View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

There’s been a lot of digital ink spilled around the various types of capital available to startups today. As a startup grows, venture debt becomes a viable option to continue that growth. Glen is an active contributor to the local tech ecosystem and well-versed in how and when startups can use venture debt to their advantage.

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 28, 2021

Over the last two and a half months in the hospital, I’ve actually been fairly productive—no doubt setting the record for VC term sheets offered literally from inside the NICU (three). In fact, it’s why many startup folks leave the early stage world to go over to the big company side—because the benefits tend to be much better.

Hiring 179

Hiring Early Stage Marketing Term Sheet 179

Version One Ventures

MARCH 3, 2021

ICYMI, here is a list of our posts on why we’re excited about backing these startups. In helping our portfolio startups go through the announcement process, we’ve compiled some suggestions to guide you in putting out your message and making sure it gets amplified in the right way. Fortune Term Sheet. Axios Pro Rata.

Social Media 147

Social Media Technical Review Term Sheet PR 147

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 13, 2021

They’re “playing startup” as opposed to actually building a company. It’s easy… If the very first thing you did after coming up with your idea was make a pitch deck for fundraising, versus trying to sell or test customers on it, you’re probably playing startup, not building a company. How do you know which is which?

Startup 145

Startup Term Sheet Differentiation Cofounder 145

crowdSPRING Blog

JUNE 6, 2013

These posts and videos are about logo design , web design , startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! How to Turn Your Startup Into a Lean, Mean Marketing Machine – [link]. How to Turn Your Startup Into a Lean, Mean Marketing Machine – [link]. End of story.”

Social Media 95

Social Media Small Business Design Media 95

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

“My startup business was acquired and I worked for the company that bought us; which was a public company called Ameridata that bought about 40 companies in about three years. Product Management – Brad and Mark discuss the role of Product Managers in Startups. On the Startup Visa Program. Is that when it became big?

Technical Review 288

Technical Review Venture Capital Silicon Valley Software Review 288

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

If you’re a startup and you don’t have a close relationship with a few law firms you’re really missing one of the most important relationships that any entrepreneur can have. I write about some of the lessons in my post on Startup Mistakes. Every town has firms that focus on startups – find them.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 17, 2013

After all, startups are fast paced, small, and ever-morphing, which means it takes certain type of person to help make things succeed. Understand a term sheet. Hire A Players. Others entrepreneur infographic leadership startup' What makes an entrepreneur tick? Write Code. Build a server. Write a blog post.

Advisory Board 279

Advisory Board Balance Sheet Term Sheet Entrepreneur 279

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

As the venture capital industry has evolved, more and more seed investors are passing on traditionally “seed stage” startups because there isn’t enough traction. As seed funds have raised larger and larger funds, more have developed the muscle around issuing term sheets and “leading”. Belief #1: The best time to invest is early.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

Up and Running

MAY 18, 2016

Reading lists are dime a dozen, but reading lists that focus on rapid-growth startup businesses? It’s the ultimate startup guide if you’re looking for systematic business growth and guidance on what not to do. The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses.

Startup 80

Startup Venture Capital Angel Investor Lean 80

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 21, 2023

There’s a term sheet. And then, even when they have, they still remain “interested” should Sequoia decide to throw down a term sheet.) At 43, I’m pretty darn proud of that and you might think that’s pretty fast—but if I equate that into startup terms, no one would fund me at that pace. was a term sheet.

Cap Table 78

Cap Table Term Sheet Database Option Pool 78

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 28, 2015

Craig Schmitz, a partner in the Technology Companies Group at law firm Godwin Proctor LLP who works on corporate, governance, board and fundraising issues, and Erika Fisher, an associate in the firm’s Business Law Department who deals with IP, fielded questions about the legal issues startups face. ” The Cost of Financing.

Convertible Security 100

Convertible Security IP Technical Review Software Review 100

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 8, 2009

They hire key staff. And I know many stories of Benchmark or similar investors writing term sheets after the first meeting. Tags: Pitching VCs Start-up Advice startup technology vc venture capital. They tell you that they’re working on biz dev deals with distribution partners and they get the deals signed.

Technical Review 309

Technical Review Term Sheet Venture Capital Revenue 309

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 8, 2018

In 2017 we began inserting an “Inclusion Clause” into our term sheets because we believe that the culture one establishes at the earliest stages of one’s business will set out the course of how it will grow and develop. We believe that diverse teams produce diversity of thought and that this leads to better decisions and outcomes.

Term Sheet 284

Term Sheet Los Angeles Open Source Portfolio 284

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2013

We had them a term sheet the same week. She learns how to ship product, how to deal with merchants, how to hire product managers. Didn’t I make myself clear about celebrities & startups ? Turns out she’s done this startup thing before. Startup Advice' That’s cute. That happens, right?

Haiti 398

Haiti San Francisco Startup Turkey 398

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 12, 2017

In that case, you are not making a specific offer; you are soliciting a terms sheet. Those investors will have terms sheets at the ready, and most of them will have some pesky MBA’s who will grind through all your assumptions, models, and market data.

Term Sheet 48

Term Sheet Technical Review Due Diligence Merger 48

Hunter Walker

MAY 7, 2014

Whether it’s adding capacity to an existing function (#MawrEngineers) or bringing new talents onboard (“we intend to make our first marketing hire”), glossing over these bullet points towards the back of the pitch deck would be a mistake. I’m interested in not just what these people will be doing but how and when they’ll be hired.

Hiring 108

Hiring Option Pool Early Stage Term Sheet 108

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 5, 2014

Stage 1 : Either Satya or I are meeting the founders, usually solo, giving them an overview of Homebrew and learning about their startup through direct conversations, using the product (whatever stage it’s at) and doing some background on their industry (if it’s an area new to us). Satya and I use a simple three stage system.

Software Review 102

Software Review Balance Sheet Cofounder Technical Review 102

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 21, 2018

I told him, “I know we don’t yet have a term sheet so you feel you need to listen to everybody’s request. But imagine you were expecting two term sheets imminently. I know bigger firms sometimes hire people just to fill out the data but I mostly refused. How would you act then? I think it’s a smokescreen.

Term Sheet 217

Term Sheet Later Stage Demand Email 217

K9 Ventures

APRIL 27, 2011

The day before we were supposed to sign the term sheet for the investment, Like.com sued Ugmode (the parent company of Modista.com) for patent infringement. That falls into the realm of hiring and paying for high priced litigators who can twist and turn words for an audience that isn’t an expert in the subject.

Software Review 134

Software Review Technical Review IP Finance 134

Altgate

OCTOBER 8, 2009

The two most popular posts remain this one on term sheet negotiation and this one on venture debt , although this one on convertible debt is giving them a run for their money. Tips: $75 HOT All-Hands Team Meeting Board Management Tips For Startup CEOs Customer Support 2.0

Term Sheet 39

Term Sheet Technical Review Michigan Liquidation Preference 39

Up and Running

FEBRUARY 19, 2014

To learn some common legal pitfalls we’d all be better off avoiding, we asked nine founders from the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) what unexpected things they found themselves needing lawyers for in the early stages of their startups. Hire a lawyer to help draft an incentive plan with a vesting schedule that fits your business.

Non-disclosure Agreement 97

Non-disclosure Agreement NDA Term Sheet Early Stage 97

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 8, 2011

Launchpad LA today announces it will accept applications for its third class of Los Angeles-based tech startups. To give visibility to these companies to: Sources of funding (angels / VCs), business development partners, mentors who have themselves built successful companies, the press and potential employees to hire.

Los Angeles 287

Los Angeles Silicon Valley Incubator Startup 287

Steve Blank

JANUARY 4, 2010

A lot of entrepreneurs think that their startup is the next big thing when in reality they’re just building a small business. How can you tell if your startup has the potential to be the next Google, Intel or Facebook? A first order filter is whether the founders are aiming for a scalable startup. The Scalable Startup.

Hockey Stick 276

Hockey Stick Venture Capital Startup Cofounder 276

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2011

If you’ve taken the roller coaster ride that is a startup – you know what I’m talking about. The truth is that in my experience very, very few people really enjoy the “pure&# startup environment: months with no salary, months with no live product and lots of trial, error & rejection. But we had a term sheet !!!

Entrepreneur 384

Entrepreneur Startup Salary Egypt 384

ReadWriteStart

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

How does one hire really good product managers? What is the best way to evaluate a potential startup to work at (full-time)? Are there examples of good start up term sheets? How did Startup X get traction? What is the number one reason startups fail? How should startups compensate an attorney?

Angel Investor 145

Angel Investor Term Sheet Startup Curation 145

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2015

Over the years I’ve written extensively about the downsides of convertible notes for startups such as here , here and here. Well, if you have an option pool of only 6% and have many more execs to hire to build out your team you’re going to ask for more options to be created in the future. How much is in the option pool?

Pre-Money Valuation 150

Pre-Money Valuation Option Pool Post-Money Valuation Dilution 150

Steve Blank

APRIL 9, 2009

If these sound like reasonable answers to you, and you are in a startup/small company, update your resume. Titles are not your job When I pressed my staff to explain why marketing did trade shows, or wrote press releases or penned data sheets, the best I could get was “why that’s our job.” We hired union laborers to do that.

Silicon Valley 259

Silicon Valley Technical Review RSS PR 259

www.bothsidesofthetable.com

MAY 13, 2012

I recently did a post for startups on understanding sales people. A few people asked me to try and define the perfect startup organization chart. But I do have more insight into understanding your startup team. Often I’m asked by startup CEO’s about how to best build an engineering team.

Fractional VPE 89

Fractional VPE Part-Time VPE Fractional CTO CTO Hire 89

Reid Hoffman

DECEMBER 10, 2020

And if the reference checks come back positively, then if I believe at startup is a good opportunity, I can lean in right away. So I got the license to put a term sheet down, and we made the investment. In addition, the company redirected its recruiting team from hiring new employees to helping former employees find new jobs.

Hosting 69

Hosting Hockey Stick IPO Silicon Valley 69

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

As the venture capital industry has evolved, more and more seed investors are passing on traditionally “seed stage” startups because there isn’t enough traction. As seed funds have raised larger and larger funds, more have developed the muscle around issuing term sheets and “leading”. Belief #1: The best time to invest is early.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

I can’t say it much simpler than this: “What if I took some of the worst, most egregious terms in a standard term sheet and made them the defacto standard in most convertible debt deals? Let me explain it more clearly in equity terms. What happens in a sale or acqui-hire? That’s right.

Ratchet 354

Ratchet Liquidation Preference Equity Stock 354

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 19, 2011

On balance I usually prefer to recruit people from my network both in terms of saving costs as well as hiring people I know & trust. One tip – depending on seniority – you can sometimes hire independent reference check firms. It can get expensive so you’d probably only do it for a very senior hire.

Term Sheet 319

Term Sheet PR Liquidation Preference Stock Options 319

Scott Edward Walker

DECEMBER 29, 2011

Moreover, I’m publishing an eBook with Hyperink entitled The Startup Law Playbook , which should be available shortly. Legal Checklist for Startups 2. How To Hire A Superstar Engineer For Your Startup 5. How To Launch A Startup And Avoid Ending-Up In Jail 6. Happy New Year!

Antidilution 66

Antidilution Liquidation Preference Term Sheet New York City 66

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2011

If you’ve taken the roller coaster ride that is a startup – you know what I’m talking about. The truth is that in my experience very, very few people really enjoy the “pure&# startup environment: months with no salary, months with no live product and lots of trial, error & rejection. But we had a term sheet !!!

Entrepreneur 176

Entrepreneur Startup Salary Egypt 176

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 18, 2012

As a startup founder you rarely have much money in your bank accounts. I recently had coffee with a young friend who just finished his first startup. But why don’t you just give me the damn term sheet you promised so I can trust you even more. You hire them, you own them now. Hire fast, fire faster.

Monaco 420

Monaco Cofounder Chicago Mexico 420

Steve Blank

APRIL 1, 2020

So here’s a five-day playbook to help CEOs of cash-flow negative startups, or ones about to go negative, assess the new normal and respond with speed and urgency. For companies burning cash, such as startups, how much cash do you have? For startups: source of VC money? Some VC’s are walking away from signed term sheets.

South Korea 333

South Korea Salary Business Model China 333