QUESTION:
What are the pros and cons of being an entrepreneur, and would you encourage someone to do it?
ANSWER:
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About 1/3 of your communities brightest will have 60 seconds (up to 90 for smaller events) to present ideas for new startup ventures, we then crowd source the favorites and form teams around those ideas. Teams are between 4-10 people, and consist of about 50% technical people and 50% non-technical. You then spend the entire weekend getting advice from professional mentors, and building a proof of concept, demo, or sometimes even a finished product.
Most ideas are web & tech focused, but almost any new business needs a web, marketing, and business strategy regardless if it is tech centric.
QUESTION:
What is the best way to find a partner with some funds? Or advisors who can invest?
ANSWER:
QUESTION:
Is it better to contact a potential (a former boss of mine who is an investor) next week in the semi-holiday zone when fewer people may be approaching him – or the the first week in January which is psychology a new year, a better year?
ANSWER:
QUESTION:
I want to take my company (tech consulting) from one-man show to a bigger one. I have my business plan and know I can make it – but not alone. I need to scale. I would like to bring in people (VP Business Development, CTO) to help with business development and project execution. How do I make sure these guys are “stakeholders”, in it for the long run and not just until they find a good job? More generally, how are “stakes” granted? Can you point me to a good resource to help me understand this (fully)?
ANSWER:
QUESTION:
One of our founders asked, “Is it okay to contact venture capitalists directly or do you need an introduction? I’ve heard you have to get an intro.”
ANSWER:
QUESTION:
I would like to commercialize an invention of mine in the field of photovoltaics through a corporate partner. The challenge with my idea and field are that A) the invention does not have any obvious applicability to other industries; and B) the solar industry is so competitive nowadays that I suspect a corporate partner will demand a high level of exclusivity in order to make a deal. Under these circumstances, do you have any advice about the best way to set up a partnership that maximizes the potential upside to my startup, yet keeps intact a sufficient degree of downside protection (i.e. ensures that all is not lost if the partnership does not go well)?
One idea I thought of along these lines is to give the partner a time window in which they can exclusively license the patent. If the time limit is reached and the partner has not paid a contractually-defined amount of royalties on the patent, the partner would lose its exclusivity. Have you seen a deal structure like this succeed in practice?
Lyne Noella
by Lyne Noella, CEO, WavePlay LLC
A professional association or group provides a great opportunity to attract new business via interaction with the community. An effective group helps you expand your network, efficiently meet with professionals and prospects, and gain new ideas and market intelligence. How do you know which groups are right for you? Take a look at these 10 tips for evaluating a professional association or group for business development purposes:
How to Raise Venture Capital in 2011
Curtis Mo, of DLA Piper, guided us through the issues founders will be facing and what the best approaches are to raising venture capital in 2011.
Topic: “How to Raise Venture Capital in 2011,” presented by Curtis Mo of DLA Piper
Raj Gavurla
by Raj Gavurla
Your mindset is what you think and the way you think. As a mindset, mood, motivation expert and author no one is smarter than you and you are no smarter than anyone else. What makes us well versed in an area are our knowledge, expertise, relationships, and experiences.
