Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

So mostly we just had to listen to customer feedback from founders, VCs and LPs. The core of the investing job of course is investing dollars into startup companies and helping as a mentor, advisor and board member on the companies in which you’ve invested. She has an amazing ethical compass with heart, compassion and drive.

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 30, 2021

A community requires two-way communication and respect – including advisors, partners, and customers. Just as your business needs feedback from customers, you need regular feedback from those around you on how to do better. That means accepting coaching and seeking mentoring, as well as giving it.

Coach 162

Coach Startup Resource Competition 162

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 3, 2022

I add my insights here to her guide to uncovering your own unique value proposition, building a positioning strategy, and becoming a valuable brand: Assess whether your career path is on trend. You need to step out of your comfort zone to socialize, meet new people, and collaborate with peers, company leaders, and mentors.

Social Media 125

Social Media Summary Startup Mentor 125

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

In my own business career, many years as a business advisor, and mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I have validated the following strategies to practice and guide you. A broken process or a subtle quality issue can generate a flood of customer satisfaction problems, cost overruns, and loss of market share.

Satisfaction 152

Satisfaction Mentor Study Startup 152

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Many entrepreneurs I have mentored make big mistakes in this area, by hiring low-cost friends and family, with minimal skills or training, and expecting them to have the same work ethic , passion, and business knowledge as the founder. Direct customer-facing non-technical roles should be the last ones outsourced.

Outsource 123

Outsource Startup Technical Review Training 123

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 17, 2021

When I started mentoring entrepreneurs and startups a few years ago, I anticipated that I would get mostly tough technical questions, but instead I more often hear things like “Where do I start?” It doesn’t matter how good your product or service is if most of your potential customers don’t know about it. The marketplace is a war zone.

Entrepreneur 138

Entrepreneur Activity Guide Patents 138

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2022

In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs and an angel investor, I find that too many are stuck in this myth that a good pitch, and good marketing content, should consist of more product features, and more hype on customer benefits. Customers buy from people they trust, respect, and admire. Marty Zwilling.

Startup 117

Startup Social Media Guide Content 117

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2022

Even after many years mentoring entrepreneurs and advising businesses, I continue to be surprised by the primary focus on products and processes, and the often incidental attention to hiring and nurturing the right people. It’s the same for customers and products, where analytics have long proven their value.

Tool 121

Tool Statistics Entrepreneur Metrics 121

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2022

In my role as a business mentor and advisor, I now always look for a culture and recommend team roles that nurture collaboration rather than contention, communities rather than silos , and transparent communication at all levels. In this age of world-wide markets, you need all the help you can get to attract loyal customers.

Organization 105

Organization Mentor Startup Training 105

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 4, 2022

Most business mentors tell me that the single biggest problem they have to deal with in small companies is the lack of open, honest, and effective communication, both from the top down and from the bottom up. Then, hopefully, come customers, distribution channels, and going public or merging with an attractive buy-out candidate.

Technical Review 137

Technical Review Entrepreneur Guide Mentor 137

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2022

As a mentor for aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs, I talk to a fair number who may have a great vision and a strong engineering background, but have a negative interest in the role of public speaking in business. As your company grows, you have to host customer seminars. After that it’s practice, practice, practice.

Marketing 113

Marketing Entrepreneur Customer Custom 113

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 11, 2019

Every entrepreneur and business leader believes that he or she has the full trust of their team and their customers, and in fact most do in the beginning. Unfortunately, many aspiring leaders I mentor are not aware of the signals people are looking for, or are not attuned to the subtleties of their own actions.

Mentor 98

Mentor News Summary Coach 98

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2019

Steve Blank via Flickr by jdlasica I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. Great businesses begin with a customer problem that has a big and monetizable pain point. Nail the solution.

Startup 98

Startup Technical Review Customer Custom 98

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 12, 2010

The best survival guides tell you how to be proactive and avoid the probabilities of ending up in a worse case scenario. There are unknowns at every turn, leading product development, attracting customers, managing cash, and dealing with human resources and office politics.

Guide 50

Guide Startup Resource Entrepreneur 50

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 11, 2022

The hard part is providing the leadership required to align and motivate all the constituents and players – from engineers, to investors, vendors, and ultimately customers. It is not about leaders becoming coaches; it’s about leaders letting themselves be coached by others – advisors, team members, and even customers.

Coach 114

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 114

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2020

Boomer investors are much more likely to get in the game with a high focus on mentoring and give-back, as well as the financial return potential. Every startup needs two or three key advisors who have the domain experience, connections, and complementary skills to guide the founders through those early crises. Manage customer service.

Startup 124

Startup Technical Review Software Review Entrepreneur 124

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2019

In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs and an angel investor, I find that too many are stuck in this myth that a good pitch, and good marketing content, should consist of more product features, and more hype on customer benefits. Customers buy from people they trust, respect, and admire. Marty Zwilling.

Startup 102

Startup Customer Custom Social Media 102

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2023

I found some guidance in the classic book, “ Lead Inside the Box: How Smart Leaders Guide Their Teams to Exceptional Results ,” by Victor Prince and Mike Figliuolo, two top thought leaders in the field of leadership development. Equally important is leadership in the marketplace, with customers, outside partners, and industry thought drivers.

Resource 107

Resource Entrepreneur Startup Guide 107

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2020

For the business to prosper, every employee, and your customers, must know and relate to your core values, such as product excellence, care for the environment, and personal integrity. These are the timeless principles that must guide all hiring, marketing, and execution decisions. Build a business culture to match your core values.

Metrics 140

Metrics Entrepreneur Coach Satisfaction 140

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2010

Every startup mentor has his favorite list of basic strategies to avoid pitfalls, and I’m no exception. In business, “most important” means time to market, customer service, low cost, and beating your competitors. This is especially true for students tackling their first venture. Manage your time.

Guide 92

Guide Startup Social Network Patents 92

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2023

Use your vision and passion to keep the energy flowing, guide your efforts, but don’t hesitate to pivot as you learn from failure. Change is the only constant in today’s world of customers and competitors. An example is the famed mentoring relationship between Bill Gates and Warren Buffett , both very busy and very smart people.

Artificial Inteligence 101

Artificial Inteligence Course Startup Tool 101

Tech.Co

OCTOBER 19, 2017

The girls formed six teams to work on products in all types of industries, work with mentors, and pitch to judges at the end. The hustle of selling all those boxes, tracking orders, working with others, and delivering to customers is essential block building for a future in entrepreneurship.

Startup 72

Startup Activity Mentor Guide 72

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 29, 2019

A common request I get while mentoring entrepreneurs is for a copy of the startup checklist they need to follow, in order to build a successful new business. Kerr, “ The Executive Checklist: A Guide for Setting Direction and Managing Change.” I wish it was that easy. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Gamification.

Technology 86

Technology Cloud Computing Social Media Networking 86

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 4, 2013

As a guide, I enjoyed the analysis of Eric Chester, in his book “ Reviving Work Ethic ,” which provides a leader’s guide to ending entitlement and restoring pride in the emerging workforce. It extends directly to your customers through dependable products and services. It makes for a valued worker, who will stay in high demand.

Startup 106

Startup Guide Organization Mentor 106

InfoChachkie

APRIL 28, 2016

As noted in You're Never Too Old (Or Too Successful) For A Mentor , Bob is my mentor and friend. Demand Customer Centricity. Bob successfully managed his constituents by never forgetting that his ultimate “customers” were the students he was serving. What you say and what you do has to fit who you are it. Create A Path.

Santa Barbara 100

Santa Barbara Mentor Education Demand 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 13, 2020

I found some guidance in the classic book, “ Lead Inside the Box: How Smart Leaders Guide Their Teams to Exceptional Results ,” by Victor Prince and Mike Figliuolo, two top thought leaders in the field of leadership development. Equally important is leadership in the marketplace, with customers, outside partners, and industry thought drivers.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Resource Startup Guide 126

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 15, 2019

Even after many years mentoring entrepreneurs and advising businesses, I continue to be surprised by the primary focus on products and processes, and the often incidental attention to hiring and nurturing the right people. It’s the same for customers and products, where analytics have long proven their value.

Metrics 98

Metrics Tool Statistics Entrepreneur 98

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 10, 2019

When I started mentoring entrepreneurs and startups a few years ago, I anticipated that I would get mostly tough technical questions, but instead I more often hear things like “Where do I start?” It doesn’t matter how good your product or service is if most of your potential customers don’t know about it. The marketplace is a war zone.

Entrepreneur 92

Entrepreneur Activity Guide Patents 92

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2014

I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. I found their five phases of the process to be compelling, based on my own years of experience mentoring startups: Nail the pain.

Entrepreneur 113

Entrepreneur Startup Technical Review Customer 113

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 12, 2017

I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. I found their five phases of the process to be compelling, based on my own years of experience mentoring startups: Nail the pain.

Startup 64

Startup Technical Review Entrepreneur Customer 64

Tech Zulu Event

DECEMBER 10, 2013

Monahan will be in charge of managing Science’s social customer acquisition companies like EverySignal and Madrigold. Matt has a creative and analytical background in performance marketing and has hands on expertise driving customer growth within the walls of Facebook. LA-based Science Inc.,

Social Media 82

Social Media Media Marketing Startup 82

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 20, 2012

I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. I found their five phases of the process to be compelling, based on my own years of experience mentoring startups: Nail the pain.

Startup 118

Startup Technical Review Entrepreneur Customer 118

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 5, 2019

Most business mentors tell me that the single biggest problem they have to deal with in small companies is the lack of open, honest, and effective communication, both from the top down and from the bottom up. Then, hopefully, come customers, distribution channels, and going public or merging with an attractive buy-out candidate.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Entrepreneur Guide Mentor 94

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2019

Image via Wikipedia As a mentor for aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs, I talk to a fair number who may have a great vision and a strong engineering background, but have a negative interest in the role of public speaking in business. As your company grows, you have to host customer seminars.

Entrepreneur 87

Entrepreneur Customer Custom Guide 87

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 17, 2019

The hard part is providing the leadership required to align and motivate all the constituents and players – from engineers, to investors, vendors, and ultimately customers. It is not about leaders becoming coaches; it’s about leaders letting themselves be coached by others – advisors, team members, and even customers.

Coach 96

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 96

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 2, 2012

As a guide, I enjoyed the analysis of Eric Chester, in his new book “ Reviving Work Ethic ,” which provides a leader’s guide to ending entitlement and restoring pride in the emerging workforce. It extends directly to your customers through dependable products and services. Nonconformity is not the culture in most businesses.

Companies 93

Companies Company Guide Organization 93

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 12, 2014

Most business mentors tell me that the single biggest problem they have to deal with in small companies is the lack of open, honest, and effective communication, both from the top down and from the bottom up. Then, hopefully, come customers, distribution channels, and going public or merging with an attractive buy-out candidate.

Technical Review 104

Technical Review Guide Entrepreneur Mentor 104