Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 26, 2016

There has been a lot of public debate over the past several weeks about whether it’s a good thing to be “gross margin positive” or not and commentary always reminds me that some people at startups don’t quite understand financial metrics or even how to think about which ones are healthy. I’m guessing much of this was 101 to many readers.

Metrics 150

Metrics Cost Acquisition Startup 150

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 4, 2011

Having a set of metrics that you watch & that you feel are the key drivers of your success helps keep clarity. And the more public you can make your goals for these key metrics the better. You will likely have multiple sets of metrics you keep depending on the company’s stage, one’s function in the company and level.

Metrics 346

Metrics Startup Acquisition SEM 346

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 2, 2015

The full financial details and metrics were in the deck. So my time was freed up to call board members in advance and walk them through our metrics and understand any concerns. Stock option top-ups after a few years are vital retention mechanisms. Establishing Metrics & Monitoring Success (or Failures).

Operations 150

Operations Metrics Early Stage Non-Compete 150

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

So while the simplest way that people often evaluate stocks is by P/E ratios (price-to-earnings), one also needs to look at other metrics such as the PEG (price-to-earnings-growth). [of They got a bigger office space so their employees would feel comfortable and they could improve employee retention. Investors value growth.

Startup 418

Startup Revenue Technical Review Flash 418

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 10, 2011

But creating better visibility for investors of the profitability of each unit and accountability for bosses of each to perform well according to differnet metrics is a good & important idea. No, probably not. Perhaps they should have just created business units called: Netflix DVD & Netflix Streaming.

Customer 287

Customer Technical Review Caching PR 287

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 20, 2017

Vanity metrics will make you feel good about site traffic of SEO over conversion rate or purchases of your product will get more attention than retention. You get a lot of traffic — not always results. If you aren’t careful every PR team will measure inches over impact. Efficiency can be an addictive drug.

Cofounder 164

Cofounder Retention PR SEO 164