4. team | validation | funding
STARTING
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cedmars/6816878644/
5. Team
Make wise choices, including your co-founders
http://cdn.api.warnerbros.com/WB_Portal_3.0/imageRequest?rendition=SmallThumbnail&contentId=087194
6. Founders
Committed & a fire in their belly.
Ideal Number? Well: 1 < n ≥ 3
Core Team
Never settle for anything less than A+
Hire for culture fit & functional skills
Be slow to hire & quick to fire
Mentors
Subject matter expertise
Available when needed
http://www.flickr.com/photos/syume/4400844746/
7. You will wake up in a puddle of
your own sweat realizing you
are completely *****
http://sleepdisorders.dolyan.com/30-great-tips-what-can-help-me-sleep/
8. Validation
Your idea solves a problem
customers are willing to pay
money for
http://wallpapergravity.com/Image.php?ID=382174
13. Art of Bootstrapping
•
•
•
•
Get lean – personally & professionally
Explore work for equity options with core team
What’s your Obama-O strategy?
Leverage every dollar you have, or can get
http://www.flickr.com/photos/h-k-d/4490192739/
14. Leveraging Money
Lots of non-dilutive loan and grant programs to
support research & development, hiring, and
export market development.
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/93/281790898_c3240c02c4_o_d.jpg
15. Angel / Seed
Once you have a
validation, prototype, and
ideally paying customers
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/WinonaSavingsBankVault.JPG/1280px-WinonaSavingsBankVault.JPG
16. Failure is from a lack of paying
customers, not funding
http://www.flickr.com/photos/minusbaby/3403178463/
17. process | planning | advisors
GROWING
http://www.flickr.com/photos/evoo73/6930638399/
18. Process
Important, but balance that ‘startup’
culture
Above all else, ensure you have a
culture of employee accountability
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/91/269389847_e32f708b58_b_d.jpg
19. Planning
When starting, doing is more
important than planning.
At some point you will need
some ‘planning’ for growth
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/21470089/
22. Strategy
Are you an entrepreneur, or empire builder?
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maccari-Cicero.jpg
23. Lean Startup + Early Exit
a winning combination
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kellbailey/1805414461/
24. Which path is better?
reducing time to exit = reducing risk + enhances IRR
Mezzanine
(own 10%)
Series B
(own 25%)
IPO / Exit
$150M at 10%
Series A
(own 40%)
Traction
Prove
Model
Product /
Market Fit
Raise Angel
(own 35%)
Validation
3 Year
Exit$25M at
65%
2 to 3 years
5 to 7 years
Source: “Exit Strategy for Startups”, VentureArchetypes, LLC
25. Strategy
skate to where the puck is going to be
wrap yourself around acquirer’s axle
Credit: Sporting News Archive
26. Exit Strategy
Have your “end game” exit
strategy on Day #1
http://www.flickr.com/photos/uckhet/268319752/
27. Positioning
•
•
•
Tell a good story, with passion
Specifics on potential of “together”
Vision of “what could be” in the future
http://www.flickr.com/photos/beaconradio/5911999506/
28. Negotiation
•
•
•
Hire A+ finance & legal advisors
Never piecemeal
Clean house before diligence
http://www.gazprom.com/about/history/events/italy40/
36. Contact Me:
E-Mail: jthompson@about.me
Twitter: @thomjeff
Some of the photographs in this presentation were retrieved from Flickr and made available under a
Creative Commons license. Please refer to each photograph for a link to the image source.
