Recent Posts
Startups
5 Basic Things to Consider Before Moving Your Startup to the Cloud
Although by no means a new technology, cloud computing retains the buzz as one of the latest innovative – and potentially transformative – elements of the industry. But there remains quite a bit of confusion about what exactly is meant by cloud computing, often making the question of whether or not your startup should be in the cloud difficult to answer.
Should you move (or launch) your startup into the cloud? Proponents of cloud computing will likely tell you unequivocally “yes.” more entrenched IT forces may respond with an unequivocal “no.” …
Always Be Closing: Ink the Deal and Do It Quickly
Just because you’ve been in talks doesn’t mean the deal is done. Entrepreneurs need to remain diligent about timelines in order to ensure that the deals they’ve set in motion actually come to fruition. If you’re negotiating a term sheet, building a partnership or on the verge of an acquisition, get the papers signed. Legendary GRP VC investor Mark Suster has seen his fair share of successful deals, and he writes, “don’t pop the champagne until the ink is dry on the contract and the money is in the bank.” …
Hiring Programmers: Screening Out Liars and Duds
Every entrepreneur will tell you that recruiting the right candidate is important. While startups are constantly trying to find programmers that mesh well with their culture, team and work-style, one article suggests that companies still struggle finding candidates that know how to program at all. Jeff Atwood published a post this morning entitled, The Non-Programming Programmer with a stunning look at how many interviewees misrepresent their abilities …
Startup Priorities: Is Design More Important Than Engineering?
We are all told to never judge a book by its cover, but let’s face it, when we find ourselves at an ugly website, we automatically make assumptions about the quality of the services that site provides. A topic we have begun to cover more often, and one that we strongly believe in, is the importance of design for startups. In the last several weeks we’ve provided tips and best practices for sign-up buttons and registration processes, as well as an inside look into at Boxee’s user experience overhaul …
Zynga’s Pincus Says Teamwork Trumps Talent In Business
With the Super Bowl less than a week away, I am reminded of 2002 and the New England Patriots, which defeated the St. Louis Rams and won the NFL title that year despite being labeled a clear underdog. During the player introductions, each Rams starter soaked up the limelight one after another. The Patriots however chose to enter the stadium as a team, waiving their rights to player-by-player introductions. The Patriots went on to shock the world by upsetting the talented Rams team, and ever since, Super Bowl teams have followed in their footsteps by entering the field as a team.
But what does football have to do with startups? According to Zynga’s Mark Pincus, football of a different sort helps enables him to identify which people will be successful in business and management. Recounting a story from his days of playing soccer in school, Pincus says teamwork, not talent, helped his school reach the state quarterfinals – a lesson he has carried with him to the boardroom …
Are You Really an Entrepreneur?
Google the phrase “Are you an entrepreneur?” and you’ll get a lot of help thinking through what should be the first question you ask before starting a new venture. Because entrepreneurs are a busy bunch, we’ve compiled a top 10 list right here …
Built For Speed: Turn Your Startup Into A Lean, Mean Iterating Machine
Entrepreneur Eric Ries, who previously co-founded the 3D avatar-based chat client IMVU, is also widely credited with coining the phrase “lean startup” in 2008. Ries recently gathered as many resources as he could muster for lean startups and shared them on his blog, Lessons Learned.
A lean startup is one that takes advantage of open-source technologies and other products to push a product to market at a “low burn,” while at the same producing continual revisions to its product based on customer feedback. Ries provides a wide consortium of links to wikis, mailing lists, meetups, and bloggers all focusing on the lean startup initiative – a collection of great value to any startup that wants to lower costs while feverishly iterating their product …