Founders and Fundraising
Who’s The Right Person To Be CEO?
“I’d like you to be the CEO of the company,” “Ray” said to me. We were meeting for the first time outside of a Starbucks in Los Altos, CA. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. Ray had spent the previous thirty minutes explaining what his company was going…
Read MoreHow Do You Prepare To Pitch Investors?
“You made things a lot easier for me,” Jim said to me, shaking my hand. My co-founder and VP Engineering, Jeroen, and I had flown to Boston to pitch Jim and his partners, and Jim’s reaction indicated the meeting went well. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. “That’s…
Read MoreWhat’s The Wrong Way To Think About Equity?
Years ago, I was introduced to the two co-founders of a fledgling semiconductor company. I have an affinity for companies in the space, so I agreed to talk with them. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. The two co-founders told me they had no funding, and they were…
Read MoreWhat’s The Right Number Of Co-founders?
The most successful startup I’m currently involved with is now worth well over $2 billion. They’re raising another $300 million as we speak, and they’ll likely be worth around $4 billion when the round closes. The company had one founder, “Ray.” [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] The…
Read MoreHow Much Money Should You Raise?
“We should be raising a $6 million round, not $12 million,” “Randy”, my co-founder, said to me. In fact, Randy was so pissed at the terms of our funding that he was threatening to quit. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. “Let’s meet, so I can walk you…
Read MoreWhat’s The Behavior You Can’t Have As A Founder?
“I don’t know if I can do this anymore,” “Serge”, the CEO of a struggling startup, said to me. “I think I’m going to give up.” Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. “What?” I responded. Serge’s capitulation said didn’t register on me. It was foreign to my way…
Read MoreWho You Should Never Add As A Co-Founder?
“I just bought a unit in new The Millennium building, up in the City,” my co-founder, “Ken”, said to me. “You should check it out!” Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. “Really,” I said. “I thought you were going to buy a house on the peninsula, closer to…
Read MoreWhy You’re The Most Important Person In Your Company
“The engine that makes an Analog IC company go is a great VP Engineering or CTO,” I said to Dave, the VC partner I was working with when I was incubating my startup as an EIR (Entrepreneur in Residence) at a VC fund in San Francisco. Then I continued, “Without a great VP Engineering we…
Read MoreCan You Succeed When You Don’t Get Along With Your Co-Founders?
There were these four founders that got together to start their business. Peter, John, Roger and Keith were their names. The products they produced were some of the best in their industry. The customers they had loved their products. And they were well respected by their competitors. By their own admission, they got along horribly.…
Read MoreHow You Can Win A Deal In Seven Seconds Or Less
“You didn’t have me at hello,” the investor said to us. “But I like what you’re doing. Let me think about this and get back to you.” Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. We had just finished presenting to a well known VC in our space. The VC…
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