Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 29, 2017

It follows up on my posts discussing why early stage startups should — or should not — move to Silicon Valley. Should Early Stage Startups Move to Austin because of Capital? There are a handful of factors that make capital available — and go a long way — for early stage companies in particular.

Early Stage 48

Early Stage Austin Silicon Valley Texas 48

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 23, 2023

Venture Capitalist : An early-stage VC requires some of the same skills as a Case Officer – spotting, assessing, developing, recruiting, and handling founders building a company amid an uncertain operating environment that will bring a heavy return on investment. Most startups fail, especially those in the early stages.

Government 212

Government Advisory Board Salary Sales Cycle 212

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2020

Because these considerations can be quite complex, very emotional, and have long-term implications, smart entrepreneurs don’t hesitate to get some legal advice at this early stage, in drawing up an agreement document to be signed by each of the co-founders.

Cofounder 435

Cofounder Technical Cofounder Equity Intellectual Property 435

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 22, 2020

Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup. Calculate employee stock option values and vesting times, as well as salary. Think twice before you jump in. How complex is the capitalization table?

Technical Review 436

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 436

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

As an early-stage company that just closed our seed round at $8.1 So what does an early-stage company do to avoid the doom and gloom plaguing the world of startups? After all, you’ve likely given your employees stock options which make them part-time business owners as well. That includes us.

Early Stage 112

Early Stage Los Angeles Silicon Valley Cofounder 112

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). As such, business owners need to ask themselves if they are still as implicated now as they were in the early stages of their business.

Customer 347

Customer Development Team Review Advisory Board Private Equity 347

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. Calculate employee stock option values and vesting times, as well as salary. Think twice before you jump in. How complex is the capitalization table?

Sweat Equity 207

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 207

Hunter Walker

MAY 13, 2023

Especially in the early days of mobile/iOS engineering, if you hired strong technical talent into your early stage company, you basically created an acquisition outcome floor. And when they’re giving stock to existing shareholders instead of cash it’s at high 2021 valuations, buried below a preference stack.

Early Stage 117

Early Stage Cap Table Acquisition Sales 117

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 14, 2012

I know a lot more about CTOs specifically CTO Salary and Equity Trends 2009-2011 , Visualization of Startup CTO Equity and Salary Data , Startup CTO Salary and Equity Data , but I've previously written about the issues with Equity for Early Employees in Early Stage Startups.

CTO Hire 329

CTO Hire Equity Seed Stage Option Pool 329

Berkonomics

MARCH 8, 2018

Many early stage CEOs and board members have asked for some guidance regarding pay and time commitments for board members. Pay early stage board members of companies that are not lifestyle businesses one percent of the fully diluted equity in the form of an option that vests over four years of service.

Early Stage 102

Early Stage Vesting Stock Options Preferred Stock 102

Hearpreneur

OCTOBER 25, 2023

5- Calculate stock reorder levels Photo Credit: Dani Mechlowitz When building an e-commerce business, it's essential to keep track of your inventory to avoid sell-out periods. In that initial growth phase, running out of stock can be detrimental and slow down the momentum of your business growth.

eCommerce 127

eCommerce Omaha Entrepreneur SEO 127

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

The shares given out can either be common stocks or preferred stocks. ? Debt investment. These usually play a role in the very early stage of your business, primarily pre-revenue. The seed stage is focused on building the core team, product optimization, exploring avenues for monetization. ? Early-stage.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 14, 2022

At this stage, the founder mainly raises funding from their sources or family and friends. If you are one of the fortunate early-stage investors to be presented with such an opportunity, it could lead to rewarding returns. The right amount of funding is needed for the idea to be nurtured. 2) Seed funding.

Technical Review 146

Technical Review Due Diligence India Startup 146

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

Because these considerations can be quite complex, very emotional, and have long-term implications, smart entrepreneurs don’t hesitate to get some legal advice at this early stage, in drawing up an agreement document to be signed by each of the co-founders.

Equity 238

Equity Cofounder Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property 238

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

Taking stock of the venture capital market in 2023, it’s clear to see that we’re in a transition point. Kudos to all the emerging managers and early stage founders, who are out there and continue to grind against the odds. Luck favours the bold!

Venture Capital 215

Venture Capital Technical Review LP Institutional Investors 215

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 3, 2010

The only thing worse than your early-stage company buying another early stage company is you trying to pull off a merger of equals. My version is, “you have a company with private stock. Somebody else is trying to convince you to sell to them in exchange for all stock. I promise they’re not.

Merger 276

Merger Technical Review Early Stage Dilution 276

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2023

None normally work for or provide funds for early-stage startups. Typically, their service is to help you invest in stocks, bonds, or mutual funds, much like independent financial advisors. Many investment banks even call themselves “boutiques.”

Early Stage 182

Early Stage Silicon Valley Private Equity Initial Public Offering 182

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

Seed-stage compatible: Like traditional equity VC investors, Flexible VCs accomodate early-stage investment risk within their portfolios better than a traditional RBI funder. Eligible for favorable treatment under Qualified Small Business Stock exemption, if structured as equity. Founder retains control. Cash collateral.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2010

But VC is an “illiquid asset&# so funds didn’t disappear quickly - In 2000/01 the stock market quickly adjusted punishing investors in the NASDAQ and in individual public technology stocks. What accelerated this was the collapse of the public stock markets. I have written more in depth on this topic in the past.

LP 311

LP Technical Review Early Stage Silicon Valley 311

Steve Blank

MAY 19, 2015

Organizational debt is all the people/culture compromises made to “just get it done” in the early stages of a startup. I got answers that sounded like the Tom’s – new stock grants for the executive staff, great new building, and oh, by the way, Tom and his co-founder got to sell some stock in the new round.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Salary Early Stage Software Review 120

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 3, 2021

I’ve historically not been a “New Year’s Resolutions” type of guy, but have found a certain mindfulness in at least taking stock of what’s working well for me and what’s less useful. Wanted to refresh and re-share because it’s planning season!]. Notes and More.

Early Stage 145

Early Stage Management Startup Portfolio 145

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2014

Founders stock, and stock options, will be worth nothing for the first several years, if not forever. 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. Who gets stock options, and how many?

Technical Review 250

Technical Review Stock Options Due Diligence Silicon Valley 250

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 1, 2009

Unemployment coupled with a stock market drop will stop this spending cold IMHO. If these factors impact earnings the stock market may be headed South – If unemployment rises housing prices won’t. This will likely cause the stock market to contract. If the stock market holds then the pace of VC may hold steady.

Technical Review 269

Technical Review Stock Hawaii Early Stage 269

View from Seed

APRIL 27, 2020

Others are just starting out, but the financial safety net they thought they had from a spouse’s job or highly appreciated stock options has disappeared. Some are staring into the abyss and they know they are not going to get out. This is scary. It’s going to last a while, and it’s going to be incredibly hard. Number of Investments.

Cofounder 194

Cofounder Software Review Portfolio Technical Review 194

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017

For a business that anticipates needing, for example, $500,000 in startup capital, that means that best-case scenario Klemm can expect to give up half of his business’s common stock (and an even larger percentage of control of the business once the deal’s fine print provisions are considered). His first capital raise was a $2.75

Private Equity 94

Private Equity Pre-Money Valuation Equity Startup 94

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 5, 2023

His proactive approach includes addressing shortages promptly and orchestrating the timely replenishment of stocks. Can you share a specific example from your experience where you successfully mitigated inventory shortages and ensured the timely replenishment of stock? What strategies did you employ?

Management 118

Management Early Stage Stock Operations 118

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

On a public stock market that is the value that investors place on future free cash flows of the business discounted to today’s date to account for the time value of money. The price of public stocks change instantly in reaction to news that is perceived to affect the future value of that company. Here’s what I mean.

Pre-Money Valuation 336

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Stock 336

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 25, 2018

Toronto’s Mark Attanasio has spent some 20 years advising businesses at various stages in their development on what it takes to position themselves for growth – whether it’s through traditional transactional activities like management buyouts and mergers and acquisitions or via a public listing on a Canadian stock exchange.

Partner 113

Partner Technical Review Management Due Diligence 113

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. As always a balanced perspective is in order.

Technical Review 336

Technical Review Later Stage Early Stage LP 336

Austin Startup

JULY 15, 2019

Capital Factory has been the most active early stage tech investor in Texas since 2013. Do you have an understanding of venture capital terminology and common structures such as convertible notes, SAFEs, stock options, warrants, and early stage equity transactions? We did 70 transactions in 2018 alone!

Texas 56

Texas Technical Review Silicon Valley Venture Capital 56

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

Forget to get around to setting up that Employee Stock Option Plan and want to be able to give the early guys their options at a low strike price? They want to lock in future clients at an early stage. They usually ask for warrants (basically like a stock option) in exchange for taking a deferred fee.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 26, 2020

None normally work for or provide funds for early-stage startups. Typically, their service is to help you invest in stocks, bonds, or mutual funds, much like independent financial advisors. Many investment banks even call themselves “boutiques.”

Silicon Valley 362

Silicon Valley Private Equity Initial Public Offering Term Sheet 362

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 26, 2010

Many early stage CEOs and board members have asked for some guidance regarding pay and time commitments for board members. Pay early stage board members of companies that are not lifestyle businesses one percent of the fully diluted equity in the form of an option that vests over four years of service.

Stock Options 66

Stock Options Early Stage Stock Vesting 66

The Equity Kicker

JULY 10, 2014

Which brings me to the second challenge, which is with the premise that at the early stage it’s all but impossible to accurately predict which companies are going to succeed and which aren’t. Then, if we have done our job well, there is also a reasonable chance that our best company will turn out to be a Unicorn.

Stock 119

Stock Early Stage Portfolio Partner 119

Steve Blank

JUNE 27, 2017

These incumbents tend to have short-term goals and incentives (stock price, quarterly earnings, year-end bonuses) and often fail to recognize that more money can be made on new platforms and new distribution channels. Corporations using existing business models have people, processes and revenue goals that can’t be changed overnight.

Startup 275

Startup New York City Valuation Distribution 275

Berkonomics

JUNE 29, 2017

Shortly thereafter, in a board meeting, I brought up the issue of starting to pay board members for service in cash or in stock options, typical for outside board members but rarely for investors. The entrepreneur was angry, abusive, in his negative reaction to even bringing the issue to the board for a discussion.

Early Stage 97

Early Stage Stock Options Stock Audio 97

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 18, 2015

Founders stock, and stock options, will be worth nothing for the first several years, if not forever. 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. Who gets stock options, and how many?

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Entrepreneur Stock Options Due Diligence 120