Steve Blank

APRIL 10, 2019

A version of this article first appeared in the Harvard Business Review. For most startup employee’s startup stock options are now a bad deal. Why Startups Offer Stock Options. As Venture Capital emerged as an industry in the mid 1970’s, investors in venture-funded startups began to give stock options to all their employees.

Stock Options 335

Stock Options Stock Vesting Common Stock 335

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 22, 2024

Even a single unsatisfied customer can lead to negative reviews that deter future business. Whether its a missed order update, slow response times, or errors in manual processes, the cost of these inefficiencies can be significant. Startups often face delays due to limited resources and fragmented processes.

Artificial Inteligence 143

Artificial Inteligence Customer Technical Review Operations 143

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 23, 2012

There are obvious reasons the industry has had less-than-desirable returns, including: massive over-funding of the sector, huge increases in inexperienced venture capitalists that took a decade to peter out, and the massive correction in the value of the public stock markets that closed many exit opportunities for half a decade.

Venture Capital 347

Venture Capital Technical Review LP Mobile 347

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

A version of this article is in the Harvard Business Review. Technology cycles have become a treadmill, and for startups to survive they need to be on a continuous innovation cycle. 20th Century Tech Liquidity = Initial Public Offering. Technology Cycles Measured in Years. This seems to be occurring more and more.

Founder 281

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 281

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 19, 2025

Yet, most small businesses fail due to poor cash flow management. Image source Startups often face unpredictable revenue streams and mounting operational costs, making cash flow management particularly challenging. Holding excess inventory not only increases storage costs but also limits liquidity.

Management 142

Management Startup Forecast Finance 142

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

If you hire 6 sales reps in January at $120,000 / year salary then you’ve taken on an extra $60,000 per month in costs yet these sales people might not close new business for 4-6 months. Exec Summary: Most companies (98+%) in the world (even tech startups) should be very profit focused. Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) =.

Startup 418

Startup Revenue Technical Review Flash 418

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

Other social networking, online marketing, clean-tech and bio-tech companies have fallen out of favor with some investors, fueling speculation regarding the future of the US technology sector. A growing number of skeptics are openly talking of a ‘high tech bubble’. These costs are largely fixed. Global Demand.

Technical Review 170

Technical Review United States Software Review China 170

The Startup Magazine

JULY 24, 2024

Understanding the cost of order fulfillment is important for any Amazon seller aiming to maximize profits. Several key factors influence these costs, with product type, size, and weight being the primary determinants. By focusing on these factors, you can better control your fulfillment costs and boost your business growth.

Cost 167

Cost Technical Review Software Review Stock 167

The Next Web

JANUARY 24, 2014

Slowly but surely, however, we have a quietly emerging ‘ecosystem’ (as it is often called in tech lingo). So is the Dutch tech startup story sold short? So let’s take stock: What do we offer? But hedonistic pleasures aside, The Netherlands actually has a great foundation for tech entrepreneurship. Not in my view.

Netherlands 143

Netherlands Technical Review Stock Silicon Valley 143

Hearpreneur

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

Technology disruption is happening at a rapid pace all around us. We asked our entrepreneurs what changes do they expect due to technology shortly, and this is what they have to say. #1- I also expect to see more technology to assist with personalized experiences at trade shows, both in person and virtually, shortly.

Technical Review 126

Technical Review Software Review Artificial Inteligence Technology 126

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 26, 2022

For example, Bill Gates founded and grew Microsoft, and Michael Dell built a great technology company, both with no outside funding until they went successful enough to go public years later and sell shares to common stockholders. Explaining actions to investors takes time you don’t have. Investors will become the toughest boss you ever had.

Cost 267

Cost Bootstrapping Advisory Board Startup 267

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2020

Equity is stock, but private company stock has no market value until the company goes public or is sold or merged with another company. Of course, if you are able to bootstrap your startup, and don’t anticipate the need for outside investors, you can technically ignore the first two points.

Exit Strategy 376

Exit Strategy Startup Private Equity Equity 376

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. Team must be purely technical.

LP 311

LP Technical Review Early Stage Silicon Valley 311

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 13, 2022

Acknowledge every customer feedback and review. People today put great stock in the online feedback from other customers, and they note how and if you appear to be listening and responding. Don’t let that one negative stand out as the only review submitted. This could be the least expensive way to scale your business.

Technical Review 355

Technical Review Social Media Channel Flash 355

ReadWriteStart

APRIL 14, 2023

Yet, we know tech startups will weather the storm. Likewise, this is a season of economic pain for businesses: High borrowing costs and reduced demand are compressing margins, and some industries face persistent labor shortages. Part of this shift is due to the impact of tighter monetary policy on tech stocks.

Technical Review 148

Technical Review Ukraine Software Review ChatGPT 148

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 3, 2010

I’m doing due diligence on a company of another entrepreneur in LA whose company was apparently doing very well. I know, I know … technically they can be structured as mergers. My version is, “you have a company with private stock. Don’t trade your company (cat) for their stock (dog).&#.

Merger 276

Merger Technical Review Early Stage Dilution 276

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 14, 2011

But those same words could easily be applied to the Singapore-based technology entrepreneurs present at Techventure 2011. Just a bit of background – the high-tech start-up scene in Singapore is said to be growing healthily in recent years. Plans for more Singapore-based technology incubators. Singapore Innovation.

Singapore 198

Singapore Technical Review Technology Incubator 198

The Next Web

FEBRUARY 23, 2014

Today, with the decentralising nature of the Internet, distributed cloud technology and a growing sentiment toward entrepreneurship, the global startup ecosystem has never been so dispersed. And this is just one of the many pioneering technologies surfacing out of this mid-sized Southern city of the Netherlands. Pune, India?.

North Carolina 168

North Carolina Technical Review Cyprus Raleigh 168

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2019

But people are still begging for more technology or laws, often to protect them from themselves. Most of these are easy to avoid if you do your homework up front, but can cost you dearly if you get sucked in. If you feel confused by conflicting time zones, differing currencies, and up-front costs, it’s time to run the other way.

Technical Review 228

Technical Review Non-disclosure Agreement Due Diligence Term Sheet 228

Gust

DECEMBER 22, 2011

Tech startups are at the other extreme. It’s possible to have a company with literally millions of customers (users) that employs only a handful of people, working in a small rented office, with hardware and software costing in the tens of thousands rather than millions of dollars. Instagram is a textbook example.)

Intellectual Property 149

Intellectual Property Technical Review Software Review IP 149

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 6, 2013

Nobody wants to leave their loved ones in a cold, impersonal dog kennel not to mention the costs of doing so. They can read reviews, see pictures and even talk to the family before confirming. I then clicked on reviews, looked at pictures and read the owners descriptions of what they were looking for. “Oh s**t.”

San Diego 344

San Diego Technical Review Seed Capital Sacramento 344

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 1, 2022

For many businesses, one of the biggest investment areas is stock, materials, inventory, equipment , and the like. No matter what you sell in your venture, if you have valuable stock that you need to move throughout the year, it’s vital to ensure its security so you don’t have extensive insurance and cashflow issues to worry about.

Stock 158

Stock Security Technical Review Government 158

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 26, 2013

But people are still begging for more technology or laws, often to protect them from themselves. Most of these are easy to avoid if you do your homework up front, but can cost you dearly if you get sucked in. If you feel confused by conflicting time zones, differing currencies, and up-front costs, it’s time to run the other way.

Technical Review 202

Technical Review Non-disclosure Agreement Due Diligence Entrepreneur 202

The Startup Magazine

JULY 1, 2022

When researching stocks, many people rely on financial charts like those from financecharts.com to help them make informed decisions. They offer free stockcharts from over 20 years of stock research of U.S. The line stockcharts are the simplest of the three; they plot a company’s stock price over time. public companies.

Technical Review 148

Technical Review Due Diligence Stock Portfolio 148

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

Equity is stock, but private company stock has no market value until the company goes public or is sold or merged with another company. Of course, if you are able to bootstrap your startup, and don’t anticipate the need for outside investors, you can technically ignore the first two points.

Exit Strategy 289

Exit Strategy Entrepreneur IPO Startup 289

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 25, 2010

Legal costs of early stage financing should be cheap – this is one of the final remaining arguments for convertible debt but even Paul acknowledges that this is no longer necessarily the case: “Different terms for different investors is clearly the way of the future. That’s OK, but it gives you a max (read: price!)

Finance 286

Finance Term Sheet Technical Review Warrant 286

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 6, 2012

When you have limited distribution, the costs of distributing media are so prohibitive that only the largest of media producers (and distributors) are relevant. When you had physical stores selling books, the bookseller would have to stock the shelves with those books most likely to sell so consumer choice was more limited.

Media 302

Media South Korea Distribution Technical Review 302

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2020

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers.

Management 322

Management Entrepreneur Forecast Stock Options 322

View from Seed

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Airbnb convinced travelers to part with 100% of their booking cost up front and then they pay out the required amount to hosts when the stay actually occurs. To be clear Airbnb posted a GAAP profit in Q3 2020 of over $200M which is impressive given travel remains materially depressed due to COVID.

North America 401

North America IPO Prospectus Europe 401

ConversionXL

OCTOBER 14, 2014

According to MDG Advertising , 67% of online shoppers rated high quality images as being “very important” to their purchase decision, which was slightly more than “product specific information”, “long descriptions”, and “reviews & ratings”: Joann Peck & Suzanne B. image source.

Stock 129

Stock Software Review Lead Generation Arizona 129

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 25, 2023

Equity is stock, but private company stock has no market value until the company goes public or is sold or merged with another company. Of course, if you are able to bootstrap your startup, and don’t anticipate the need for outside investors, you can technically ignore the first two points.

Exit Strategy 264

Exit Strategy Private Equity Equity Technical Review 264

ReadWriteStart

OCTOBER 13, 2021

Shopify is a technological tide in the digital advancement of e-commerce. Currently, Shopify tops the e-commerce industry due to its unique services. Since customers also prefer automation, it helps you stay ahead of your operations such as the automatic disappearance of the product from the shelf when it is out of stock.

Artificial Inteligence 182

Artificial Inteligence Technical Review Software Review Analytics 182

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 20, 2019

Investors are showing an increased appetite for new stocks, with a good percentage of deals pricing above the marketed share price range. Cost of entry for a startup is at an all-time low. Most now routinely buy startups for new technology and new products. The median deal size is back over $100 million.

North America 320

North America Incubator Initial Public Offering Valuation 320

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 29, 2010

People buy companies for 3 primary reasons: 1) they want the management team / talent 2) they want the technology or 3) they want the market traction (revenue, customer base, profits, etc). Mark Jeffrey - Q: “Is it more traditional to do your ESOP (employee stock option plan) before or after your angel or Series A funding?&#

Venture Capital 282

Venture Capital Term Sheet Valuation Stock Options 282

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers.

Forecast 304

Forecast Stock Options Technical Review Metrics 304

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 20, 2011

In the early 80’s he left academia to work on venture capital investing with Jim Simons, Renaissance Technologies. They chose the name First Round Capital because they thought capital would be deployed most efficiently at smaller seed stage rounds considering the cost to build an internet business had come down drastically.

Pre-Money Valuation 284

Pre-Money Valuation Technical Review Cofounder Cram Down 284

VC Cafe

OCTOBER 31, 2022

The top 20 tech billionaires globally have lost $480 billion on paper in the past year. This is largely due to several major stock market crashes and global economic uncertainties. As IVC reports: In Q1–Q3/2022, Israeli high-tech companies raised $12.3 Israeli tech review Q3 2022, IVC Online and Bank Leumi.

Founder 173

Founder Technical Review Down Round Liquidation Preference 173