A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

Matt is a great CEO and has even written a book about leading and growing a company called Startup CEO. Their new company Bolster is all about scaling and building a great management team for your startup. Bolster also will allow venture capital firms and startup investors to participate in its platform as super users.

board 218

board leadership venture capital VC 218

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 18, 2019

Across the world, various economic development organizations, government agencies, and non-profits are putting in admirable and well-intentioned efforts to develop startup ecosystems. Very little time and effort is spent helping professional, full time investors raise capital for venture funds.

startup ecosystem 339

startup ecosystem real estate startup economic development 339

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 30, 2014

Many startups now go through accelerators and have mentors passing through each day with advice – usually it’s conflicting. There are bootcamps, startup classes, video interviews – the sources are now endless. Improving startup productivity ? Startup psychology / confidence ? Startup Lessons'

advice 407

advice frameworks startup mix-use 407

NZ Entrepreneur

NOVEMBER 19, 2024

Launching a startup in New Zealand is exciting, but navigating the accounting side of things can be tricky. Choose the best business structure for you Choosing the right business structure for your startup is a crucial first step. A budget, on the other hand, provides a financial framework for the startup’s operations.

startup 104

startup consulting sustainability frameworks 104

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 26, 2022

We believe this consistency in leadership and intuition for where the markets were going in the heady days of 2019–2021 helped us to stay sane in a world that momentarily seemed to have lost its mind and since we have new capital to deploy in the years ahead perhaps I can offer some insights into where we think value will be derived.

ventures 408

ventures startup peer-to-peer venture capital 408

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 16, 2015

I was working for the GM pension fund, an institutional LP, as an analyst, doing a research project on consumer private equity and venture capital investing. They said they trusted me and that they signed up for great opportunities in great startups, not just specifically tech.

venture capital 359

venture capital ventures capital consumer retail 359

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.

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innovation startup board leadership 286

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 10, 2021

how on Earth could the venture capital market stand still? One of the most common questions I’m asked by people intrigued by but also scared by venture capital and technology markets is some variant of, “Aren’t technology markets way overvalued? With the enormous changes to our economies and financial markets?—?how Of course we can’t.

ventures 471

ventures VC venture capital funders 471

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

What person hasn’t crouched at an airport to get 18% extra on one’s battery before boarding an airplane? And not enough capital embracing these moonshots. Startup Lessons' When breakthroughs of the type he has in mind are pursued, it is “not really being driven by any fundamental technical advance. Working on it.

startup 417

startup innovation entrepreneurs transportation 417

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 10, 2015

He signed a release and remained on the board. He regretted the decision and sued the company and the board – it’s still not totally clear to me what he was suing about. There is not a single case I’ve been involved with in any of the startups I’ve backed that has even a small bit of merit.

startup 352

startup advice board founder 352

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 4, 2013

He then brought her to board meetings so nobody could accuse him of not having a business model. I see many companies these days just race to raise capital. They see capital raising at the success validator. LEAN STARTUP MOVEMENT. ” is Eric Ries who wrote the must own, “ The Lean Startup ” *.

strategy 401

strategy startup peer-to-peer advice 401

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. I can assure you that move wasn’t a walk in the park for the board. I call it “ the Co-Founder mythology ” and it’s persistent in our startup mythology. Foursquare?

startup 385

startup coworking advice leadership 385

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

There are certain topics that even some of the smartest people I talk with who aren’t startup oriented can’t fully grok. It’s common cocktail party chatter to hear people confidently pronounce that some well known startup is sure to blow up because, “How could they succeed when they’re not even profitable!” What did they actually do?

startup 227

startup venture capital VC capital 227

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2019

When you set up a board it is often initially a combination of the founders and the early investors. This post sets out how I believe founders (and investors) should think about independent board members having worked with many of them for the past 20 years. The board is where large equity investors get their representation.

board 187

board peer-to-peer VC funders 187

A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

JULY 19, 2021

Over the last 18 months, the early-stage financing market has seen dramatic changes characterized by these three things: A shift from in-person fundraising to virtual fundraising A reduction in financing process timelines from months to weeks A continued increase in the amount of capital available for early stage companies.

board 276

board financing finance sustainability 276

Dream It

APRIL 12, 2020

Paul Martino, General Partner at Bullpen Capital. During our recent Dreamit Kickoff week, Bullpen Capital Founder and General Partner Paul Martino ( @ahpah ) spoke with our Spring 2020 cohort about the state of the VC ecosystem in the current economic crisis. Will a financial crisis affect how venture funds deploy capital?

ventures 334

ventures startup capital board 334

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 2, 2015

You transition from “startup” to real business and it turns out that having an entire team be efficient is more important than that boundless energy but destructive nature of constantly changing direction from the CEO. And board confidence matters in growing companies. And board confidence matters in growing companies.

board 338

board energy financing finance 338

American Entrepreneurship

JANUARY 21, 2025

million pre-A funding round, the FinTech startup aims to expand its regional footprint while laying the groundwork for future global growth. Continued support from previous backers includes COTU, RZM Capital, and Github founder Tom Preston-Werner. Now, with Flourish Ventures on board, we are laying the foundation for global expansion.

startup 98

startup board entrepreneurship ventures 98

This is going to be BIG.

JULY 16, 2014

They count on me to be a good steward of their capital, and to take reasonable and appropriate risk with the expectation of a certain level of returns. That also means that I need to act in a way that ensures my ability to get future opportunities to invest their capital in attractive deals. Venture Capital & Technology'

VC 397

VC frameworks venture capital opportunity 397

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 23, 2015

One of the questions we discussed is, “How much capital should a startup raise?” ” Fred & I are both in agreement that there is a tension between capital constraints and creativity. We also spoke about what it takes to be an effective board member. I promise it’s worth watching. Again, Fred.

advice 327

advice board VC investing 327

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 6, 2020

If your US-based business is adversely affected by Covid-19 such that you would need to lay off employees imminently and having access to capital would enable you to keep more employees on the payroll then you might be eligible. The NVCA (National Venture Capital Association) Guidelines are below. It is not “free money.” It depends.

VC 279

VC peer-to-peer startup advice 279

The Seraf Compass

AUGUST 28, 2019

Over the past few years, there has been much talk about the importance of investing both financial and human capital into the rapidly expanding entrepreneurial ecosystem. From our perspective, human capital is as important as financial capital in driving the long term success of startup companies.

entrepreneurial ecosystem 225

entrepreneurial ecosystem board capital investment 225

Dream It

APRIL 7, 2020

Friday, April 3 was supposed to be the orderly launch of the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) providing $349B of urgently needed funding to struggling startups and small businesses. What are the immediate do’s and don’ts for startups? For instance, one of our startups applied to J.P.

startup 348

startup communities VC ventures 348

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 20, 2012

Board Meetings. Startups Are for Doers. But trust me when I say that my observations across many startups (and other companies, frankly) is that not enough time goes into thinking. Startups are filled with the stresses of the here and now and it’s hard to break out of this mold of focusing two feet in front of you.

creativity 400

creativity venture capital entrepreneurs board 400

Entrepreneurs' Organization

MAY 28, 2020

They also enjoy easier access to finance and face fewer capital restraints. Given these benefits, many investors take great interest in a startup’s social mission. Startups that embrace and exemplify a clear social mission from the get-go will have an easier time attracting much-needed backing. Express a compelling “why.”

board 226

board sustainability strategy energy 226

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 24, 2014

These days, there are a ton of options for you if you''re a startup seeking guidence. We''ve done a lot to make sure startups get all the help we can get--and it''s leading to higher companies getting off the ground. In particular, I''m always trying to improve as a board member, but their aren''t any programs or classes for that.

accelerator 368

accelerator mentorship VC incubation 368

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 26, 2016

There has been a lot of public debate over the past several weeks about whether it’s a good thing to be “gross margin positive” or not and commentary always reminds me that some people at startups don’t quite understand financial metrics or even how to think about which ones are healthy. So if you’re able to raise easily no problem.

startup 280

startup SaaS financing finance 280

Tomasz Tunguz

OCTOBER 7, 2021

Passive venture capital investing is a relatively new idea. As later stage investors permeate venture capital, they are amassing index funds of startups. Classically, venture capital has been an active asset class. The board is fully staffed, the executive team as well. But it’s transforming the industry.

venture capital 145

venture capital capital ventures investing 145

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 28, 2021

Turns out being in a quiet place with good WIFI minding someone who basically just eats and sleeps most of the time while tethered to all manner of monitors actually makes for a great work environment for venture capital. She’s even been on several board calls already and last week showed up on her first pitch call.

hospitality 477

hospitality board energy pitching 477

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 3, 2015

The same is true at startups. I watch founders who want to get “air cover” for hard decisions by getting too much input from their teams or boards. You’re a startup, not GE. I’ll take a good decision now over a perfect decision in 6 months any day of the week in a startup. This drives me nuts.

advice 332

advice peer-to-peer startup frameworks 332

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 13, 2014

Operating experience (Helped run parts of CitySearch & UrbanSpoon, tons of product management experience, Board of Hatch Labs which helped spawn Tinder). Startup CEO experience (Founded P.S. XO along with my good friend Soleil Moon Frye. But there are tons of great startup folks so you need a narrower filter.

VC 408

VC networking board ventures 408

American Entrepreneurship

MARCH 19, 2025

March 18, 2025) Last week, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) Board approved the creation of the Next New Jersey Program – AI and the AI Innovation Challenge Administration Grant Program. For more information, including additional eligibility requirements, click here.

leadership 52

leadership board economic growth economic development 52

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

” “Mark has a vested interest in talking down valuations of startups.” Most prefer not to say this publicly for two reasons: 1) they have an entire portfolio of startups, many of whom are raising capital and 2) they prefer not to be attacked publicly or seem “anti entrepreneur.” What hogwash.

startup 285

startup VC entrepreneurs investing 285

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

Something happened in the past 7 years in the startup and venture capital world that I hadn’t experienced since the late 90’s — we all began praying to the God of Valuation. How might our next phase of the journey seem brighter, even with more uncertain days for startups and capital markets? What happened? It was 1991.

VC 466

VC culture sustainability capital 466

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

Over the past month a colleague ( Chang Xu ) and I sifted through data on the venture capital industry (as we do every year) and made a bunch of calls to VCs and LPs to confirm our hypotheses. As a result of the IPO window shifting we saw a massive inflow of public-market capital into the latest stages of venture. What gives?

investing 328

investing investment VC venture capital 328

American Entrepreneurship

DECEMBER 20, 2024

Fintech startup Parafin innovatively tackles this challenge through its embedded finance infrastructure used by partners such as DoorDash, Amazon, and others. Founded in 2020 by Poddar and Vineet Goel, the startup has provided nearly $1 billion in annual funding for tens of thousands of small businesses in the U.S. and Canada.

financing 98

financing finance incumbents construction 98

Dream It

MAY 19, 2021

Your milestones determine the amount of runway needed, and thus your capital raise requirements, not the other way around. Investors may believe that there are value-creating milestones achievable on less capital. If there is sincere interest on the part of the investor, offer to review a smaller raise and revised plan with your board.

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pitching board health VC 393