Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2019

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Join a startup incubator. Use crowd funding to build reserves.

Finance 320

Finance Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 320

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 6, 2013

I am fond of quoting that about 70% of my investment decision of an early-stage company is the team. Final startup grind from msuster. And the folks at Startup Grind have been kind enough to invite me to present this morning in Mountain View on the topic. PMs are a vital part of a tech startup. figure out roles.

Cofounder 388

Cofounder Early Stage Startup Silicon Valley 388

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 12, 2019

Some of the best and brightest wanted to work for defense contractors or corporate research and development labs. And the best startups spun out of Stanford were building components for weapon systems. Indeed, Silicon Valley was born as a center for weapon systems development and its software and silicon helped end the Cold War.

Government 308

Government Artificial Inteligence Silicon Valley North Korea 308

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2018

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Join a startup incubator. Use crowd funding to build reserves.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 10, 2020

In the early stages, it isn’t uncommon for businesses to bank their earnings on a handful of customers (or sometimes, just one). This is especially true for startups, which operate on the basis of customer traction to solidify expectations with investors or lending institutions.

Customer 347

Customer Development Team Review Advisory Board Private Equity 347

Up and Running

APRIL 12, 2018

Working on a startup can be exciting, exhilarating, fulfilling and maybe even a little terrifying. Here are tips to create a practical and well-rounded financial forecast for your startup. Things like product development, materials and packaging, performance-based bonuses, and more. The value of a forecast.

Forecast 77

Forecast Early Stage Software Review Technical Review 77

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 27, 2019

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup.

Technical Review 255

Technical Review Dilution Early Stage Product Development 255

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 20, 2019

Startup companies often face numerous obstacles that stand in the way of their desired level of success—from lack of planning to inability to scale up or poor management to neglecting marketing. Among these obstacles exists the idea of product viability and adaptability. No one has ever said it’s easy to start a business.

Software Review 100

Software Review Management Early Stage Startup 100

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 12, 2019

Most startups view venture capital funding as a blessing from above — eager to take it as soon as they can get it. While the rewards may be a boon to their company in the short term, the consequences of accepting outside funding too early can be debilitating. Typical startups take in multiple rounds of funding from multiple investors.

Early Stage 85

Early Stage Venture Capital Bootstrapping Pre-Money Valuation 85

YoungUpstarts

MAY 6, 2019

by Arsalan Sajid, startup community manager at Cloudways. Life is not a box of chocolates and startups are not always easy to start. There is a complete process that governs the startup lifecycle including inception to exit. They make money by starting a product from scratch and then selling it in thousands of dollars.

Startup 113

Startup Technical Cofounder Merger Early Stage 113

YoungUpstarts

MAY 21, 2020

You envision your business as the next Uber or Spotify, yourself as the next Steve Jobs or Elon Musk, reaching that prestigious ‘unicorn’ startup status in record time. Like most entrepreneurs, you’ve probably mapped out the business plan, dreamed up the layout and you’re already snapping up domains and emailing developers with your plan.

Product 264

Product Cofounder Audience Product Development 264

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 10, 2012

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup.

Startup 254

Startup Technical Review Dilution Early Stage 254

YoungUpstarts

MAY 30, 2019

by Will Koffel , head of the Google Cloud Startup Program in the Americas. In 2013, I left a CTO job overseeing a 50-person product engineering team for the same job at a four-person startup. ” Most early startups don’t understand the distinction between the two. Manage Your Workflow — Or Else.

Management 138

Management Product SCRUM Early Stage 138

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

I believe the Maker Movement and hardware startups with limited resources are made for each other. In today’s fast moving market, the basic product development cost and time are critical to survival. They come at the early stage while a startup has no revenue or valuation, so professional investors are hard to find.

Startup 397

Startup Cofounder Incubator Early Stage 397

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2010

If you’re interested in recruiting sales people, I wrote on the topic of startup sales people: who to hire & when – understanding the roles of Journeymen, Mavericks & Superstars. Evangelical sales – Understanding startup sales people and process. Reminds me of Eats, Shoots & Leaves. You learn by asking.

Hiring 346

Hiring Sales Startup Early Stage 346

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. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Specialized VCs start to jump in at this stage.

Angel Investor 256

Angel Investor Early Stage Incubator Government 256

Mucker Lab

MAY 28, 2020

Like a teenager with a million-dollar allowance and an identity crisis, a startup with too much capital and no product-market fit will become capable of making larger mistakes. As an investor, I root for startups. Before you indulge in marketing, sales and blinged-out offices, find product-market fit.

Startup 78

Startup Cofounder Burn Rate Technical Review 78

View from Seed

JULY 5, 2022

RH: What’s your favorite thing about being an early-stage founder? One hour I’m deep into product development, the next I’m thinking about our hiring needs and recruiting, to the next on a sales call. I’m Connor Cash, the founder of Caesar and I grew up outside of Boston but currently live in DC! And your least?

DC 156

DC Software Review Government Boston 156

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 26, 2022

Complicating the development of a useful product is the stringent safety and compliance approval testing that varies based on country and industry. Businesses have a lot to think about when they have a new product idea and one missed step in the product development lifecycle can significantly impact business success.

Design 134

Design Development Team Review Product Technical Review 134

Business Plan Blog

OCTOBER 4, 2013

Aligning the Startup Team Strategy with the Capitalization Strategy. The single most important factor to raising capital for any tech startup is the management team. This is true for early stage funding as well as venture capital funding. Furthermore, a startup works differently than a large corporation.

Part-Time VPE 79

Part-Time VPE Fractional VPE Cofounder CTO Hire 79

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 7, 2017

Launching your startup in a down economy doesn’t make it any less likely to last. Two conditions that do matter to your startup’s out-year viability are the cost and length of its product development cycle. Focus on Your Minimum Viable Product. They quite literally can’t afford to wait.

Cost 100

Cost Developer Small Business Administration Marketing 100

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2011

There are unknowns at every turn, leading product development, attracting customers, managing cash, and dealing with human resources and office politics. Probably 80% of the startups I know have found human resource issues to be the most treacherous. Stretch” goals in early-stage are not advised.

Advisory Board 232

Advisory Board Startup Forecast Early Stage 232

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 23, 2017

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup.

Customer 191

Customer Entrepreneur Technical Review Dilution 191

View from Seed

MAY 11, 2016

The last time they were starting a company at the raw, pre-product/market fit stage may have been quite a few years ago. The context of starting business may have changed, and some of the tools and practices (especially around early product development and go-to-market) might look very different.

Founder 159

Founder Cofounder CTO Hire Early Stage 159

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 27, 2010

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup.

Startup 227

Startup Technical Review Dilution Early Stage 227

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 20, 2019

In the startup world, opportunities are fleeting, and obstacles are ubiquitous. Competition from other startups and established incumbents, constraints on time and capital, and limited access to talent and technology resources are just a few of the hurdles nearly every first-time founder faces while trying to build a business.

Technical Review 140

Technical Review Due Diligence Early Stage Differentiation 140

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2015

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Specialized VCs start to jump in at this stage.

Product Development 120

Product Development Developer Product Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2013

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup.

Entrepreneur 252

Entrepreneur Marketing Technical Review Dilution 252

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 7, 2009

This post describes how following the traditional product development can lead to a “startup death spiral.&# In the next posts that follow, I’ll describe how this model’s failures led to the Customer Development Model – offering a new way to approach startup sales and marketing activities.

Customer Development 224

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 224

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2009

For those of you who have been following the discussion, a Lean Startup is Eric Ries ’s description of the intersection of Customer Development , Agile Development and if available, open platforms and open source. Over its lifetime a Lean Startup may spend less money than a traditional startup. Lets see why.

Lean 244

Lean Silicon Valley Startup RSS 244

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 25, 2017

In today’s fast moving market, the basic product development cost and time are critical to survival. They come at the early stage while a startup has no revenue or valuation, so professional investors are hard to find. Countless startup teams have already been spawned from these.

Technical Cofounder 153

Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property Wiki Cofounder 153

The Next Web

OCTOBER 3, 2012

Andrew is the co-founder and CTO of Parse.ly , a technology startup that provides big data insights to the web’s best publishers. Startups die due to a variety of causes. In 2007, Paul Graham gave a variety of causes for startup death in How Not To Die. Distraction is fatal to startups.

Cofounder 155

Cofounder Technical Cofounder Technical Review Software Review 155

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2012

There are unknowns at every turn, leading product development, attracting customers, managing cash, and dealing with human resources and office politics. Probably 80% of the startups I know have found human resource issues to be the most treacherous. Stretch” goals in early-stage are not advised.

Advisory Board 240

Advisory Board Forecast Early Stage Product Development 240

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

In the early stages of a startup your hypotheses about all the parts of your business model are your profound beliefs. You can’t be an effective founder or in the C-suite of a startup if you don’t hold any. Here’s how I learned why they were critical to successful customer development. The CEO was right.

Business Model 305

Business Model Product Development Early Stage Customer Development 305

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 30, 2017

In September 2017, I spent 2 weeks in Austin, Texas to understand what makes this vibrant startup ecosystem tick. My primary mission was to learn from the impressive entrepreneurial ecosystem in Austin and draw lessons for developing the entrepreneurship education program for Beetroot Academy.

Early Stage 48

Early Stage Austin Silicon Valley Intellectual Property 48

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 12, 2010

There are unknowns at every turn, leading product development, attracting customers, managing cash, and dealing with human resources and office politics. Probably 80% of the startups I know have found human resource issues to be the most treacherous. Stretch” goals in early-stage are not advised. Marty Zwilling.

Advisory Board 125

Advisory Board Startup Forecast Early Stage 125

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup.

Marketing 238

Marketing Entrepreneur Technical Review Dilution 238