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. Innovate In the early years of a startup there is a lot of kinetic energy of enthusiastic innovators looking to launch a product that changes how an industry works.

Operations 286

Operations New York City Technical Review Startup 286

Steve Blank

APRIL 23, 2014

For decades large companies have gone shopping in Silicon Valley for startups. What can companies learn from others’ failed efforts to integrate startups into large companies? The answer - there are two types of integration strategies, and they depend on where the startup is in its lifecycle. The Innovation Portfolio.

Acquisition 333

Acquisition Intellectual Property Silicon Valley Startup 333

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 18, 2024

These are people that didn’t make their money through a tech startup or startup investing. Some of these folks are founders and CEOs, but not at high-growth tech startups. On the other hand, they could be the opposite—much more focused on near-term cash distributions than long-term equity appreciation.

.Net 89

.Net Cap Table Startup Technical Review 89

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 11, 2021

As an angel investor to startups, I’m still surprised to find entrepreneurs who expect investors to give them money, and assume no strings attached. In any case, your startup is now part of some investor’s portfolio, so you need to treat the situation like reporting to a new boss, and not like a new freedom.

Term Sheet 433

Term Sheet Advisory Board Liquidation Preference Startup 433

Hunter Walker

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

While we all agree that ‘apart’ is best right now for reasons of safety, the discussion around what a post-COVID world seems to be largely bifurcated into Office vs WFH/Distributed. None of this should be read as “in-office teams always beat remote teams,” or “Hunter won’t invest in remote-first companies.”

Early Stage 146

Early Stage Seed Stage Startup Software 146

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

It occurred to me that although we mentioned our new thematic approach when we raised our last fund in 2017, we haven’t really shared a broader manifesto about how we are approaching the early stage market. It’s been an interesting several years in the early stage venture eco-system, and the sands have shifted considerably.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2012

It doesn’t prove your business model of pricing, distribution, and support. Funding for pre-revenue startups used to be the domain of angel investors, but they have moved up-stage. If your startup is an evening hobby for you and some friends, and they all have a full-time day job elsewhere, don’t expect investors to get excited.

Intellectual Property 260

Intellectual Property Sweat Equity CTO Hire Fractional CTO 260

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

Many companies need venture capital funding, including startups. It is a type of financing that investors can provide to startups and small businesses which are believed to have the potential for success in the long term. The corporate governance section defines the power distribution between the founders and the investors.

Venture Capital 179

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Security 179

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 7, 2012

Building a prototype should be an early and high priority task for every startup. I always hate it when I see startups invest millions of dollars in technology before they validate their ideas in the market, only to find that customers seem to be looking for something slightly different.

Startup 242

Startup Database Early Stage Distribution 242

View from Seed

JANUARY 2, 2024

Admittedly, I stopped blogging a few years ago because of the proliferation of content around VC and startups. I think a big question facing early stage investors is: are you a hammer? Everyone is just a different flavor of early stage investor deciding how they will slice up the universe of early stage opportunities.

Early Stage 177

Early Stage Valuation Distribution Founder 177

The Next Web

DECEMBER 4, 2013

If you’re running a startup, working for one, or just considering turning an idea into a company, calling your work life “busy” is a severe understatement. Here are five essential, efficient ways to eliminate guesswork and make your startup a success on social media. Startup Example: Zappos. Startup Example: Cloudera.

Social Media 158

Social Media Media Viral Startup 158

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2011

Probably 80% of the startups I know have found human resource issues to be the most treacherous. Setting the wrong or no expectations is another of the most consistent problems I see with every startups. Stretch” goals in early-stage are not advised. Missed or no target expectations. Too slow or too fast to change.

Advisory Board 232

Advisory Board Startup Forecast Early Stage 232

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 17, 2011

It doesn’t prove your business model of pricing, distribution, and support. Funding for pre-revenue startups used to be the domain of angel investors, but they have moved up-stage. If your startup is an evening hobby for you and some friends, and they all have a full-time day job elsewhere, don’t expect investors to get excited.

Intellectual Property 253

Intellectual Property Sweat Equity CTO Hire Fractional CTO 253

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 20, 2019

In the startup world, opportunities are fleeting, and obstacles are ubiquitous. Competition from other startups and established incumbents, constraints on time and capital, and limited access to talent and technology resources are just a few of the hurdles nearly every first-time founder faces while trying to build a business.

Technical Review 140

Technical Review Due Diligence Early Stage Differentiation 140

Gust

DECEMBER 22, 2011

So you’ve chosen a name for your startup, product, or both. Tech startups are at the other extreme. The gulf has widened with the proliferation of social Internet / user-generated content and mobile application startups. Most of our early-stage startup clients fit this description. Intellectual property.

Intellectual Property 149

Intellectual Property Technical Review Software Review IP 149

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 11, 2013

This post is an update of what we learned about life science distribution channels. Life Science/Health Care distribution channels differ by Category. This weeks topic was distribution channels ; how your product gets from your company to your potential customer segments. Diagnostics. Week 3 Todd Morrill Instructor .

Distribution 230

Distribution Channel Lean Intellectual Property 230

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2020

Getting investors to trust you with their money is always a challenge, and it’s even more difficult in the early stages, where you don’t have a significant revenue stream, a few customers, or maybe even a product yet. At these stages, it’s all about you, and your ability to communicate and execute effectively.

Due Diligence 308

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Preferred Stock Startup 308

View from Seed

APRIL 2, 2024

Similarly, I’d argue that the early-stage venture “product” has elevated across the board. VC’s across the board have generally upped their game and are much more involved in the startup ecosystem and with their portfolios. A lot of offerings that were innovative at one time are table stakes today.

Merger 343

Merger Non-Compete Early Stage Venture Capital 343

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 5, 2023

His responsibilities encompass orchestrating transportation logistics and overseeing distribution processes, ensuring the seamless and punctual delivery of all products. To compensate for this, I implemented a real-time inventory monitoring system to help us identify any potential shortages in the early stages.

Management 147

Management Early Stage Stock Operations 147

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2013

It doesn’t prove your business model of pricing, distribution, and support. Funding for pre-revenue startups used to be the domain of angel investors, but they have moved up-stage. If your startup is an evening hobby for you and some friends, and they all have a full-time day job elsewhere, don’t expect investors to get excited.

Intellectual Property 281

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Sweat Equity CTO Hire 281

VC Cafe

JULY 21, 2022

billion in Q2 2022 with over half of total amount raised by early-stage companies. Typically, a large percentage of the funding raised by gaming startups goes to marketing. In order for gaming companies to create, distribute and monetise their content, they require solid tools and infrastructure. million UAWs in Q2.

Forecast 190

Forecast IP Mobile Acquisition 190

ConversionXL

MARCH 31, 2021

Interviewing them will provide you with their wants and needs from a messaging perspective and uncover topic ideas and distribution channels. Much like your audience analysis report, it will ensure everyone involved in the planning, production, and distribution process is aligned. Well-defined goals and objectives.

Audience 127

Audience Non-Compete Distribution Channel 127

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2012

Probably 80% of the startups I know have found human resource issues to be the most treacherous. Setting the wrong or no expectations is another of the most consistent problems I see with every startup. Stretch” goals in early-stage are not advised. Missed or no target expectations. Too slow or too fast to change.

Advisory Board 240

Advisory Board Forecast Early Stage Product Development 240

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 11, 2022

Getting investors to trust you with their money is always a challenge, and it’s even more difficult in the early stages, where you don’t have a significant revenue stream, a few customers, or maybe even a product yet. At these stages, it’s all about you, and your ability to communicate and execute effectively.

Due Diligence 271

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Preferred Stock 271

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

I think you have to listen to the queue’s.” “…if you look at a lot of the early stage investors, whether it be Union Square Ventures or First Round or Jeff Clavier at Softtech or Dave McClure – we want to try the product, we want to experience the product, we want to get a sense of how the entrepreneur is thinking about it.

Technical Review 288

Technical Review Venture Capital Silicon Valley Software Review 288

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 12, 2010

Probably 80% of the startups I know have found human resource issues to be the most treacherous. Setting the wrong or no expectations is another of the most consistent problems I see with every startups. Stretch” goals in early-stage are not advised. Tags: entrepreneur startup worst case survival. Marty Zwilling.

Advisory Board 125

Advisory Board Startup Forecast Early Stage 125

Gust

JANUARY 4, 2012

Last month we covered the basics of intellectual property (IP) for startups, including a simple taxonomy, some common issues and related documents for entrepreneurs to use when forming a new startup. The amount of investment in IP in any direct sense is generally small for early stage startups.

Intellectual Property 143

Intellectual Property IP Startup United States 143

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2013

He pinged me that he was thinking about joining a startup based in LA with the CEO in NYC and would I be willing to meet him and give him advice on this process. I looked up his bio, “UVA, banking analyst, doing some early startup work” and thought – sure – come meet me for a coffee. Not for me.

San Francisco 372

San Francisco Jordan Angel Investor Partner 372

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

The expenses can be daunting in the early stages of a startup or small firm. On the other hand, a POD distribution method can help any creative work that customers are willing to buy. appeared first on The Startup Magazine. On-demand printing is as simple as it seems. To Conclude. The post What Is Print-On-Demand?

Demand 158

Demand Early Stage Design Global 158

K9 Ventures

MAY 19, 2011

In fact, I have an explicit exception for companies that rely on outsourcing, contracting, or those that have distributed teams. For now I wanted to talk about why I am so opposed to any outsourcing, contracting and distributed teams for small (< 10 person) tech startups.

Distribution 131

Distribution San Francisco Early Stage Startup 131

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 16, 2009

However the Customer Development Model and the Lean Startup work equally well for startups on the web. I realized the Customer Development model needs to be clearer in what exactly a startup is supposed to do, regardless of the business model. But it also requires you to ask a few questions about your startup before you use it.

Customer Development 226

Customer Development Web Developer Customer 226

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 14, 2021

That’s a bit of a cautionary tale to VC investors today who might think it’s inevitable that the private value they are enjoying in their portfolios will certainly translate to distributions in the near future. Both early- and late-stage startup valuations are currently elevated. The answer is likely a mix of both.

Valuation 319

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Distribution Early Stage 319

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 29, 2010

Building a prototype should be an early and high priority task for every startup. I always hate it when I see startups invest millions of dollars in technology before they validate their ideas in the market, only to find that customers seem to be looking for something slightly different.

Entrepreneur 236

Entrepreneur Database Early Stage Distribution 236

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 14, 2021

That’s a bit of a cautionary tale to VC investors today who might think it’s inevitable that the private value they are enjoying in their portfolios will certainly translate to distributions in the near future. Both early- and late-stage startup valuations are currently elevated. The answer is likely a mix of both.

Valuation 295

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Distribution Early Stage 295

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 1, 2016

While there is much discussion about VCs starting to pull back on their investments into startups, the LPs we surveyed don’t expect to slow the pace of investment into VC funds themselves – at least for the foreseeable future. That’s money that fuels our startup ecosystems.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital LP Silicon Valley Marketing 150

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 11, 2009

She is a go to person for me when I have questions around technology or early stage marketing and branding. We do a lot of B2B and also have an "Early Stage Branding" practice for technology startups. I've known Farida for quite a while. Maybe ten years. It has been fun to get to know her again.

Early Stage 150

Early Stage Southern California Los Angeles Marketing 150

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 24, 2014

Many of the most talented and brightest students are convinced that a startup is their best business option. Over half of the college students in my management course at Parsons New School for Design plan to join startups or form their own companies. Investors keep pouring money into startups and early stage companies.

Startup 252

Startup Angel Investor Early Stage LLC 252