TechEmpower
MARCH 28, 2013
About What we do Portfolio People Blog Contact. Blog. You are viewing a single entry. Please also check out the most recent entries. March 28, 2013. Framework Benchmarks. How much does your framework choice affect performance? The answer may surprise you. Authors Note: Were using the word "framework" loosely to refer to platforms, micro-frameworks, and full-stack frameworks.
Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 9, 2013
I believe that groups coming together to make tough decisions driven by consensus tend to make poor decisions. This is especially true in startups where speed matters and where there is a need to constantly calibrate direction and where these decisions can have existential outcomes. Should you increase your burn rate by adding 2 senior hires who will help you ship faster or sell more but then have less time for fund raising?
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SoCal CTO
MARCH 11, 2013
Yesterday, I was talking to a startup founder about their MVP and they said something that finally got me to write this post: "I have a few investors interested but they want to see a product." In Building Your MVP as a Non-Technical Startup Founder , I mentioned that before you build your Minimum Viable Product (MVP), you need to be really clear on your purpose.
InfoChachkie
MARCH 4, 2013
A version of this article previously appeared on Inc. Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon album ( DSOTM ) only reached #1 on the US charts for a single week. However, it remained in the Top 200 for an astounding 14 years and 3 months. Despite being released in 1973, a remastered version of the album sold 800,000 copies in 2003. By 2012, total sales exceeded 50 million copies and founding band member Roger Waters was cited by Forbes as the second highest paid musician of the year, pulling in $88 m
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Office leases are one of companies’ largest expenses, and if your whole team is working from home with no clear end in sight, you may be wondering what to do about your lease.
socalTECH
MARCH 11, 2013
Are you a cat lover, and an iPad app developer? A new hackathon, being held at Amplify in Venice Beach later this month, is looking for you. In what might be the strangest hackathon yet to surface in the Los Angeles area, the GamesForCats Hackathon said today that it is looking for people to enter its hackathon to create iPad games for cats. The top prize: $15,000.
Berkonomics
MARCH 7, 2013
Sometimes it is the first thought you or your managers have when in need of skilled talent, especially for sales or product development. It is not hard to find and observe the best employees of a good competitor at work, skillfully moving the competitor forward in a visible way. And it is a tempting slice of pie – two slices for one price – to take a critically needed employee from a competitor, damaging that firm while building yours.
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Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 19, 2013
This article initially appeared on TechCrunch. 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 want low-touch or zero-touch businesses” was the mantra. I believe it’s flawed.
Technology Council
MARCH 28, 2013
By Charles J. Curto, Managing Principal of Tech Coast Equity Group The Technology Council recently presented a panel discussion on advisory boards, The Art of Building and Using an Effective Advisory Board. The panel was chaired by Feyzi Fatehi, CEO of Corent Technology. Wayne Pinnell, Managing Partner of Haskell & White, Mark Monaghan, Business Growth Specialist and Managing Principal of [.].
InfoChachkie
MARCH 11, 2013
Photo Courtesy of Beth Sipula - all rights reserved. A version of this article previously appeared on Forbes. In his latest film Argo , Ben Affleck simultaneously tackles the roles of producer, director, writer and leading actor. These varied responsibilities are analogous to those of a startup CEO, as movie production crews are essentially temporary ventures.
socalTECH
MARCH 1, 2013
Hollywood's an old industry, used to doing business in traditional ways. However, there's a new generation of technology driven startups who are looking to apply software and technology in a way that will change how movies are made, and marketed. One of those is Hollywood-based FilmBreak (www.filmbreak.com), which is applying the world of social networking, media, and the Internet to help film-makers gain access to the analytics and insights they need to better market their films.
Eric Greenspan
MARCH 1, 2013
While we post about articles we like, food we love, people we care about and things that matter or don’t, sometimes we ought to just say “I love Subway.” The idea here is Subway is listening and if not, they should be and most likely will be soon. Social networks have changed the way we communicate and share ideas. But they are soon to changed they way we buy goods and services.
Startup Professionals Musings
MARCH 17, 2013
Many entrepreneurs seems to be convinced that the “crowd” of regular people using the Internet will somehow solve their startup funding needs, when they sense a lack of interest from accredited investors. Professionals maintain that there is plenty of money for equity in qualified startups, and funding marginal startups via any source will only make more people unhappy.
Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 3, 2013
“In 15 Years From Now Half of US Universities May Be in Bankruptcy.” Such was the quote of Clayton Christensen followed by, “… in the end I’m excited to see that happen. So pray for Harvard Business School if you wouldn’t mind.” Who else does Clayton pray for? Apple. Yup! Watch the 30-minute interview to hear why but summary notes below.
Tech Zulu Event
MARCH 16, 2013
It is going to be an informative night at the next Social Media Club L.A. (SMCLA) event at CrossCampus , with some major heavy hitters in the B2B industry dropping social strategy secrets. One that you will not want to miss if your business is selling to other businesses, and you are not sure how to utilize the power of social networks to promote your brand.
InfoChachkie
MARCH 18, 2013
A version of this article previously appeared on Forbes. In order to extract value beyond your Angel investors' cash, you must first assess three important parameters: (i) the relative strength of their personal brand, (ii) their ability to add operational value, and (iii) the amount of care and feeding they will demand from you. Angel investors are often the sole source of funding for startups at the critical pre-launch stage.
socalTECH
MARCH 27, 2013
Hollywood-based io/LA , the high tech and creative incubator and coworking space, has shut down, the first loss of one of Southern California's new crop of high tech gathering spaces. The loss was first reported by the LA Business Journal. io/LA, in a note sent to its members last week, obtained by socalTECH, said that "unexpected things happen" in the startup world, and that it will be "sailing off into the sunset".
Eric Greenspan
MARCH 19, 2013
Let’s face it, we don’t love Best Buy. We used to love Geek Squad, but not anymore. Why? What happened? Clearly large companies can have loving fans. Look at Costco, In-N-Out Burger, Virgin (anything), Nordstrom and Starbucks to name a few. But why not Best Buy? Here’s what I think happened. It’s not so much that they don’t care about customer service, it’s how they define it and more importantly how it’s managed.
Startup Professionals Musings
MARCH 4, 2013
Great entrepreneurs have long been the epitome of people with a great work ethic. But many complain to me that it is becoming harder and harder to find team members and employees who demonstrate and live the same culture. Somewhere along the way, work ethic seems to have been replaced by a pervasive sense of entitlement, especially in the younger generations.
Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 14, 2013
This article originally appeared on TechCrunch. Creating awareness for your brand and products is one of the lifebloods of technology startups yet in a world where so many companies are being created it becomes difficult to rise above the noise. Ever notice how some companies tend to be in the press all the time and your big new product launch struggled for inches?
Tech Zulu Event
MARCH 6, 2013
Held the last Friday of every month, TechZulu Final Fridays (#TZFF) are a creative blend between networking event, startup showcase, and community celebration. Join us as we introduce you to featured faces and spaces across our great city, highlighting the many flavors of innovation that make up the LA tech ecosystem…plus plenty of free food and drinks.
Alon Schwartz
MARCH 17, 2013
We just came back from our family retreat, which is part of Orit (my wife) school’s annual program ( NJCHS ). The entire high school, student, faculty, staff, as well as the families are grouped together for three and a half days at a wonderful Kibbutz like place ( Brandeis-Bardin Institute ). During these days, the students, with the help of the faculty are transforming and bonding into a stronger, tighter, more supportive family.
socalTECH
MARCH 12, 2013
What is it about the content delivery network market which has enabled Santa Monica-based EdgeCast to go from startup to over $100M in revenues in only a few, short years? 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
Eric Greenspan
MARCH 25, 2013
As I began prepping for my talk at USC Marshall School of Business about the recent failure of my 12 year old company Make It Work, I cannot deny many memories were dug up. I had suppressed much of what happened prior to and after that day, June 25, 2012. It’s been 10 months and I really need to move on. While the process servers have stopped and the threats have subsided, I now am faced with proving to the world, my family and myself that I can in fact achieve greatness, again.
Startup Professionals Musings
MARCH 30, 2013
The days when you locked and loaded your career in school, and then blasted away down that same narrow path the rest of your life, are gone, never to return. Career survival today requires thinking and acting like an entrepreneur starting a business, staying nimble and resilient, willing to pivot, and supersensitive to the market realities of supply and demand.
Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 12, 2013
It is with great pleasure that I can finally announce that we have added Greg Bettinelli as a partner at GRP Partners. If you don’t already follow him on Twitter please click link and follow. You won’t regret it. The guy has knowledge. It is the first time in 6 years that we’ve expanded the partnership. So why Greg and why now? I first met Greg about 4 years ago or so.
Tech Zulu Event
MARCH 16, 2013
There is a plethora of tech innovation going on in Los Angeles right now, and not only in Silicon Beach — but all over from downtown to the valleys to everywhere in between. New entrepreneurs are setting up shop and the city is encouraging tech development with exciting initiatives. Keeping track of all the new companies, funding, networking and events going on across town is challenging.
Daradiction
MARCH 28, 2013
Eversince I read Kalle Lasn's (Adbusters Founder) book "Culture Jam: The Uncooling of America" I've been fascinated with his anti consumer stance. Idealism aside, this set of images from his most recent book "Meme Wars: The Creative Destruction of Neoclassical Econmics" paints a stark contrast to business as usual.
socalTECH
MARCH 22, 2013
Star Trek fans--book your weekend. Los Angeles-based Hulu said Friday that it is making every single Star Trek episode , from every Star Trek series available for free, until the end of the month. The move--which is sure to kick off a binge of watching by Trekkies everywhere--puts everything from the original Star Trek to Star Trek Deep Space Nine online.
InfoChachkie
MARCH 25, 2013
A version of this article previously appeared on Inc. The words "failure" and "the Beatles" seldom appear in the same sentence. However, the Beatles' early career was a series of failures, culminating in their unsuccessful audition with the leading record company of their era, Decca Records. This particular failure nearly caused the band to breakup.
Startup Professionals Musings
MARCH 21, 2013
Many professionals in business, from startups to multi-nationals, assume that team leader or executive is an appointed position, and the skills come with the title. In reality, leadership is best demonstrated while not in a position of authority, and is a skill that must be sharpened every day of your life. Most experts agree that leadership, as perceived by people around you, is more about behavior than it is about specific skills or knowledge.
Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 10, 2013
Every decision has consequences. We often don’t fully perceive the consequences because they are often hidden by the compromises that make us feel better. Every step forward requires a decision. Or the inverse – indecision. Or as I call it, “ decision, by indecision ,” which is insidious. It rots the core very slowly until you don’t realize you’ve accepted mediocrity.
Tech Zulu Event
MARCH 26, 2013
TechZulu is excited to invite you on April 24, 2013 at 7pm , to a fireside chat with Cameron Olthuis , VP of Search and Social Strategies at CBS Interactive. Cameron will be interviewed by our very own Espree Devora , known as “the Girl who Gets it Done” and creator of SaveBusinessTime. Cameron will share his experience on Search and Social Strategies for Start ups.
Daradiction
MARCH 20, 2013
Everyday fun in Austin, bumping into one of my favorite minds of our time, Stephen Wolfram. Stephen's SXSW keynote was remarkable. You can read it here in 10 mins. His vision for the future ( Principal of Computational Equivalence ) is pretty wild. His ability to articulate his vision, and his body of work is undoubtably impressive. Stephen announced a new programing language called "Wolfram" (.wolf extension), which he's proclaiming as the convergence of the past 30 years of his work.
socalTECH
MARCH 19, 2013
Los Angeles-based mobile messaging and marketing firm Mogreet is targeting the small business market with a new, self-serve offering it is calling Mogreet Express, the company announced this morning. According to Mogreet, Mogreet Express allows small- and medium-sized businesses to use text and multimedia to communicate with their customers on mobile devices.
Both Sides of the Table
MARCH 21, 2013
This article originally appeared on TechCrunch. I recently wrote a blog post in which I pointed out that many investors & advisors discourage enterprise startups from having a professional services (PS) business and I think this is a big mistake. I think it’s important for enterprise startups to layer in professional services into your revenue stream.
socalTECH
MARCH 15, 2013
Nils Forsblom is not new to the startup world -- in fact, his last startup, Fruugo, raised an astounding $48M in funding, and became one of the most heralded-- and controversial --startups in Finland. Forsblom is now in Los Angeles and San Diego, and reinventing himself with a mobile application company called TenFarms (www.tenfarms.com). We sat down with Forsblom to learn more about what he learned from his experience in Finland, and what he's hoping to do here.
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