This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 6, 2017

VCs lie. Everyone knows that or at least suspects it. What you don't know is whether they're lying to you or to themselves. I can't tell you how many times I've heard an entrepreneur make a generalization about VCs based on a few meetings that was completely wrong--and they were usually basing their statement off what the VC told them. Often, it's that the company didn't have enough traction, which could mean either one of two things: 1) The VC just didn't like the idea or the founder, but didn'

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VC education venture capital investment 281

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2017

Mayor Eric Garcetti at Upfront Summit, February 2017 I first sat down with then councilman Eric Garcetti on the Ides of March 2012 — almost 5 years ago exactly. He was running to be the 42nd mayor of Los Angeles and he outlined his vision to “open up the city government to technology and innovation” if he were elected. He wanted to bring the same level of technology focus and energy that Mayor Bloomberg had brought to New York City.

energy 191

energy innovation venture capital capital 191

Entrepreneurs' Organization

MARCH 29, 2017

By Doug Bonderud, writer and regular contributor for OnDeck. The rate of small business failure is trending downward, Entrepreneur reports. The trend stems partly from savvy business owners who do their homework before putting their product or service on the market. It can also be attributed to the rise of accessible, cloud-based eCommerce tools and accounting solutions, which make it possible for even home-based businesses to enjoy global impact.

financing 130

financing finance support entrepreneurs 130

Berkonomics

MARCH 2, 2017

As an early stage investor, the first test for me is whether “my” entrepreneur is flexible in both the plan and execution of his or her vision (since from experience almost everything about a business plan changes over time), and whether s/he, no matter what age or experience, is coachable. Doctoral theses have been written on this subject. Early stage investor groups often list these traits at or near the top of their list when filtering opportunities for investment.

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MARCH 7, 2017

Imagine if each and every cancer patient got a custom treatment based on their bodies’ makeup, which in turn increased the likelihood of the treatment’s success? zPREDICTA is making this vision reality. By artificially replicating a body’s internal environment, cancer drugs can be effectively tested before entering a human body, allowing drug developers and physicians to predict how a patient will respond to the treatment.

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This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 8, 2017

Just had a few conversations with startups around how early to hire for marketing. For most founders, it seems silly to hire for marketing when you don't have a product in market to sell. So, when are you supposed to start marketing? The day it launches? Seems a little late for that. You'd like to have developed an audience to be able to launch your product to--because as any PR person will tell you, relying 100% on other people's audiences can be a tough sell.

communities 150

communities creativity development strategy 150

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 2, 2017

There are so many moments from the Upfront Summit that I want to share with you — it just takes time to watch through all the videos, do write ups and still do my day job. One of the most exciting thinkers at Summit was Rebecca Kantar, the founder of Imbellus. I was excited to see her perform on stage because I’ve long been telling people how crazy smart, ambitious and talented she is but I was excited for people to hear for themselves.

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technology founder development entrepreneurship 244

Entrepreneurs' Organization

MARCH 27, 2017

By Jasmeet Dillard, spouse of EO Charlotte member John Dillard and US-East Representative. Formerly known as Spousal Forums, Spousal/Life Partner (SLP) Forums offer the loved ones of EO members a chance to experience the same support, experience-sharing and education that members enjoy. These specialized Forums are becoming more common as members’ spouses and life partners discover the profound benefits of taking their involvement with EO to the next level.

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education leadership support health 130

Berkonomics

MARCH 9, 2017

Well, the numbers don’t lie, even if there are several sources of these statistics. Starting a company is HARD – in so many ways. And risky too. I read several years ago, that the average startup restaurant lasts only about a year. Ouch! Here I am a professional investor in early stage companies, and I attempt to find those with the greatest chance of success and growth in value over time.

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OnStartups

MARCH 7, 2017

I've been working in the software industry for over 25 years. Pretty much my entire professional career (if you don't count that stint as a night clerk at Red Roof Inn). Back in the late 1900s, when you sold software, you sold software. What your company produced was a large set of properly aligned bits (software). You then got those bits to your customers somehow (floppy disk, DVD, FTP, whatever).

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Tomasz Tunguz

MARCH 14, 2017

I once asked a VP of Marketing at a top SaaS company how she thought of content programming. What is the right type of content to create? I asked her. She replied with a brilliant little insight, “I look at way the best content marketers in the world do it. The TV networks.” News dominates the early morning. Then, daytime television takes over targeting those who stay at home.

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SaaS sustainability education networking 44

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 26, 2017

I know a guy. In fact, I know a lot of guys. That’s good because guys are all anyone is looking for these days—or even speaking to. "Software guys." "Hardware guys." "Tech guys" in general. Guys who might want to fund our round. How tired are women of being either excluded in the language of who people are looking for, or being lumped in with men and being described as "Guys"?

culture 274

culture 274

Derek Sivers

MARCH 9, 2017

Art is useless by definition. If it was useful, it would be a tool. For the past twenty years, I was obsessed with being useful. That one measure drove all of my daily decisions: “How can I be the most useful to the most people today?”. That question served me well but had its downsides. It kept me from playing and doing things just for me. It’s no coincidence that I stopped making music twenty years ago.

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

MARCH 21, 2017

By Josh Sweeney, an EO Atlanta member and CEO of Atcore Systems, LLC. From the first EO prospect lunch that I attended, members, trainers and board members alike exalted the vast access to entrepreneurs that made up the organization’s global network. And shortly after joining, I received updates that EO had reached 10,000 members worldwide, as well as schedules for upcoming Universities and other global events.

peer-to-peer 130

peer-to-peer board leadership networking 130

Berkonomics

MARCH 23, 2017

I have a good business friend, an experienced manager and teacher with a Harvard MBA, whose deep thinking creativity and intelligence are admired by many. But he dilutes his effectiveness with wordy PowerPoint presentations. It has become a long running joke between us, as I often remind him that most of us have a very limited attention span and ability to recall important points from a presentation.

creativity 97

creativity 97

Thomas Grota

MARCH 5, 2017

Sunday break - time will tell on @rotarywatches timepieces. #walkout and keep the sunshine with you. Never stop without a #reason. #preciousTime #rotarywatch #rotarydial #bestcoffeintheworld at @hommage_koeln.

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Tomasz Tunguz

MARCH 11, 2017

Most startups go to market with the intent to differentiate their product. Each one of us has an idea what might make a better CRM, marketing automation suite or customer support. Other startups prefer to combine a product innovation with a reinvention of the sales process. The four key innovations in SaaS sales strategies I’ve observed so far are: Bottoms-up.

innovation 44

innovation SaaS education strategy 44

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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.

technology

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 20, 2017

It's really easy to be dismissive these days--because people talk a lot of s**t. There's probably no more dismissive group than founders--because you have to dismiss a lot of doubt and negativity on your way to success. However, a lot of founders have a tendency to be overly dismissive--to tell themselves a narrative and stick to that, no matter what anyone else, even if the criticism is warranted.

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founder 186

Derek Sivers

MARCH 12, 2017

Imagine the Olympics, where you have the three winners of a race standing on the podium: the gold, the silver, and the bronze. Imagine what it’s like to be the silver medalist. If you’d been just one second faster, you could have won the gold! Damn! So close! Damn damn damn! Full of envy, you’d keep comparing yourself to the gold winner. Now imagine what it’s like to be the bronze medalist.

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

MARCH 10, 2017

By Michael Manning, chief relationship officer at Rocksauce Studios. Good experience and stellar references make job candidates stand out, but culture fit can be the deciding factor. According to a 2016 survey, human resources teams often prioritize cultural fit when looking at recent college graduates—even over referrals, classes and grades. But evaluating fit doesn’t stop when you bring a new employee on board.

culture 130

culture collaboration board support 130

Berkonomics

MARCH 16, 2017

So, what do you think is more important? The quality of your management team, or the plan you execute toward success? Checking with professional investors from angels to VC’s, the answer appears to be near unanimous: the quality of the proposed or actual management team comes in a strong first, before the attractiveness of the business plan itself. The quest for a great management team is not a fluke, but rather a result of backward looks at the failure rate from past investments by those same

advice 97

advice entrepreneurs investing investment 97

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opportunity

propel(x)

MARCH 2, 2017

The Cleantech industry is at the vanguard of confronting some of the most important challenges of our time. From energy storage to waste management, clean technologies are transforming the way we interact with our environment. However, Cleantech has long been considered an investing black hole where it’s impossible to make money. Here steps in Jason Holt, former staff scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Lab, serial entrepreneur, and a seasoned investment advisor.

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energy advice technology mix-use 70

Tomasz Tunguz

MARCH 26, 2017

When I first met Jen Grant, Looker’s CMO, she told me a story from early days of Box, where she was SVP of Marketing. Jen spoke about the importance of creating tension in the marketing message. Aaron Levie, Box’s CEO and founder, spoke at conferences about the future of collaboration. His message: Box will transform the way employees work.

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startup collaboration education strategy 40

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2017

Every year Upfront Ventures surveys Limited Partners (LPs) who are the main source of capital that invests in VC funds and thus the main source of capital that goes to startups to get an early-warning sense of the year ahead, leaving aside any Black Swans. The results are in (and the full deck available ) and a few things are clear: LPs are at their most optimistic phase about venture since the great recession of 2007–2009 LPs believe that the venture markets have permanently changed and there a

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

MARCH 7, 2017

By Orrin Klopper, EO member and CEO of Netsurit. When Netsurit decided to seek an opportunity to expand into the North American market, networking with our colleagues at Entrepreneurs’ Organization was the logical first step in finding a like-minded company in the US. Everyone at Netsurit is driven by our mission of supporting the dreams of the doers.

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