Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2019

As a long-time business advisor and angel investor, I’m a believer that “two heads are better than one” in building a new business. The challenge is to recognize and recruit that ideal partner match early with minimal cost and risk. In fact, I would broaden the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.”

Cofounder 221

Cofounder Software Review CTO Hire Founder 221

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2020

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage angel investors. Software and hardware development architects and designers. Supportive co-founder and executive positions.

Advisory Board 312

Advisory Board Startup Dividend Angel Investor 312

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 5, 2023

Many of the start-ups my various angel funds have financed died a slow death , not because of poor concept but because of poor execution, wasting fixed overhead and draining the financial resources from the company coffers. But we investors often allow too little slack in our estimates as well. The financial pain of unplanned delays.

Silicon Valley 118

Silicon Valley Burn Rate Angel Investor Down Round 118

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 26, 2019

As an advisor to business owners, and an occasional angel investor, my job is to separate the actual challenges from the common misconceptions that distract many promising entrepreneurs while building the leadership team required for your solution, marketing, and finance success. Partner with experts who share the risk.

Bandwidth 246

Bandwidth Software Review Salary Angel Investor 246

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 22, 2019

The question of venture capitalist versus angel investor often arises. Venture capital and angel investments offer excellent options to startup businesses. Investment firms are staffed with analysts, partners, and others to ensure deals are soundly vetted. Investor Involvement. Angel Investors.

Angel Investor 123

Angel Investor Venture Capital Accredited Investor Equity 123

Feld Thoughts

MAY 28, 2015

Congrats to my friends at Rally Software on the announcement that they’ve signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by CA Technologies for $480 million. Ryan had a vision for an integration web-based system to layer on top of all of this to help support and manage the software development process.

Software 70

Software Technology Agile SCRUM 70

NZ Entrepreneur

MAY 31, 2021

The Angel Association of New Zealand ( AANZ ) is co-hosting with New Zealand Growth Capital Partners ( NZGCP ) a series of workshops on early-stage investment. For the angel investor, their own expertise and time to help guide companies makes the biggest difference to their portfolio’s success.

Portfolio 81

Portfolio New Zealand Management Technical Review 81

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2022

Venture capitalists (VCs) have long been seen as the top of the pyramid for startup funding sources, but in fact angel investors now fund over twice as many companies, according to a classic Crunchbase article. Individual angel investors and crowdfunding have been adding to the momentum, some say exceeding VCs in total amount invested.

Angel Investor 342

Angel Investor Venture Capital Silicon Valley Portfolio 342

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2023

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Don’t waste your time and energy talking to angels and VCs about technology funding when you could be focused more productively on grants, private funds and future business partners.

Angel Investor 256

Angel Investor Early Stage Incubator Government 256

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2014

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage Angel investors. Software and hardware development architects and designers. Supportive co-founder and executive positions.

Entrepreneur 266

Entrepreneur Advisory Board Dividend Angel Investor 266

Austin Startup

MAY 14, 2021

STRAP has developed a range of hardware and software solutions that address the mobility challenges that the blind and visually impaired encounter daily. The company is also backed by International Accelerator and a group of Angel Investors. The leading causes of vision impairment are uncorrected refractive errors and cataracts.*

Technical Review 70

Technical Review Technology Angel Investor Software Review 70

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2021

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Don’t waste your time and energy talking to angels and VCs about technology funding when you could be focused more productively on grants, private funds and future business partners.

Early Stage 412

Early Stage Angel Investor Incubator Government 412

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 16, 2010

Mike Wolf is a mentor of mine, and a role model for many technology entrepreneurs and investors in the Phoenix, Arizona, area. He is a 26-year software veteran who has survived both startups and big companies. At Capex, the company was in a post startup phase, but growing rapidly in the independent system software marketplace.

Angel Investor 211

Angel Investor Arizona Entrepreneur Phoenix 211

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 20, 2016

Thus the top priority of every entrepreneur who wants funding should be to build and highlight their “dream team” of co-founders, executives and advisers, to attract the biggest and best investors. Solo entrepreneurs rarely find an investor. When pitching to investors, weave in real-life stories of your best past creative solutions.

Sweat Equity 152

Sweat Equity Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Software Review 152

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 15, 2017

Unless you’re starting out as a sole trader/freelancer you may have already provisionally signed up a contact or two, but it’s important to remember that unless they’re business partners, they’ll be employees – and should be treated as such. Consider employing someone to help deal with these tasks, even if on just a part time basis.

Software Review 124

Software Review Angel Investor Cofounder Early Stage 124

Up and Running

DECEMBER 18, 2013

RocketHub also recently partnered with the TV channel A&E for marketing and funding help for their favorite fundraising campaigns. Kiva is a non-profit organization that partners with microfinance institutions (Kiva’s “field partners”) in third-world countries to offer small loans to budding entrepreneurs.

Kenya 119

Kenya Angel Investor Technical Review Software Review 119

YoungUpstarts

JULY 21, 2019

You can find free software on the internet that does almost the same thing as your subscription-based software. If your partner is your roommate, you don’t even have to find a space (yet). The internet has a ton of open-source software and other free services you can use for your business. Use Free Online Resources.

Software Review 191

Software Review Entrepreneur Cost Cofounder 191

Steve Blank

JANUARY 22, 2014

Dino Vendetti a VC at Bay Partners, moved up to Bend, Oregon on a mission to engineer Bend into a regional technology cluster. Sites like AngelList have only amplified the collective reach of individual and grouped angel investors. I visited Bend last year and caught up with his progress.

Early Stage 286

Early Stage Silicon Valley Oregon Technical Review 286

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2013

As a current Angel investor, I can attest that any investments in startups are more risky than the commodity markets, and you shouldn’t expect to see any return for many years. Of course, this might also lead to investors, partners, and licensing opportunities. Software crowd sourcing. Good-cause crowd funding.

Intellectual Property 247

Intellectual Property SEC Venture Capital Equity 247

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 19, 2020

Venture capitalists (VCs) have long been seen as the top of the pyramid for startup funding sources, but in fact angel investors now fund over twice as many companies, according the Crunchbase. Individual angel investors and crowdfunding have been adding to the momentum, some say exceeding VCs in total amount invested.

Angel Investor 314

Angel Investor Venture Capital Silicon Valley Startup 314

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 29, 2022

Angel investors, like me, have long figured out that asking to see the prototype is a quick way to separate the ‘wannabes’ from serious players. Software products and apps can be quickly wire-framed with free tools such as MockFlow , or even Microsoft Powerpoint to lay out the key screens.

Angel Investor 276

Angel Investor Database Cofounder Distribution 276

Up and Running

AUGUST 30, 2021

Angel investors, venture capital firms, accelerators, and (maybe) the newer equity crowdfunding will look to see if you have previous experience in startups. It took Alex a long time to find an engineer to partner with without the network gained from working at a startup first. That’s the tricky part.

Entrepreneur 132

Entrepreneur Lean Colorado Engineer 132

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2016

Super-angel investors (micro-VCs). These terms refer to a class of professional investors who invest their own money, like angels, but have the larger resources and scope of venture capitalists with other people’s money. A seed round is intended to be followed by a bigger Series A round. Equity crowdfunding.

Software Review 120

Software Review Sweat Equity Accredited Investor Angel Investor 120

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

If you are going to do the tour up and down Sandhill Road to try and raise your 1st round of financing you need a pitch deck because the vast majority of those meetings you are going to be sitting around a table and you will be presenting to one or more partners and that is going to be your first engagement.”. Is that when it became big?

Technical Review 288

Technical Review Venture Capital Silicon Valley Software Review 288

Up and Running

MAY 21, 2020

For a software-driven online business, the milestones might include an initial business plan, getting the right people on board, website specs, design, first website launch, marketing launch, and so forth. You either partner with somebody, or take a job in that industry, or let it go. You were testing a business idea.

Lean 186

Lean Business Plan Software Review Angel Investor 186

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

Find the right partners. So, you need to find mentors, partners, and employees who are. Now, not every business can immediately hire more employees, and you may not have someone you want to bring on as an official partner. Recommended Reading: How to Write a Business Plan in 7 Steps. Track finances early.

Forecast 154

Forecast Software Review Bootstrapping Finance 154

Berkonomics

AUGUST 10, 2017

Many of the start-ups my various angel funds have financed died a slow death, not because of poor concept but because of poor execution, wasting fixed overhead and draining the financial resources from the company coffers. But we investors often allow too little slack in our estimates as well.

Silicon Valley 97

Silicon Valley Burn Rate Angel Investor Down Round 97

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 29, 2024

Start by defining your key resources, activities, and partners. They allow you to easily edit, share, and collaborate on documents without the need for multiple software solutions. Whether it’s through bootstrapping, seeking angel investors, or applying for grants, explore all options available to you.

Intellectual Property 132

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Business Model Bootstrapping 132

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 25, 2012

As a current Angel investor, I can attest that any investments in startups are more risky than the commodity markets, and you shouldn’t expect to see any return for five years. Of course, this might also lead to investors, partners, and licensing opportunities. Software crowd sourcing. Proceed at your own peril.

Intellectual Property 242

Intellectual Property Venture Capital Angel Investor Equity 242

ReadWriteStart

MAY 22, 2012

While some lucky startups attract angel investors or have access to money from friends and family, the vast majority are on their own, at least at first. So far, Herman has put about $60,000 on his credit cards, using them mostly to finance software development. The experience shaped how Turner funded Planwise. “We

Technical Review 118

Technical Review Software Review Angel Investor Startup 118

Up and Running

MARCH 27, 2015

In the business world, angel investors are sometimes equated with actual angels, sent to help us fund what could not otherwise be funded. These guardian angels of innovation are responsible for bringing many new ideas to life. See Also How to Impress Angel Investors. Planning, Startups, and Stories.

Angel Investor 60

Angel Investor Dallas United States Cofounder 60

Growthink Blog

MARCH 11, 2012

These other entrepreneurs can provide funding to you as "angel investors." They can introduce you to other angel investors they know. They can partner with you or introduce you to other partners. On one hand, it's unfortunate that no one has a comprehensive "magic" list of angel investors.

Angel Investor 82

Angel Investor Hosting Networking Partner 82

Austin Startup

MAY 7, 2017

Some of the most interesting events in Austin for the week of May 8 through May 14 are as follows: Mon, May 8 thru Thurs, May 11: OSCON OSCON brings the software engineering and developer community together to explore what’s new and useful in open source languages, tools, and techniques. A seasoned investor who recently moved to Austin?

Technical Review 75

Technical Review Austin North America Software Review 75

Gust

JUNE 19, 2012

Tim Berry , Founder, Palo Alto Software. Don’t believe the urban myth that you can sketch your idea on a napkin, and professional investors will throw money at you. Tim Berry , Founder, Palo Alto Software. Like the problem solver I had been trained as in my software development days, I parsed his issue. June 19th, 2012.

Startup 180

Startup Forecast Angel Investor Software 180

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 2, 2020

Angel investors, like me, have long figured out that asking to see the prototype is a quick way to separate the ‘wannabes’ from serious players. Software products and apps can be quickly wire-framed with free tools such as MockFlow , or even Microsoft Powerpoint to lay out the key screens.

Angel Investor 312

Angel Investor Database Cofounder Distribution 312

Up and Running

MARCH 11, 2015

This is the home of Jason Cohen, software startup founder, bootstrapper, investor, and mentor. The Andreesen Horowitz blog is the work of the famous VC firm’s partners and covers all things software in Silicon Valley and beyond. Hunter is a partner at Homebrew and previously led consumer product management at YouTube.

Venture Capital 60

Venture Capital Technical Review Silicon Valley Cofounder 60

Up and Running

MAY 20, 2019

By creating a “low-friction plan,” you can avoid or at least mitigate problems down the road—plus, it’s what potential lenders or investors expect when you approach them for funding. Align on a mission statement that ensures all partners understand what you want to accomplish and what is outside of that core.

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Business Plan Angel Investor Partner Naming 92