VentureBeat

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: The state of the VC world and tech’s human problem

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

5 ways VC firms can stop shooting themselves in the foot – Venture Capital firms drill the need to create basic credibility into the companies they invest in – but often fail to take their own advice. Laura Grimmer, CEO of Articulate Communications (which works with VC firms), lists five things they could do to build a better pipeline of prospective portfolio companies.

After VC cash? Show ‘em what you’ve learned –… Continue Reading

Tech mishaps and the human problem

Behind every tech problem is a human problem – and if you don’t dig into it and figure out how solve it, your company will never progress. Serial entrepreneur Eric Ries, in this entrepreneurial though leader lecture given at Stanford University, notes that a layered analysis of decisions and procedures can help you narrow the possibilities and find the root cause of the issue.

Boston Millennia’s Callow on the state of the VC industry

(Editor’s note: This is a truncated version of an interview that originally ran on VCExperts.com)

Dana Callow is the Managing Partner of Boston Millennia Partners.  Prior to founding Boston Millennia Partners, Dana co-founded Boston Capital Ventures.  In addition to working with Fortune 100 companies in strategic planning and implementing M&A strategies, Dana is, or has served as, a director of a number of other public and private companies.

Some have recently argued that the venture capital industry is… Continue Reading

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: More ways to ensure angel investor rejection and lessons from the high court

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner.

Excel where your competitors suck – The most minute annoyance can drive a customer into the arms of a competitor. Serial entrepreneur Scott Olson discusses how to turn this to your advantage – and how to make sure you don’t unintentionally drive your own customers away.

Running a start-up outside of the Valley – With the focus of the media (and VCs) on Silicon Valley as the home for start-ups, particularly in… Continue Reading

Start-ups have no room for VPs

You’ve heard the advice before: You’re a small company, act like one. Yet more and more entrepreneurs tend to think of their businesses as a small version of a large company – and they plan and hire accordingly.

Serial entrepreneur Steve Blank, in this entrepreneurial though leadership lecture at Stanford University, points out the folly of this path and explains why segregating your company early on can be disastrous.

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Surefire ways to get rejected by an angel investor and clearing up lean startup myths

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

Shoestring marketing for startups – Young companies typically don’t have the budget for a substantial marketing campaign, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. As you search for your niche and your company evolves, serial entrepreneur Scott Olson offers advice on the best ways to get a big marketing bang for your buck.

Lean startups aren’t cheap startups – Too many entrepreneurs assume the lean startup methodology is a way to save… Continue Reading

The five biggest mistakes that entrepreneurs make

The tricks to success change all the time, but the keys to failure are consistent. Serial entrepreneur Jerry Kaplan put together this list in a lecture in Stanford University’s entrepreneur thought leader speaker series in 2003 – but it’s as relevant today as it was then. Hubris, greed, lack of clarity and dumb hiring mistakes continue to be the biggest problems in the start-up world.

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Bootstrapping lessons and how injuries can teach you about investing

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

Sustainability: The ‘must have’ holy grail – While making your product a ‘must have’ to customers is hard, maintaining that status is even harder. Bernard Moon, vice president of Lunsford Group, runs down a few ways to stay on top.

Do you have what it takes to be a founder? – The fortitude of a start-up founder or co-founder is different than that of an early employee or late employee. Serial entrepreneur… Continue Reading

Start-up studies: A pop quiz

There’s a classroom exercise that the Stanford technology venture program hits its students with each year: If you had five dollars and two hours, what would you do to make as much money as possible? STVP Executive Director Tina Seelig discusses the query and how budding entrepreneurs responded.

What about you, EC readers? How would you answer? Sound off in the comments below.

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Are VCs sexist? And throwing a kick-ass launch party for next to nothing

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

The VC gender gap – Are VCs sexist? – The Venture Capital game is a boy’s club. Jeff Bussgang, general partner at Flybridge Capital Partners, would know as he sees it every day – which caused him to wonder: Is the VC world one that actively discourages women?

Are you creating or stealing customers? – Creating customers out of thin air is the holy grail of start-ups, but it’s an extremely… Continue Reading

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Must haves vs. nice to haves and a particularly harsh lesson learned

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

How to make friends and influence people (and convert them) – Social media can be a good marketing tool for your company, but if you’re able to become a trusted resource for people via Facebook or Twitter, then you’re really on to something special, notes YoungEntrepreneur.com co-founder Adam Toren.

Is your product a “must have” or “nice to have”? – Many entrepreneurs are too close to their topic to realize where they really are on the… Continue Reading

Optimism on the rise for tech start-up execs

The fledgling signs of life in the economy are bringing optimism to the technology start-up sector, according to a new survey from one of the country’s top law firms.

72 percent of the respondents in Foley & Lardner’s fifth annual Emerging Companies Study said they expect emerging company valuations to grow over the next two years. That’s a record amount of optimism, and it contrasts sharply to the gloomy 38 percent who predicted growth in the… Continue Reading

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Firing your customers and looking beyond pre-valuation dollars

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

How to fire your customers – Believe it or not, there are times where it’s best for a company to dump its customers. Serial entrepreneur Steve Blank discusses when – and more importantly how – to do this.

Negotiating VC funding? Look beyond ‘the pre’ – Entrepreneurs too often focus on pre-valuation when they’re negotiating venture capital financing. Jeff Bussgang is a General Partner at Flybridge Capital Partners says there are several other factors that are just… Continue Reading

Does your company really deserve VC money?

Investment firms hear from thousands of entrepreneurs every year, so making your company stand out from the crowd is crucial. Beth Seidenberg of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers lays out the five factors her firm looks at when deciding whether a start-up deserves funding in this entrepreneur thought leader lecture given at Stanford University. Key among those factors? Strong leadership.

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: The infinite to-do list and ways to avoid an ugly layoff

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

5 ways to create a great mobile web site – As the number of mobile Internet users has doubled in the past year, the number of Websites that cater to that audience has failed to keep up. Steve Ives, co-founder and CEO of mobile search company Taptu Ltd, offers five ways to quickly Web-optimize your site.

The infinite to-do list – No matter how hard you work, it always feels like you’re… Continue Reading

Trendspotting: Look to the horizon, not around you

It’s easy to pick up the trends of today – and it’s not a particularly big challenge to spot tomorrow’s. But the best place for start-ups to look is much further down the road, says Michael Moe, a founding partner at ThinkEquity in this entrepreneur thought leader lecture given at Stanford University earlier this year. One way to do that, he notes, is to carefully examine the evolution of demographics.

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: The idea’s great, but the leadership team stinks…

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

The idea’s great, but the leadership team stinks… – Venture capitalists are in the business of saying no – but Flybridge Capital Partners general partner Jeff Bussgang notes that the hardest position to be in is when the idea is a great one, but the team presenting it simply does not seem capable of pulling it off.

Three keys to a remarkable product – A remarkable product is a sure-fire way to capture a VCs interest,… Continue Reading

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Learning from losses and why you shouldn’t trust a VC under 40

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

Win when you lose – 10 guidelines for loss analysis – Learning from your losses can yield great dividends, but it’s not easy. Serial entrepreneur Scott Olson offers 10 ways to help you determine what went wrong – and how to avoid it in the future.

You’re a little company, now act like one – Too many start-ups like to project an image of being a fully-fledged business before they’re ready, argues… Continue Reading

Is the tech boom over for entrepreneurs?

There are a lot of tech start-ups launching these days, but Tom Siebel, Chairman of First Virtual Group (and founder of Siebel Systems) says they’re more bells and whistles than real breakthroughs. In this entrepreneurial thought leader lecture given at Stanford University earlier this year, Siebel argues that all of the great technological advances and development of great companies are behind us – and the growth rate for the tech sector is just on par… Continue Reading

Entrepreneur Corner Roundup: Balancing work and family with a start-up and surviving near-death experiences

Here’s the latest from VentureBeat’s Entrepreneur Corner:

Launching a start-up and having a family life: It’s possible! – A work/life balance is hard enough in the corporate world. For entrepreneurs, it can seem impossible. Serial entrepreneur Steve Blank knows this firsthand, but has come up with some family rules that have allowed him to be a business leader – and a good father and husband.

How to determine if your marketing is worth the cost – Marketing budgets… Continue Reading