Steve Blank

MARCH 16, 2016

VC’s raise money from their investors (limited partners like pension funds) and then spread their risk by investing in a number of startups (called a portfolio). BTW, Angel investors do not have limited partners, and often invest for reasons other than just for financial gain (e.g., Typically, a VC can force a sale, or even block one.

Liquidity Event 120

Liquidity Event Founder Liquidation Preference Venture Capital 120

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 14, 2014

Most entrepreneurs struggle with many startup Founders dilemmas in building their business, and these key dilemmas are probably the biggest source of pain and failure for the entrepreneur lifestyle. Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. The Founder’s title and role dilemma.

Hockey Stick 268

Hockey Stick Cofounder Entrepreneur Liquidity Event 268

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

I’m a mom, a full-time sales manager, and recruiter. Entrepreneurs need to find a way to get traction (sales) without funding. If entrepreneurs are only pitching to angel groups, they’re only pitching to 6% of the active angels, and 0.4% Wait, you didn’t want to be a sales person? I’m not your average angel.

Angel Investor 159

Angel Investor Technical Review Software Review Accredited Investor 159

Up and Running

DECEMBER 1, 2015

If you’re giving a large percentage of your company to someone (and yes, two percent is large), you’re entering into a contract that’s really a whole lot like marriage in that it creates a long-term relationship between you and the employee or partner. Make sure you understand all of your options before making any decisions.

Equity 60

Equity Employee Stock Options Vesting 60

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2017

Most entrepreneurs struggle with many startup founders dilemmas in building their business, and these key dilemmas are probably the biggest source of pain and failure for the entrepreneur lifestyle. Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. The founder’s title and role dilemma.

Hockey Stick 144

Hockey Stick Cofounder Entrepreneur Liquidity Event 144

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 2, 2015

It freed up Ophir to grow out our sales organization, to work more closely with agencies, to innovate on product and to raise capital. It’s the nature of most entrepreneurs, honestly. Another thing entrepreneurs f**k up? Stock option top-ups after a few years are vital retention mechanisms. HR & Legal.

Operations 150

Operations Metrics Early Stage Non-Compete 150

SoCal CTO

JUNE 9, 2010

He’d wasted a year of his life and had a pile of stock options that weren’t very interesting. Why Entrepreneurs Hate Lawyers. Through advertising or direct sales, these sites harvest intent. In many of them I get asked similar questions, including the inevitable “what makes a great entrepreneur?” Tesla is not.

Fractional CTO 248

Fractional CTO Startup Venture Capital Cofounder 248

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 10, 2019

Most entrepreneurs struggle with many startup founders quandaries in building their business, and these key dilemmas are probably the biggest source of pain and failure for the entrepreneur lifestyle. Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. The founder’s title and role dilemma.

Hockey Stick 243

Hockey Stick Cofounder Liquidity Event Startup 243

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

It was a stock option incentive related “expense” but I bet you didn’t know that because in an era where we only read the headlines — they must be a train wreck losing billions. The most obvious way to explain this is with sales people. I often ask entrepreneurs to consider, “What’s your objective? Two-f **g-billion!

Stock Options 227

Stock Options Startup Dilution Venture Capital 227

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2011

Called Tim Spicer (c-companies partner) and he told him matt, they only want one thing, more warrant coverage!!! Mark: 10% warrant coverage is like stock options. Icing is the warrant for banks – stock they can buy in future but don’t have to buy so they make their $$ later in the future. And he said ok got it.

Acquisition 304

Acquisition Warrant Customer Term Sheet 304

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2018

Your historical trading information including financials and a “customer file” which shows the history of your transactions so that investors can run “cohort” analyses Customer reference, personal references, key team members, compensation, cap table, stock option plan, etc. Some people find this elitist?—?I It doesn’t.

Cap Table 336

Cap Table Due Diligence Forecast Churn Rate 336

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

Be honest with yourself VCs are now going to be looking closer at margins, cost structures and true sales, and product market fit. If you hire a person in HR or sales, are they willing to dabble in other departments or take on roles that they haven’t done previously? Can you produce venture returns in this new economic reality?

Early Stage 112

Early Stage Los Angeles Silicon Valley Cofounder 112

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 21, 2010

As startup entrepreneurs we all want to work with them because having their name as reference clients makes it so much easier for marketing, PR, selling to other customers, fund raising and even recruiting. Think of it as similar to an employee stock option. This is part of my ongoing series on Startup Advice.

Warrant 298

Warrant Dilution Startup Stock Options 298

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 24, 2017

Many entrepreneurs make the mistake of launching their business without consulting with a lawyer and choosing an entity. Hammer Out the Details Between Partners. How the sale of the company is decided. Stock Option documentation. Make sure you take care of these four legal things before launching your startup.

LLC 168

LLC Startup Stock Options Cofounder 168

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 19, 2013

Most entrepreneurs struggle with many startup Founders dilemmas in building their business, and these key dilemmas are probably the biggest source of pain and failure for the entrepreneur lifestyle. Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. The Founder’s title and role dilemma.

Founder 245

Founder Hockey Stick Cofounder Liquidity Event 245

The Next Web

OCTOBER 8, 2015

As a rule, entrepreneurs are very protective of their equity, and try to keep 100 percent ownership for themselves. employees, partners) are appropriately motivated to help you succeed. lucrative sales commission plan, profit share plan), and sometimes that comes in the form of equity or equity linked incentives (e.g.,

Equity 60

Equity Employee Warrant Stock Options 60

www.inc.com

SEPTEMBER 24, 2011

Entrepreneur news from reporter Eric Markowitz. Sales & Marketing | Wednesdays. SALES & MARKETING. Before Roving Software could receive its first round of financing from professional investors, in early 1999, he had to put all the stock arrangements in writing. Related resources at inc.com: How to Take Stock.

Fractional CTO 40

Fractional CTO Equity Iowa Technical Cofounder 40

Gust

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

Entrepreneurs and investors who have spent any time dealing with convertible debt seed financing transactions are likely to have encountered the subject of valuation caps. with Intermix owning 53%, MySpace Ventures (an entity owned by the six founders) holding 19.9%, Redpoint taking 25%, and the remainder going to employee stock options. (At

Valuation 98

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Merger Vesting 98

Eric Friedman

JUNE 11, 2019

Whether a fundraising event, hiring, or sales/partnership opportunity- these can be especially useful to make all parties move faster. Having worked on many deals that seem to go dark with the other party (think endless sales calls or follow ups) getting back in front of someone in the right way is key.

Term Sheet 68

Term Sheet Stock Options Early Stage Agile 68

The Next Web

MARCH 2, 2014

This is the ultimate question to consider when weighing funding options. For us, because we chose to finance with debt, we gave up almost no equity in the company, and therefore almost no dilution of stock options. In particular, some investors may insist on the right to block future investments in, or the sale of, your company.

Liquidity Event 139

Liquidity Event Equity Finance Stock Options 139

Agile VC

JUNE 5, 2011

The latter typically excludes taxes and non-cash expenses like taxes, depreciation, stock option compensation, etc… Groupon’s Adjusted CSOI is exactly the same but also excludes customer acquisition costs (though these are reported elsewhere). Im a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur turned East Coast VC. Read More ».

North America 100

North America Chicago Boston Silicon Valley 100

infochachkie.com

SEPTEMBER 24, 2011

Hands-on startup advice for emerging entrepreneurs. If a consultant claims they can enhance your marketing efforts, pay them based on their direct impact on your incremental sales. One of the best things about being an entrepreneur is that there are no rules. infoChachkie. Thanks for visiting! Passion Cannot be Outsourced.

Equity 40

Equity Silicon Valley Cofounder Technical Review 40

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 23, 2010

If no financing happened then this “note&# may not be converted and thus would be senior to the equity of the company in the case of a bankruptcy or asset sale. VC’s money comes from mostly institutional investors called LPs (limited partners). So my view is that VCs and entrepreneurs need to make tougher choices.

Startup 290

Startup Burn Rate Warrant Bankruptcy 290

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2010

I learned how to retain employees when stock options were no longer a real currency. But in our first year of sales (and those were really shitty years to be selling software) we sold $2.1 I learned how to establish sales targets and how to manage a sales pipeline. I never built Google.

Venture Capital 285

Venture Capital Hiring Software Review Stock Options 285

Feld Thoughts

FEBRUARY 18, 2015

I thought it was a great description and encourage every entrepreneur who has never been through the sale of a company to read it. It was a six month journey for me and my partner Dave Jilk which was at some points exciting, often stressful, and occasionally extremely confusing. Entrepreneurship feld technologies m&a sale'

Balance Sheet 70

Balance Sheet NDA Boston Stock 70

Cracking the Code

OCTOBER 12, 2012

Accel has already invested over $60 million in French start-ups and we would like to invest more – but will there be enough entrepreneurs left if the new Tax laws are voted in? the European leader in ride-sharing) and Shopmium (offering coupons via a mobile app) and as a result have contributed to creating close to 600 jobs.

France 71

France Europe Capital Gains Dilution 71

Small Business Force

MARCH 1, 2013

But, for entrepreneurs, they should think of using that phrase as the way they do business.except in a positive way! This provides an opportunity for how an entrepreneur and their small business can stand out, by standing for something. They will be your best sales people! The Entrepreneur's Yoda" knows these things.

Stock Options 37

Stock Options Operations Employee Small Business 37

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 17, 2011

It’s time for the nation’s education leaders to start operating like scrappy entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs create success by being agile and by making effective but quick decisions based on what they have in front of them. This will require that they use the creative thinking of an entrepreneur. Learn to do more with less.

Cofounder 222

Cofounder Programming Leadership Ohio 222

Diego Basch

SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

If you are an entrepreneur looking to raise your first round of funding ever, you surely must be curious about the different kinds of investors you will pitch. Typical first-time SV entrepreneurs are not millionaires, so let’s say you have 100k in the bank (maybe you’ve made some money from stock options).

Silicon Valley 73

Silicon Valley Entrepreneur Stock Options Vesting 73

techcrunch.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

It is the first in a series of posts he’s writing about the decisions a young entrepreneur needs to make when she/he is first starting a business. One of the things I do as a founder of a later stage startup is to meet with early stage entrepreneurs to help them get their companies going. No phone system. No legal muck.

Technical Review 84

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 84

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 11, 2014

Welcome back to Smart Bear Live … the show were Jason speaks with entrepreneurs looking to improve their businesses. And I really believe I can do, on the sales part, so much more if I have additional people. Jason: That’s true in engineering; it’s true in sales; it’s true in marketing. Edwin: Yes.

Technical Cofounder 220

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Software Review Management 220

Small Business Force

JULY 26, 2013

I just read an article about an entrepreneur I knew, who just sold her company after about 10 years. Yet many entrepreneurs miss that and in so doing, may miss having an even better company and an even bigger future pay day! Vesting means the period over which the employee actually gains ownership of the stock options.

Employee 37

Employee Stock Options Vesting Stock 37

Austin Startup

SEPTEMBER 9, 2018

My purpose since the beginning has been to help entrepreneurs, especially those based in Austin, as well as to clarify and solidify my own learnings. Lucky7 is named after my mom , who was an amazing woman and entrepreneur herself. So here goes: the beginning of The Entrepreneur’s Essentials! This is the Golden Rule in action.

Advisory Board 48

Advisory Board Balance Sheet Stock Options Email 48