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Technical Advisors: Every Web/Mobile Startup Must Have One

SoCal CTO

But what was interesting to me was that I found myself recommending that each of them should have a technical adviser. Review the code being built. This is exactly the kind of thing I'm doing as a Part-Time CTO or Technical Advisor for startups. There are two kinds of advisors that are commonly needed.

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The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly Of Software Patents

Startup Professionals Musings

I always advise software startups to file patents to protect their “secret sauce” from competitors, and to increase their valuation. Yes, the software patent process is a mess. I say this with conviction even after I survived the process, and have a software patent pending. Software technology changes rapidly.

Patents 100
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Getting A Software Patent Is Valuable But Frustrating

Startup Professionals Musings

For a software startup, a patent can be the intellectual property providing the key competitive advantage, or it can be an expensive non-defensible bureaucratic nightmare -- or both. Some argue to simply eliminate software patents, while others put their hopes in U.S. That’s more than a lifetime in today’s technology.

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6 Startup Lessons Learned By Passionate Entrepreneurs

Startup Professionals Musings

For example, most people believe that Bill Gates started with a simple purchase of a base operating system leading to MS-DOS and Microsoft, but Mars points out that Bill spent thousands of hours in some computer rooms working on software day and night. Know yourself and find help to fill in the gaps. Start today building a bigger network.

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What Makes an Entrepreneur? Four Letters: JFDI

Both Sides of the Table

I spent nearly a decade building software for large companies and then advising companies on the same. The technology team disagrees on direction and wants resolutions. There’s a guy in Los Angeles that I met at several tech networking events. If you’re not then you’re not trying hard enough.

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What is the Right Burn Rate at a Startup Company?

Both Sides of the Table

This is why investors really like SaaS software companies where you have recurring revenue and your largest customer accounts for < 5% of your revenue and your renewals rates are > 90%. Many software companies have > 80% gross margins which is why they are more valuable than say traditional retailers or consumer product companies.

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Roping in the Legal Eagles

InfoChachkie

Yet, despite his exceptional courtroom theatrics, you would be foolhardy to hire good old Johnnie to review your software cross-licensing agreement. Your lawyer is a trusted advisor, but in the end, you run your business, your lawyer does not. It is surprising how often entrepreneurs forget this simple fact. They make mistakes.