Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 19, 2013

The era of VCs investing in successful consumer Internet startups such as eBay led to a belief system that seemed to permeate many enterprise software startups that hiring sales or implementation people was a bad thing. We only want software revenue.” How do you get referenceable customers? I believe it’s flawed.

Startup 403

Startup Sales Software Review Technical Review 403

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 8, 2014

If you have a software development background like mine, Im sure you often get questions about when to outsource, versus building the solution in-house. Outsourcing is defined as contracting the work to another company, usually located in a developing country, like India, China, or Eastern Europe.

Outsource Development 95

Outsource Development Outsource Offshore Software Review 95

TechCrunch LA

MARCH 29, 2021

One customer assumed that poor usage rates at a particular station was due to a lack of EVs in the area, Terry recalled in a recent interview. Demand for ChargerHelp’s service has attracted customers and investors. ChargerHelp takes a workforce-development approach to finding employees. Powering up.

Incubator 287

Incubator Outsource Development Los Angeles Startup 287

socalTECH

DECEMBER 3, 2012

NEOGOV , which has quietly built an enterprise software company supplying human resources software to the government and public sector. Currently, we have over a thousand customers, with customers ranging from anywhere from 100 employees to clients with more than a 100,000. In the past, we had been a one product company.

Software Review 243

Software Review SaaS Startup Technical Review 243

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 15, 2011

Now, more than ever, government agencies in the US and abroad are lousy startup customers. I am not a government contracting expert. Some startups opt to partner with larger companies which have pre-established relationships with government customers. The Downside Of Government Contracting.

Startup 207

Startup Outsource Development Software Review Sales 207

Berkonomics

JANUARY 3, 2013

Most every business can take advantage of continuing, recurring revenues from its customer base. We immediately recall the razor and blade analogy to illustrate the point when planning product development and release. Sometimes, products are designed to make all of their profit upon the recurring revenues from supplies or support.

Outsource Development 197

Outsource Development Software Review Sales Demand 197

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2011

In the initial phases of any new market you’re developing a product (hopefully with a minimal set of features), getting feedback from customers, refining your product based on user feedback and then re-launching your product. Markets develop for a complex set of factors that are often beyond all of our control.

Development Team Review 374

Development Team Review Technical Review Startup Resource 374

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2022

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Conflicting visions won’t work.

Software Review 154

Software Review CTO Hire Outsource Development Startup 154

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

Ask your customer why you lost. I had been competing to win a contract at Thames Water, the largest water company in the UK. They were looking for a collaboration tool to manage all of their large water development projects. I was to tell noone until the contract was signed. Make sure you learn your lessons from losses.

Outsource Development 333

Outsource Development Software Review Technical Review News 333

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 2, 2009

As noted in Pour and Stir Part I , the key to the successful execution of this strategy is managing the following equation: The cost to acquire a customer < lifetime value of a customer. Decreasing Your Customer Acquisition Costs. This is equivalent to being handed a free customer for every ten customers you acquire.

Customer 164

Customer Custom Advertising SEM 164

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2016

If you have a software development background like mine, I’m sure you often get questions about when to outsource, versus building the solution in-house. Outsourcing is defined as contracting the work to another company, usually located in a developing country, like India, China, or Eastern Europe.

Outsource Development 53

Outsource Development Outsource Software Review Technical Review 53

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

Ask your customer why you lost. I had been competing to win a contract at Thames Water, the largest water company in the UK. They were looking for a collaboration tool to manage all of their large water development projects. I was to tell noone until the contract was signed. Make sure you learn your lessons from losses.

Outsource Development 328

Outsource Development Software Review Technical Review News 328

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 30, 2020

I suggest looking for painful problems to solve, rather than “easier to use” or “nice to have” solutions, for customers with money. Customers line up to believe and buy from people who are viewed as leaders or experts relative to a specific solution. Collaborate with customers to tune your solution.

Outsource Development 154

Outsource Development Social Media Software Review Customer 154

Inverted Software

JUNE 15, 2018

At Inverted Software we often help our clients manage offshore and onshore development teams. Our proprietary processes and unique experience helps us evaluate and correct software development practices that have proven inefficient and instill practices that insure productivity and success.

Software Review 51

Software Review Software Development Outsource Development Development Team Review 51

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

If you had huge customer growth but just didn’t focus on revenue that’s a different story. And when you’re looking at even earlier-stage companies (as VCs do) you might be even more focused on customer growth than revenue growth. million in revenue three years later is, “So effing what?” Not necessarily.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2014

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Similar values and goals.

Software Review 107

Software Review Entrepreneur CTO Hire Outsource Development 107

Tech Zulu Event

MAY 22, 2014

Whether it’s a killer software or physical inventory, don’t leave yourself open to a major loss or legal claim with no protection. You will need this granularity not only for successfully managing your business, but also when preparing for funding pitches and during investor due diligence. Legal Expertise.

Startup 97

Startup Outsource Development Software Review Sales 97

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2013

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Similar values and goals.

Software Review 103

Software Review Equity CTO Hire Outsource Development 103

socalTECH

MARCH 12, 2013

The company--which is in the business of operating a content delivery network (CDN) to accelerate the delivery of web graphics, multimedia, applications, and more to end users-- recently disclosed it more than doubled its revenues in 2012, and has grown to over 230 employees--all due to a huge amount of demand for CDN services by its customers.

CTO Hire 248

CTO Hire Content Networking Web 248

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2011

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Similar values and goals.

Software Review 96

Software Review CTO Hire Startup Outsource Development 96

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2010

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Similar values and goals.

Software Review 92

Software Review CTO Hire Outsource Development Startup 92

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2019

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Conflicting visions won’t work.

Software Review 88

Software Review CTO Hire Outsource Development Startup 88

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 15, 2009

I had been competing to win a contract at Thames Water, the largest water company in the UK. They were looking for a collaboration tool to manage all of their large water development projects. The initial contract was worth about $500,000 and the whole value of the contract would have been worth a couple of million over the years.

Startup 151

Startup Outsource Development Software Review Technical Review 151

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 27, 2019

Application developers once considered their products as licensed in what would closely be allied to a single sale. Can you convert your model without losing your customer base? We immediately recall the razor and blade analogy to illustrate the point when planning product development and release. Call it the Netflix effect.

Outsource Development 120

Outsource Development Software Review Content Netflix 120

SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 1, 2010

The United States is now a debtor nation to China and that the bill is about to come due. Equity-Only CTO and Equity-Only Developers - SoCal CTO , November 1, 2010 I had a recent email dialog with the founder of a company looking for a CTO for their startup. Was it a Startup Founder Developer Gap ? But I don’t think so.

Technical Review 175

Technical Review Startup Product Technology 175

Tech Zulu Event

APRIL 9, 2014

Traditionally, these between a rock and hard place problems have been solved with a limited pool of expensive options – usually associated with long contracts and high billables for “MBA quality” work. What if you could combine the flexibility of outsourcing with the quality level of highly skilled strategists?

Outsource Development 105

Outsource Development Software Review Technical Review Outsource 105

socalTECH

OCTOBER 10, 2019

PG&E shut down over 550,000 customer accounts on Wednesday, affecting what some have estimated to be as many as 2.5 It's unknown what the financial arrangement by PG&E and Esri looks like, or if the ability to handle the millions of people hitting the site is part of an existing contract between PG&E and Esri.

Southern California 100

Southern California Software Review Outsource Development San Diego 100

socalTECH

MARCH 19, 2019

Stacy Stubblefield: We do two factor authentication, which basically means we send text messages with the codes you get when you log into a web site or even when you're just registering for a website. What enabled you to get that first customer on board? We were really focused on customer acquisition. How did the company start?

Marina Del Rey 113

Marina Del Rey Software Review Startup Incubator 113

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 26, 2019

With his wealth of business experience and expertise as a top economic development consultant, he confirms my own view that the top five myths in starting a new business commonly include the following: You have to be able to do every job in your business. Partner with experts who share the risk. It’s the execution that’s hard.

Software Review 98

Software Review Ideas Outsource Development Entrepreneur 98

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2017

If one of your core values is exceeding your customer expectations for quality and service, and your potential partner ascribes to the low cost, high profit mantra, a successful partnership is highly unlikely over the long-term. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Conflicting visions won’t work.

Software Review 56

Software Review CTO Hire Outsource Development CTO Coach 56

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 11, 2011

Most employers, due to fear of lawsuits, will only confirm employment data and give you positive feedback over the phone. If you already have some technical people on board, like software developers, and need a new manager, you supply the candidates based on credentials, and let them do initial interviews and make recommendations.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Entrepreneur Outsource Development Outsource 94

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2012

Most employers, due to fear of lawsuits, will only confirm employment data and give you positive feedback over the phone. If you already have some technical people on board, like software developers, and need a new manager, you supply the candidates based on credentials, and let them do initial interviews and make recommendations.

Technical Review 92

Technical Review Technology Startup Outsource Development 92

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 21, 2012

As a rule, you need to review your burn rate every month, and manage it every day. Another one to avoid cash burn for software development is a contract for percent of future revenue. This will equate to 2 working founders (taking no salary), hiring a 5-person development team for a year.

Startup 92

Startup Outsource Development Development Team Review Equity 92

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 28, 2011

As a rule, you need to review your burn rate every month, and manage it every day. Another one to avoid cash burn for software development is a contract for percent of future revenue. This will equate to 2 working founders (taking no salary), hiring a 5-person development team for a year.

Startup 92

Startup Outsource Development Development Team Review Equity 92

socalTECH

JULY 22, 2016

For our interview today, we have an interview with Gabe Grifoni , CEO and founder of Rufus Labs (www.getrufus.com), which has has developed an Android-based, wearable device which is aimed at use in the enterprise, warehouses, and factories. Plus, they don't collect data, and use really old, limited software. That's a huge step.

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Startup Software Review CTO Hire 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2019

We slowly realized that Microsoft’s value went far beyond his technical contributions, due to his connections with key software developers and relationships with hardware manufacturers who could make the PC revolution universal. Build connections with key customers and competitors.

IBM 87

IBM IBM Ideas Technical Review 87

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 7, 2016

Way back in the early eighties, I was privileged to be part of the original IBM PC development team, led by Don Estridge. The culture of a large technology company is to rely on internal development or large, stable, and proven external vendors. Internal legal reviews and required new processes were slow to finalize.

IBM 85

IBM IBM Entrepreneur Technical Review 85