Steve Blank

APRIL 12, 2010

Startups are the search to find order in chaos. Steve Blank. At a board meeting last week I watched as the young startup CEO delivered bad news. “Our current plan isn’t working. We can’t scale the company. Each sale requires us to handhold the customer and takes way too long to close. But I think I know how to fix it.” He took a deep breath, looked around the boardroom table and then proceeded to outline a radical reconfiguration of the product line (repackaging the products rather than reengin

Business Model 332

Business Model Agile Customer Development Startup 332

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

APRIL 12, 2010

I remember "disruptive" when it was called "paradigm shift." That phrase died during the tech-bubble along with "portal" and "think outside the box," yet the concept has returned. Don't follow along. When I get pitched — usually by someone raising money — that they "have something disruptive," a little part of me dies. You should be worrying about making something useful, not how disruptive you can be.

Technical Review 243

Technical Review Software Review Engineer Search 243

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 15, 2010

I was on This Week in Venture Capital (TWiVC) again this week with Jason Calacanis. He’s considering making me the permanent co-host so if you enjoy any of this episode or want to see me on the show on a more regular basis please Tweet @jason and let him know (he asked for direct feedback). I’m loving doing the show and I think that Jason and I have pretty good banter and rapport.

Venture Capital 271

Venture Capital Affiliate Valuation San Francisco 271

Feld Thoughts

APRIL 14, 2010

How could you not fall in love with a company named AgileZen ? Today, Rally Software – a company I’ve been an investor in since 2003 – announced that they have acquired AgileZen. If you are an Agile software development shop, or follow ALM, Rally just added Kanban to the mix. This is the second acquisition Rally has made – the other was 6th Sense Analytics which they acquired at the beginning of 2009.

Agile 115

Agile Acquisition Software Developers Software Development 115

Speaker: Nick Noreña, Innovation Coach and Advisor, Kromatic

Every startup and innovation project exists within an ecosystem that either helps or hurts that project. As innovation managers, we need to keep a pulse of that ecosystem and make sure we're helping those innovation projects we're managing every step of the way. In this webinar, Nick Noreña will walk through an Innovation Ecosystem Model that he and his team at Kromatic have developed to help investors, heads of product, teachers, and executives understand how they can best support innovation in

Startup

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 12, 2010

The best survival guides tell you how to be proactive and avoid the probabilities of ending up in a worse case scenario. Of course you need to learn how to recognize a bad situation before it bites you, and you need to know all the secret ways to wiggle your way out, before you succumb. The challenges stem from the simple fact that every entrepreneur is starting something new, where things are predictably unpredictable.

Advisory Board 125

Advisory Board Startup Forecast Early Stage 125

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 14, 2010

I have to admit, when I first saw Unvarnished , the anonymous people review site, I was very concerned. It didn’t really solve a problem I had. In fact, it seemed to create one. I saw it as a problem I now needed to deal with. As soon as I got my invite, I started requesting reviews from people I knew would give me a good recommendation—just so I could pad my score to protect against the inevitable driveby.

Technical Review 92

Technical Review Venture Capital Reputation Web 92

Up and Running

APRIL 12, 2010

Scene: two MBA entrepreneurs in an almost-empty room, pitching to five judges in an MBA-level business plan contest. There’s a projector with PowerPoint, a moderator, a table of judges, and just a few spectators. One of the judges (me) challenges the entrepreneurs that their numbers — particularly the margins, meaning gross margin (sales less costs of sales) and profit before taxes (gross margin less operating expenses) are way too high. “Is there any precedent for margins that

Business Plan 78

Business Plan Louisville Oregon Arkansas 78

Startup Company Lawyer

APRIL 15, 2010

(The following is from a WSGR client alert.). On April 7, 2010, the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) issued an opinion letter addressing the requirements employers must meet in order to have unpaid interns in compliance with California law. Although widely published news reports, including a recent New York Times article analyzing the DLSE’s April 7th opinion letter, have raised hopes that California is relaxing its position with respect to the permissibility of un

California 63

California Technical Review New York Software Review 63

Software By Rob

APRIL 14, 2010

Software by Rob Passionate about Startups and MicroISVs Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur home about press micropreneurs archives ← My Podcast Launches Today: “Startups for the Rest of Us&# I Need Your Help! Which Book Would You Be Most Likely to Buy? → The Terror of Firsts Micropreneurship , Startups If youre trying grow your startup youve come to the right place.

Software Review 48

Software Review RSS Software Developers Software Development 48

crowdSPRING Blog

APRIL 13, 2010

In our 12 Questions blog series, we feature interviews with someone from the crowdSPRING community. For these interviews, we pick people who add value to our community – in the blog, in the forums, in the projects. Plainly – activities that make crowdSPRING a better community. Be professional, treat others with respect, help us build something very special, and we’ll take notice.

Canada 65

Canada Design Software Review Community 65

Austin Startup

APRIL 14, 2010

Live Oak 360 has added BearHug , a new customer care tool, to its arsenal of online solutions, Andy Meadows, the firm’s chief executive officer said. “Our company has always felt very strongly about taking care of our customers, and we spend a lot of time and money trying to do the best we can with the resources available,” Meadows said about his reason for developing BearHug.

Product 54

Product SMS RSS Austin 54

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 14, 2010

Clean up your own shite. Ok. I know that the tone of the title and post will seem a bit aggressive for a post from a venture capitalist on fund raising. It’s meant to be a bit provocative but the reality is that I give this advice to entrepreneurs all the the time and I usually leave the “e&# off of the end. I learned all of this myself on your side of the table raising money at my first company.

Venture Capital 289

Venture Capital Liquidation Preference Common Stock Dividend 289

Software By Rob

APRIL 13, 2010

Software by Rob Passionate about Startups and MicroISVs Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur home about press micropreneurs archives ← “Startup Website Reviews&# Screencast Series Has Moved to StartupLens.com The Terror of Firsts → My Podcast Launches Today: “Startups for the Rest of Us&# Micropreneurship , Startups If youre trying grow your startup youve come to the right place.

Restful 46

Restful Software Review RSS Startup 46

Steve Blank

APRIL 15, 2010

This week I’m at the California Coastal Commission hearing in Ventura California wearing my other hat as a public official for the State of California. After the hearing I drove up to Santa Barbara to give a talk to a Lean Startup Meetup. The talk, “ Why Accountants Don’t Run Startups &# summarized my current thinking about startups, how and why they’re different than large companies and for good measure threw in a few thoughts about entrepreneurial education.

San Francisco 251

San Francisco California Startup Customer Development 251

deal architect

APRIL 14, 2010

More over Geoffrey Moore. John Hagel and his colleagues have a powerful new book out “The Power of Pull”. HBR in its review of the book says “In a ferociously dynamic world, what happens if we can’t plan but can. Tags: Industry Commentary.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2010

I know some entrepreneurs with successful businesses, and others who seem to have a great relationship with their family, but I can’t think of many who have both. Some people would argue that these two successes are mutually exclusive, but I’m not convinced. Individually, they both take focus, commitment, and a variety of skills, all the strengths of a good entrepreneur.

Entrepreneur 134

Entrepreneur Demand Startup 134

Software By Rob

APRIL 16, 2010

Software by Rob Passionate about Startups and MicroISVs Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur home about press micropreneurs archives ← I Need Your Help! Which Book Would You Be Most Likely to Buy? It’s Easy to Criticize from the Stands → Podcast Ranked #13 in iTunes: Management and Marketing About this Blog , Micropreneurship , Startups If youre trying grow your startup youve come to the right place.

Management 39

Management RSS Software Review Marketing 39

Feld Thoughts

APRIL 12, 2010

The conventional wisdom has long been that software startups benefit from patents. I’ve been investing in software / Internet companies for over 16 years and I’ve never once had a patent influence my investment decision. More importantly, since it takes a number of years to get a patent, most startups haven’t even contemplated applying for a patent when they raise their first angel or venture round.

Software 130

Software Startup Cost Revenue 130

deal architect

APRIL 15, 2010

Last year I wrote about the BPO market: If Oracle/Accenture BPO is a cost factor of 100 Oracle/Wipro would likely be a factor of 75 Wipro/SaaS vendor like Workday would likely be a factor of 50 SaaS vendor/Cloud Outsourcer/Nextgen SI. Tags: Cloud Computing, SaaS Offshoring (TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Cognizant) Outsourcing (Business Process - BPO).

Offshore 170

Offshore Cloud Cost Marketing 170

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2010

Even though the world is getting smaller, due to easy global connectivity, people still feel alone if not well-connected locally. There is also more going on in every location, so this personal need and super sensitivity to the local community is spawning a new breed of startups. At first this was limited to news sites that concentrated on a segment of a community, like West Seattle, but the concept is now being applied to advertising and promotion sites, blogging sites, and even legal services

Finder 131

Finder Startup Seattle RSS 131

Software By Rob

APRIL 15, 2010

Software by Rob Passionate about Startups and MicroISVs Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur home about press micropreneurs archives ← The Terror of Firsts Podcast Ranked #13 in iTunes: Management and Marketing → I Need Your Help! Which Book Would You Be Most Likely to Buy? About this Blog , Micropreneurship , Startups If youre trying grow your startup youve come to the right place.

Software Review 37

Software Review RSS Audio Software Developers 37

Rembrandt Communications

APRIL 14, 2010

An article in BtoB Online at [link] stresses the fact that traditional public relations activities are an important part of marketing and sales. Why? During tough economic times, it’s important to keep marketing messages in front of target audiences. If you don’t, your competition will. And this can be tough if you are working with a tight budget. [.].

Sales 113

Sales PR SEO Public Relations 113

deal architect

APRIL 14, 2010

I went into a Kinkos recently (remember those? )– rebranded Fedex Office now. No wi-fi (used to be reason I went into Kinko’s often on the road), copies at 10c a page, shipping twice what the US Postal Service ended.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2010

A term I’m hearing more and more these days is “social entrepreneur.” In the simplest of terms, these are people who seek to generate “social value”, rather than profits, and use traditional business principles to create and manage a venture to make social change. On the surface, this sounds like entrepreneurs who want to build a non-profit organization.

Entrepreneur 123

Entrepreneur Angel Investor Government Bootstrapping 123

Feld Thoughts

APRIL 13, 2010

Yesterday I published one of Sawyer’s posts titled Why the Decks are Stacked Against Software Startups in Patent Litigation. In it, I realized that Sawyer hadn’t defined the different types of plaintiffs in a patent case. Below are good definitions (from Sawyer) of each type and clear explanations about what you are up against in each one. If you’re sued in a software patent case, the first thing you should do is figure out what kind of plaintiff you’re up against, because that wil

Software 127

Software Texas Hiring Startup 127

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 12, 2010

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, April 12, 2010 The Lean Startup Intensive at Web 2.0 Expo SF (May 3, 2010) Im discovering the truth of the old saying, "when it rains, it pours." I keep waiting for the tide of interesting people, opportunities, and ideas to ebb - but so far it has done nothing but accelerate. Thank you all so much. Just one year ago , I gave my first big conference talk at the 2009 Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco.

Lean 129

Lean San Francisco Web Continuous Deployment 129

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 10, 2010

So Twitter is buying and building Twitter clients. I don’t find this surprising at all. In fact, I said as much in September 09 at a Twitter conference in LA on a panel that Guy Kawasaki was moderating. I said in the following video that I thought Twitter would by Seesmic , the company that makes one of the most popular Twitter clients. (If you’re interested you can watch my comments by fast forwarding to minute 31.25 and listening for about 90 seconds.

Acquisition 287

Acquisition Developer Management Advertising 287

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2010

Blogging has come a long way in the past few years, from a social release for narcissists, to today’s required vehicle for promoting your business and gaining valuable online exposure, ultimately bringing in more customers. Let me be clear – a product or consulting startup today without a blog, even with a static website, risks not being competitive in cost and time to reach and hold that critical mass of online customers.

Social Network 121

Social Network Search Engineer Naming 121

Feld Thoughts

APRIL 11, 2010

Sometimes I feel like a conference promoter. It’s worth noting that while I put plenty of events up on this blog, I only post the ones that I’d consider going to. Specifically, I probably get 10 requests to post something for everyone one I do. Over the past year, I’ve gotten to know Eric Ries through the work we’ve done together on the Startup Visa initiative.

San Francisco 121

San Francisco Lean Startup Software 121

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 14, 2010

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Wednesday, April 14, 2010 Sneak preview, Grockit Hear the CEO of Grockit give a sneak preview of what hell be presenting at the Startup Lessons Learned conference on April 23: Labels: sllconf , video Sneak preview, Grockit Hear the CEO of Grockit give a sneak preview of what hell be presenting at the Startup Lessons Learned conference on April 23: blog comments powered by Disqus Newer Post Older Post Home Subscribe via email Blog Archive ▼ 2010 (48) ► Oct

San Francisco 104

San Francisco Continuous Deployment DC Finland 104

The Startup Lawyer

APRIL 12, 2010

In a recent post, I detailed some incorporation-related points of interest if I launched my own startup. The post presumed I made the decision to push forward with the incorporation of my startup. But how do you know when the time is right to incorporate your startup? Advice Varies. There’s a wide range of counsel on this topic. Most lawyers will say you should have incorporated “Yesterday!

Stock Options 94

Stock Options IP Cofounder Venture Capital 94

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 11, 2010

Entrepreneurship is not a job for the Lone Ranger. Every startup requires building and maintaining effective relationships with people, including partners, team members, customers, and investors. That means giving and asking for feedback, and learning from it, especially negative feedback. “Friction” is feedback mixed with emotion, making it all the more difficult to sort out the value.

Entrepreneur 121

Entrepreneur Partner Employee Startup 121

Feld Thoughts

APRIL 13, 2010

I love my morning reading routine. Most mornings during the week – between 5am and 6:30am – I sit at my computer, catch up on email, read the stuff in my daily folder, go through my RSS feeds, and generally explore whatever I can on the web. Some is systematic (my daily folder, my RSS feeds), some is more random ( Techmeme , Hacker News ), and some comes from places that I couldn’t tell you how I got to.

RSS 121

RSS Boston Partner Management 121

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 12, 2010

Last week, I got a chance to be the guy on the ground for Open Angel Forum NYC. First off, I have to thank those who made it possible—namely our sponsors and our host. Six companies and twenty angels were able to connect up without the friction and artificial scarcity created by the “pay to play” model and it was all made possible by the good folks at Joyent , Cooley , and Winter Wyman.

Venture Capital 84

Venture Capital Angel Investor Pay to Play Hosting 84

The Startup Lawyer

APRIL 12, 2010

In a recent post, I detailed some incorporation-related points of interest if I launched my own startup. The post presumed I made the decision to push forward with the incorporation of my startup. But how do you know when the time is right to incorporate your startup? Advice Varies. There’s a wide range of counsel on this topic. Most lawyers will say you should have incorporated “Yesterday!

Stock Options 89

Stock Options IP Cofounder Venture Capital 89

Life Beyond Code

APRIL 13, 2010

Take the case of one of the most successful products in recent times. Amazon Kindle. Here is the original Amazon Kindle Ad. It says Amazon Kindle is Amazon’s revolutionary wireless reading device. The positioning served well at that time. Enter iPad and a bunch of other tablets and Kindle becomes ONE of the revolutionary wireless reading devices out there.

Restful 77

Restful Demand Cost Technology 77