Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 6, 2015

I came off of a few tough weeks at work. In part that’s why you’ve heard less from me recently. I had some good days and bad days like most of you. I had a very big negative surprise which I’ve mostly worked through but will take time. And I’ve had some good moments, too, for sure. But through all of this I’m always reminded that in tough times some people pull up their socks and help get the job done while others turn to being critics: Even some who don’t act

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This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 3, 2015

I've always had a problem with the term "impact investing". It's as if the investments that you made that aren't part of an impact investing strategy hang from the ceiling Mission Impossible style in a temperature controlled environment making no discernable impact on stakeholder's lives. Leave no trace. Leave no fingerprints. Only, we know that's not the case.

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

DECEMBER 26, 2015

How do you keep your staff (and yourself) motivated and working efficiently? In the face of a new calendar year, here are 26 ways to improve and/or maintain office productivity: 1. Encourage a healthy work ethic. Working without breaks, regular movement or milestones is a recipe for quick burnout. Make sure you and your employees create good, sustainable work habits. 2.

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For Entrepreneurs

DECEMBER 3, 2015

The following is a guest post by Rob Gonzalez. Rob is the co-founder of Salsify, a leading cloud-based product content management and syndication solution that I invested in in 2013 and where I currently serve on the board. Prior to founding Salsify, Rob was at IBM, Endeca and Cambridge Semantics in senior product management roles.

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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?

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 17, 2015

Years ago I led a deal and invested in a company that looked like it had lots of promise to disrupt the women’s clothing industry with special algorithms and an online store. But something had bothered me from the very start – unsalable inventory.you trusted the data. You see, women’s clothing is subject to fashion changes so frequently that inventory becomes obsolete quickly.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 25, 2015

Like many of you I read in awe last week about the accomplishments of the Washington Post since Jeff Bezos acquired the company two years ago. The killer chart is below: In the article it raved particularly about the WaPo’s amazing mobile app and how Bezos personally intervened to get the team to improve loading times – whatever the short-term costs. “His focus on customer experience has become a near mandate within the news operation.

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This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 13, 2015

I don't know a single venture capital investor who doesn't get a firehose of e-mail. You have money, they have ideas, so BAM, e-mails. It's just the nature of the job. You could try and hide your e-mail, make people jump through hoops to get it, but at some point, everyone's got it again. Even if not, by making it difficult to contact you, except through trusted introductions, you're implicitly saying "I think my next best deal is going to come from in my circle, as opposed to from outside of it

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

DECEMBER 19, 2015

When you began formulating the idea of creating a business, what did you think of first? The business model? Your “why” statement? Ideal employees? Every entrepreneur knows that the success of their company can be made – or crushed – by the quality of their core working team. CEOs and business owners want their company to be well-run, and oftentimes, that means formulating a rockstar group of people who will give their best to help you succeed in realizing your dream.

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For Entrepreneurs

DECEMBER 14, 2015

The following is part two of a guest post series by Rob Gonzalez. You can find part 1 here. Rob is the co-founder of Salsify, a leading cloud-based product content management and syndication solution that I invested in in 2013 and where I currently serve on the board. Prior to founding Salsify, Rob was at.

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 3, 2015

Credit Dr. Mark Goulston with this headline. Mark teaches that there is a process to innovation that can be summed up with these four words. In fact, he states, that’s exactly how Steve Jobs described his “aha moment.” So let’s paraphrase Mr. Jobs as we describe this process. Jobs was invited to Xerox Parc research facility and – against the better judgment of the research coordinator – shown three projects the engineers were working on.

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Tomasz Tunguz

DECEMBER 6, 2015

SaaS Enabled Marketplaces employ elegant business models. They are verticalized SaaS companies that manage a marketplace to create winner-take-all market dynamics. SEMs can generate revenue in four ways: charge the buyer and/or supplier a software fee & charge the buyer and/or supplier a marketplace fee. In addition, a startup must determine what rake to charge.

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Thomas Grota

DECEMBER 29, 2015

It’s the time of the year to blog about predictions for the new year.1. The end of the unicorn.

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This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 29, 2015

I went looking for the video clip of Tamir Rice running around with a toy gun. I hadn't seen it before the trial verdict. I have to admit, my first reaction was, "Jeez, that's hard. It really does look like he has a real gun." Then I saw a tweet from a white friend of mine about how he used to play with guns as a kid, too. I had forgotten about it, but so did I.

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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.

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

DECEMBER 16, 2015

Who is Anju Rupal, and what is she doing to better the world? Watch her Project Octane video, “One Hand Washes the Other,” and read our sixteen insights into her career as a social entrepreneur. 1. Anju is inspired in her work by the cleanliness of Switzerland, where she lives. 2. She is empowering girls and women through her business, Abhati. 3.

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For Entrepreneurs

DECEMBER 22, 2015

The following is part three of a guest post series by Rob Gonzalez. You can find part 1 here and part 2 here. Rob is the co-founder of Salsify, a leading cloud-based product content management and syndication solution that I invested in in 2013 and where I currently serve on the board. Prior to founding Salsify, Rob.

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 24, 2015

If we never advertised, we’d never sell anything. Right? Perhaps right, but there are three major types of advertising, some requiring large outlays of cash, some not. First, you can advertise your brand so that people recognize it when they see it in later materials. Second, you can make a call to action, using an ad to bring people to your place of offer, buy your services or product, or take advantage of a special incentive.

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Tomasz Tunguz

DECEMBER 9, 2015

As a startup scales and surpasses its first organizational breaking point of 8 employees, it’s time to start thinking about organizational design. The strategy a startup chooses in their market should determine their organizational design. In the First Round Review profile of Paul Arnold , the Head of Operations at AppDirect, Paul shares the challenges the initial organizational structure created as the company grew 5x in less than a year.

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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.

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Thomas Grota

DECEMBER 26, 2015

Recently I discussed the Pre-IPO-Dip and the impact on mid stage VC investors in unicorns. Keep in.

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OnStartups

DECEMBER 22, 2015

Working on a startup? Have a 800 pound gorilla you're trying to disrupt? That's awesome. But here's a tip: Don't talk about disrupting them. The first rule of disruption is: You do not talk about disruption. Why is this so important? Why shouldn't you declare to the world (and the tech press) that you're going after the big kahuna? Doesn't the media love a great David and Goliath story?

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

DECEMBER 5, 2015

At EO’s Global Headquarters, we as staff have a passion for serving our members, and we help provide the once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for which EO is renowned. What you might not know is that many of us are also entrepreneurs with business concepts of our own – from award-winning artists to digital media gurus, we truly love working for an organization that connects us with leading business owners around the world.

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For Entrepreneurs

DECEMBER 2, 2015

“Talent is the limiting resource in everything we do right now.” If that observation rings true, you’re not alone. Despite every effort, most startups struggle to hire the best people. My partners and I believe developing a competency in hiring is one of the most important skills a founder can develop. And, while most founders we.

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 10, 2015

“Broadcast the message and they will come!” “Segment my broadcast and I will have better response.” Both of these time–honored methods of reaching our customers have worked for as long as there was print and radio–TV to get the message out. And both have become increasingly obsolete as new channels of reach have evolved, allowing direct and personal contact with our potential customers, and better yet, free and near–free forms of marketing just for the asking.

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Tomasz Tunguz

DECEMBER 7, 2015

The Ultimate Software Company is a $5.5B market cap provider of SaaS Human Capital Management software. Founded in 1996, the company initially sold licensed software and migrated to multi-tenant SaaS in 2002 with a product called UltiPro. Today, more than 82% of revenues are subscription dollars. The company serves the mid-market and enterprise customers with a broad software suite that includes Payroll, Human Resources Management Software (HRIS), Benefits Management, Time Clock and a Self Servi

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Thomas Grota

DECEMBER 22, 2015

Many were talking over the last 12 months about the return if the dotcom area. The Bubble 2.0. A.

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Unvalidated Learnings

DECEMBER 15, 2015

Slideshare presentation here These slides support a keynote I gave at Slush’s “On-Demand Everything” conference?—?they summarize my thoughts on the space, which I’ve narrowly defined as mobile-first marketplaces connecting consumers to professionals offering a service (ie. not a product), in less than an hour. These companies represent the 4th generation of online marketplaces, which evolved over time from generalist, passive classifieds (Craigslist), where all the work of matching supply and de

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