Startup Notes- Tales from the Entrepreneurial Front2012-05-27T22:36:48Zhttp://startupnotes.com/atom.aspxQuick BlogcastSpeaking 9 20 2011 on Topic: The Industry of Entrepreneurship - Why it Matterstag:startupnotes.com,2011-09-13:edc59a01-404a-4b9c-b678-c3fb2657ee79StartupNotes2011-09-13T16:16:00Z2011-09-13T16:16:00Z<span></span><font style="font-size: 12px;"><font face="Verdana"><br>I'm speaking on the topic "The Industry of Entrepreneurship - Why it Matters<span>
</span>at the <a href="http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=yny9yceab&v=001mgvimUtTidM4moj4D9TXN2_HKTQYemXGhsf_FfSeg7dkhdufqH3-0Di00sxRfHeL-o1ahJFsWw49sbF0G3TpAyujOV-yJMaUWzTj6lKA1p-i6Yc42_6h5iMbPV8htkstcKMa_YS9f9DE4WCABqcUZ4nq585GSh9n" target="_blank" class="">Sandy Area Chamber of Commerce Women in Business conference</a> with Pat Richards & Gail Miller <br><br>Join us for a great morning!<br></font></font>On-Ramp to Entrepreneurial Success (Update of Utah Fund of Funds Six-part Entrepreneur How to Fund Raise Training Series)tag:startupnotes.com,2011-09-01:e8c74843-902c-4aea-9295-158b39f7f27fStartupNotes2011-09-01T22:41:00Z2011-09-01T22:41:00Z<font style="font-size: 12px;"><p><font size="2"><font style="font-size: 12px;"></font>The
Utah Fund of Funds, along with their co-sponsors, GOED, USTAR and the
MBRC, has created a 6 part training series about fundraising from angel
and venture investors. <br></font></p><p>This series of classes is designed to be your "On-Ramp to Entrepreneurial Success". If you plan to raise money from either angel or institutional investors, this is the best $75 you'll spend! (covers the cost of hosting)<br></p><p><font size="2">To access either the entire 6 class course, or take an individual class, visit the <a href="http://www.utahfof.com/events.html" target="_blank" class="">Utah Fund of Funds site</a> and scroll down to <br></font></p><h3><font size="2"><font><font color="#000000" face="Ebrima, Arial" size="-1">Utah Fund of Funds Six-part Entrepreneur How to Fund Raise Training Series</font></font></font></h3><font size="2">or go directly to the <a href="http://www.bizvision.com/producer/128" target="_blank" class="">hosting partner BizVision </a></font><br><div class="video-preview">
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<h3>The sessions include:<br></h3><h3>Session One - Are you building a VC or investor ready company? Venture Economics</h3>
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How to Fund Raise from Institutional Investors
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<a class="teaser" href="http://www.bizvision.com/video//session-two-designing-the-perfect-investor%282498%29"><br></a>
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<h3>Session Two - Designing the Perfect Investor</h3>
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Designing the Perfect Investor
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2.5 hours<br>
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<h3>Session Three - Raising Money: From Institutional and Non-Institutional Investors</h3>
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Marketing as a Global Company based in Rocky Mtns
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<h3>Session Four - Marketing Online</h3>
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Raising Money: From Institutional and Non-Institutional Investors
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<h3>Session Five - Start-up Therapy</h3>
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Start-up therapy
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<h3>Session Six - Legal Clinic: deal docs: what to expect closing a round of funding</h3>
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Legal Clinic: deal docs: what to expect closing a round of funding
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<br></font>The Utah Fund of Funds, along with their co-sponsors, GOED, USTAR and the MBRC, has created a 6 part training series about fundraising from angel and venture investors.
This series of classes is designed to be your "On-Ramp to Entrepreneurial Success". If you plan to raise money from either angel or institutional investors, this is the best $75 you'll spend!Reminder- TheFunded.com and WSGR have posted free draft VC docstag:startupnotes.com,2011-07-13:02c17b44-b1a3-4e66-be7d-f6afbde64550StartupNotes2011-07-13T20:56:00Z2011-07-13T20:56:00Z<font style="font-size: 12px;">TheFunded.com describes themselves as follows:<br><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">TheFunded.com is a community of founders, CEOs, and business executives from around the world.</p><br>This
is a great website that aims to help entrepreneurs have more successful
relationships with the venture capital community. They are a great
peer to peer resource of other entrepreneurs who are or who have raised
money. They just sent out an announcement, offering free
Founder-friendly legal documents. I have excerpted the email below to
give full credit to the team at TheFunded. This is a HUGE service to
entrepreneurs.<br><br>From their recent email:<br><pre wrap="">Get a Complete Set of Founder-friendly Legal Docs<br>------------------------------------------------------------<br>TheFunded has produced founder-friendly versions of every legal document necessary to launch a new startup. These documents were carefully written from scratch to keep founders in control of the companies that they create. <br><br>* Please help by sharing these documents with anyone that you know who is launching a startup, and borrow some of the founder protections for your own company from the Certificate of Incorporation.<br><br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233422">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233422</a> - Bylaws<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233427">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233427</a> - Certificate of Incorporation<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233434">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233434</a> - Initial Stockholder Consent<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233436">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233436</a> - Invention Assignment Agreement<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233437">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233437</a> - Restricted Stock Purchase Agreement<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233430">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233430</a> - Indemnification Agreement<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233432">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233432</a> - Initial Board Consent<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233420">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/12233420</a> - Action by Incorporator<br>-- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.docstoc.com/docs/10303638">http://www.docstoc.com/docs/10303638</a> - Plain Preferred Term Sheet</pre><br>Good to see a set of entrepreneur-friendly templates - no need to reinvent the wheel when cash is tight!</font>TheFunded.com has partnered with WSGR to create a template of VC documents.
This is a great website that aims to help entrepreneurs have more successful relationships with the venture capital community. They are a great peer to peer resource of other entrepreneurs who are or who have raised money. They just sent out an announcement, offering free Founder-friendly legal documents. I have excerpted the email below to give full credit to the team at TheFunded.com. This is a HUGE service to entrepreneurs.More on entrepreneurs - Brilliant, Crazy, Cocky: How the stop 1% of entrepreneurs profit from global chaostag:startupnotes.com,2011-06-01:f4317f66-61e1-4b30-bff1-afc9dce414c0StartupNotes2011-06-01T21:22:00Z2011-06-01T21:22:00Z<font style="font-size: 12px;"><font face="Verdana"><br>I Liked "Once You're Lucky, Twice You're Good" by <font style="font-size: 12px;"><font face="Verdana">Sarah Lacy</font></font>, so I decided to read her latest, "<a href="http://www.sarahlacy.com/sarahlacy/books.html#crazy" target="_blank" class="">Brilliant, Crazy, Cocky: How the stop 1% of entrepreneurs profit from global chaos.</a>"<br><br>I liked it as well, although I didn't think it was as actionable as "Lucky". However, if you want to get into the mindset of entrepreneurs in developing nations, it's a useful read.<br><br><br></font></font>
I Liked "Once You're Lucky, Twice You're Good" by Sarah Lacy, so I decided to read her latest, "Brilliant, Crazy, Cocky: How the stop 1% of entrepreneurs profit from global chaos."Also Read - Made to Sticktag:startupnotes.com,2011-05-13:5f1cca2b-596d-4fb2-b9cc-652439455a00StartupNotes2011-05-13T23:09:00Z2011-05-13T23:09:00Z<font style="font-size: 12px;"><font face="Verdana"><br>I also finished <a href="http://www.heathbrothers.com/resources/download/" target="_blank" class="">Made to Stick</a> by Chip Heath and Dan Heath and really enjoyed it and found it insightful. <br><br>The brothers tackle here the reasons that some ideas "stick" and some, usually important ideas, die an ignominious death. <br><br>Made to Stick is a great book for entrepreneurs – a must read! Why – because entrepreneurs need to communicate ideas about their “new thing” that they need to stick in the minds and hearts of employees, customers, partners and the public. <br><br>SUCCESs is the model <br>SIMPLE <br>UNEXPECTED <br>CONCRETE <br>CREDIBLE <br>EMOTIONAL <br>STORIES<br></font></font>
I also finished Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath and really enjoyed it and found it insightful.
The brothers tackle here the reasons that some ideas "stick" and some, usually important ideas, die an ignominious death. Just finished...Switch – How to Change Things when Change is Hardtag:startupnotes.com,2011-05-11:2f750328-5ae7-47f2-b59c-660eea5915acStartupNotes2011-05-11T19:06:00Z2011-05-11T19:06:00Z<font style="font-size: 12px;"><font face="Verdana"><font style="font-size: 12px;"></font><br>I really enjoyed the book, "Switch – How to Change Things when Change is Hard" by Chip Heath and Dan Heath<br><br>Switch is a great book for entrepreneurs because entrepreneurs want customers to change! It is good for organizational change, personal change, and customer change. The key elements of the Change strategy are: <br>1) DIRECT the Rider (FOLLOW THE BRIGHT SPOTS, SCRIPT THE CRITICAL MOVES and POINT TO THE DESTINATION) <br>2) MOTIVATE the Elephant (FIND THE FEELING, SHRINK THE CHANGE, GROW YOUR PEOPLE) and <br>3) SHAPE the Path (TWEAK THE ENVIRONMENT, BUILD HABITS, RALLY THE HERD)<br><br>Visit the <a href="http://www.switchthebook.com/resources" target="_blank" class="">Switch website</a> for more insights<br></font></font>I really enjoyed the book, "Switch – How to Change Things when Change is Hard" by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Switch is a great book for entrepreneurs because entrepreneurs want customers to change! It is good for organizational change, personal change, and customer change. Jim Collins' Lecture Hall - Always relevant!tag:startupnotes.com,2011-03-02:f882787f-d777-4f6b-b8d9-c59c356d3352StartupNotes2011-03-02T17:02:00Z2011-03-02T17:02:00Z<font style="font-size: 12px;"><font face="Verdana">I had the privilege of taking a class from Jim as an MBA student (and then writing a case with him), as well as being a critical reader for two of his books. If you like real analysis, then you'll love Jim's thinking!<br><br>http://www.jimcollins.com/hall/<br></font></font>I had the privilege of taking a class from Jim Collins as an MBA student (and then writing a case with him), as well as being a critical reader for two of his books. If you like real analysis, then you'll love Jim's thinking!From a VC, "Why I Sent You A One-Sentence VC Rejection*tag:startupnotes.com,2010-08-18:7118c9f3-dea3-40ae-a3e2-5875db0539ccStartupNotes2010-08-19T02:01:00Z2010-08-19T02:01:00Z<a target="_blank" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-one-sentence-e-mail-turndown-2009-11">Great post </a> by Fred Destin at Atlas Venture. He describes his filtering process for proposals that come in by email - although this post generated a lot of entrepreneurial angst - it is more helpful for entrepreneurs to know how the 'inside" of a venture firm works, than to be frustrated by it. Forewarned is truly forearmed in this case. Enjoy!Just finished Reading Trust Agentstag:startupnotes.com,2010-08-17:af7c078d-c377-4d1b-938d-7725f6f131c4StartupNotes2010-08-17T16:47:00Z2010-08-17T16:47:00Z<br />
I just finished reading <a target="_blank" href="http://www.amazon.com/Trust-Agents-Influence-Improve-Reputation/dp/0470635495/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1282154850&sr=1-1">Trust Agents</a> by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith, a book on how social media is becoming embedded in personal and career progress (okay, that's probably a poor shorthand, but that was the crux for me). It was very interesting and I thought it was insightful. These two authors spend a lot of time using and managing social media - more than many people have the time to spend, but their thoughtfulness about how to really keep a personal / professional network vibrant and meaningful is helpful even to those who are not tweeters or bloggers. I also liked their view of "creating your own game" - this is a concept that goes far outside of the technology and social media - but it helpful for anyone evaluating their own career. I just finished reading Trust Agents... a book on how social media is becoming embedded in personal and career progress ...
California has some angst over recent Utah wins in recruiting California-based companiestag:startupnotes.com,2010-08-16:fd409f9b-d525-4945-8910-8af8c9fd5f4aStartupNotes2010-08-16T18:38:00Z2010-08-16T18:38:00Z<br />
In a recent article in the Sacramento Bee entitled <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/15/2958030/utah-lures-adobe-other-california.html">"Utah lures Adobe, other California high-tech companies"</a> , author Mark Glover highlights some of Utah's recent wins in recruiting California companies to expand here in Utah (instead of in California). <br />
<br />
Recent wins highlighted include:<br />
<ul>
<li>Adobe's plans to build a $100 million campus (with 1000 new jobs over 20 years)</li>
<li>Twitter's new data center plans for Salt Lake</li>
<li>Electronic Arts recently opened 20,000 square foot campus in Salt Lake</li>
<li>eBay's recently announced Utah expansion ($287 million data center)</li>
<li>Oracle's restart of its data center ($285 million capital investment)</li>
</ul>
Some interesting comments by Bee readers about the challenges CA is facing in terms of taxes and business climate. Over and over again, the quality of Utah's workforce is heralded as these companies move or expand in Utah....Highlights of some of Utah's recent wins in recruiting California companies to expand here in Utah (instead of in California). Published in the Sacramento Bee ...
Friend-Tors Neededtag:startupnotes.com,2010-07-22:f52daf7f-7cf8-4ed5-9b4c-6a4a62d9ea04StartupNotes2010-07-22T21:15:00Z2010-07-22T21:15:00Z<div>A few weeks ago, I was talking with Dr. Greg Jones about the stateof venture capital in Utah (particularly seed and early stage). Greg'scomment was that Utah needs more "rock star entrepreneurs" who aresuccessful, and then who can both <span style="text-decoration: underline;">fund and mentor </span>the nextgeneration of companies. We just don't have enough angels who canbring this "rock star success" model to their investments (for the number of entrepreneurs with promising opportunities that we have). I wasgetting ready for vacation and happened upon a book entitled "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/B002PJ4HLC/sr=8-1/qid=1279835913/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books&qid=1279835913&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Once You're Lucky, Twice You're Good, The Rebirth of Silicon Valley and the Rise of Web 2.0</a> " by Sarah Lacy. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>I thought that sounded like interesting beach reading, so Igrabbed it. Most of the research/interviewing was done in 2006 and 07,and the book was published in 2008 - and it includes the early storiesof companies like Facebook, Twitter, Six Apart, Digg, Ning,Revision3, deli.cio.us, LinkedIn etc. As such, it was a lot of fun -especially since, when she wrote it, many of the stories were stillunfolding, so it's great to know the endings! <br />
<br />
What is important for Utah is that the author really captured the rise of a new type of Angel inSilicon Valley - those who had made money in Web 1.0 and who became"Friend-Tors" to this next gen of entrepreneurs. Voila, Greg Jones'Rock Star Entrepreneurial model in action, and quite a lot of detailabout how it worked, how these guys "squared off" in many ways againstventure capital etc (perhaps contributing to the current crisis inVenture Capital). A lot of personal stories add depth to the capitalpicture. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>This, in addition to some ongoing soul searching, have led me towonder if I've been working on the wrong agenda for the past 8 years -that of increasing the availability of capital "in Utah". Perhaps themore important thing is to increase the sophistication of ourentrepreneurs - to help them become so savvy, so knowledgeable, soconnected that they can raise money anywhere in the world - and thenturn around and "Friend-tor" the next gen of Utah entrepreneurs. It isstill an emerging idea, but I think it has merit and welcome any thoughts on this.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>It brings to mind a conversation I had with a local active angel investor (part of one of the active angel groups) He said that they were just "notseeing" entrepreneurs with "fire in the belly" - and I said, almostwithout thinking, "That's because the best entrepreneurs aren'traising money from you, they're going out of state." This was atleast a year ago, but that off-the-cuff remark has stayed with me. AsI look at those entrepreneurs we have who have had "decent tosubstantial" wins here in Utah, many of them (although certainly notall) have raised all or most of their money out of state.<br />
<br />
I think our Angel community now is many many times stronger than it has ever been, and I give a ton of credit to a few key people who have worked hard behind the scenes to improve the process and sophistication of our angel groups - but Sarah Lacy's book is definitely worth a read to see the Friend-Tor dynamic at work.<br />
</div>What is important for Utah is that the author really captured the rise of a new type of Angel in Silicon Valley - those who had made money in Web 1.0 and who became "Friend-Tors" to this next gen of
entrepreneurs. ...
Rocky Mountain Venture Capital Directorytag:startupnotes.com,2010-07-16:808ed788-8d13-4277-9948-190a08800264StartupNotes2010-07-16T20:39:00Z2010-07-16T20:39:00ZMassinvestor, Inc. publishes a series of regional venture capital and private equity directors. <a href="http://www.massinvestor.com.%C2%A0">www.massinvestor.com. </a> They have a 2010 Rocky Mountain Venture Capital Directory, and the information was very good and up to date (with only a few errors). Many people don't know where to find venture capital and PE firms and contact information, so I thought I would suggest this as one resource. They also have Silicon Valley, New York etc. All of which may be helpful. <br />
<br />
I don't have any relationship with these guys, just reviewing a copy of the Directory today and thought it might be helpful.Many people don't know where to find venture capital and PE firms and contact information, so I thought I would suggest this as one resource. ...
Utah Fund of Funds Six-part Entrepreneur How to Fund Raise Training Series.tag:startupnotes.com,2010-06-29:add994f6-180e-4fcb-8050-009f8c101d76StartupNotes2010-06-29T20:57:00Z2010-06-29T20:57:00Z<span class="description" style="font-family: 'andale mono',times;">
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">The Utah Fund of Funds, along with their co-sponsors, GOED, USTAR and the MBRC, has created a 6 part training series about fundraising from angel and venture investors. The sessions can be attended "live" at the Miller Business Resource Center in Sandy (dates below), or they can be viewed online either in real time or after the session is over. Two sessions are complete and can be seen now, and 4 more are upcoming. Please spread the word to entrepreneurs who are not familiar with raising investment funds - the Fund of Funds is one of the best resources in the state. All of the entrepreneurs who have been attending have repeated over and over again how helpful the information is.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">To register or for more information, visit <a href="http://ufoftraining.eventbrite.com/">ufoftraining.eventbrite.com/</a> or visit <a href="http://www.utahfundoffunds.com/regform.php.%3Cbr">www.utahfundoffunds.com/regform.php.<br />
</a> /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">Upcoming sessions</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">July 22 Marketing as a Global Company based in Rocky Mtns: networking, press, creating a web trail</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">August 26 Raising Money: From Institutional and Non-Institutional Investors</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">September 22 Start-up therapy</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">October 28 Legal Clinic: deal docs: what to expect when you close a round of funding</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;"> </span></p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline; font-size: 13px;">Past Sessions available </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">May 27 Are you building a VC or investor ready company? Venture Economics</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">June 24 Designing the Perfect Investor - an overview of how to prepare to successfully raise investor capital<br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">Those that purchase in-person tickets will receive the log ins to the web streaming at the presentation.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">web streaming registration</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">All 6 sessions for $75 - </span><span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="http://www.bizvision.com/video/2471"><span style="font-size: 13px;">www.bizvision.com/video/2471</span></a></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 13px;">Just Session 1 for $25 - </span><span style="font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://www.bizvision.com/video/2473">www.bizvision.com/video/2473</a></span></p>
</span>The Utah Fund of Funds, along with their co-sponsors, GOED, USTAR and the MBRC, has created a 6 part training series about fundraising from angel and venture investors. The sessions can be attended "live" at the Miller Business Resource Center in Sandy (dates below), or they can be viewed online either in real time or after the session is over. Two sessions are complete and can be seen now, and 4 more are upcoming. Please spread the word to entrepreneurs who are not familiar with raising investment funds - the Fund of Funds is one of the best resources in the state. All of the entrepreneurs who have been attending have repeated over and over again how helpful the information is.Interesting organization - NCET2- National Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfertag:startupnotes.com,2010-04-01:06f4ff6b-afd3-43d8-8407-0a54f8b4480aStartupNotes2010-04-01T16:48:00Z2010-04-01T16:48:00ZThe National Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer is an interesting organization with interesting content, particularly for those who are working to take university-developed technologies to market. Their tag line is "NCET2: Creating and Funding GloballyCompetitive University Startups" and their website is at <a href="http://ncet2.org/" target="_blank">ncet2.org/</a> . They offer a series of webinars, including a free course on commercialization (currently going on, but the slides are available from their site) as well as other more "advanced" courses. <br><br>Any inventor, particularly from a university for Federally Funded Lab, should really sit through this content. Their perspective is that the inventor will be the commercialization driver. I don't really agree with this - university work is the equivalent of two full time jobs, and entrepreneurship is also two full time jobs, and one person simply can't do everything necessary to stay at a university AND run an entrepreneurial venture (it just doesn't work). However, for anyone who is interested in helping shepherd a technology out of a university and into industry, the course gives a very good overview of the moving pieces in the commercialization process and I do think it is very worthwhile. <br><br>I think the best commercialization opportunities arise from the partnership between an inventor team and a seasoned technology entrepreneur or entrepreneurial team. This combination of skills and experience brings the necessary pieces to the table to enable a successful go to market strategy. I often say that taking a university developed technology to market is the toughest type of entrepreneurship - and that is because the technologies that are funded (usually Federally) are not for "little problems" they are for BIG PROBLEMS - and big problems have lots of playes and competitors already around. So having an entrepreneur who has already gone up the learning curve is really important in getting to success. <br><br>So, if you or a partner are a university inventor, the NCET(2) team has a lot of good content that at least gives an overview of "what's going to happen". I liken it to a Lamaze class for couples experiencing pregnancy - it doesn't "really" prepare you for the trials of labor, but at least you've got an idea of what's coming!<br><br><br><br><br>The National Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer is an interesting organization with interesting content, particularly for those who are working to take university-developed technologies
to market. Their tag line is "NCET2: Creating and Funding Globally Competitive University Startups"...I liken it to a Lamaze class- it doesn't "really" prepare you for the trials of labor, but at least you've got an idea of what's coming!
...
How to build a successful board for your company - great resourcestag:startupnotes.com,2010-01-27:0324fab3-7e46-4b98-ab28-e0a4aca7d3adStartupNotes2010-01-27T16:58:00Z2010-01-27T16:58:00ZLast week, Utah's chapter of the NACD (nat'l assoc of corp. directors), UTC and MWCN co-sponsored a
luncheon on building a great board of Directors called "Boards that
Work - How CEO's Find Them and Flourish". Jim Jensen was the moderator
and the materials provided had a lot of value along with the
discussion. He has graciously posted them on his website and I wanted
to recommend them to you, as many entrepreneurs either are wrestling with creating a strong board, or should be, but haven't started the
process yet!
<div> </div>
<div>The overall site for articles on governance from Jim is <a target="_blank" href="http://www.clearwatergovernance.com/Articles.html">here</a></div>
<div> </div>
<div>The specific handout I recommend to you is <a target="_blank" href="http://www.clearwatergovernance.com/uploads/NACD_Handout_for_meeting_on_21Jan10.pdf">here</a><br><br></div>
<div>In particular I recommend that you start on Page 5 and read the
"discussion questions". It really gets at the issues of recruiting a
strong board and things to consider in that process. The first 5 pages
are about the dynamics of an existing board, and very insightful if you
already have a functioning board that may or may not be working. </div><div> </div>
<div> </div>Last week, Utah's chapter of the NACD (nat'l assoc of corp. directors), UTC and MWCN co-sponsored a luncheon on building a great board of Directors called "Boards that Work - How CEO's Find Them and
Flourish". ...
More on VC - Slight uptick in Q4 might signal better times aheadtag:startupnotes.com,2010-01-26:a2504097-8937-4d88-9c80-1aaceff51081StartupNotes2010-01-26T21:19:00Z2010-01-26T21:19:00Z<br>The<a target="_blank" href="http://www.mercurynews.com/business-headlines/ci_14240336"> Silicon Valley Mercury News</a> also summarized the PWC/NVCA Moneytree Report, with an emphasis on Silicon valley<br><br><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article"><p class="bodytext">The amount of venture funds into Silicon Valley fell to $6.98 billion in 2009, from an average over the last 3 years of more than $10 billion, the lowest level since 2003. However, the rest of the country faced its lowest level of funding since 1997 at $17.7 billion.</p><p>Some signs of an uptick from NVCA:</p></span></span><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">"The venture capital industry had no choice but to slow the investment pace in 2009," NVCA President Mark Heesen said in a news release. "Now that the economy has begun to show signs of improvement, we expect to see dollars flow more freely." <p></p><p>and from PWC directly</p><p>"VCs placed more bets in the fourth quarter of 2009 than we've seen all year," said Tracy T. Lefteroff, who leads the venture capital practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers. "They're investing fewer dollars in these companies, but the fact remains that there are still entrepreneurs out there with great ideas who are getting the opportunity to take the next step forward with their businesses."<br><br>Dow Jones VentureSource has their own methodology of surveying venture firms, but their data also showed a slight uptick in activity and funding levels in Q4 2009. From a <a href="http://www.tradingmarkets.com/news/press-release/dj_dow-jones-amp-company-u-s-venture-capital-investment-finishes-year-strong-with-flurry-of-deals-in-720404.html" target="_blank">press release </a>posted by Trading Markets, <a style="position: static; text-decoration: underline ! important;" id="KonaLink0" class="kLink" href="http://www.tradingmarkets.com/news/press-release/dj_dow-jones-amp-company-u-s-venture-capital-investment-finishes-year-strong-with-flurry-of-deals-in-720404.html#" target="undefined"><span style="position: relative;" id="preLoadWrap0" class="preLoadWrap"></span></a></p><div style="z-index: 4000; position: absolute; display: none; top: -32px; left: -18px;" id="preLoadLayer0"><a style="position: static; text-decoration: underline ! important;" id="KonaLink0" class="kLink" href="http://www.tradingmarkets.com/news/press-release/dj_dow-jones-amp-company-u-s-venture-capital-investment-finishes-year-strong-with-flurry-of-deals-in-720404.html#" target="undefined"><img style="border: medium none ; width: 22px; height: 22px;" class="preloadImg" src="http://kona.kontera.com/javascript/lib/imgs/grey_loader.gif"></a></div><p></p></span>"Venture investors put $6.3 billion to work in 743 deals in the most recent quarter, up slightly from the $6.1 billion invested in 619 deals during the same period in 2008, according to statistics released today by Dow Jones VentureSource. In total, 2009 saw 2,489 deals completed and $21.4 billion in venture capital invested in U.S.companies, a 31% drop from 2008 when $31 billion was invested in 2,817 deals. "<p></p></span>Slight signs up an uptick in venture capital in Q4 2009 from Dow Jones VentureSource and Silicon Valley Mercury NewsSome other good posts on the state ov Venture Capital at the waning stages of the Great Recessiontag:startupnotes.com,2010-01-26:8281f809-5f22-465e-bb46-fcadd5e5834bStartupNotes2010-01-26T21:11:49Z2010-01-26T21:11:49Z<br />
Another summary of the PWC/NVCA Moneytree report at the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.mercurynews.com/business-headlines/ci_14240336">Silicon Valley Mercury News</a> focused on the impact on Silicon Valley. <br />
<span id="mn_Article">
<p class="bodytext"><span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">According to their analysis, the flow of venture capital into SiliconValley fell to $6.98 billion in 2009 from an average of more than $10 billion during the previous three years, the lowest since 2003. However, they pointed out that the national total of $17.7 billion was the lowest since 1997. </span></p>
<p><span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">SVMN points out the following brights spots in venture capital</span></p>
<p><span id="mn_Article">
<p><span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">"The venture capital industry had no choice but to slow the investment pace in 2009," NVCAPresident Mark Heesen said in a news release. "Now that the economy has begun to show signs of improvement, we expect to see dollars flow more freely." </span></p>
<p><span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">and</span></p>
<p><span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">"VCs placed more bets in the fourth quarter of 2009 than we've seen all year," said Tracy T. Lefteroff, who leads the venture capital practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers. "They're investing fewer dollars in these companies, but the fact remains that there are still entrepreneurs outthere with great ideas who are getting the opportunity to take the next step forward with their businesses."</span></p>
</span></p>
</span><br />
Looking at a small uptick in venture activity in Q4 2009, Dow Jones VentureSource, as quoted by Trading Markets, suggests the following: <br />
"... venture deal activity increased in the fourth quarter of 2009. Venture investors put $6.3 billion to work in 743 deals in the most recent quarter, up slightly from the $6.1 billion invested in 619 deals during the same period in 2008." DowJones VentureSource further reported that...".. 2009 saw 2,489 deals completed and $21.4billion in venture capital invested in U.S.companies, a 31% drop from2008 when $31 billion was invested in 2,817 deals."Latest MoneyTree analysis of venture capital investingtag:startupnotes.com,2010-01-26:da95e1d4-57a7-49df-8334-c1b5a62d6ff9StartupNotes2010-01-26T20:38:00Z2010-01-26T20:38:00ZLipper Current did a nice analysis of PWC/NVCA's latest Moneytree report on Venture capital. In short, Utah got 1.3% of the deals and 1% of the money with 35 deals for 2009 and just over $176 million in total venture funding for the year (compared to a national total of $17.7 billion) . <br><br>Overall, 2009 posted a 37% drop in venture capital funding overall, but the pain seemed to be evenly distributed.<br><br>The complete post can be found <a target="_blank" href="http://www.lippercurrent.com/dcn/lc.nsf/pages/22382">here</a> including a nicely laid out table by quarter and by State for convenience.<br>Lipper Current did a nice analysis of PWC/NVCA's latest Moneytree report on Venture capital. In short, Utah got ...
CES 2010 - Super Wow Technology!!!!tag:startupnotes.com,2010-01-12:95ea38b1-948a-4e29-aab2-c4eef99360d2StartupNotes2010-01-12T19:53:00Z2010-01-12T19:53:00Z<strong>Okay, it takes quite a bit to wow Brad and I....but JVC really did it this year! And we almost missed it!<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br><br>SUPER WOW technology</span></strong> - JVC brought to the show
the "$1 million theater". In it they were showing their new <a target="_blank" href="http://tv.jvc.com/product.jsp?pathId=140">D-ILA RS 4000 video </a>projector. This baby shows 4096 pixels across each
image and 2400 pixels down the image - or the equivalent of 4
concurrent HDTV video streams (approx 10 million total pixels per
image). <br><br>JVC filmed some gorgeous content in Okinawa, including several
ladies is full traditional Japanese kimonos. As they played it, it
seemed that we could literally walk into the picture - you could see
the threads of their kimonos - the quality and richness were
unbelievable - it really was like a full movie theater image, right
there in the living room. The projector can either play one image at
full resolution, or can play 4 concurrent HDTV images. <br><br>Either way -
Super WOW! At the current price (overheard) of $175,000, it's a bit out of the
range of most consumers - but it does give us a sense of where the
technology is heading - to truly lifelike color and richness. They
also showed a 3D clip from an upcoming Imax movie (about endangered
Reefs) - using TWO of the RS 4000's. We just used polarized plastic
glasses like in the movie theater - but it really delivered a
phenomenal 3D experience -dramatically richer than what is currently
coming on to the market. Stay tuned for that in your living room!<br><br>Note, it doesn't even seem to be on the website yet, and the D-ILA link as well as this <a target="_blank" href="http://newsroom.jvc.com/2009/11/jvc-home-theater-projector-named-ces-innovations-2010-design-and-engineering-award-honoree/#more-441">press release on a more consumer oriented product in the family</a>, was as close as I could come. If you can afford it, ask your favorite dealer!<br>Okay, it takes quite a bit to wow Brad and I....but JVC really did it this year! And we almost missed it!CES 2010 - Top items 8-14tag:startupnotes.com,2010-01-12:a8266beb-1223-4adc-b42a-16f74d6b6282StartupNotes2010-01-12T14:49:00Z2010-01-12T14:49:00Z<div>These were themes that are somewhat minor in their overall impact, but showed up surprisingly consistently throughout the show. Not necessarily game changers, but interesting to watch. <br><br>8) <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">After market in-vehicle true multi-media sytems</span></strong> (retrofit your ride with built in TV's and players - cheaper than a new car!)</div>
<div> </div>
<div>9) <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Electronic cigarettes</span></strong> - strange but
true, electronic cigarettes that don't burn tobacco were all over the
Asian Vendor pavilions - success in US? not very likely</div>
<div> </div>
<div>10) A continued push for the <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">networked home</span></strong> (sort of) which has been going on for over a decade - still too complex and difficult for consumers to manage</div>
<div> </div>
<div>11) Lots and lots of <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">personal audio bling</span></strong>!
Crystal encrusted "over the ear" headphones, crystal cases for phones,
crystal "clip on" bling for your ear buds - it was the year of glitz
for your personal audio environment! </div>
<div> </div>
<div>12) <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Smart phones, smart phones everywhere!!!</span></strong> Windows phones, Android phones, almost every other kind of phones, smart phones were everywhere at the show. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>13) <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Charging technologies</span></strong> - several
different kinds of systems to make it easier for people to charge all
their consumer electronics devices - pads, docks, etc. Consumers are
"all tangled up" in all their cords. Will these be "big" - remains to
be seen. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>14) Another interesting insight from IDC analysts about the <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">photography industry</span></strong>,
"Photography has never been so hot, and the industry has never been so
miserable!" They don't know how to make money in the current
environment. An interesting perspective on printing - older people
print pictures in 4" x 6" just like they did with film, somewhat
younger people want to print "customized" items (books, calendars etc),
and very young people don't print at all (it's "live" and video), but
as they age, they want to decorate their house with their pictures and
their memories (esp. kids), and they begin to print!</div>These were themes that are somewhat minor in their overall impact, but showed up surprisingly consistently throughout the show. Not necessarily game changers, but interesting to watch.