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.

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Product Development Developer San Francisco Product 88

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 17, 2018

by Felix Winstone, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Talkative. As a startup co-founder with a growing team, here are the recruiting tips I’ve learnt over the last couple of years. Robert Metcalfe, co-founder and CEO of 3Com, says you need to think about it as “recruiting, not hiring”. Hiring = Sales. Be Specific.

Cofounder 164

Cofounder Elevator Pitch Hiring Dividend 164

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 241

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 10, 2016

by Nick Candito, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Progressly. Time and time again, there’s one critical component that hampers productivity and efficiency: We are wired to work within the confines of organizational silos. Contact centers are closely tied with marketing, sales, shipping and even product development.

Cofounder 174

Cofounder Technical Review Operations Employee 174

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 29, 2018

Deferred payments start with stretching the payables period but, more importantly, include giving employee equity in lieu of a higher salaries and negotiating vendor deferred payments out of future revenues. For example, a software development startup raising $250,000 from angel investors better be able to operate on $25,000 per month.

Burn Rate 223

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Startup Salary 223

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 6, 2013

Quick summary: Be careful not to have too many co-founders. I don’t think VCs care as much about co-founders & economics as people think. Without strong PMs you build crappy products that nobody needs or that real people can’t use. it’s the most expensive dilution you’ll ever face.

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Cofounder Early Stage Startup Silicon Valley 388

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.

Seed Stage 124

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 124

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 7, 2017

According to the Small Business Administration , just one in two businesses with employees survives to see its fifth anniversary. By the 10-year mark, fewer than 30% of businesses with employees remain viable. Two conditions that do matter to your startup’s out-year viability are the cost and length of its product development cycle.

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Cost Developer Small Business Administration Marketing 100

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

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2013

He has grown our US operations from 1 employee (him) to a global organization of 75 employees that will finish the year with 8-digit revenues (90+% recurring) and more than 350% year-over-year growth. It consists of a highly intelligent and opinionated founder – Nick Halstead. Wallflower – yours truly.

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Advisory Board CTO Hire Fractional CTO Los Angeles 365

YoungUpstarts

MAY 23, 2018

Most startups do not fail because they had a bad idea that could not find a market, but rather because the founders and startup teams got overwhelmed or were missing key ingredients to success. Many founders or startup teams gravitate toward sales or design. Often, founders have an entrepreneurial mindset.

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Due Diligence Startup Finance Leadership 133

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

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.

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Intellectual Property Startup Forecast Angel Investor 120

Version One Ventures

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

And often, enhanced business services – such as custom product development or professional installation and consulting – are involved to complete the sale. In these cases, employees feel a particular pain point and find a solution to address it. Final thoughts.

Fractional CTO 154

Fractional CTO Software Review Viral Sales Cycle 154

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 19, 2017

by Steve Owens, Founder and CTO of Finish Line Product Development Services. In this article we explore the unique challenges of a lean start-up and how Outsourced Product Development (OPD) can be used to overcome them. Reducing product turn time. Extending the runway. The Lean Start-Up Environment.

Product Development 153

Product Development Lean Developer Product 153

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2014

Deferred payments start with stretching the payables period but, more importantly, include giving employee equity in lieu of a higher salaries and negotiating vendor deferred payments out of future revenues. For example, a software development startup raising $250,000 from angel investors better be able to operate on $25,000 per month.

Burn Rate 262

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Entrepreneur Salary 262

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

But for founders who do their homework, the cost of entry is lower and the opportunity is higher than ever. Excellent detailed resources are everywhere, including a new book, “ The Startup Checklist ,” by serial entrepreneur and founder of the New York Angels, David S. Rounding out the team with employees and freelancers.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Groups Social Media 120

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 21, 2015

by Richard Milam , the Founder and CEO of EnableSoft Incorporated. Budgets are a tricky facet for any business owner however being one of the most critical aspects to the operations, productivity, profitability, and growth of a business. Gain more from your employees. Invest in disruptive technologies.

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Cost Technical Review Software Review Operations 100

Hearpreneur

OCTOBER 10, 2023

5- Yes, to adapt to market changes Photo Credit: Sammi Jaeger It's helped our three Founders stay on the same page, project our roadmap of growth, and provide clarity on our goals, strategies, and financial projections, making it easier to communicate our vision to all of our stakeholders and clients. Thanks Stephanie Venn Watson, Fatty15 !

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Business Plan Jordan Entrepreneur Florida 131

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2022

That’s where I see too much entrepreneur burnout, growth plateaus, and founders being replaced, to their chagrin. By definition, second-stage ventures generally have 10 to 99 employees and/or $750,000 to $50 million in revenue, and see that as just the beginning. Switch your attention from product development to sales.

Mezzanine 368

Mezzanine Private Equity Bandwidth Metrics 368

ReadWriteStart

NOVEMBER 30, 2021

In many startups, employees wear several hats to make sure everything gets done. For example, founders may be responsible for content , digital strategy, and product development, and the chief technology offer may be involved in the website design, social media management , and marketing.

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Developer Marketing Social Media Startup 159

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Deferred payments start with stretching the payables period but, more importantly, include giving employee equity in lieu of a higher salaries and negotiating vendor deferred payments out of future revenues. For example, a software development startup raising $250,000 from angel investors better be able to operate on $25,000 per month.

Burn Rate 120

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Startup Salary 120

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

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

View from Seed

AUGUST 10, 2021

We first invested in co-founders Ben Forgan & Pat Wilbur in early 2015, when NextView led a $1.3M Hologram has grown to hundreds of employees, thousands of customers, and attracted substantial capital all from its home base in Chicago. The Hologram story is near and dear to our hearts here at NextView for a number of reasons.

Chicago 177

Chicago Cofounder Miami B2B 177

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

Many entrepreneurs never get past their first-stage focus on their innovative product, to scaling the business globally, organizing a structure to handle thousands of employees, and concentrating their focus “on the business” rather than working “in the business.” In fact, it’s highly unlikely that you as the Founder will survive.

Merger 379

Merger Due Diligence SEC IPO 379

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 98

San Francisco Technical Review Incubator Silicon Valley 98

Transformify

MARCH 14, 2020

These days, due to coronavirus outbreak, many businesses have asked their employees to work from home. At the same time, the stock markets collapsed, and most businesses already report skyrocketing losses, unmet revenue targets and insufficient stock due to production slow down in China, India and the rest of the world.

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Hiring Bulgaria Italy Spain 98

View from Seed

AUGUST 10, 2021

We first invested in co-founders Ben Forgan & Pat Wilbur in early 2015, when NextView led a $1.3M Hologram has grown to hundreds of employees, thousands of customers, and attracted substantial capital all from its home base in Chicago. The Hologram story is near and dear to our hearts here at NextView for a number of reasons.

Chicago 156

Chicago Cofounder Miami B2B 156

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 18, 2014

Steeped in the “command and control” paradigm of operational excellence, leaders (and employees) see learning as a high-risk activity. Read on to learn how you and your employees can energize your lazy brains and revitalize your culture in the process: 1. Teach employees to work around their weaknesses.

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Employee Operations Global Dilution 162

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 26, 2011

And just as my gut feel about the likely success of startups is often determined by looking at their velocity of product development and market progress of their product, so too is recruiting a factor in my assessment. Time spent onboarding new talented team members always yields more productivity than doing everything yourself.

Hiring 335

Hiring Technical Review Startup Framework 335

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2015

Successful entrepreneurs start with a customer problem, and develop a solution, rather than the other way around. They build a startup culture of working for customers rather than pushing a product. Develop market insights and a growth vision far beyond today. Partnering with customers, rather than acting as a supplier.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Metrics Hosting Leadership 120

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

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 1, 2021

Do they have better sales, marketing, or product development groups? What the winners start with is the realization that in a world of continuous disruption, they have only a few years to develop new capabilities or be pushed over the brink. Is it that some CEOs are better than others? Are their people smarter?

Incubator 408

Incubator Lean Agile Business Model 408

View from Seed

AUGUST 10, 2021

We first invested in co-founders Ben Forgan & Pat Wilbur in early 2015, when NextView led a $1.3M Hologram has grown to hundreds of employees, thousands of customers, and attracted substantial capital all from its home base in Chicago. The Hologram story is near and dear to our hearts here at NextView for a number of reasons.

Chicago 136

Chicago Cofounder Miami B2B 136

Hearpreneur

SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

Business owners and founders work long hours, wear several hats, and have high expectations for their performances. As entrepreneurs, we have the opportunity to make these kinds of contributions every day, which is not always something you get as an employee at someone else’s business. Thanks to Shakera Thompson, TKA Law Firm !

Entrepreneur 147

Entrepreneur Jordan Technical Review Green 147