Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 21, 2014

When you’re hiring most reference checkers focus on the person’s former bosses. Just literally this week I had breakfast with a guy giving a reference who said, “He’s brilliant. Our founder, Yves Sisteron, was my mentor and board member at my first startup. ” Just as a test. But he knows it.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

and of course a relentless pursuit of helping founders succeed. So mostly we just had to listen to customer feedback from founders, VCs and LPs. She made the right decisions not joining back then because that founder empathy is the “++” that makes a difference in this business. So why now? So What Does All This Mean?

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

But if you’re a concentrated investor who takes board seats then you know the hard bit starts the day after. Co-founder discontent. You can’t reference check your way into a “yes.” What would this founder do if he got an offer to be acquihired quickly by Facebook? Health destroying stress.

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 8, 2010

My favorite two quotes of the weekend were: “Never trade your cat for somebody else’s dog” (referring to selling your company for stock to another privately held company – quote was from Alan. He said that ineffectual leaders seek consensus or want direction or approval from the board. I’m going to save that for a future blog post.

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peer-to-peer advice VC board 279

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 17, 2012

I wonder sometimes if founders even know about the hours their lawyers or advisers put in on evenings, weekends, vacations. I had dinner with my friend Brooke Hammerling , founder of Brew PR recently. One day if you’re lucky you’ll be big enough to work with recruiters to hire senior members of your team or your board.

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startup real estate VC venture capital 363

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 7, 2013

Because I''m in my market and in the flow of top teams and networked with the right folks, I''m never more than a character reference away through someone I trust and know well to just about all of the people I''ve backed. They''re not well networked and all of the founders they meet essentially start out as strangers out of the blue.

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investment investing construction venture capital 352

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 3, 2013

Tim, my former co-founder and long-time colleague & friend who joined as global head of products. Ming who the hero of so many customers whose primary reference to other customers is, “make sure you get a Ming.” Now can we please do at least one board meeting in LA?!? ” Steve. Roger Ehrenberg. Chris Smart.

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board disruption media SaaS 358

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 12, 2016

When I did my customer reference calls with some of the largest corporate buyers in the country who have adopted Tact I heard the same narrative repeatedly “We use CRM tools but our mobile workforce always struggled with adoption. I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that our other investor is Subrah Iyer , the founder of WebEx.

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real estate leadership board investment 244

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 30, 2013

I’m sure you know, but Elon was the co-founder (and largest shareholder) of PayPal, the most important payment transfer technology of its era and still the most instrumental to date. The reference to Andy Dunn and me is responding to this post I wrote (in response to Andy’s earlier post). But Elon Musk stole the show.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2010

This applies to both founders and to VC’s that work with them. One of the first boards that I ever got involved with where I wasn’t the CEO was with a company in which I hadn’t invested but was brought on board to look deeper into operational issues. A quick example.

startup 308

startup board advice VC 308

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. A note on board composition.

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board frameworks advice peer-to-peer 102

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 3, 2014

Specifically what is often not in the DNA of founders are sales skills. Founders think in options. They like a solid product, well defined pricing, good references to sell against, a clear quota and well defined competitors. Customer also buy social proof because others are acting as strong references. Here are mine.

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culture startup support consulting 382

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 19, 2010

Despite the fact that I'm a blackbelt in Tae Kwan Do (haven't practiced in a few years though), what I'm referring to has nothing to do with kicks or punches. The potential downside is that, as a Principal, you're not really as front and center as you'd like to be on decision making and board participation. Help recruit talent?

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education incubation innovation communities 225

TechCrunch

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

He serves on the boards of OCEANIX, Atom Computing, Conscious Cultures and MycoWorks. Founders should think of three primary documents as their “holy trinity”: the deck, the strategy memo and the forecast model. Gaetano Crupi. Contributor. Gaetano Crupi is a partner at venture capital firm Prime Movers Lab.

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founder strategy pitching venture capital 97

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 23, 2016

During this period Kobie worked closely with many SaaS companies including ExactTarget from its early days and the Founder & CEO, Scott Dorsey, served as a strong reference for Kobie. I worked on two boards with Kobie (Invoca & Osmo) where I got to experience his operating insights and work ethic first hand.

ventures 260

ventures culture venture capital SaaS 260

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 29, 2024

After all, it’s something they recommend founders do. I coached investors to promotions, first board seats, internal personnel decisions and even a long overdue resignation. I’d often refer to this as figuring out what the “eleven out of ten” was for any given situation. Make it easy for them to say yes. Is it any louder?”

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VC board venture capital communities 195

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

So I organized a team dinner with all four of my partners and all three of their founders. By Monday morning after their board meeting in NorCal I didn’t get a return phone call. As the founder & CEO I personally went and met with as many people at Thames Water as I could. 15 companies North of $1 billion exit.

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consulting advice collaboration VC 333

Entrepreneurs' Organization

FEBRUARY 9, 2022

A Forum, which is also often referred to as a Mastermind, is a group of peers who meet regularly, with the goal of helping each member improve personally and professionally. Almost 10 years ago, I had my first experience with a professional Forum when I joined Entrepreneurs’ Organization. It can often create a better outcome for everyone.

peer-to-peer 278

peer-to-peer advice frameworks accelerator 278

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

So I organized a team dinner with all four of my partners and all three of their founders. By Monday morning after their board meeting in NorCal I didn’t get a return phone call. As the founder & CEO I personally went and met with as many people at Thames Water as I could. 15 companies North of $1 billion exit.

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consulting advice collaboration VC 328

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2020

In marketing materials founders often refer to their customer base as a “community”, but there’s a huge gap between having customers and creating a community. they could invest in entrepreneurial communities and the best founders would then bring in new founders. It’s no wonder they’ve both performed so well.

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communities peer-to-peer venture capital enablement 234

Andreessen Horowitz

OCTOBER 4, 2023

Given the shifting landscape, it’s helpful for you as a CEO and/or founder—or for your finance and capital markets teams, if you have those hires to help you through this process—to know who the key players are at each stage so you can spend your time and energy speaking to the right firms. small business loans for their customers).

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founder real estate capital financing 129

TechCrunch

NOVEMBER 30, 2021

Lak Ananth is founding CEO and managing partner of the global venture capital firm Next47 and serves on the board of several companies that he has helped to grow beyond $1 billion valuations. Not all money is created equal: A VC’s advice for founders. More posts by this contributor. 8 disappointing investor archetypes.

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founder board advice investment 79

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 10, 2014

EVP of MTV, President of Liberty Digital and on the boards of CNET, Scripps, comScore, Riot Games and Rubicon Project to name a few. For those in the know, Jarl has been a savvy angel investor and a mentor to many young tech founders (and a few of us VCs as well). He was CEO of E!, What a load of rubbish.

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media leadership disruption board 299

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

Specifically what is often not in the DNA of founders are sales skills. They like a solid product, well defined pricing, good references to sell against, a clear quota and well defined competitors. Customer also buy social proof because others are acting as strong references. Please call our references.

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support startup consulting board 316

Gust

DECEMBER 8, 2011

Likewise, founders can benefit from understanding basic characteristics of the overall legal structure, formation and governance documents, rights and responsibilities of team members, etc. Determine who will serve on the Board of Directors and in executive officer positions (usually founders). Advisory board agreements.

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board consulting real estate entrepreneurs 139

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 18, 2024

I’m talking about what someone I know recently referred to as “dentists”. Some of these folks are founders and CEOs, but not at high-growth tech startups. That’s why I normally ask for a Board Observer seat. If you’re getting down to contested board votes on important topics before a Series A or B, something’s wrong.

investment 221

investment investing startup real estate 221

Revolution

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

led by Founder & CEO Jonathan Webb ?—?rang Having the opportunity to learn from the founders you back is by far one of the most rewarding parts of being a venture capital investor. I used to joke that the company moves at “the speed of Jonathan,” referring to the founder’s incredible impatience with the status quo.

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venture capital economic development sustainability capital 173

TechCrunch

OCTOBER 6, 2022

Atman Capital, a year-old early-stage venture firm partially backed by about 20 founders, is sweetening the deal for these individual limited partners. It promises to give credit to any one of them who refers a successful deal to the venture firm in the form of some carried interest in the firm’s own profits. and Latin America.

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VC founder peer-to-peer angel investing 81

Entrepreneurs' Organization

OCTOBER 19, 2018

My strengths as chief executive officer (CEO) of RegioHelden were typical founder qualities: I was good at designing an MVP , persuading customers and employees, raising money and defining an overall vision and strategy. Testdrive and check references with the team. Testdrive and check references with the team. Why hire a COO?

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board creativity networking energy 130

Dream It

SEPTEMBER 8, 2020

Most founders consider two possibilities when thinking about their exit strategy: IPO or acquisition. However, the process of startup M&A likely remains shrouded in mystery for founders who have never seen it first-hand. Managing Partner Steve Barsh refers to this as being a “mercenary” entrepreneur, as opposed to a “missionary.”

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board VC strategy construction 195

Gust

DECEMBER 8, 2013

If you really want to impress a startup founder as a potential employee, or you want to be a smart investor, you need to know the right questions to ask. These are the questions that get past the hype of a founder “vision to change the world,” and into the realm of real business strengths, weaknesses, and current health. Now you know.

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Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2016

Investors sat with the founder & CEO, Jason Spievak, and asked him what he wanted to do about the future. Mark dutifully went to partner meetings, back-channel references began, firms started calling existing VCs to “test prices” and we started debating whom our best partner would be.

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 23, 2023

He told private bankers that the $20 million, which amounted to 40% of the $50 million Slync raised from angels and venture firms, represented “a distribution from my company” — a distribution that Slync’s board of directors never authorized. Meanwhile, some of Slync’s staff went months without pay.

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founder startup transportation technology 84

TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 16, 2022

David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. To help our founders in transition. Versatile VC runs a no-cost community for founders in transition, “ Founders’ Next Move.” Our goal is to invest in, co-invest with and/or recruit founders in transition.

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VC peer-to-peer consulting board 93

David Teten VC

MARCH 1, 2022

How to win consulting, board, operating, and investment roles with private equity and venture capital funds (video). To help our founders in transition , some of which are interested in becoming scouts. Our goal is to invest in, coinvest with, and/or recruit founders in transition. How to find a job as a VC scout.

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VC venture capital accelerator ventures 128

Onevest

MAY 21, 2015

While legal advice is of paramount importance to ensure that any contract of investment is above board, you still need to know what is being asked of you so that you can decide whether such stipulations are acceptable or not. Board Seat In some cases an investor may request a presence on a company's board of directors, if it has one.

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investment investing startup board 116

TechCrunch

DECEMBER 20, 2021

They started Searchlight in 2018 to develop technology that uses behavioral reference data and prescriptive analytics to give employers a more 360-degree view of a potential candidate’s strengths and weaknesses that might not appear on a resume or come out during an interview. Searchlight resonated with me,” he added. “I

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