A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

JUNE 25, 2020

The board diversity problem is a symptom of a much broader problem around lack of diversity in founders that get funded and lack of diversity in VC firms. Most startup boards are made up of a few founders and a few VCs. No wonder you have no diversity on the board. 1/ When a startup board is created, there should be two independent seats on it. 2/ VCs should accept observer seats instead of board seats when they invest in companies. But boards are important.

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David Teten VC

JUNE 9, 2021

Would you like to work with private equity and venture capital funds? There are relatively few jobs directly inside private equity and venture capital funds, and those jobs are highly competitive. Venture Capital. Asian Venture Capital Journal (free trial).

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GAN

JANUARY 14, 2020

For most companies, that means having a board of directors. A board can be great in the right circumstances, but a board can also wield a ton of power over a CEO because they’re often investors who have capital in your company, which usually conveys them some tangible rights to it (like the ability to fire the CEO, to impact budgets, to change the overall direction of the company, etc.). This is where I believe an advisory board is critical for every startup.

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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. Founders on the other hand recognize that over time they are likely not to have complete control of the board of directors of the company they founded. The board is where large equity investors get their representation.

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A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

Bolster came out of stealth and into a beta period today and is opening up its marketplace to companies that want to access fractional talent and to executives who want to work at high growth companies in interim, fractional, advisory, or board roles. Bolster also will allow venture capital firms and startup investors to participate in its platform as super users.

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 4, 2021

Gregg Adkin is vice president and managing director at Dell Technologies Capital , the global venture capital investment arm of Dell Technologies. What’s the board’s role in an early-stage startup? A board can be a crucial asset in an early-stage startup.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

One of the things that founders have the most angst about is whom they should have on their board and at what stage of the business. This is smart because amazing board members can be transformative with important advice and access and can also help attract other great board members (and team members). Bad board members can make business very unpleasant. Do you need a board when you first start you company? If you get a smart person on the board?—?just

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Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative

MARCH 22, 2021

The YLAI Alumni Advisory Board is excited to invite you to an upcoming virtual event entitled “ Challenging Gender Bias in Entrepreneurship “, presented in honor of YLAI4All and International Women’s Day. Maximizing Human Capital YLAI Fellows

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The Seraf Compass

JUNE 9, 2021

When you combine great leadership with a strong board of directors, the likelihood of a successful outcome for a business increases by an order of magnitude. As members of the board, they occupy leadership positions.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2016

Fundamentally venture capital is about human capital. The existing Invoca team has been in place and functioning incredibly well the last few years and I’m so honored that Gregg has decided to come on board and help lead us to the next level. In the end I know the only true differentiator in venture capital is the company you keep. It’s the founders who are willing to let you join their boards. Venture Capital is a people business.

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TechCrunch

JANUARY 22, 2021

Christine Tao and Lori Mazan , the brains behind Sounding Board , want to train any leader within an organization to be a better leader. But in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Sounding Board has seen demand for its platform grow even more.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 19, 2019

Startups that are backed by professional financial investors almost always have a Board of Directors that consists of some set of founders, investors and sometimes independent directors. While the management of a startup company deals with the day-to-day decision-making within the company (strategy, budgets, goals, tasks, compensation) ultimately the Board of Directors has the legal governing responsibilities for these things. Who Should be on Your Board?

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 11, 2021

Board meetings are quickly increasing in their significance to foster consistent and vital interactions as an organization. It’s essential for companies to capitalize on the essential time together during these uncertain times. Isaac Roth. Contributor. Share on Twitter.

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Entrepreneurs' Organization

MAY 28, 2020

They also enjoy easier access to finance and face fewer capital restraints. The post 3 Tips for Getting Investors on Board With Your CSR Mission appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization.

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 6, 2014

I’ve written a few posts about boards recently as part of a series on the subject. I admit that I haven’t yet read it but I’ve had numerous discussions with Brad over the years about board structure & conduct and consider him a mentor on the topic. When you first start your company and raise initial venture capital your board probably consists of 1-3 founders and 1-2 VCs. So our board meetings consisted of discussion about.

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This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 18, 2019

The diversity is the direct result of our mission—to build the most accessible venture capital fund in NY. When you conflate hyperbole for ambition and realism for lack of aggressiveness, you will ultimately wind up shutting out a lot of groups from the game of risk seeking capital and opportunity. As an investor, it’s easy to come into a board meeting asking probing questions, demanding information, and sharing your opinion without first having built up a base of trust.

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TechCrunch

MARCH 10, 2021

Today, Volpe Capital announced the $80 million first close of its fund targeting high growth technology investments in Latin America. We are happy with our first deal and will take capital preservation in consideration.

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 6, 2021

” In a related article, Gregg Adkin, VP and managing director at Dell Technologies Capital, shared the framework he’s developed for helping founders set up their board. Matthew Harris, partner, Bain Capital Ventures. What’s the board’s role in an early-stage startup?

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This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Forming a board. Board members can provide useful feedback, help to focus the founding team, and provide a network of contacts. . That''s how board participation can help an advisor scale. So why wait until you have a company to setup a board? Setting up a simple board before you''ve even got a company can help you get into the practice of collecting feedback and getting nudged back into focus. Venture Capital & Technology

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TechCrunch

MAY 11, 2021

million in a Series B funding led by AllegisCyber Capital. Existing investors, including Evolution Equity Partners, Notion Capital, AlbionVC, Cisco Investments and Paladin Capital Group, as well as new investor National Grid Partners, also participated.

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TechCrunch

JANUARY 21, 2022

Following nearly four years in the prototype phase, Cana Technology is unveiling what it calls the “world’s first molecular beverage printer” after securing $30 million in funding from venture foundry The Production Board.

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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. So how do we go about the job of applying human capital to foster this success

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TechCrunch

DECEMBER 22, 2020

Indianapolis-based Boardable , a provider of board management software tools for nonprofits, has raised $8 million in a new round of financing, the company said. New Orleans-based Resilia raises $8 million from Mucker Capital to make nonprofits more efficient.

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 15, 2021

Startups TC Venture Capital CalTech columbia EC Manufacturing and Supply Chain EC News Analysis harvard intellectual property patents Private Equity Stephen elop uc-berkeley ucla yaleEarlier this year, 15 top U.S.

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Y Combinator

JULY 15, 2019

One of the most common questions we hear from founders is “How do I manage my board?” It’s something that provokes anxiety, because this is the first time the founder/CEO is subject to external supervision, and the board has powers that include the firing of the CEO and the senior management. Where possible, I’ve included specific examples – drawn from YC companies and partners – of how companies have handled board issues. But first, what’s the purpose of a board?

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TechCrunch

JUNE 2, 2021

Would you like to work with private equity and venture capital funds? There are relatively few jobs directly inside private equity and venture capital funds, and those jobs are highly competitive. Venture capital. Asian Venture Capital Journal (free trial). David Teten.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2019

Should You Allow Board Observers on Your Startup Board? Photo by Antenna on Unsplash A board observer is somebody who attends your board meeting but doesn’t have a voting right. There are also certain points in a board meeting where you can ask the board observers to step out of the room unless they’ve negotiated specific rights that preclude this. Why do board observers exist? Note: This is part of a series on Startup Boards.

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Entrepreneur's Handbook

SEPTEMBER 1, 2021

business venture-capital startup entrepreneurship leadershipThe doorbell rang. It was my co-founder, “Jim.” ” He was a few minutes early for our planning meeting with my other co-founder, “John.” ” Continue reading on Entrepreneur's Handbook ».

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TechCrunch

JANUARY 12, 2022

This morning, Public , an investment app for the American market, announced the appointment of two new board members. Public has added Jessica Neal , former chief talent officer at Netflix and present-day venture partner at TCV to its board, along with Dr. Christopher J.

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Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 15, 2017

Many board meetings are bored meetings. This is a shame since the value that the right board could add is immense if you select the right board members and manage them effectively. Yesterday I wrote a blog post about what the role of a board actually is. In short the board is there to represent the interest of all shareholders (big & small) of the company and all other stakeholders (debt, creditors, employees, etc.). Never be surprised at a board meeting.

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StartupNation

APRIL 18, 2022

startup landscape boomed in 2021, doubling year on year with a $329-billion venture capital investment across the board. Did you know that new research has revealed that less than 5% of business start-ups now depend on venture capital investment during their primary growth stages?

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 6, 2021

Venture capitalists are chatting this week about a recent piece from The Information titled “ The End of Venture Capital as We Know It.” A capital explosion. Thus, venture capitalists sold their capital dearly to founders.

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TechCrunch

APRIL 3, 2021

To scale such models, new businesses will need venture capital. How is edtech spending its extra capital. Tonal, a fitness tech startup, became a unicorn this week after raising a new tranche of capital.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 21, 2019

Should All of Your Management Team Attend Board Meetings? The age old question for every startup is whom to involve in the board meeting. The reality is that there are some board meetings in which having a broad set of management present is a great idea and there are some meetings where in can be a hindrance. If you’ve taken the time to assemble important people on to your board then you ought to use the scare time you have together to pick their brains.

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TechCrunch

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Ryan Caldbeck, co-founder and former CEO of consumer-brands-focused crowdfunding site CircleUp , recently published an email he’d written to a former director on the board of the company.

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Smart Hustle Magazine

MAY 16, 2021

Is Capitalism Bad? Yes, she believes in capitalism, capitalism with a heart ! Make room in the board room, make room at the executive level.

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Innovation 2 Enterprise

FEBRUARY 2, 2020

Considering the track record of venture capital invested in women-led firms, it’s easy to understand her focus. Even so, the bottom line is that more than 85 percent of venture capital in this country goes to male-founded companies. The Kauffman Foundation reports that private technology companies led by women are more capital-efficient, achieving 35 percent higher ROI and, when venture-backed, enjoy 12 percent higher revenue than startups run by only men.

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