Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2020

Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young. As a mentor to many entrepreneurs and startups, here are my best recommendations for keeping the burn rate low, planning ahead and maintaining credibility with investors: Manage cash flow personally every day. Buffer your projected resource requirements.

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Burn Rate Hockey Stick Salary Angel Investor 310

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 15, 2021

In the last decade, SaaS (Software as a Service) has become a very popular model for new software product development. The largest cost component of establishing a SaaS company is product development costs. This includes the design, development, launch, and enhancement of the SaaS application. .

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Cost Developer Azure Cloud 158

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 29, 2018

Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young. As a mentor to many entrepreneurs and startups, here are my best recommendations for keeping the burn rate low, planning ahead and maintaining credibility with investors: Manage cash flow personally every day. Buffer your projected resource requirements.

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Burn Rate Hockey Stick Startup Salary 223

Steve Blank

MARCH 16, 2016

To most founders a startup is not a job, but a calling. But startups require money upfront for product development and later to scale. Founders can now access the largest pool of risk capital that ever existed –in the form of Private Equity (Angel Investors, family offices , Venture Capitalists (VC’s) and Hedge Funds.). (BTW,

Liquidity Event 120

Liquidity Event Founder Liquidation Preference Private Equity 120

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 26, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Sunday, April 26, 2009 Product development leverage Leverage has once again become a dirty word in the world of finance, and rightly so. But I want to talk about a different kind of leverage, the kind that you can get in product development. Its a key lean startup concept.

Product Development 88

Product Development Developer San Francisco Product 88

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 17, 2018

by Felix Winstone, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Talkative. As a new entrepreneur or business owner, the most important thing you will do is hire talent. As a startup co-founder with a growing team, here are the recruiting tips I’ve learnt over the last couple of years. Employees can also be a valuable source of referrals.

Cofounder 164

Cofounder Elevator Pitch Hiring Dividend 164

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

It is necessary to cover the early stages of product development, thorough market research, and other processes during the initial step. This round aims to offer emerging businesses more funding to cover their operating expenses, such as paying their employees, launching new goods, and developing marketing strategies.

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Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 148

View from Seed

DECEMBER 6, 2018

As a seed stage VC, I have a unique privilege of confidentially spending time with a number of entrepreneurs throughout their company formation and initial product development process. And it’s amazed me how many times I’ve seen two or more entirely separate groups of founders?—?without

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Seed Stage Startup Cofounder Stealth 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 4, 2016

The good news is that everyone expects entrepreneurs to make mistakes, since founders explore uncharted territory. In fact, investors recognize that founders usually learn more from mistakes than from success, so a well-explained startup failure can improve their odds of funding the next time around. Hire slow and fire fast.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Startup Forecast Angel Investor 120

Steve Blank

AUGUST 31, 2009

After 20 years of working in startups, I decided to take a step back and look at the product development model I had been following and see why it usually failed to provide useful guidance in activities outside the building – sales, marketing and business development. So what’s wrong the product development model?

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Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 244

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

Jeff Katzenberg has a great track record – head of the studio at Paramount, chairman of Disney Studios, co-founder of DreamWorks and now chairman of NewTV. With fewer than 10 employees but almost $2-billion dollars in the bank, they plan on jumping right in. It has to find product-market fit before running out of cash.

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Lean Burn Rate Startup IPO 335

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 4, 2016

Of course, that’s both the good news and the bad news for aspiring entrepreneurs, since it means more competition, and the business landscape is changing faster than ever. But for founders who do their homework, the cost of entry is lower and the opportunity is higher than ever. Rounding out the team with employees and freelancers.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Groups Social Media 120

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 1, 2019

by Gaurav Gupta , Founder of Square Boat. But wanting to materialize a product or service and sustaining its operations are two different things. Deputy includes an impressive suite of features like PTO, payroll, employee scheduling, attendance management, and much more to help you manage your teams effectively.

Software Review 113

Software Review Startup Azure SEO 113

Hearpreneur

DECEMBER 24, 2017

In the last few days of 2017, we took some time to ask a few entrepreneurs and business what their biggest business accomplishments were. #1- As we continue to grow as a company, we will strive to remain a great place where our employees love to work. 15- Feature and interview by SCOOP Founder Phil Stoten. 1- Top rankings.

Las Vegas 88

Las Vegas Entrepreneur Software Review Community 88

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2022

Early-stage entrepreneurs rightly keep their focus on creating an innovative product or service. That’s where I see too much entrepreneur burnout, growth plateaus, and founders being replaced, to their chagrin. Of course, not every entrepreneur wants to tackle this challenge. There is no free lunch.

Mezzanine 368

Mezzanine Private Equity Bandwidth Metrics 368

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young. As a mentor to many entrepreneurs and startups, here are my best recommendations for keeping the burn rate low, planning ahead and maintaining credibility with investors: Manage cash flow personally every day. Buffer your projected resource requirements.

Burn Rate 120

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Startup Salary 120

Duct Tape Marketing

APRIL 6, 2022

Steve is the CEO of Founders Space, one of the world’s leading startup accelerators with over 50 partners in 22 countries. Founders Space was ranked the #1 incubator for overseas startups by Forbes and Entrepreneur Magazines. 18:05] How does the Founder Space operate? [20:21] He's the CEO of founders space.

San Francisco 97

San Francisco Technical Review Incubator Silicon Valley 97

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2015

Based on my experience advising entrepreneurs, I’m convinced that success is often more a mindset than a specific set of skills or intelligence. A fixed mindset is when entrepreneurs believe their abilities and market are fixed, and the challenge is to make the best of the hand already dealt. Most experts call this a growth mindset.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Metrics Hosting Leadership 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

Yet as a business advisor I am convinced that making the jump from a startup to a the next unicorn takes a different mindset, and actions most entrepreneurs are reluctant to face. In fact, it’s highly unlikely that you as the Founder will survive. Switch your focus from product development to sales.

Merger 379

Merger Due Diligence SEC IPO 379

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 26, 2011

I have often said that what separates real entrepreneurs from pundits and bystanders is a bias towards getting things done versus over analyzing things. The startup entrepreneur knows that they’re going to be wrong often. Time spent onboarding new talented team members always yields more productivity than doing everything yourself.

Hiring 335

Hiring Technical Review Startup Framework 335

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 19, 2017

by Steve Owens, Founder and CTO of Finish Line Product Development Services. Instead of the “entrepreneur that knows what the market wants”, we move to the “entrepreneur that knows how to discover what the market wants”. Reducing product turn time. Extending the runway. The Lean Start-Up Environment.

Product Development 153

Product Development Lean Developer Product 153

The Next Web

MARCH 6, 2014

Here’s a problem I bet every non-technical founder has experienced: the communication gap between what the biz dev team wants and what the tech team thinks they want, and vice versa. It’s disruptive, and for founders, very frustrating to watch. At Red Branch, we stress that employees’ skills have distinct market values.

Technical Review 129

Technical Review Development Team Review Developer Agile 129

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 5, 2010

As all of you know, Steve Blank is the progenitor of Customer Development and author of The Four Steps to the Epiphany. I have personally sold many copies of his book, and continue to recommend it as one of the most important books a startup founder can read. The Entrepreneur’s Guide is an easy read.

Customer Development 166

Customer Development Developer San Francisco Customer 166

crowdSPRING Blog

SEPTEMBER 19, 2014

3 Surprising Interview Questions You Should Ask Every Potential Employee – crowdspring.co/1s051td. Inside the Mind of a Technical Founder | OpenView Blog by Larry Kim – crowdspring.co/1u7Fz1b. The Paradoxical Traits of an Entrepreneur | by Jody Porowski – crowdspring.co/1piN6X6. WordStream – crowdspring.co/1tOs1vg.

Social Media 94

Social Media Small Business Design Media 94

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2020

A good way to start is to create and communicate bite-sized milestones toward your end objective, including product development stages, customer threshold targets, and funding achievements. There is increasing evidence that employee happiness and job satisfaction, including yours, does not scale up with your success.

Startup 319

Startup Employee Matching Product Development 319

YoungUpstarts

MAY 3, 2013

by Mike Broderick, co-founder and CEO of Turning Technologies. If you were built to lead instead of follow, a career as an entrepreneur might be right for you. Finding the right employees and creating an agile, focused team is essential to business success. They are correct. Succeeding through Innovation and Persistence.

Cofounder 230

Cofounder Entrepreneur Ohio Aggregator 230

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

RBI normally requires founders to pay back their investors with a fixed percentage of revenue until they have finished providing the investor with a fixed return on capital, which they agree upon in advance. For background, see Revenue-Based Investing: A New Option for Founders who Care About Control. Alternative Capital. “

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 15, 2022

In many cases, your advisor will identify key employees and create a business plan to help you find a buyer and negotiate the best price possible. Identifying key employees. In addition, your employees may have insight into how much value they bring to the company. As an entrepreneur, you already built a marketable startup.

Merger 158

Merger Acquisition Due Diligence Valuation 158

ConversionXL

SEPTEMBER 6, 2013

By the end of this article, you should have a better understanding of how to develop new products or tweak your existing offerings by working with existing or prospective customers to incorporate their feedback to create viable solutions to their problems, and clearly communicate their value. So What is Customer Development?

Customer Development 126

Customer Development Conversion Developer Customer 126

David Teten

OCTOBER 1, 2015

So, on one side — you’re the budding entrepreneur with a great idea and the hustle to out-execute anyone with a similar idea. So, can an entrepreneur pair up with a dev shop? The founders’ psychology is probably one of the most important contributors to success of the company.”. Can a shop work for just equity?

Software Developers 60

Software Developers Software Development Software Developer 60

Business Plan Blog

AUGUST 20, 2013

Many entrepreneurs of successful tech-based companies do not come from tech backgrounds. However, the biggest mistake that a non-tech entrepreneur launching a tech business is to neglect bringing on a tech savvy co-founder on the management team. CTO Employee (Salary). Development Plan (Timelines/Costs/Budgets).

CTO Hire 55

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Architecture Cofounder 55

The Next Web

DECEMBER 2, 2013

However, you could still build an Instagram-like product inexpensively, in the $100,000 to $300,000 range over a three-to-six-month period,” says Werdelin. Founder Kevin Systrom launched Instagram with 25,000 beta users on October 6, 2010; two years later, the app continues to see massive growth, recently reporting 150 million active users.

Cost 168

Cost San Francisco New York City Ruby 168

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 29, 2013

The Lean Startup Conference is an event by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs—except that our definition of “entrepreneur” may be different from the one you have in mind. Eric has talked often about recognizing a startup as an organization designed to create a new product or service under conditions of extreme uncertainty.

Lean 165

Lean Technical Review Startup Software Review 165

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 1, 2019

Early-stage entrepreneurs rightly keep their focus on creating an innovative product or service. That’s where I see too much entrepreneur burnout, growth plateaus, and founders being replaced, to their chagrin. Of course, not every entrepreneur wants to tackle this challenge. There is no free lunch.

Mezzanine 244

Mezzanine Private Equity Startup Bandwidth 244

Duct Tape Marketing

APRIL 29, 2024

How to Be an Entrepreneur in 2024: 15 Tactics Revealed written by John Jantsch read more at Duct Tape Marketing The Duct Tape Marketing Podcast with John Jantsch In this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast, I interviewed Paul Cheek, a serial tech-preneur, educator, and software engineer. My guest today is Paul Cheek.

Entrepreneur 52

Entrepreneur Cofounder Early Stage Artificial Inteligence 52

Hearpreneur

JULY 19, 2021

Being in love with your business, when you’re an entrepreneur, is even better. Although there are days when tossing in your hat seems like a viable option, remembering how much you love your “job” can quickly snap an entrepreneur out of that mentality. We asked some entrepreneurs what they loved about “being their own boss.”. #1-

Entrepreneur 138

Entrepreneur Jordan Non-Compete Community 138

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 4, 2015

Use OKRs to ramp up productivity… Especially among founders, entrepreneurs and key management personnel by eliminating or delegating tasks that don’t materially contribute to progress and replace them with value-added tasks. Here’s how: 1. Kaplan and David P. Annual goals aren’t good enough.”

Agile 100

Agile Startup Cofounder Metrics 100