Archives
March 2013
January 2013
Reid Hoffman – New VC Blogger (Essayist)
What Is The Appropriate Time Horizon Of A Financial Model for VC’s?
What Are Qualified Conditions Of Debt Conversion?
One Of Our Investors Just Closed Shop. What Should We Do?
Where Can I Find Information on Starting Salaries for a SaaS Startup?
Issues with Equity Misalignment
December 2012
Where Are The Best Executive Programs and Crash Courses for Venture Capital?
Who Are Stock Certificates Issued To and When?
November 2012
Is There More Than One Type Of Convertible Debt?
October 2012
New VC Blogger – Greg Gottesman (Madrona)
September 2012
What Costs Are Considered Reimbursable To The Founders Of A Startup Company?
August 2012
McClure on Scaling Venture Capital
Do You Need To File A Form D With A Financing?
July 2012
A New Angel Investing Strategy
June 2012
When Should A Company Be Formed Around an Idea?
Weiss: The CEO’s Weekly Checklist
April 2012
Baldwin: Advisors – Stop Screwing Startups
Do My Early Stage Investors Own Too Much Of The Company?
Does Being The First Full-Time Paid Employee Affect That Founder’s Equity In The Company?
How Often Do Employees Of VC-backed Startups Get Stock Options?
March 2012
How Do I Protect My Option Grant From A Down Round In The Future?
Parker: Open Source and For-Profit Companies
Wilson: The Board Of Directors – Selecting, Electing & Evolving
Suster: Never Negotiate Piecemeal. Here’s Why
Wenger: A Rational Internet Venture Valuations Bubble
McIntyre: Unencumbered By Reality
Be Patient – It Can Take A Long Fucking Time
February 2012
Husband And Wife VC Posts Of The Day
How Do I Get A Job In A Venture Capital Firm?
Takatkah: The Next Big Thing in VC
What Should I Do When Someone Expresses Interest In Acquiring My Company?
January 2012
Wenger: Presenting Option Grants to Boards
MacLeod: The Model Board Package
What Does A VC Mean When He Says Your Product Is “A Feature And Not A Company”?
Suster: Spend 2012 on the Right Side of the Haimish Line
Raouf: What Made Alex Ferguson a Great Manager
November 2011
What Are VC Firm’s Efforts To Connect Firms In Their Portfolio With Fresh MBA Grads?
Levine: Trends in M&A Deal Terms
Are VCs Interested in Funding a Services Agency?
Suster: Why You Should Ban Laptops & iPads at Board Meetings
October 2011
Wilson: What’s The Difference Between A CTO And A VP Engineering?
Skok: Multi-axis Pricing: A Key Tool for Increasing SaaS Revenue
Mentors, Revenue Based Financing, and Misperceptions About Venture Capital
Roberts: You’re Doing It All Wrong
Go: Startup Jargon Series: DISRUPTION
September 2011
October 2011
September 2011
Convertible Debt – Early Versus Late Stage Dynamics
October 2011
Brisbourne: The Math Behind Anti-Dilution (With Examples)
September 2011
October 2011
Teaching With Our Book – Venture Deals
How Many Shares Should I Use To Incorporate My Company?
How Do VCs Mitigate Risk In Their Investment Portfolios?
Warrants In A Deal With An Advisor
September 2011
Convertible Debt – Other Terms
Convertible Debt – Conversion In A Sale Of The Company
Is A 180 Day Lockup Typical When A Company Goes Public?
August 2011
Convertible Debt – Conversion Mechanics
Convertible Debt – Valuation Caps
Convertible Debt – The Discount
September 2011
Do You Need To Be A Corporation To Raise VC Funding?
What Should You Do When An Investor Asks You For A Business Plan?
Suster: The Problem with Collecting Logos at Startups
MacLeod: A Series On SaaS Math
August 2011
If An Entrepreneur Has Children, Does It Impact Funding Decisions?
Roberts: You Can Never Size a Market in Excel
Are People Who Claim To Be “VC Brokers” Legit?
Wilson: Pricing A Follow-On Venture Investment
Checklist For Launching A Startup
Sheehan: Putting Together Your Perfect Seed Round
Levine: Should The Current Market Environment Change Your Fundraising Strategy?
Hower: Your Startup Probably Isn’t A Platform
Skype Buys GroupMe For Around $85 Million
How Hard Is It For A US VC To Fund A Company In Brazil?
Entrepreneurs Thoughts On VCs And Angels
VC Song of the Day: Takin’ VC Money
Wilson: Financing Options: Bridge Loans
Suster: What Startups Can Learn About PR and Crisis Management
Go: Should You Meet With VC’s Early for Feedback?
Shulman: Should Founders Personally Guaranty Bank Loans?
Venture Deals: Chapter 13: Legal Things Every Entrepreneur Should Know
Brisbourne: Keeping Going Through The Turmoil
Venture Deals: Chapter 12: Letters of Intent—The Other Term Sheet
Venture Deals: Chapter 11: Issues at Different Financing Stages
Spreadsheets To Model Cap Tables
Wilson: Financing Options – Capital Equipment Loans and Leases
Venture Deals: Chapter 10: Raising Money the Right Way
Venture Deals: Chapter 9: Negotiation Tactics
Venture Deals: Chapter 8: How Venture Capital Funds Work
Dale: All The Bad Things VCs Want To Do To You!
Wegner: If You Need To Raise Money, Get Your Financing Done ASAP
Venture Deals: Chapter 7: The Capitalization Table
Venture Deals: Chapter 6: Other Terms of the Term Sheet
Venture Deals: Chapter 5: Control Terms of the Term Sheet
Morgan: Why Entrepreneurs Should Never Meet VC’s Unless They’re Formally Pitching
July 2011
Venture Deals: Chapter 4: Economic Terms of the Term Sheet
Raouf: Should You Care About Your VC’s Investors?
Venture Deals: Chapter 3: Overview of the Term Sheet
Venture Deals: Chapter 2: How To Raise Money
Go: Some Thoughts on Communicating With Your Investors
Venture Deals: Chapter 1: The Players
Series A Warrants Based On Milestones Versus A Deal With Two Closes
Ehrenberg: Financing your start-up
VC’s Talk About Better Board Meetings
Suster: Don’t Cede Control: Why You Need to Cut out Middle Men in Negotiations
O’Donnell: Live In The Problem
Venture Deals Is Officially Released
500Startups: Cohort Metrics For Startups
Bussgang: Why You Should Eliminate Titles at Start-ups
February 2010
GREAT New Blog – IP Law for Startups
December 2009
Is An Inside Round Good or Bad?
Looking for Angel Investors for a High Tech Venture?
Things To Consider About Who You Should Take VC Money From
November 2009
Why Don’t Venture Capitalists Tell You Why They Won’t Invest?
Preparing to Wind Down a Business: What information do you need?
October 2009
When to Shut Down Your Company
Know Your Communication Strategy When Raising Money
How To Wind Down Your Company – New Series
August 2009
Thoughtful Analysis on the Dynamics of the VC Industry
How to Run a Great Board Meeting
Ruminations On Whether Seattle VC’s Suck
July 2009
Another Way VCs Outnegotiate Entrepreneurs
Finding Companies to Invest In
June 2009
May 2009
Key Characteristics of a Great Startup Culture
Start-up Cost Projections For First Time Entrepreneurs
Communications Advice for Pitching Venture Capitalists
April 2009
Participate in the 2009 Startup Executive Compensation Survey
How To Get A Job In Venture Capital
Does The Concept of Addressable Market Matter?
Do VC’s Guess The Exit At The Beginning?
March 2009
What Advice Would You Give Mompreneurs?
Risk Tolerance is a Competitive Weapon
Ask the VC Live – University of Michigan
What Do Venture Capitalists Think About Young Entrepreneurs?
February 2009
Crash Course on Venture Capital
Ask the VC Live (Update) and Start Up Drinks
Ask the VC Live (Update) and Start Up Drinks
Model Seed Documents – Direct From Techstars
January 2009
Should I Send My Business Plan to a VC?
December 2008
Getting Attention from VCs and Angel Investors If You Are Young
VC Investing During A Downturn
What Does Your Business Actually Do?
Angels – Keep It Simple and Fair
Deciding Which VCs to Avoid (or to approach)
Why Is My Venture Capitalist Wasting My Money By Changing My Indemnification Agreements?
November 2008
Choice of Entity – C Corps, S Corps, LLCs?
Healthy Ways to Tighten the Corporate Belt
SaaS and Cost Cutting vs. Sales
LearnVC – A Web Resource About Venture Capital for Entrepreneurs and Investors
October 2008
What To Do When You Are In A Circular Discussion With A VC
Who You Deal With and How You Deal With Them
How Does the Current Macro Economy Affect Venture Capitalists and Startups?
How Many Companies Should Be in a VC’s Fund?
Why Wont The Venture Capitalist Return My Phone Call?
September 2008
Compensation In A Very Early State Company – Follow Up Question
How Do I Do Multiple Closings for an Angel Round?
What Price Adjustments Do You See Prior To Closing In A Financing?
August 2008
What Are the Pros and Cons of Investment From a Strategic Entity?
How Should I Approach a VC I Don’t Know?
How Many Deals Should Be Needed To Return A VC Fund?
How Gross and Net Returns Work For Venture Funds
How Venture Fund Economics Work
Is Dilution Considered When Talking About Equity Ranges?
July 2008
How Can I Invest In A Venture Capital Firm?
Am I In Trouble If I Don’t Raise Money From Kleiner?
Should I Pay My Venture Capitalist To Consult For My Company?
What Is The Purpose of Venture Debt At The Series A Round?
Should I Pay My Lawyer A Success Fee For Venture Capital Intros?
Intent, Term Sheets, and Off Limit Questions
June 2008
How Did We Get Our Idea For Our Startup?
I’ve Got Angels Who Want To Invest But Not Lead – Now What?
What’s An Appropriate Equity Package For A Founding Board Member?
More Thoughts on Structuring an Angel Investment
Founders Termination Clause In Term Sheets?
May 2008
What Kind of Benefits Can I Expect Working at a Startup?
Should You Expense or Capitalize Your Engineering Costs?
Should I Be A Shareholder Representative?
A VC’s View on Why Startups Fail
Should I Protect My IP Before I Try To Build My Product?
Do VCs Fund Entrepreneurs Who Have Failed At Previous Ventures
Should I Send My Business Plan To Every VC Firm I Have An Email Address For?
How To Get A Job In Venture Capital
April 2008
I Cut The Wrong Deal With An Advisor – Should I Kill It?
VC Perspective on Intellectual Property
How Do Startups Find Early Hires?
Do I Need a Team To Raise Venture Capital?
Does Having a H1B-Visa Founder Preclude Venture Investment?
Do I Pick A Venture Capitalist Based On Money or Guidance?
What Do I Say When I Don’t Think A Founder Will Be An Effective CEO?
What’s The Best Material for the Pre-Pitch Introduction to a VC
March 2008
Do You Know What You Don’t Know?
How A VC Thinks About Marketplaces
What’s the Difference between a CEO and COO?
How Does A Small Angel Investment Impact a Future VC Round?
Are Venture Capitalists incompetent or just inconsiderate?
Saving Money When Running A Startup
February 2008
Do You Have Conviction and Discipline?
Why Isn’t There A Network or Hub Connecting Venture Capitalists With Startups?
Do Venture Capitalists Demand Audited Financials?
January 2008
This Downturn Will Be Different
A VCs Thought On A Potential Downturn
What Is The Effect of the "Pending" Recession on Venture Capital Financings of Private Companies?
What Happens to Unvested Options in a Merger?
Do Venture Capitalists Always Get Veto Rights On A Company Raising More Money?
Mid-Atlantic Venture Capital Funds
Do Venture Capitalists Fund A Company With An Intent To Steal It?
Do All Venture Capitalists Come From Harvard or Stanford?
Equity Comp in Turnarounds and Consolidations
December 2007
My Lawyer Wants Equity in My Startup
I’ve Got A Huge Vision for Something, Now What?
What Skills Do You Look For In Founders?
Are Watermarks On Presentations Useful?
Can Employee #1000 Get Rich Off of Stock Options?
Will A Talented Entrepreneur Make $1m From His Startup?
What Valuation Are You Looking For?
Should I Outsource My Fundraising?
Sales is a Science, not an Art
What Happens If Convertible Notes Are Called By Angel Investors?
Should Venture-backed Companies Require Non-Competes?
November 2007
The Wizard on Early Stage Board of Directors
Should Startups Invest In Patents?
What Are Typical Employment Contract Terms and Severance Benefits for a Startup?
SEC Announces Rule Change for Private Companies
Compensation In A Very Early Stage Company
Should You Exercise Your Stock Options
Generic Range of Equity Desired By a VC for Round 1 or 2
Term Sheet for an LLC vs. a Corporation
Should You Exaggerate Your Size?
What Is The One Common Element You’ve Seen In Successful VC’s?
What Should You Send To Prospective Investors?
Fun VC Phrases That Mean Nothing
October 2007
Eek – A Competitor Just Raised $50 Million – Now What?
Places to Find Developers in Exchange for Sweat Equity
September 2011
How Much Equity Should an Early Stage COO/CFO Get?
October 2007
The Role of an Early Stage Board of Directors
How Can An Entrepreneur Fundraise Without Getting In Trouble With the SEC?
When A VC Says “I Need 20% Of The Company”
Great Book on Legal Issues Affecting Entrepreneurs
Do Credit Market Problems Affect the Venture Capital Industry?
September 2007
More on Potential Tax Law Changes for Venture Capitalists
You Can Fire 10% of Your Company Anytime And Not Notice
Why Are Venture Capitalists So Hard To Deal With?
How Does One Structure a Business to Pursue Other Business Lines?
How Much Equity Should I Get In My Startup?
Handling a Poor Reference on a New CEO Candidate
August 2007
How Will the New Tax Laws on Carry Affect Venture Capitalists?
Does My Company Have to Exist to Get Funding?
Why Doesn’t My Question Get Answered on Your Website?
What’s the Climate for Venture Fundings In China?
What Are The Costs Associated With Changing a Company’s State of Incorporation?
Creating a Board of Directors During an Angel Round
Quick Overview of Preferred Stock
Can You Conduct A Confidential Venture Capital Job Search?
July 2007
Latest and Greatest on Stock Option Practices
Raising Money From Venture Capitalists Versus Investment Banks.
How Much Should I Pay Lawyers To Complete My Financing?
How Much Should You Raise in a Series A?
Good Fundraising Story and Perspective
An Investment Bankers’ View On Brokers in Early Stage Fundraising
When Should We Start Seeking Our Next Round of Funding?
Is There A Distinction Between Seed and Early Stage
All That You Wanted to Know About GPLv3 and Open Source Issues
How Do You Value "Sweat Equity" in a New Restaurant Concept?
What Are The Appropriate Information Rights for Angel Investors?
Launching Into Specific Verticals and Geographies
Critical Marketing Activites For A Startup
10 Pragmatic Steps to Raising Venture Capital
What Do Venture Capitalists Think About Venture Debt?
Did You Make Your Expense Plan?
How Do Venture Capitalist Justify Doing Angel Deals To Their Investors?
June 2007
Do Venture Capitalists Still Invest In "Old Folks?"
Why Don’t Venture Capitalists Invest In Real Estate?
Selling a Company: To Auction or Not Auction
Options, Options, and More Options
Merger and Acquisition Due Diligence – The Seriousness of the Acquirer
How Do You Negotiate a Carve Out With Investors?
What Is the Standard Number of Shares to Create in a New Company?
How Can You Replace the CEO of a Struggling Angel-Funded Company?
What are Supra Pro-Rata Rights?
Should Entrepreneurs Be Worried About Convertible Notes as a First Financing Event?
Can I Be Creative In My Financing Approaches Without Committing a Securities Violation?
How To Start A Company Like Schilling Pitches
Board Member / Advisory Member Compensation
The Re-emergence of Venture Debt
Venture Capital / Lawyer Term Sheet Humor
Do Venture Capitalist Like To Change Pre-existing Employment Contracts?
Merger and Acquisition Due Diligence – What To Expect
Should I Take Money From Unaccredited Investors?
Do Venture Deals Include Control Premiums?
Marc Andreesen on Venture Capitalists – Part 2
How To Get A Gig as a VC Associate (or Analyst)
Marc Andreesen on Venture Capitalists
What Should I Pay a Recruiter?
Do Venture Investors Require Business Plans?
What are typical compensation numbers?
Can Founders Cash Out At Time of Venture Investment?
What Are Standard Legal Fee Arrangments For Un-Funded Startups?
May 2007
Trends in Compensation Packages in Venture-Backed Companies
Do Venture Capitalist Ever Use Their Redemption Rights?
Budgets in Early Stage Companies
Decision Making Using Noninstrumental Information
How Important is Brand Image at The Early Stages?
Burn Rate for a Seed Financing
What Percentage of A Company Does a Typical Entrepreneur Own at Exit?
Compensation in Venture-Backed Companies Before They Raise Money
Microsoft – The New Destructor of Innovation?
Compensation Packages in Venture-Backed Companies
How Do You Calculate Operating Cash Flow?
What is the Best State of Incorporation?
Kedrosky’s Top 10 Limited Partner Lies
Supreme Court Issues Two Important Patent Decisions
April 2007
Concluding Thoughts about Good Board Packages
Common Stock Carveouts In Acquisitions
Josh Kopelman on “Catch and Release” vs. “Catch and Keep”
Board Package Series – Overview and CEO Critical Thoughts
Boulder OpenCoffee Club Update: New Website, New Location and New Attendees!
Final Regulations Under Section 409A Released
Board Package Series – Business Reporting
Board Package Series – Board Administrative Issues
Is Quality of The Team The Most Important Thing?
Communicating with Your Angel Investors
Book Review: Venture Capital and the Finance of Innovation
What is the Minimum Amount of Investment Should I Take From an Angel Investor?
A Founders View on Stock Vesting
How to Create A Good Board Package
Creating a Good Board Package Series
Boulder OpenCoffee Club Clarification
Convertible Warrants In A Series A Round?
Stock Options from an Entrepreneurs Point of View
March 2007
Boulder Open Coffee Club Open for Business
How Do VCs Discount For Lack Of Marketability of Stock?
Should An Angel Investor Invest in Friends?
What Should I Consider With Management Carve Out Plans?
Okay, I Got A Job At A Venture Firm: What Do I Do Now?
How to Fill Early Board Positions In A Pre-Seed Company
New VC Blogger – Todd Jaquez-Fissori
Hedge Funds and Early Stage Venture Capital
Should Entrepreneurs Avoid Examining Patents? – The Sequel
Should Entrepreneurs Avoid Examining Patents?
Introduction to Venture Capital
Do All VCs Have Degrees From Top Schools?
How Do I Best Deal With the Due Diligence Process?
How Do I Create Projections For My New Web Service?
Are “Letters of Intent” Useful in VC Meetings
What Do Venture Capitalists Think About Founders Looking For A New CEO?
February 2007
Tim Wolters on The Liquidation Preference
What’s A Reasonable Starting Point For An Option Pool?
How Do Venture Capitalists Spend Their Day?
Should You Hire Someone To Write Your Business Plan?
Dealing With All Those Early Shareholders
Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics
Everything You Need To Know About Venture Capital
More Thoughts on Don’t Be Casual
What Do Venture Capitalists Think About Founders Leaving and Starting New Businesses?
Should A Company Use A Founder’s Spouse As Legal Counsel?
How Targeted Should An Early-Staged Company Be?
Which Conferences Should I Attend?
When Is It Appropriate To Bring Your Lawyer Into Your Deal?
Do Venture Capitalist Care About Immigration Laws?
The IRS Is Urging Companies To Pay Liabilities Of Workers With Backdated Options.
How Is Intellectual Property Split Between Separating Founders?
What Do Venture Capitalists Think About Offshore Development Offices?
What Is The Difference Between "Venture Capital" and "Private Equity?"
White Paper: A Simple Guide to the Basic Responsibilities of VC-Backed Company Directors
January 2007
How Do You Find A Good Law Firm?
I Want Control – Pretty Please
Do VCs Care About Product Managers?
How To Become a Venture Capitalist
How Do VC’s Think About Open Source?
How Expensive / Dilutive is VC Money?
What To Do With An Alcoholic Business Partner
How Do VC’s Determine Company Valuations?
Should We Talk To VCs If We Aren’t Interested In Raising Money?
I Was “De-VC’d” What Do I Do Now?
How Do Limited Partners Feel About "Fair Valuation" Guidelines?
When Do VC’s Prefer to Invest In Companies?
What Is the Impact of Private Equity and Hedge Funds on VCs?
Should Companies Solicit Multiple VCs, or Just One While Fundraising?
VC Primer from an Entrepreneur’s Point of View
Do I Pitch A Better Mousetrap or A Different Version of Star Trek?
Are There Venture Capital Brokers?
VCs and Non-Disclosure Agreements
Raising Startup Money Through a Public Shell Company
What Kind of People Do VCs Like to Back
What Are Standard Terms and Valuations?
Are There Any VCs Running Their Firms as a Web 2.0 Business?
How Do You Decide How Much To Raise Per Financing Round?
California Gone "Mad" In Enforcement of 409A
What’s a Good Venture Capital Terms Dictionary?
Is This Offer a Good One for My Company?
What Are Standard General Partner Terms in Fund Agreements?
How Many Boards Can A VC Handle?
Why Don’t Companies Issue Non-Voting Stock To Employees / Investors?
How Do You Raise A Little Bit of Capital – Part 2
How Do You Raise A Little Bit Of Capital?
Coming Soon To This Blog: New Series
Can VCs Invest In S-Corps or LLCs?
Do Companies Ever Buy Back VC Shares?
Investing In An Angel Deal Without A PPM?
Questions You Should Ask Yourself During Fundraising
MIT Enterprise Forum “Brave New Web” Conferences
How To Incentivize Employees in a LLC context?
What Is The Relevance of Life Terms of VC Funds?
Check Your Sketchy “Business Coach’s” References
How To Earn Frequent Flyer Miles on US Airways
December 2006
Fred Wilson’s Predictions for 2007
Learning Your Way Around AsktheVC
What are Some Good VC Media Sources?
How Do You Deal with Founders Stock When Some of the Founders Leave the Company Early?
What on Earth is 280G? What is a Parachute Payment?
What is a Typical Capital Structure Like?
