Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2010

Most people suck at presenting to big groups. It’s a shame because the ability to nail these presentations at key conferences can be once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to influence journalists, business partners, potential employees, customers and VCs. This was evident at the Twiistup pre-event company pitch last week at UCLA. Francisco Dao came up with the idea of letting 10 companies that weren’t selected for Twiistup to do a presentation the night before to a group of people and l

advice 362

advice VC entrepreneurs education 362

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 11, 2010

I’ll admit it: Everytime I hear that familiar “Ra-ra, ah-ah ah-ah, Ra-ma ra ma-ma, Ga-ga ooh la-la”, I crank up the volume. The outlandishly costumed fellow former Upper East Side prep schooler has garnered some serious mass appeal over the last two years. But what can you attribute Ms. Germanotta’s success to, and moreover, what can the average tech startup learn from it?

startup 218

startup strategy venture capital board 218

Berkonomics

JANUARY 20, 2010

This post will be perhaps a bit longer than usual, but certainly of great interest for those with interest in or have need for more capital… This stage is critical to many businesses and a passing option to others, depending upon the capital efficiency of the enterprise. Some businesses require very little capital and the founder is able to self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale).

mix-use 69

mix-use finance financing board 69

abovethecrowd.com

JANUARY 5, 2010

[Follow Me on Twitter] In a recent New York Times article, Kathryn Huberty, a Morgan Stanley analyst was quoted suggesting that Apple’s iPhone is the key catalyst for an important new technology trend. “Applications make the smartphone trend a revolutionary trend – one we haven’t seen in consumer technology for many years.” This argument rings [.].

technology 90

technology venture capital capital ventures 90

Advertisement

Large enterprises face unique challenges in optimizing their Business Intelligence (BI) output due to the sheer scale and complexity of their operations. Unlike smaller organizations, where basic BI features and simple dashboards might suffice, enterprises must manage vast amounts of data from diverse sources. What are the top modern BI use cases for enterprise businesses to help you get a leg up on the competition?

strategy

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 25, 2010

Chris Dixon wrote a blog post last week titled, “ Techies and Normals &# in which he defined “Techies&# as people who are not just “early adopters&# but also have more of a geeky, technical, product bent. Normals (or “Muggles&# as Catarina Fake called them) are people who, unlike Techies, don’t just use products simply because they’re infatuated with them and with showing the world how cool it is that they’re using the latest tech product.

advice 348

advice entrepreneurs sustainability pitching 348

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

I recently read a post over on VentureHacks titled, “ Top Ten Reasons Entrepreneurs Hate Lawyers &# written by Scott Walker (who blogs on legal issues for entrepreneurs ). I know that people have an allergy to lawyers out of fear of being screwed. Much of this is unfounded – some is not. If you’re a startup and you don’t have a close relationship with a few law firms you’re really missing one of the most important relationships that any entrepreneur can have.

startup 318

startup advice entrepreneurs VC 318

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2010

TechCrunch ran my article yesterday as a guest post but I wanted to have a copy here for anybody who missed it and for future readers of this blog. This is a slightly longer version and also has an update at the end. TechCrunch Europe ran an article in November of last year that European startups need to work as hard as those in Silicon Valley and I echoed the sentiment in my post about the need for entrepreneurs to be maniacal about their businesses if one wants to work in the hyper competitiv

entrepreneurs 308

entrepreneurs advice real estate venture capital 308

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 29, 2010

This is part of my series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. I then covered Street Smarts , Ability to Pivot , Resiliency , Inspiration , Perspiration , Willingness to Take Risks and Detail Orientation.

entrepreneurs 296

entrepreneurs advice technology strategy 296

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 26, 2010

This is part of my series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. The full list is now posted there if you want a sneak preview. I’ll try to add a few extra comments in my posts to keep in interesting. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity.

entrepreneurs 286

entrepreneurs advice pitching VC 286

Advertisement

Gearing up for 2025 annual planning? Our latest eBook from the Operators Guild is your ultimate guide. Discover real-world solutions and best practices shared by top CFOs, drawn directly from discussions within OG’s vibrant online community. Learn from senior executives at high-growth tech startups as they outline financial planning strategies, align CEO and board goals, and coordinate budgets across departments.

startup

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2010

I recently wrote a post about avoiding the “ Deferred Life Plan &# and some related thoughts about personal productivity that came from Tim Ferriss’s book, The Four Hour Workweek. I would love to say that I’m the productivity guru. Unfortunately my wife reads my blog and she’d log in and add comments to dispel this rumor (she keeps me honest.

advice 280

advice entrepreneurs networking innovation 280

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2010

Bill Gates once famously said that people tend to overestimate the impact of technology in the 1-year timeframe and underestimate its impact in the 10-year timeframe. That’s always stuck with me. I tend not to go into heat when I hear the latest buzz on the tech blogs about the latest gadgets. But when I read thoughtful pieces on the future of technology I start to imagine where our lives will be in 10 years.

health 278

health entrepreneurs sustainability technology 278

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 15, 2010

Last night I attended the inaugural Open Angel Forum event started by Jason Calacanis , a fellow LA resident. Jason started the Open Angel Forum in response to his frustration that entrepreneurs were being charged by some angel organizations to present at their events. He wrote an excellent blog post on this topic. As a former entrepreneur, I’m a big supporter of Jason’s goals.

advice 254

advice angel investing entrepreneurs pitching 254

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 31, 2010

Welcome to Social Media Week --the one week out of the year where we get to tweet and blog about social media! Hopefully, you can find a way in to some of these events as most are sold out. Try the waitlists. I think you'll have a good shot at getting in. If not, just try to slip the dude at the front door a few Twitter followers. Monday, February 1st 10:30AM Branding the Future with Social Engagement, sponsored by Pepsi Refresh The opening session of Social Media Week will focus on a top-level

communities 170

communities innovation media education 170

Advertisement

Mighty Financial specializes in supporting the financial aspirations of small businesses and entrepreneurs. With our comprehensive bookkeeping and precise accounting expertise with decades of experience across diverse financial roles, our team offers tailor-made services ranging from essential bookkeeping to strategic fractional CFO support, catered specifically to the unique challenges of technology companies, startups, and SMEs.

financing

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 25, 2010

We need to get millions of American kids, not just the geniuses, excited about innovation and entrepreneurship again. We need to make 2010 what Obama should have made 2009: the year of innovation, the year of making our pie bigger, the year of “Start-Up America.”. via www.nytimes.com. Tags: Politics.

entrepreneurship 170

entrepreneurship innovation 170

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 19, 2010

Back in July, I wrote a piece called “ Why Yelp (…and every single retail establishment) Should Support Foursquare ”. Whitney McNamara referred to as the “post that launched 1000 VCs”, but it was really meant to open up a dialogue between an innovative little company hyperfocused on an important piece of data—when people show up to venues—and a bigger company dependent on relationships with venues.

ecology 170

ecology incubation innovation venture capital 170

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 11, 2010

If you need to replicate yourself to attend any of these events, remember: Don't make a copy of a copy! Tuesday, January 12th 6:30PM Agile UX at the Economist (Waitlist only) The Economist online will share their experiences, successes and lessons learned around practicing user-centered design in an Agile development process. This includes user research and testing, Drupal-based surveys, collaborative design tools using Google docs and a Drupal-based site called Good Ideas that supports collabor

collaboration 150

collaboration venture capital enablement technology 150

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 27, 2010

I can’t tell you how I got this, but I hear that the iTablet user manual comes with a whole host of unexpected disclosures: Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly, and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to The Apple iTablet. Caution: The Apple iTablet may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds. The Apple iTablet contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at.

venture capital 170

venture capital accelerator technology capital 170

Advertisement

Lack of digitalization decreases business competitiveness. To thrive, embracing modern solutions becomes essential. The approach to digitalization often aligns with a company's business model. This shift not only boosts productivity but also automates processes and improves security. The tech market offers a wealth of technologies tailored for management, planning, and forecasting, replacing outdated pen-and-paper methods.

technology

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 21, 2010

At First Round , I often hear the term “product-market” fit. Since we often invest before the big “hockey stick” traction that bigger VCs wait for, a lot of times the company is still trying to tweak exactly what service or application will take off in a given market. Sometimes they’re testing various pricing models…other times they’re not sure if it’s a partnership strategy or a direct sales effort that will get the most uptake.

entrepreneurs 170

entrepreneurs strategy venture capital capital 170

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 25, 2010

To get this list in your inbox each Monday morning, sign up here. This just in: Six states have now lifted the marriage ban. You are now free to marry the soon to be released Apple Tablet in California, New York, Arkansas, Ohio, Maine and Vermont. The rest of you will just have to go to one of these events to try to find human life partners: Monday, January 25th 6:00PM The Future of Music: with Lyor Cohen, CEO Rec.

communities 150

communities innovation media venture capital 150

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 18, 2010

You can get posts like these e-mailed to you once a week on Mondays by going here. Am I the only one that thinks that perhaps Steve Jobs will be introducing two Apple tablets next week. made of stone. from a mountain? Seems like anything less would be a letdown. Oh, and btw. big miss on someone not doing a diversity hack-a-thon on Monday. That would have been awesomesauce.

communities 150

communities innovation pitching venture capital 150

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 29, 2010

So you just finished up the year at Harvard/Wharton/Stanford/NYU, etc. and since your lifelong dream of being a banker doesn’t seem like a viable route anymore, you’re thinking that a startup might be the place for you. (You’d much rather be a VC, but you’re smart enough to know that there are like 8 junior VC positions open a year, so you’re looking for a backup.

startup 395

startup networking opportunity VC 395

Advertisement

CAPTARGET presents a masterclass in M&A deal sourcing. Learn to cast a wide net, embracing seller self-identification. Consistency is the linchpin: keep the origination process steady for a reliable flow of opportunities. Diversify your tactics, employing various tools and vendors. Tech matters! Understand DNS settings, domain authority, and brand presence for optimal outreach.

opportunity

Berkonomics

JANUARY 27, 2010

Taking in angel or venture money requires a setting of an entrepreneur’s expectations that may come as a shock at least at first. From the moment such an investor looks seriously at your company, the investor or VC partner is thinking of the end game, the ultimate sale of the company or even of an eventual initial public offering. There is no middle ground.

VC 67

VC finance financing investing 67

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 10, 2010

A couple of years ago I read the popular book, “The Four Hour Workweek &# by Tim Ferriss. It was recommended to me by my friend, Net Jacobsson , who was trying to do some basic Life Hacking. If you’re not familiar with the term it’s basically trying to help all of us who are deluged with technology to find ways to cope with the masses of information without having it ruin our lives.

advice 295

advice entrepreneurs VC technology 295

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 5, 2010

This is part of my series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. I then covered Street Smarts , Ability to Pivot , Resiliency , Inspiration and Perspiration.

entrepreneurs 293

entrepreneurs VC advice consulting 293

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 10, 2010

Being in China right now I am more convinced than ever that when historians look back at the end of the first decade of the 21st century, they will say that the most important thing to happen was not the Great Recession, but China’s Green Leap Forward. The Beijing leadership clearly understands that the E.T. — Energy Technology — revolution is both a necessity and an opportunity, and they do not intend to miss it.

leadership 170

leadership energy opportunity technology 170

Advertiser: ZoomInfo

Marketing technology is essential for B2B marketers to stay competitive in a rapidly changing digital landscape — and with 53% of marketers experiencing legacy technology issues and limitations, they’re researching innovations to expand and refine their technology stacks. To help practitioners keep up with the rapidly evolving martech landscape, this special report will discuss: How practitioners are integrating technologies and systems to encourage information-sharing between departments and pr

B2B marketing