Advice for start-ups
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How To Make It As a First Time Entrepreneur | Vinicius Vacanti
Back in November of 2006, before NY Mag and TimeOut put startups on the cover, before the “tech bubble”, before Twitter and Foursquare were popular, before working at a startup in NY was considered a reasonable thing to do, I was a private equity investor for a $1.6 billion fund called Quadrangle Group.
Question: I am considering joining a startup that is currently in the process of raising their next round of funding. I will be joining as a VP, reporting directly to the CEO, and considered an “executive”. Given the environment for this particular industry, it is very likely that the company will face a down round – perhaps as much as 50% of their last financing a year ago.
Ask The VC
Venture Hacks - Good advice for startups.
“Every time the other party says ‘I want’ in a negotiation, you should hear the pleasant sound of a weight dropping on your side of the leverage scales.” After weeks of fund-raising, you find a brave investor who says “Yes, I want to invest.” He says he will give you an offer soon.
Scobleizer — Searching for world-changing technology
Tonight I’m getting message after message that friend after friend has joined Highlight (the photo above is of Paul Davison showing it off to some of its first users back in December on the day it launched into a closed beta). What is Highlight? Well, two weeks ago, in the Next Web, I named it as one of two apps that will “win” SXSW . What is it? It’s one of a new band of companies trying to own the “real time people discovery space.”
Y Combinator Posterous - Home
Congrats to Suhail and Tim at Mixpanel -- they've made something people want, and they've now got the growth capital to take it even bigger. All the start-ups I talk to these days seem to be using Mixpanel analytics. That’s the same experience the partners at Andreessen Horowitz had, so they anted up $10 million to lead a Series A round of funding for the company.
We couldn’t live without them. But when misused, overused or abused they can diminish your personal brand, consume your valuable time and waste time of the relationships you value the most. I would like to make the case for being judicious with your introductions. I would like to encourage you to closely guard your most cherished relationships. And in most cases I would heed Fred Wilson’s advice about the “double opt-in” email for intros – where you ask for permission before green-lighting an unsolicited introductions. I give introductions frequently.
Both Sides of the Table 2x Entrepreneur turned VC
Steve Blank
One of the confusing things to entrepreneurs, investors and educators is the relationship between customer development and business model design and business planning and execution. I was in Washington D.C. last week presenting at the ARPA-E conference. I spent the next day working with the National Science Foundation on the Innovation Corps , and talking to congressional staffs about how entrepreneurial educational programs can reshape our economy. (And I even found time to go to the Spy Museum .) One of the issues that came up is whether the new lexicon of entrepreneurial ideas – Customer Development, Business Model Design , Lean , Lean LaunchPad class, etc. – replace all the tools and classes that are currently being taught in entrepreneurship curriculums and business schools. I was a bit surprised since most of what I’ve been advocating is complementary to existing courses.