Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 29, 2020

That’s the function of a good advisory board. Thus I believe every smart investor, potential partner, or critical new hire will look for a properly built advisory board as a key criteria before selection or making a commitment. Keep the advisory board to a manageable size.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 3, 2017

Many entrepreneurs I know are confused by definition and need for an Advisory Board versus a Board of Directors. By definition, Advisory Boards are voluntary and have no fiduciary responsibility. This Advisory Board is a good test drive for the more formal Board of Directors required later, when going public (IPO) or the entrance of venture capital investors. How much are you willing to spend on your board?

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Board Effect

OCTOBER 12, 2020

The fact that your board is having a discussion about forming an advisory board is a good indication that it’s time to put the issue on your board’s agenda for discussion. Your board also needs to be clear on its own role. Advisory board members don’t vote.

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Board Effect

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Your founders and board members won’t always have the necessary expertise you need in every area to be competitive and sustainable. An advisory board can be of great assistance to your startup by filling crucial gaps in your leadership talent.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 23, 2012

I recommend that every early-stage startup find three Advisory Board members. Besides laying out the benefits, your advisory board invitation letter also might include: Your business plan executive summary The Advisory Board's objectives and focus Minimum and maximum time commitment and involvement level The Advisory Board is quite different from a board of directors, which is required of some private companies in many states.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2012

If you are an entrepreneur for the first time, or entering a new business area, it’s usually worth your time to assemble an Advisory Board of two or three executives who have travelled that road before. For perspective, you need to remember that boards of advisors, unlike directors, have no formal power or fiduciary duties, but rather serve at the pleasure of you the business owner. If you want out-of-town members on your board, you foot the travel expenses.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 3, 2010

A properly built advisory board can be a huge strategic advantage to any company. On the other hand, an advisory board put together haphazardly can be the biggest mistake for a company in the early stages of business. What makes a GREAT advisory board experience for both the company and the advisors is a high level of engagement. Advisory boards that do not have a high engagement factor can begin what we call a “death spiral” for a board’s culture.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 21, 2010

If you are an entrepreneur for the first time, or entering a new business area, it’s usually worth your time to assemble an Advisory Board of two or three executives who have travelled that road before. For perspective, you need to remember that boards of advisors, unlike directors, have no formal power or fiduciary duties, but rather serve at the pleasure of you the business owner. If you want out-of-town members on your board, you foot the travel expenses.

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Mike Michalowicz

AUGUST 10, 2012

This got me thinking, I need to have a “Heavenly Advisory Board.” I decided to do it, and created a Heavenly Advisory Board. I plan to have an “advisory board” of perhaps ten when I am done. They are the perfect board for me. everyone else is already taken. ** Coming next to my advisory board is George Washington himself. Your Own Heavenly Advisory Board. Meeting George In Heaven.

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Jeff Hilimire

JULY 8, 2020

One of the best things we ever did at Spunlogic was to create an advisory board early on. On my most recent podcast , I talk to Blair Brady, CEO of WITH/agency , about the do’s and don’ts of advisory boards. If advisory boards have been successful for you, please let me know how and what advice you’d give! The post Everything I know about advisory boards appeared first on Begin the Begin.

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Austin Startup

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017

For startup founders, it’s never too early to start thinking about putting together a target market advisory board. The target market advisory board should consist of 2–4 industry veterans who have connections to C-level execs and VPs in your target market. Having a target market advisory board is also helpful come fundraising time. This post is written with B2B startups in mind, but should be generally applicable.

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NZ Entrepreneur

APRIL 28, 2019

Here’s how to build a startup advisory board. And while it often seems more involved and complex than it is in reality, setting up an advisory board is something you should look to put in place in the early stages of your entrepreneurial venture. An advisory board is, at it’s simplest, a selection of individuals that add value to your business but who don’t work in it. Selecting an advisory board is the tricky part.

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SiliconHills

DECEMBER 21, 2020

Hypergiant, based in Austin, has brought on board Abidali Neemuchwala, former Wipro CEO, to its executive advisory board. The post Hypergiant Adds High-Profile Executive Abidali Neemuchwala to its Advisory Board appeared first on SiliconHills.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2009

Many startup companies hire advisory boards. So do advisory boards really add value? In my experience most advisory boards under deliver relative to expectations. Advisory Board Problems : There are several problems that I have encountered myself and in my many discussions with CEO’s who have set up advisory boards. So you set up advisory meetings. Ok, next advisory board meeting in 60-90 days.

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Jeff Hilimire

APRIL 8, 2015

Are you looking for a sounding board in general? Advisory Boards. When it comes to advisory boards, I’m a big fan. But, I think an entrepreneur needs to be careful about how and when they create an advisory board. You need to make sure that your business is at a point that it needs a group of people to get advice from, and you need to be in a place that you can organize and run an effective advisory board.

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 14, 2017

Have you ever thought of creating an advisory board? Usually, you would want to create an advisory board to fill in the critical areas of need not evidenced in the board of directors or within the company itself. Sometimes, celebrities will agree to sit on an advisory board as a gift to the CEO, providing a bit of glamour for the company at small expense. How many advisors should you seek for a board? How do you pay an advisory board?

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2010

I recommend that every early-stage startup find three Advisory Board members. Besides laying out the benefits, your advisory board invitation letter also might include: Your business plan executive summary The Advisory Board's objectives and focus Minimum and maximum time commitment and involvement level The Advisory Board is quite different from a board of directors, which is required of some private companies in many states.

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YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 13, 2021

Reserving seats on corporate boards for younger directors helps keep boards relevant, current, and ever evolving, insists Patricia Lenkov. The post How An Injection Of Youthful Wisdom Can Rejuvenate Corporate Boards appeared first on Young Upstarts.

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Gust

JULY 15, 2012

I recommend that every early-stage startup find three Advisory Board members. Besides laying out the benefits, your advisory board invitation letter also might include: Your business plan executive summary. The Advisory Board’s objectives and focus. The Advisory Board is quite different from a board of directors, which is required of some private companies in many states. What better candidates than your Advisory Board?

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2021

An experienced Board can give them credibility, as well as advice on the many pitfalls of starting a new company. Board members provide inexpensive expertise. Key board members multiply your networking efforts. Advisory members are Board of Directors candidates.

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Jeff Hilimire

APRIL 10, 2015

Earlier this week, I hit on the topic of co-founders / business partners , and advisory boards / mentors. Today I wanted to address a new concept that I recently tried out: The Pop-Up Advisory Board. A typical advisory board is a group of people that come together on a periodic basis to weigh in on your business and give advice. It’s important to note that advisory boards are not ACTUAL voting boards.

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Hunter Walker

OCTOBER 20, 2013

Advisory boards come up often in conversations with founders, especially early in a company’s life when they’re looking to build out expertise, industry relationships and social proof. Length : Advisory agreements are standard two years. While not everyone is a fan of Advisory Boards , I believe they can be valuable.

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Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 4, 2021

Update : After this article was written the Secretary of Defense fired every member of all 40+ defense advisory boards and will start anew. Hopefully the suggestions in this post will help inform how they reconstitute the boards.). What’s an Advisory Board?

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The Next Web

JULY 12, 2017

Every startup CEO knows that in theory their advisory board is just here to ‘advise’. Here are the four types of people you’ll encounter on every startup advisory board and how to deal with them. Here’s something they might not have told you when you set up your startup to “be your own boss” — everyone has bosses. But some of them, maybe even all them, have a stake in the company, and are actually crucial to your success.

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SiliconHills

JUNE 28, 2019

The post Hypergiant Adds Bill Nye, the Science Guy, to its Advisory Board appeared first on SiliconHills. Hypergiant Industries has big goals like creating smart cities, flying cars, and finding a cure for cancer, Bill Nye, one of the world’s most famous mechanical engineers, known as The Science Guy., says in a video created for Hypergiant. “We’re not aiming for utopia, but simply a better universe,” Nye says in the video. “This […].

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2020

Many startup founders I know avoid establishing a formal advisory board or board of directors for as long as possible, with the excuse that this is just another burden, or it has more risk than value to the founder. A voluntary board sounds good, but is generally not effective.

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Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 26, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, October 26, 2009 A real Customer Advisory Board A reader recently asked on a previous post about the technique of having customers periodically produce a “state of the company&# progress report. One example is having a real Customer Advisory Board. Every two months, the company would have a big end-of-milestone meeting, with our Board of Directors, Business Advisory Board, and all employees present.

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The Next Web

APRIL 18, 2014

Alana Muller is the President at Kauffman FastTrac, an organization that equips entrepreneurs with the business skills and insights, tools, resources, and networks to start and grow. This post originally appeared on the Clarity.fm The entrepreneurial journey is full of twists, turns, ups and downs. That’s why you need the support of trusted advisors. Take these examples: 1. The Accidental Founder Renee is in early stage mode.

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Gust

DECEMBER 3, 2011

And I don’t mean because they lend a credible name to an investor pitch: way too many entrepreneurs look at names on Advisory Board as just a way to expedite a raise. If that’s all you really expect of the Board, you’re cheating yourself as well as the investors before whom you dangled the names. Proper use of Advisory Boards begins with proper construction. But the real key to good results is that you have to keep the Board members engaged and educated.

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The Next Web

OCTOBER 17, 2012

HubSpot , the company behind HubSpot 3, a “powerful, comprehensive, and tightly-integrated” all-in-one marketing software system, announced that serial entrepreneur and acclaimed author, Eric Ries , is joining the company’s Advisory Board. While having the guy who created the movement on your Advisory Board is cool, some might think that it’s just another fad. Companies are about to get a big dose of the Lean Startup philosophy.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 8, 2019

Image via Flickr by MDGovpics Many entrepreneurs I know are confused by definition and need for an Advisory Board versus a Board of Directors. By definition, Advisory Boards are voluntary and have no fiduciary responsibility. This Advisory Board is a good test drive for the more formal Board of Directors required later, when going public (IPO) or the entrance of venture capital investors. How much are you willing to spend on your board?

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SiliconHills

FEBRUARY 12, 2015

Ben Dyer, a serial technology entrepreneur and entrepreneur in residence at the Cockrell School of Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin, has joined the advisory board of Enola Labs. It is also in the process […] The post Ben Dyer Joins Austin-based Enola Labs’ Advisory Board appeared first on SiliconHills.

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BeyondVC

MARCH 14, 2006

Trust me, I am all for advisory boards. Many entrepreneurs or management team put together advisory boards to get real expertise on product direction, the market, and to expand their network to reach new customers and partners. Advisory boards can be especially great because the typical relationship is usually noncash and compensation is based on options which vest over a period of time. The post Advisory Boards appeared first on BeyondVC.

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Early Growth Financial Services

DECEMBER 9, 2014

Don’t confuse an advisory board with a board of directors (BoD). In contrast a startup advisory board is pretty much whatever you want it to be. When you reach that point, it pays to think through your advisory board’s role: how to structure it, how it will work and if/how the members will get paid. This guest post was contributed by Adam Quinton, CEO and Founder of Lucas Point Ventures.

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Austin Startup

MAY 31, 2011

The company also announced the creation of a new Advisory Board and its charter members, wireless technology veterans Carmel Sofer and Daniel Shader. Macheen Inc., which enables any device maker or electronics retailer to deliver always-available, out-of-the-box Internet connectivity, today announced that Kent Libbey, a communications and software industry veteran, has joined the company as Vice President of Marketing.

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SiliconHills

MAY 13, 2013

He’s served on advisory boards from New York to Silicon Valley and he’s almost never [.] The post How Startups Can Build an Effective Advisory Board appeared first on SiliconHills. By SUSAN LAHEY Reporter with Silicon Hills News Brandon Knicely, managing director of Portico International and founder of Austin Innovation Partners, has started mid-cap companies and small companies, invested in developing nations and worked for non-profits in New York City.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 30, 2014

If you are a new entrepreneur, or entering a new business area, it’s always worth your time to assemble an Advisory Board of two or three executives who have travelled that road before. For perspective, you need to remember that boards of advisors, unlike directors, have no formal power or fiduciary duties, but rather serve at the pleasure of you the business owner. Most advisory board members sign up because the want to help you, not because of the compensation.

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Jeff Hilimire

MAY 2, 2014

Several of those near-misses were the result of advice from our amazing advisory board – Bill , Ken , James , William , and Mike. Both cities had growing digital marketing communities and we were sure that if we opened up shop in one of those cities that we’d benefit from new companies to prospect and new employees to bring on board. More on advisory boards: How to choose the right people and run effective meetings.

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Jeff Hilimire

AUGUST 9, 2013

I talk a lot about the importance of advisory boards for startups. I believe creating an advisory board is one of the most important things you can do for your company. Tips on how to choose advisory board members. You’ll be surprised the caliber of person that will agree to be on your advisory board. Tips on how to run effective advisory board meetings. But most important of all, get yourself an advisory board.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 6, 2016

That’s the function of a good advisory board. Thus I believe every smart investor, potential partner, or critical new hire will look for a properly built advisory board as a key criteria before selection or making a commitment. In my experience, the key parameters for building that winning advisory board should include the following: Select people who fill gaps in your own team. Keep the advisory board to a manageable size.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2015

Most entrepreneurs avoid setting up a board of directors for their new business unless or until they sign up an investor who demands a seat on the board. That implies that a board of directors has no value to the founder, and is just another burden that to be assumed for the privilege of attracting outside investors or going public. Of course, if the board is set up or used incorrectly, the impact can indeed be more negative than positive.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2013

If you are an entrepreneur for the first time, or entering a new business area, it’s usually worth your time to assemble an Advisory Board of two or three executives who have travelled that road before. For perspective, you need to remember that boards of advisors, unlike directors, have no formal power or fiduciary duties, but rather serve at the pleasure of you the business owner. If you want out-of-town members on your board, you foot the travel expenses.

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www.instigatorblog.com

MARCH 2, 2010

The Importance of Advisory Boards for Startup CEOs Tweet When a startup receives financing it will need to setup a Board of Directors. The Board probably existed beforehand, but was made up only of the founders. But there’s another kind of board that’s equally important. In some ways it’s more important (although it doesn’t have any control over the business), and that’s the Board of Advisors.

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