A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 11, 2014

Listen to this episode if you want to hear about a founder who has a product and users and paying customers … and is trying to figure out how to take his company to the next level and grow faster. Well yeah, you could potentially find a cofounder. I first did it for the founder. Jason: Yeah. I already write agendas.

Technical Cofounder 220

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Software Review Management 220

Ben's Blog

APRIL 28, 2010

In this post, I describe why we prefer to fund companies whose founder will run the company as its CEO. As we looked at the history of great technology companies, we discovered that founders ran an overwhelming majority of them for a very long time, including: Acer—Stan Shih. Siebel—Tom Siebel. Sony—Akio Morita. Sun—Scott McNeely.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 78

thinkspace.com

SEPTEMBER 7, 2012

How to Divide Equity to Startup Founders, Advisors, and Employees. The part that I’d like to zero in on is when you’ve got a high growth company what are some of the best practices out there to distribute equity to the founders, advisors, and employees? Equity for Founders. Should founders have anti-dilution rights?

Equity 62

Equity Employee Founder CTO Hire 62

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 22, 2010

It’s still important advice for startup founders and something that I’m passionate about. I never hire job hoppers. You’re a startup founder. You have tough choices to make about whom you hire on your team. You start fighting with your co-founder whom you thought you understood.

Hiring 392

Hiring Employee Vesting Silicon Valley 392

www.joelonsoftware.com

MARCH 24, 2010

When we decide to hire someone, the interviewers who were involved in the "hire" decision will sit down with the candidates resume and salary history and figure out what level they will start at. If we hire people in other cities, we will simply use industry-standard COLA adjustments to set salaries in other cities.

Software Review 48

Software Review Stock Options Salary Technical Review 48

Up and Running

MARCH 7, 2018

Aside from the time-consuming tasks of screening potential employees, interviewing, and re-hiring , losing and replacing employees is expensive. Hire the right people. This may seem obvious, but it’s worth mentioning: the best way to ensure that employees don’t leave your new company is to hire the right people to begin with.

Employee 91

Employee Startup Salary Hiring 91

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 2, 2014

Many startups these days are started by young, technical or product founders who are in the idealistic phase of their lives and careers. Zynga not only had many hirings & firings but ultimately it led to Mark Pincus stepping aside as CE O. It’s not that I don’t love idealism – I was young once, too! .”

Startup 385

Startup Stock Options Cofounder Campaign 385

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2013

For starters let me use “CEO” as a proxy to include her “inner circle” which might mean co-founders or might just mean senior execs of the business. The Mind of the Founder. The mind of a founder is wired differently than most people. The startup CEO was not the original founder.

Startup 417

Startup Dilution San Diego Stock Options 417

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 18, 2009

Yesterday I wrote a blog post ( here ) in which I urged people to not have too many founders. What if the person performs OK, but not great and you need to hire above him? These situations are only compounded if you have 3 or more founders. They agreed to all be co-founders. Who prevails? That’s great.

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Founder Cofounder Equity Stock Options 251

venturehacks.com

MARCH 21, 2008

Advisor compensation Whether you’re hiring a normal advisor or super advisor: Advisory shares are usually issued as common stock options. The options typically vest monthly over 1-2 years with 100% single-trigger acceleration and no cliff. All our products Pitching Hacks , Cap Table , and Co-founder Interview.

Advisory Board 44

Advisory Board Cap Table Vesting Equity 44

www.inc.com

SEPTEMBER 24, 2011

Back in 1997, Randy Parker was staring at a blank whiteboard, wondering where hed find the money to hire the employees and consultants he needed to build his new product. "We I advise my clients that you offer stock only after youve searched your heart and soul and cant come up with a way to pay with anything else," says Thomas H.

Fractional CTO 40

Fractional CTO Equity Iowa Technical Cofounder 40

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 24, 2017

Before you even get the business off the ground, it’s important to ensure that you and the co-founders (if any) agree on everything. Every startup should have a written founder agreement, which should include the following points: The roles and responsibilities of each member. Stock Option documentation.

LLC 168

LLC Startup Stock Options Cofounder 168

www.quora.com

SEPTEMBER 22, 2011

Type to Add and Search Questions; Search Topics and People Startups Startup Compensation Entrepreneurship Compensation Stock Options Major Internet Companies Silicon Valley Why is there such a large founder to early employee equity drop-off? The real question here is: why is it fair for founders to get so much more?

Equity 40

Equity Employee Founder Cofounder 40

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 10, 2015

I often speak about co-founder fighting and how this ends in lawsuits but this has become much more prevalent. I’d encourage you to watch this quick 3-minute video with some views on what I call “ The Co-Founder Mythology ” that is perpetuated in Silicon Valley. Lawsuits are on the rise.

Vesting 150

Vesting Cofounder IP Stock Options 150

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

By Daniel Sokolovksy, Co-Founder and CEO, WARP and Troy Lester, Co-Founder and CRO, WARP The dissolution of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was more than just a bank collapse, it was a reality check for both startups and the VCs that fund them. As a founder, ask yourself – does your business actually warrant VC funding?

Early Stage 146

Early Stage Los Angeles Silicon Valley Cofounder 146

infochachkie.com

SEPTEMBER 24, 2011

At the early stages of your company’s life, you cannot rely on disinterested, hired guns to define your company’s key tasks. The final straw came when I asked the latest 25-year old a simple ‘yes / no’ question related to stock options. What would be the best way to get results without hiring a consultant from Silicon Valley?

Equity 40

Equity Silicon Valley Cofounder PR 40

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 16, 2012

What about company stock options? Here is something that they don’t tell you when hiring you, unless you join a rocket-ship, you are probably not going to get anything significant at a startup. 1% of the company in stock options doesn’t mean anything unless you know what the valuation of the company is!

Stock Options 141

Stock Options Startup Stock Salary 141

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JULY 7, 2016

When investors interrogate founders, these interrogatives arise, but with a twist: Adding the word “why” in front of each. But also you de-risk by aligning the solution to the founder’s existing abilities, for example in using whatever language/framework the founders are already adept in. When → Why now?

San Francisco 170

San Francisco Startup Framework Azure 170

Scalable Startup

AUGUST 9, 2018

In their quest for sustainable growth, the elusive dream for most first time founders is that first funding. This can either come from the founder(s) own bank account or from outside investors. They need the money to rent offices, hire staff, and establish their initial presence (website, incorporation, marketing).

Technical Cofounder 20

Technical Cofounder Silicon Valley Early Stage Cofounder 20

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 15, 2012

To learn more about how your startup can find, hire and keep the top talent and quality workers it needs to succeed, download this free ReadWriteWeb Report: The Talent Wars: Today’s Toughest Startup Challenge.). This means being honest and authentic about the reality of the job, the founders and the organization. Try the Techy Angels.

Developer 130

Developer Equity Ruby Cofounder 130

Gust

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

This discussion expands on my Quora answer to a specific question: “ Why were the stock options of MySpace employees worthless even though the company was sold to News Corporation for hundreds of millions? ” The complete story includes a startup-within-a-startup, investments and exits by two VC firms, and some genuine corporate drama.

Valuation 98

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Merger Vesting 98

Berkonomics

JANUARY 7, 2021

Two: Co-management. Few entrepreneurs can do it alone, with subordinate hired help and no expert management to share the burdens, skill sets, and efforts involved in growing the enterprise. So, co-management is the second group to share in the bounty upon a liquidity event. Three: Outside investors.

Liquidity Event 96

Liquidity Event Pre-Money Valuation Cofounder Initial Public Offering 96

The Startup Lawyer

APRIL 12, 2010

1) Does your startup have more than 1 founder? 2) Are you (and/or one of your co-founders) working on your startup full-time? 4) Is your startup hiring developers or designers? 4) Is your startup hiring developers or designers? 5) Is your startup granting stock options or other equity compensation?

Stock Options 94

Stock Options IP Cofounder Venture Capital 94

The Startup Lawyer

APRIL 12, 2010

1) Does your startup have more than 1 founder? 2) Are you (and/or one of your co-founders) working on your startup full-time? 4) Is your startup hiring developers or designers? 4) Is your startup hiring developers or designers? 5) Is your startup granting stock options or other equity compensation?

Stock Options 89

Stock Options IP Cofounder Venture Capital 89

thestartuplawyer.com

FEBRUARY 24, 2010

He obviously never launched a startup and got shafted by a co-founder. He obviously never launched a startup and got shafted by a co-founder. You can start by examining every aspect of the co-founder relationship. Don’t leave anything out just because you and your co-founders already talked about it.

Cofounder 40

Cofounder Founder Preferred Stock Startup 40

Berkonomics

JUNE 12, 2014

Few entrepreneurs can do it alone, with subordinate hired help and no expert management to share the burdens, skill sets and efforts involved in growing the enterprise. So co-management is the second group to share in the bounty upon a liquidity event.

Liquidity Event 85

Liquidity Event Pre-Money Valuation Cofounder Initial Public Offering 85

Up and Running

JUNE 19, 2015

Here’s our first one with Sabrina Parsons and Alex Blumberg (13 minutes): Listen to Episode 5: Show notes: Alex Blumberg Talks About His Life as Founder of Gimlet Media (feat. with Levi King, Founder and CEO of Creditera) – (12:56). Sabrina Parsons) – (:31). Learn more about Gimlet Media. He knew who I am, right?

Cloud 60

Cloud Silicon Valley Small Business Media 60

venturehacks.com

OCTOBER 21, 2010

SUPPORTED BY Products Archives @venturehacks Books AngelList About RSS The Option Pool Shuffle by Nivi on April 10th, 2007 “Follow the money card!&# – The Inside Man, Three-Card Shuffle Summary: Don’t let your investors determine the size of the option pool for you. Solution: Use a hiring plan to size the option pool.

Option Pool 68

Option Pool Pre-Money Valuation Dilution Warrant 68

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 23, 2010

Like I said, it’s good the identity is disguised, because Rand lays a whole lot of blame on the unnamed CEO, and his behavior after a co-founder left the company. Rand said he gets credit for a successful exit, but the exit didn’t include any of the employees who had stock options.

Common Stock 63

Common Stock Stock Options Stock Cofounder 63

Scott Edward Walker

OCTOBER 27, 2015

We charge a flat fee of $2,000, plus filing fees, for up to three co-founders and it includes unlimited phone calls and emails. Thus, founders never have to worry about picking-up the phone and asking their lawyers questions. Indeed, we have done more than 300 Startup Packages and the appeal is obvious: no billable hours.

Intellectual Property 40

Intellectual Property Accredited Investor Vesting Delaware 40

Cracking the Code

JUNE 24, 2021

Co-founder and CEO Nicolas Brusson spoke to me about BlaBlaCar’s early ambitions to be a European rather than local country winner and its progression to global player. But the Valley in 1999 was a new world of startups, venture capital, and stock options. How did you go from VC to founder?

Global 62

Global Europe France Cofounder 62

Berkonomics

AUGUST 27, 2015

He has served as advisor to and member of numerous financial exchanges, and was the founder and CEO of Arthur Lipper Corporation and co-founder and Chairman of New York & Foreign Securities Corporation. Today he serves as Chairman of British Far East Holdings Ltd.

Intellectual Property 48

Intellectual Property Balance Sheet Stock Options Valuation 48

Hunter Walker

MAY 1, 2016

That wasn’t the case when I met with Greg Hong and Joe Marchese, the co-founders of Reserve. As a hiring manager, what do you look for in new grads? AJ: Startups hire just in time. At a small company, particularly one where everyone has stock options, there’s no such thing as “not my job.” we don’t know.”.

New York City 48

New York City New York Los Angeles Startup 48

Hunter Walker

MAY 1, 2016

That wasn’t the case when I met with Greg Hong and Joe Marchese, the co-founders of Reserve. As a hiring manager, what do you look for in new grads? AJ: Startups hire just in time. At a small company, particularly one where everyone has stock options, there’s no such thing as “not my job.” we don’t know.”.

New York City 48

New York City New York Los Angeles Startup 48

techcrunch.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

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. Inevitably, the excuses begin: I need to hire people to build the product. Then, forget everything else, VCs included, and just build. I don’t know any developers. I need money for the servers.

Technical Review 84

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 84

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

Sarbanes Oxley has made it impossible to go public reducing financial capital for start-ups and the FASB rules on stock options have made it harder to attract human capital to start-ups. Support the Startup Founders Visa with a tweet Testing the new Disqus comment system Gov 2.0 Take a look and let me know what you think.

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DC Washington San Francisco SBIR 90