Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

I was reading Danielle Morrill’s blog post today on whether one’s “ Startup Burn Rate is Normal. I love how transparently Danielle lives her startup (& encourages other to join in) because it provides much needed transparency to other startups. ” I highly recommend reading it.

Burn Rate 383

Burn Rate Balance Sheet .Net Valuation 383

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 17, 2011

I recently wrote a post about why I didn’t think early-stage startups should have COOs. What a luxury in a startup to have the number one person in the business get to focus on just strategy? Dilute your cash, equity or both. I expected it to be controversial and it was. I find them strange. What will it do?

Operations 292

Operations CTO Hire Startup Early Stage 292

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2012

Focus on finding the right partner to double your strength rather than dilute it. Investors know this, and look for two or three-person teams who have the requisite complementary skills. If you are the non-technical one, don’t try to hire your way out of this problem. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 230

Technical Review Technology Founder Management 230

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

When convertible debt first started being introduced as a “faster, cheaper way to get startups funded” they didn’t have pricing built into them. In fact, most early investor work hard to help their startups get to the next level so it makes no sense for the angel investor and founders to be at odds.

Ratchet 354

Ratchet Liquidation Preference Equity Stock 354

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2014

Two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. The default answer, to keep peace in the family, is to split everything equally, but that’s a terrible answer, since now no one is in control, and startups need a clear leader. The CTO of many technical startups was the original founder.

Cofounder 261

Cofounder Stock Founder Technical Cofounder 261

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

Nearly every successful tech startup I’ve observed over the past 20 years has gone through a similar growth pattern: Innovate, systematize then scale operations. Innovate In the early years of a startup there is a lot of kinetic energy of enthusiastic innovators looking to launch a product that changes how an industry works.

Operations 286

Operations New York City Technical Review Startup 286

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2023

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a cofounder or two. The default answer, to keep peace in the family, is to split everything equally, but that’s a terrible answer, since now no one is in control, and startups need a clear leader. Now comes the reality check.

Technical Cofounder 247

Technical Cofounder Equity Distribution Cofounder 247

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 10, 2012

Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup. It takes focus to resist adding a long list of features that seem to make the opportunity larger, but dilute to focus of both you and potential customers.

Startup 254

Startup Technical Review Dilution Early Stage 254

Steve Blank

APRIL 10, 2019

VC’s have just changed the ~50-year old social contract with startup employees. In doing so they may have removed one of the key incentives that made startups different from working in a large company. For most startup employee’s startup stock options are now a bad deal. Why Startups Offer Stock Options.

Stock Options 335

Stock Options Stock Vesting Common Stock 335

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 9, 2014

success story Blackboard and veteran entrepreneur who’s held several COO and president roles at various startups. Many startup CEOs hire COOs or launch companies with a co-founder carrying the title. But what do COOs actually do for startups? So … What’s the Role of a Startup COO, Exactly?

Hiring 336

Hiring Cofounder Startup Technical Cofounder 336

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. The default answer, to keep peace in the family, is to split everything equally, but that’s a terrible answer, since now no one is in control, and startups need a clear leader. Now comes the reality check.

Equity 238

Equity Cofounder Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property 238

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 22, 2010

So taking the same fund raising round and assuming that the VC wants the options including before he or she funds (and before is totally standard) then the math works like this: Assuming a 15% option pool post funding then you need a 20% option pool pre funding (because the pool gets diluted by 25% also when the VC invests their money).

Valuation 405

Valuation Liquidation Preference Pre-Money Valuation Term Sheet 405

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

2 preamble issues having read the comments on TC today: 1: I know that the prices of startup companies is much great in Silicon Valley than in smaller towns / less tech focused areas in the US and the US prices higher than many foreign markets. That’s the deal you get when you’re raising in a good market for startup financing.

Pre-Money Valuation 336

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Stock 336

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 28, 2021

Entrepreneurs who require funding for their startup have long counted on self-accredited high net worth individuals (“angels”) to fill their needs, after friends and family, and before they qualify for institutional investments (“VCs”). Thus investing in startups should always be approached as a low odds game.

Angel Investor 361

Angel Investor Accredited Investor IRR Angel Groups 361

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 14, 2011

” Everybody knows that when you raise money at a startup your ownership percentage of the company goes down. The goal is to have the value of the startup go up by enough that you own a smaller percentage of a much larger business and therefore your total personal value goes up. This post originally appeared on TechCrunch.

Dilution 394

Dilution Pre-Money Valuation Startup Valuation 394

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 17, 2018

Hire when it feels like you're bursting at the seems or missing a critical skill on existing team or have figured out how to scale growth  —  @msuster 6/ Raising capital at very high prices helps avoid short-term dilution. But if you raise at too high a price you make it harder to raise next round.

Founder 242

Founder Dilution Software Review Later Stage 242

View from Seed

JANUARY 13, 2021

What has happened is that over the last 10 years, the vast majority of successful startups have raised some sort of a seed round prior to a series A. And yes, a seed fund may have a tougher time holding on to their ownership down the road, and thus get diluted down. Both factors will hurt your ownership relative to fund size.

Dilution 399

Dilution Later Stage Portfolio Technical Review 399

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 6, 2024

Taking on too many tasks or projects can dilute your focus and spread your resources too thin. The post Effective Time Management for Entrepreneurs appeared first on The Startup Magazine. Learn to Say No One of the toughest skills for many entrepreneurs to develop is the ability to say no.

Management 158

Management Entrepreneur Technical Review Dilution 158

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

At our mid-year offsite our partnership at Upfront Ventures was discussing what the future of venture capital and the startup ecosystem looked like. Pitchbook estimates that there is about $290 billion of VC “overhang” (money waiting to be deployed into tech startups) in the US alone and that’s up more than 4x in just the past decade.

Technical Review 416

Technical Review Pre-Money Valuation San Francisco Valuation 416

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 26, 2023

Make sure new solutions offered actually build your brand, rather than dilute it. These disruptive technologies also have the potential for exposing your business to new competitors, including a wealth of startups that can jeopardize your core business, and redefine the marketplace. Solution may require new category development time.

Product 354

Product Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Dividend 354

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 16, 2017

Entrepreneurs who require funding for their startup have long counted on self-accredited high net worth individuals (“angels”) to fill their needs, after friends and family, and before they qualify for institutional investments (“VCs”). Thus investing in startups should always be approached as a low odds game.

Angel Investor 190

Angel Investor Accredited Investor IRR Angel Groups 190

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

I also had to negotiate a follow-on round at a portfolio company because new investors were trying to force a bit option-pool top-up that would dilute the founders and existing shareholders and existing investors were fighting over prorata rights. Some were interesting, some weren’t. You’re in control.

Software Review 381

Software Review Churn Rate Due Diligence New York 381

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

I know some people think the whole market has been disrupted and startups and funding work differently these days. Deep pockets – In the previous posts I’ve compared tech startup investing with poker taking analogies of The Big Short & Delivering Happiness. avoid being diluted). This is actually the norm.

Cap Table 283

Cap Table Angel Investor Liquidation Preference Dilution 283

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 9, 2014

Entrepreneurs who require funding for their startup have long counted on self-accredited high net worth individuals (“angels”) to fill their needs, after friends and family, and before they qualify for institutional investments (“VCs”). Thus investing in startups should always be approached as a low odds game.

Angel Investor 278

Angel Investor Angel Groups Accredited Investor IRR 278

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 21, 2013

I recently wrote a blog post in which I pointed out that many investors & advisors discourage enterprise startups from having a professional services (PS) business and I think this is a big mistake. I think it’s important for enterprise startups to layer in professional services into your revenue stream.

Software Review 321

Software Review Software IP Technical Review 321

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

If you haven’t raised any money or if you raised a small round from angels or friends & family I would suggest you avoid setting up a formal board unless the people who would join your board are deeply experienced at sitting on startup boards. Who Should be on Your Startup Board? Of course it happens all the time?—?especially

Venture Capital 236

Venture Capital Startup Angel Investor Silicon Valley 236

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2019

Successful startups seem to follow similar paths to greatness, and unfortunately all too often that path leads them back down the hill much faster than they went up. By definition, most startups begin as a result of some innovation in product, process, or service. Consider MySpace and Webvan. Product-line expansion.

Dilution 224

Dilution Merger Flash Global 224

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 24, 2016

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. The default answer, to keep peace in the family, is to split everything equally, but that’s a terrible answer, since now no one is in control, and startups need a clear leader. Now comes the reality check.

Equity 120

Equity Cofounder Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property 120

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 25, 2010

Having re-read it, I believe his real premise instead is, “Fixed-size, multi-investor angel rounds are such a bad idea for startups that one wonders why things were ever done that way.&#. Either would be fine with startups, so long as they can easily change their valuation. When I’m in, I’m in. rings true to me.

Finance 286

Finance Term Sheet Technical Review Warrant 286

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 11, 2011

Too many entrepreneurs focus on dilution. But over-optimizing for dilution is a bad attribute relative to focusing on creating a big & winning company. When he tells his stories from the 1990′s your realize that he was probably the original “lean startup.&# Think YouTube vs. the rest.

Product 350

Product Tuvalu Dilution Incubator 350

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2013

Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup. It takes focus to resist adding a long list of features that seem to make the opportunity larger, but dilute to focus of both you and potential customers. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 252

Entrepreneur Marketing Technical Review Dilution 252

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 14, 2022

And with the technology available these days, it is convenient to invest in emerging startups. Are you wondering how to invest in startups in India? The digital startup craze. The world is about to see a new generation propagating the Indian startup investing industry. Sectors witnessing a startup boom. Media tech.

Technical Review 167

Technical Review Due Diligence India Startup 167

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 8, 2016

Much has changed in the past four months of the technology startup world and how outsiders value the business. Optimize for a W more than % dilution in these circumstances. Founders hate them because they’re dilutive. It applies to all startups – not just SaaS. Down rounds are corrosive.

Burn Rate 150

Burn Rate Cap Table Startup Dilution 150

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

I have often been asked about Startup Funding by entrepreneurs. Many myths surround the subject of startup funding. Here is Startup Funding, a Comprehensive Guide for Entrepreneurs. You must have seen a lot of startups giving out promotions, discounts, and incentives at the early phase of their business. Debt investors.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 27, 2019

Most investors and startup professionals expand this concept of focus to apply to key issues of every aspect of strategic and tactical planning in a startup. It takes focus to resist adding a long list of features that seem to make the opportunity larger, but dilute to focus of both you and potential customers.

Technical Review 255

Technical Review Dilution Early Stage Product Development 255

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2013

Successful startups seem to follow similar paths to greatness, and unfortunately all too often that path leads them back down the hill much faster than they went up. By definition, most startups begin as a result of some innovation in product, process, or service. entrepreneur culture startup internet lifecycle Kai Hammerich Richard D.

Dilution 187

Dilution Merger Flash Global 187

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 4, 2014

Yesterday I wrote a post about “ the politics of startups ” in which I asserted that all companies have politics, which in its purest sense is just about understanding human psychology. Elie Seidman wrote in the comments section of my blog post on politics at startups. Startup Advice' We sat down the three of us.

Founder 340

Founder Cofounder Sacramento Technical Review 340