence, ability to add value and, of course, returns.

Venture Capital 70

Venture Capital SBIC Technical Review Silicon Valley 70

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 10, 2020

If deal flow is slow, a VC will take a meeting if you and your team seem mildly interesting even if your product isn’t. Sometimes, if you seem well connected to other founders or VCs, that will get you a meeting—because you don’t want to miss something everyone else has seen. VCs are notorious for kicking tires.

Bandwidth 153

Bandwidth Deal Flow Later Stage Aggregator 153

David Cohen

JUNE 18, 2022

That’s why, this Juneteenth, I’ve invited Makisha Boothe, Founder and Head Business Coach of Sistahbiz Global Network , a business accelerator for Black women entrepreneurs, to write this guest post which I invite you to help amplify.

Kansas City 136

Kansas City Kansas Equity Deal Flow 136