Key to any early stage fundraising effort is a well-crafted Executive Summary, or Exec Summary. This succinct document describes your new venture and preemptively addresses fundamental questions that prospective investors will have. I have read hundreds of executive summaries over the years. And, the few good ones […]
A great estate plan is like a business plan for yourself and those most important to you. Just as a business plan is a road map to long-term success, an estate plan is a road map to achieving peace of mind for your family and perhaps even your business partners. As we have heard many times before, there is no escaping death and taxes, so we might as well plan for both. And yet, when we work with founders, we often find that they are so consumed with running their businesses that their estate plans—their "personal" business plans—are in disarray or nonexistent. Below are a few pointers to help you begin to chart a course in estate planning.
The right employees help your startup rise to the top. Identifying those employees early can save time and money. The infographic below created by FocusHR points out some of the innovative strategies companies like Zappos and Google employ to find dedicated employees and create a collaborative work environment.
Starting any successful business requires having the right tools, but knowing which ones are right for you can be the challenge. BestVendor surveyed 550 startups, each with up to 100 employees, to find what they have in their kit. The results are in this infographic.
One of the first steps in forming a startup, even before any documents are drafted or signed, is creating a capitalization or “cap.” table illustrating the ownership of the company. As companies grow and issue more stock to raise capital or compensate employees, their cap. tables can […]
The second annual SXSW V2Venture pitch competition took place on Wednesday, July 16 in Las Vegas. During this no-holds-barred, Vegas-style pitch competition, a live audience, along with a panel of expert judges, discovered advancements in various sectors of emerging technology. Following the competition, the winning companies were […]
In a previous Founder Tip of the Week, I discussed what vesting is. In this Founder Tip of the Week, I will discuss some common vesting schemes. Employees The norm for options granted to employees is that they vest ratably monthly over four years.
Just as an individual founder has their own style when running a company, each has her/his own preferred funding strategy. Check out the infographic below which identifies four funding styles founders typically use to launch and grow their startups.
Every startup begins with an idea, a dream. Once you start, how do you get to your goal? Sifting through all the chatter about what it takes to succeed can be tough, but learning from the experience of other founders still remains a valuable opportunity. Check out this video of career advice from founders on the precipice of remarkable success.
As an entrepreneur, it can be easy to allow the tasks of building a startup to overwhelm you. Do you have work/life balance? Loving what you do and working hard to build your business is critical, but so is taking time to decompress. Here are a few tips to help you find that sweet spot.
