Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 1, 2021

Thus, based on my experience as an entrepreneur as well as a startup investor, there are indeed situations where a non-disclosure is highly recommended, and others where the potential good far outweighs the risk. Here are the key considerations from my perspective: Dealing with known or trusted investors and advisors.

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Non-disclosure Agreement Technical Review Due Diligence Angel Investor 399

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2022

Perhaps sparked by the recent pandemic, I’m seeing a new era of the entrepreneur, with startups springing up all around. Problems will occur in every startup, simply because you are stepping into uncharted territory. Don’t let it make your startup dysfunctional in resolving future challenges. Marty Zwilling.

Startup 338

Startup Technical Review Restful Partner 338

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 11, 2024

Startups are the most vulnerable considering they are limited in terms of the resources needed to invest in robust cybersecurity systems. Photo by Jakub Zerdzicki from Pexels Going beyond hiring security guards, it’s also important for startups to implement the right strategies that prevent attacks through their physical assets.

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Security Technical Review Software Review Startup 167

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2023

The most valuable assets of a new startup are the people on the team, and the most challenging task of the entrepreneur and team leaders is to spend their leadership time and energy productively. Most new startup founders start out by assuming they need to spread their leadership efforts evenly across all team members. Squeaky wheels.

Employee 267

Employee Leadership Cofounder Matching 267

Steve Blank

JANUARY 17, 2023

Three types of organizations – Incubators, Accelerators and Venture Studios – have emerged to reduce the risk of early-stage startup failure by helping teams find product/market fit and raise initial capital. They do the most to de-risk the early stages of a startup. Reducing Startup Risk.

Technical Cofounder 368

Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 368

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 5, 2025

Invest in Employee Development Your team is one of your most valuable assets. Investing in employee development is not only going to boost their morale but also enhance their skills and productivity at the same time. The most high impact areas in any business are usually marketing, employee training and product development.

Software Review 147

Software Review Technical Review Retention Campaign 147

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2022

These days, it is almost impossible to find a small business where everything is done by full-time employees, in the office or at home. These approaches allow your startup to grow more rapidly, save costs, but costly mistakes can lead to business failure. Utilization and personal growth of virtual employees is not my problem.”

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Cost Philippines Bandwidth Cofounder 346

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 20, 2021

I recognize this is a revolution in the way most companies and employees work today, viewing work as a set of tasks with no passion, new members selected primarily on past experience and functional skills, and viewing conflict as something to be avoided or a sign of failure.

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Developer Startup Social Media Internet 387

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2022

One of the biggest myths in the business world is that startups are no place for Baby Boomers, that aging generation born between 1945 and 1964. Today people over 55 are almost twice as likely to create successful startups as Gen-Y, age 20 to 34. Yet credible reports on current trends tell us just the opposite.

Advisory Board 368

Advisory Board Dividend Angel Investor Cofounder 368

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 5, 2025

The Small Business Administration (SBA) also offers a variety of loan programs, including ones specifically designed for startups. They simplify employee payments and benefits management, and many integrate seamlessly with accounting software. Pro tip: Check out local economic development offices for grant leads.

Phoenix 148

Phoenix Small Business Small Business Administration Software Review 148

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2022

People who have been followers too long as an employee don’t realize how hard it is to be a leader. Every new entrepreneur has to initiate the right actions to be perceived as a leader in their chosen business domain by their team and by their customers, or the road to success and satisfaction will be lost along the way.

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Leadership Founder Startup Networking 317

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 4, 2024

Use Contracts to Your Advantage Whether you’re hiring employees, working with vendors, or entering into agreements with partners, contracts are essential. Additionally, employment contracts ensure that you and your employees have mutual understanding regarding their roles and the company’s policies.

Intellectual Property 119

Intellectual Property Non-disclosure Agreement Entrepreneur Limited Liability Company 119

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 3, 2022

Startup investors tell me they invest in a new venture with a higher caliber of people, rather than the product or service, and I agree. Some of the companies with the best team cultures, including Zappos , even go so far as to offer new employees $2,000 to quit after the first week on the job if they don’t feel a fit with the team assigned.

Hiring 337

Hiring Technical Cofounder Cofounder Retention 337

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2022

For early-stage startups, the goodwill component can easily exceed the size of all the financial elements together, or can just as easily mark a company with good financials as not investable. For startups, the entrepreneur and founder is almost always the face of the company. Performance accountability processes.

Technical Review 323

Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation Leadership 323

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 24, 2021

If you are a young startup founder, how do you find that CEO or other executive for your “dream team” to close on funding or complement your skills to kick start your company? Remember that leadership is both upward, as well as downward to direct reports and employees. Provide effective leadership.

Exit Strategy 407

Exit Strategy Leadership Founder Networking 407

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 18, 2021

If your startup is great enough to get a term sheet from angel investors or a venture capitalist, the next step for the investor is to complete the dreaded due diligence process. Some startups do nothing to prepare for the due diligence process, assuming the people and business plan documents will speak for themselves.

Technical Review 380

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Angel Investor 380

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 8, 2021

Young entrepreneurs and startups, in particular, often remain naively unfocused, despite their passion, of what it takes to provide the high-quality service expected. Then make sure that everyone on the team does the same, and are motivated to improve the match with your startup. Make your service deliver process “happy.”

Technical Review 385

Technical Review Salary Metrics Matching 385

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 3, 2021

In reality, the best business process innovations usually come from regular employees on the front line of your business, just trying to do a better job and better serve customers. Startups may be quicker to adopt innovations, but there are clearly some large problems than can only be solved by companies with large resources.

Technical Review 431

Technical Review Leadership Operations Networking 431

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 23, 2021

Yet, as a business consultant, I often find minimal focus on improving employee engagement and assessing their customer-facing performance. For example, I commonly see metrics to keep track of revenue per employee, overtime, and absenteeism, but I don’t often see measures of overall customer satisfaction with individual employees.

Customer 369

Customer Technical Review Metrics Employee 369

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 29, 2021

In my experience as an employee, up to an executive, in large companies as well as small, I’ve found that people who are consistently negative and complain are a big constraint on productivity, as well as the most difficult management problem that most business leaders face. They may really want to change.

Employee 371

Employee Salary Hiring Stock 371

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 5, 2022

In my consulting work with small businesses and startups, I find that real teamwork is still a rare commodity. It takes an engaged team , or a group of well-connected teams , to build and run a business today. The days of a single autocratic leader are gone.

Leadership 297

Leadership Technical Review Startup Social Media 297

TechEmpower

DECEMBER 11, 2023

Although noteworthy, working with large corporations differs remarkably from working with startups. Employee and Contractor Details: How many full-time W2 employees and contractors do they employ, and where are they located? What are the employees and contractors' skills? Are they publicly available?

Software Developers 297

Software Developers Software Development Software Review Software 297

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

Israeli startups raised $2.43 Israel continues to be a relatively liquid market Another strong indicator for the strength of the Israeli startup ecosystem has been exits/ liquidity, especially given the shortage of exits in the venture capital industry. The current environment presents opportunities for resilient Israeli startups.

Israel 183

Israel Technical Review Startup Generative AI 183

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 14, 2021

For example, my dictate that entrepreneurs need to find a “ painful ” problem to solve (such as high cost, low productivity) to attract customers, doesn’t really account for many successful startup businesses today, including top social media platforms, dating sites, and new fashions. Build positive relationships with potential customers.

Customer 432

Customer Social Media Dividend Technical Review 432

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 24, 2023

Among other things, he presents convincing reasons why employee empowerment is now a force that is here to stay in today’s workplace: A new generation of workers are flexing muscles. Immigration has always been a key source of diversity in the workplace, which is known to drive innovation and employee empowerment. Census Bureau.

Non-Compete 282

Non-Compete France Japan Technical Review 282

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2022

Employees are still too often thought of as a commodity, to be acquired “just in time” for the lowest cost, and managed as a disposable asset. Almost any startup can start with Excel, and move to open-source data analysis tools, including Python or RStudio. Subjectively measuring employee engagement.

Analytics 303

Analytics Hiring Open Source Employee 303

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2022

Thus I was pleased to see a much more complete and broader perspective of employee support recommendations in a new book, “ Employees First! ” by Donna Cutting, who is a globally-recognized guru on employee culture and optimizing customer service. Other studies have shown a return of up to 400 percent for this approach.

Technical Review 353

Technical Review Cofounder Employee Global 353

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2023

Cash flow is a basic survival metric for every startup. Yet it always amazes me that I can find two different startups, seemingly working on the same problem, with one having a burn rate several times higher than the other. They understand startup realities. Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young.

Burn Rate 258

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Management Salary 258

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2022

Business partners can be co-founders in a startup, multiple owners of an existing business, or a joint venture. As a former startup investor, I was often involved with due diligence on founders, and I felt that founders should do the same on co-founders, as well as investors. Don’t ignore any big red flags.

Technical Review 313

Technical Review Due Diligence Partner Cofounder 313

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2023

Who would not want to join the unicorns (recent startups with a current valuation of over $1 billion)? Excellent detailed resources are everywhere, including a classic book, “ The Startup Checklist ,” by serial entrepreneur and founder of the New York Angels, David S. Rounding out the team with employees and freelancers.

Intellectual Property 261

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Angel Groups Social Media 261

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 13, 2024

Whether you’re a startup or a multinational corporation, the need for agile and streamlined workflows is universal. Automation software can precisely handle repeatable tasks, freeing employees to focus on strategic initiatives. Ergonomic furniture reduces fatigue and improves posture, leading to healthier, more focused employees.

Technical Review 167

Technical Review Software Review Agile Operations 167

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 30, 2025

Utilizing entity management software helps streamline operations by automating tasks, lowering the chances of mistakes, and giving employees time to dedicate to important strategic projects. The post How Entity Management Software Supports Growing Businesses appeared first on The Startup Magazine.

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Software Review Software Management Government 110

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2023

Some are doing this at the expense of employee experience , which I believe is one of the major causes of employee dissatisfaction and exit of good employees today. To achieve real growth, business leaders need to improve both employee as well as customer experiences. Responsive – empower employees to help peers.

Employee 282

Employee Matching Customer Leadership 282

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 2, 2022

High-technology product startups, without customers, don’t make a business. This thought leader in new media asserts that every business needs to understand social psychology and rethink their business models, approach, and relationships in order to create unique and memorable experiences for both customers and employees.

Customer 306

Customer Technical Review Social Media Social Network 306

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

Young entrepreneurs and startups, in particular, often remain naively unfocused, despite their passion, of what it takes to provide the high-quality service expected. Then make sure that everyone on the team does the same, and are motivated to improve the match with your startup. Make your service deliver process “happy.”

Technical Review 249

Technical Review Salary Metrics Matching 249

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 12, 2024

Clear, effective business documentation creates clarity in the minds of employees, stakeholders, and external partners and eventually builds trust for seamless operation. Service businesses, meanwhile, should document customer interaction procedures so all employees provide uniform standards of service across their workforces.

Technical Review 158

Technical Review Software Review Operations Technology 158

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 15, 2023

Whether you are a business professional in a big company, or an entrepreneur with a startup, innovation is a key strategy. To be successful, and leave a positive legacy, you need a team of motivated employees and loyal customers. Everyone has ideas, but only a few can make them happen.

Artificial Inteligence 286

Artificial Inteligence Technology Leadership Business Model 286