Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 15, 2020

For early-stage startups, the goodwill component can easily exceed the size of all the financial elements together, or can just as easily mark a company with good financials as not investable. In the investment community, these leadership elements are often called “goodwill.” Focus on talent and people growth.

Valuation 311

Valuation Technical Review Due Diligence Leadership 311

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 25, 2018

Today, Mark Attanasio gets to flex his full range of expertise and interests as co-founder and Managing Partner of Hillcrest Merchant Partners, a Toronto-based merchant bank focused on early stage and mid market growth companies. Even better, Attanasio says, is if they have done extensive due diligence first.

Partner 113

Partner Technical Review Management Due Diligence 113

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 18, 2023

Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup. These questions are the key ones in every due diligence effort, always done by accredited investors, but almost never done by key employees and new partners.

Sweat Equity 207

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 207

The Equity Kicker

SEPTEMBER 24, 2014

We see this all the time at Forward Partners where we invest right from the idea stage and most of the companies get a first version of their product live for less than £30k (that generally includes founder salaries and time spent doing customer research). Forward Partners and Crowdcube are both attacking elements of these problems.

Early Stage 119

Early Stage Development Team Review Technical Review Software Review 119

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 20, 2011

You need to convince them that you have been working on this vision for a long time, and have done the “due diligence” on all the potential knockoffs. In these cases both the entrepreneur and the funding partner are the fools. Friends and family will quickly detect your level of sincerity and thought behind the idea.

Early Stage 247

Early Stage Technical Review Elevator Pitch Due Diligence 247

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 14, 2022

At this stage, the idea is pitched mainly to family and friends. A business plan is drawn up to attract investors and partners. At this stage, the founder mainly raises funding from their sources or family and friends. After doing the requisite due diligence, investors can select their preferred companies.

Technical Review 145

Technical Review Due Diligence India Startup 145

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

It is possible to attract a venture capital partner with an idea for a business, but most deals are closed after the business has a founding team , a minimum viable product or MVP, and customers. Each firm can also focus on a particular stage of investment, from seed and early-stage funding all the way through to Series C and beyond.

Venture Capital 144

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Security 144

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

Failure to prepare for due diligence. The key here is to create a win-win partner situation for your investors. Don’t waste time talking to VCs for requests less than $1M, or very early stage, and don’t expect professional investors to jump in if you have no “skin in the game.”

Software Review 265

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 265

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 20, 2019

by Lu Zhang, founder and managing partner of Fusion Fund. Among these opportunities, the chance to pitch an investor and secure funding is perhaps the greatest of all — at least in the early stages of your startup career — as it can ultimately determine the long-term fate of your company.

Technical Review 140

Technical Review Due Diligence Early Stage Differentiation 140

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

By contrast, they backed 620 funds in the last three months of 2021 First time fund managers hit hard: In 2022, limited partners backed 141 funds run by first-time managers, a 59% decline from the prior year and the lowest number since 2013 How does the constrained LP environment manifest for funds and startups? Luck favours the bold!

Venture Capital 215

Venture Capital Technical Review LP Institutional Investors 215

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2012

Failure to prepare for due diligence. The key here is to create a win-win partner situation for your investors. Don’t waste time talking to VCs for requests less than $1M, or very early stage, and don’t expect professional investors to jump in if you have no “skin in the game.”

Software Review 250

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur 250

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. Jason Graham from Movac provided an early-stage venture capital fund perspective, detailing 35 investments made across 5 funds and 22 years.

Portfolio 81

Portfolio New Zealand Management Technical Review 81

NZ Entrepreneur

AUGUST 4, 2021

Byron van Vugt from NZ Growth Capital Partners explains. Again, use this as an opportunity to pique their interest – and ultimately, land follow-up meetings or enter due diligence. Due diligence, information memorandums & data rooms. Byron van Vugt is a senior investment analyst at NZ Growth Capital Partners.

Technical Review 61

Technical Review Software Review Founder Due Diligence 61

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 10, 2021

Toya is a female-led studio partnering with the biggest platforms in the gaming industry to develop and promote games that reflect equal opportunities, diverse characters, and more dynamic storylines across the gender spectrum. It takes a LOT of courage to say no to potential revenue, especially in the very early stages of a startup.

Technical Review 178

Technical Review South Korea Due Diligence IP 178

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 1, 2011

Every potential early-stage Venture Capitalist should take a year and do it before he or she makes partner. Over time Venture firms realized that the partners in the firms needs a variety of skills: People skills (ability to recognize patterns of success in individuals and teams). we do not even try to train new partners.

Venture Capital 332

Venture Capital Early Stage Technical Review Startup 332

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 28, 2018

The FUND Conference brings together over 100 startups to present their early-stage products and pitches in front of hundreds of investors and industry leaders. The beauty of our marketplace model is that we can transform our “competition” into partners in ways that Amazon and Etsy can’t.

Technical Review 153

Technical Review Software Review Illinois Due Diligence 153

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2011

Failure to prepare for due diligence. The key here is to create a win-win partner situation for your investors. Don’t waste time talking to VCs for requests less than $1M, or very early stage, and don’t expect professional investors to jump in if you have no “skin in the game.”

Software Review 246

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Early Stage 246

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2015

Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup. These questions are the key ones in every due diligence effort, always done by accredited investors, but almost never done by key employees and new partners. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 120

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2010

I know that sounds trite but that is exactly how my firm talks about things in partner meetings. It becomes a large part of the conversation in our partners’ meeting afterward. I’m proud to say that most early-stage VCs that I know really do care about making money ethically.

Technical Review 284

Technical Review Due Diligence Entrepreneur Early Stage 284

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 4, 2020

Finance is a new, early-stage, New York-based VC focused on East Coast companies. s founder is David Teten , previously a Partner with HOF Capital and ff Venture Capital and a serial fintech entrepreneur with 2 exits. . Company overview. The firm particularly has interest in fintech, edtech, and salestech.

New York 60

New York Venture Capital Technical Review Due Diligence 60

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2015

For early-stage startups, the goodwill component can easily exceed the size of all the financial elements together, or can just as easily mark a company with good financials as not investable. In the investment community, these leadership elements are often called “goodwill.” Focus on talent and people growth.

Leadership 120

Leadership Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 25, 2022

As an advisor to many early-stage entrepreneurs, I caution them to always be prepared for that chance meeting with a famous investor, a potential partner or an industry guru. The investors I know are quick to do some real due diligence. Advance homework and preparation is key to every good first impression.

Due Diligence 321

Due Diligence Founder Angel Investor Affiliate 321

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2014

The partner most obsessed with the startup lifestyle tests the water by going to work in an early-stage startup, similar to one they might hope to start someday. There are many networking groups on FaceBook, LinkedIn, and others social media sites, which can help you increase your odds of finding a match early.

Technical Review 250

Technical Review Stock Options Due Diligence Silicon Valley 250

David Teten

JUNE 10, 2020

SOP Capital is a new, early-stage, New York-based VC focused on East Coast companies. SOP’s founder is David Teten , previously a Partner with HOF Capital and ff Venture Capital and a serial fintech entrepreneur with 2 exits. . As the firm grows, we will need support in origination, financial modeling, due diligence, etc. .

New York 60

New York Venture Capital Technical Review Due Diligence 60

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 26, 2010

I’ve been having discussions with several people recently about the role of the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) in very early stage companies. However, I’ve now begun questioning how and what an early-stage / startup CTO should be. It makes this early stage challenging. Who’s responsible for what portions?

CTO 225

CTO Fractional CTO CTO Hire Technical Review 225

SoCal CTO

MARCH 9, 2010

During investor or third party partner due diligence, it is sometimes really valuable to have someone who has credentials and personal presence who can make technical questions go away. For Technology Advisors, I would add that there’s an implied value that they help check off the box that says – this can be done technically.

Technical Review 150

Technical Review Advisory Board Technology Fractional CTO 150

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

In an early stage start I believe it’s the CEO’s job to manage these functions. I once did due diligence on a potential investment where the CEO was projecting $9 million in sales for his next 12 months. For now, if you’re early stage, I’m not convinced.

Technical Review 325

Technical Review Startup Cofounder Due Diligence 325

Version One Ventures

SEPTEMBER 20, 2018

One of the most important decisions for a founder of an early stage company is deciding who should be on the cap table. We’ve written about doing your due diligence on investors and funds to make sure you find the right partners for the journey.

Cap Table 351

Cap Table Due Diligence Early Stage Portfolio 351

Austin Startup

DECEMBER 17, 2020

End of Year Update After officially announcing Breyer Capital Austin earlier this year after two years of active planning and due diligence, I received a humbling number of gracious emails and messages from Austin-based leaders, entrepreneurs, executives, and investors. Breyer Capital Austin?—?End

Austin 84

Austin Silicon Valley Technical Review Texas 84

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

(co-written with Jamie Finney, Founding Partner at Greater Colorado Venture Fund. Similar to the explosion of seed funds in the past decade, we (and some limited partners too ) believe these Flexible VCs are on the forefront of what will become a major segment of the venture ecosystem. Of the Inc. 5000 companies, only 6.5% return cap.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2016

Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup. These questions are the key ones in every due diligence effort, always done by accredited investors, but almost never done by key employees and new partners.

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 120

Growthink Blog

APRIL 30, 2014

It is upon these “ Due Diligence ” matters where the real - as opposed to the theoretical - money on early stage deals is made. Now, due diligence - as it is done by serious, professional investors - is an enormous undertaking. I call them the “Who, Why, and When” 15 minute Modern Due Diligence Checklist.

Due Diligence 86

Due Diligence Private Equity Early Stage Equity 86

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

These tensions seep out in some angels or seed funds publicly or semi-privately deriding later-stage VCs for their “bad” behavior. I have seen bad behavior from later-stage VCs, believe me. But I have seen equally bad behavior from super early stage investors. Later stage investors want a maximum size check.

Technical Review 336

Technical Review Later Stage Early Stage LP 336

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 3, 2010

I’m doing due diligence on a company of another entrepreneur in LA whose company was apparently doing very well. My recommendation to our lead partner looking at the deal, “Pass. The only thing worse than your early-stage company buying another early stage company is you trying to pull off a merger of equals.

Merger 276

Merger Technical Review Early Stage Dilution 276

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

PEVCTech is partnering with Blue Future Partners to run the first large-scale survey of VCs’ technology stack. Johann Kratzer of Blue Future Partners , a fund of funds, observed, “The majority of the hundreds of funds we’ve diligenced rely predominantly on their relationships to source deals. Greylock Partners.

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 60

Growthink Blog

DECEMBER 27, 2017

Be prepared for due diligence. It’s critical that the data you present is verifiable, since any serious investor will conduct extensive due diligence. how it will work, the financial terms, the types of customer leads expected from each partner, etc.). Be sure to document the specifics of the partnerships (e.g.

Venture Capital 129

Venture Capital Business Plan Technical Review Private Placement 129

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2018

Just as with any company, the most important issue is the team; see “ How to Negotiate a Partner Role at a Venture Capital or Private Equity Firm “ . 6) Due diligence. The first issues to think about are org chart, incorporation, financial structure, and so on. 5) Manage deal flow. 7) Negotiate transaction.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Private Equity Management Cap Table 60