Take the Money and Run! an Insider's Guide to Venture Capital


Book Description

This book is for entrepreneurs who want to realize their vision, want to build a major enterprise, want to change the world. To win, you need two things: cash and speed. You need to get the money and then run like crazy. To get the money, you may want to raise it from venture capital (VC) firms. But the reality is far fewer than 1 in 100 companies approaching VCs ever get to ""take the money."" So, the first section of this book provides a behind-the-scenes look at how VC firms work, and more importantly how they think. You'll get first-hand insight into what you can do to improve your chances and what to avoid that can doom your hopes. The second section of the book will help you ""run."" It covers almost every segment of start-up operations, from product development to financing to staffing to sales and marketing. Gerry Langeler's 30 years as a successful venture capitalist and entrepreneur who raised money from top VC firms, provides the secrets to help you achieve your dreams.




VC


Book Description

“An incisive history of the venture-capital industry.” —New Yorker “An excellent and original economic history of venture capital.” —Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution “A detailed, fact-filled account of America’s most celebrated moneymen.” —New Republic “Extremely interesting, readable, and informative...Tom Nicholas tells you most everything you ever wanted to know about the history of venture capital, from the financing of the whaling industry to the present multibillion-dollar venture funds.” —Arthur Rock “In principle, venture capital is where the ordinarily conservative, cynical domain of big money touches dreamy, long-shot enterprise. In practice, it has become the distinguishing big-business engine of our time...[A] first-rate history.” —New Yorker VC tells the riveting story of how the venture capital industry arose from America’s longstanding identification with entrepreneurship and risk-taking. Whether the venture is a whaling voyage setting sail from New Bedford or the latest Silicon Valley startup, VC is a state of mind as much as a way of doing business, exemplified by an appetite for seeking extreme financial rewards, a tolerance for failure and experimentation, and a faith in the promise of innovation to generate new wealth. Tom Nicholas’s authoritative history takes us on a roller coaster of entrepreneurial successes and setbacks. It describes how iconic firms like Kleiner Perkins and Sequoia invested in Genentech and Apple even as it tells the larger story of VC’s birth and evolution, revealing along the way why venture capital is such a quintessentially American institution—one that has proven difficult to recreate elsewhere.




Mastering the VC Game


Book Description

Entrepreneurs who dream of building the next Amazon, Facebook, or Google can take advantage of one of the most powerful economic engines the world has ever known: venture capital. To do so, you need to woo, impress, and persuade venture capitalists to take a risk on an unproven idea. That task is challenge enough. But choosing the right investor can be harder still. Even if you manage to get backing, you want your VC to be a partner, not some adversary who will undermine your vision in order to make a quick return. Jeffrey Bussgang is one of a few people who have played on both sides of this high-stakes game. By his early thirties, he had helped build two successful start-ups-one went public, the other was acquired. Now he draws on his experience and unique perspective on the "other side" as a venture capitalist helping entrepreneurs bring their dreams to fruition. Bussgang offers detailed insights, colorful stories, and practical advice gathered from his own experience as well as from interviews with dozens of the most successful players on both sides of the game, including Twitter's Jack Dorsey and LinkedIn's Reid Hoffman. He reveals how to get noticed, perfect a pitch, and negotiate a partnership that works for everyone. An insider's guide to the secrets of the world venture capital, Mastering the VC Game will prove invaluable for entrepreneurs seeking capital and successful partnerships.







Startup Wealth


Book Description

Startup investors are achieving 20%, 40%, and higher rates of return. Whether you're investing in early-stage companies, raising capital for your startup, or just interested in how angel investors really make their money, Startup Wealth will unravel the mystery surrounding startup capital. STARTUP WEALTH delivers engaging interviews with early- stage investors in Google, Invisalign, ZipCar, Uber, Twilio, Localytics, and other successful and not so successful companies. Find out how an amazing IPO can result in early investors getting pennies on the dollar-or a 10x+ return. Josh Maher profiles 23 of the country's best investors over the last two decades by way of real-world case studies. Through revealing interviews, readers are introduced to Mark Suster, Catherine Mott, Christopher Mirabile, Brad Feld, Allan May, Joanne Wilson, and many other accomplished angel investors and venture capitalists. In these interviews you'll learn: How the best investors think about identifying companies, negotiating terms, and partnering with founders and other investors How angel investing can involve many different successful approaches What the best investors have learned from their largest successes and failures How investors design their portfolios and work with companies to achieve the most successful results. STARTUP WEALTH is an insightful and useful tool for anyone seeking to make better investments, select great investors, or raise early-stage capital for their business. "There is nothing better when it comes to learning 'best practices' than hearing from successful people in the trenches. Josh's book captures the best of the best, as they reveal both what worked and what didn't for them as angel investors and entrepreneurs. Required reading whatever side of the investing fence you're on!"-Gerry Langeler, Managing Director at OVP Venture Partners. Co-founder of Mentor Graphics (NASDAQ: MENT). Author of The Success Matrix and Take the Money and Run! An Insider's Guide to Venture Capital."




The Business of Venture Capital


Book Description

The definitive guide to demystifying the venture capital business The Business of Venture Capital, Second Edition covers the entire spectrum of this field, from raising funds and structuring investments to assessing exit pathways. Written by a practitioner for practitioners, the book provides the necessary breadth and depth, simplifies the jargon, and balances the analytical logic with experiential wisdom. Starting with a Foreword by Mark Heesen, President, National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), this important guide includes insights and perspectives from leading experts. Covers the process of raising the venture fund, including identifying and assessing the Limited Partner universe; fund due-diligence criteria; and fund investment terms in Part One Discusses the investment process, including sourcing investment opportunities; conducting due diligence and negotiating investment terms; adding value as a board member; and exploring exit pathways in Part Two Offers insights, anecdotes, and wisdom from the experiences of best-in-class practitioners Includes interviews conducted by Leading Limited Partners/Fund-of-Funds with Credit Suisse, Top Tier Capital Partners, Grove Street Advisors, Rho Capital, Pension Fund Managers, and Family Office Managers Features the insights of over twenty-five leading venture capital practitioners, frequently featured on Forbes' Midas List of top venture capitalists Those aspiring to raise a fund, pursue a career in venture capital, or simply understand the art of investing can benefit from The Business of Venture Capital, Second Edition. The companion website offers various tools such as GP Fund Due Diligence Checklist, Investment Due Diligence Checklist, and more, as well as external links to industry white papers and other industry guidelines.




Inside Secrets to Venture Capital


Book Description

The inside story on finding the capital your business needs togrow When it comes to finding capital--and the right investors for yourbusiness--entrepreneurs need all the help they can get. Brian Hilland Dee Power spent three years surveying 250 venture capital firmsto find out what venture capitalists look for when putting theirmoney in young businesses. Their results will give you all thetools you need to make smart decisions and avoid pitfalls andunnecessary risks, including: * How to create and present a business plan to investors * Profiles of venture capitalists in action * Enlightening true tales in venture capital * How to organize a quality management team to attractinvestors * The truth about referrals * Tips on valuing your company realistically * Doing due diligence: scams, vultures, and bottom feeders * Negotiating the best terms for you and your business Inside Secrets to Venture Capital will show you what it takes toattract the investors and the money you need to grow. It'severything you need to know to play the venture capital game--andwin . . .




Kings Over Aces


Book Description

Are you an entrepreneur, venture capitalist or startup investor? Or are you an investor who wants to get into venture capital and startup investments? What if you had the opportunity to be a startup investor in the next Facebook, Uber, Google or Airbnb? Now, you can invest in top startups and entrepreneurs like Elon Musk, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. For years, angel investing and venture capital have been behind closed doors with the same individuals and VC firms getting access to top deals. The majority of accredited investors had no idea how to get in... how to get access to these deals... until now. Kings Over Aces gives you an inside look at how you too can invest in startups and put your investment capital to work. We show you how to invest in startups from incubators like Y Combinator, 500 Startups, TechStars and AngelPad. There are many billion dollar startups across the country waiting for entrepreneurs like you to invest. You'll also learn about Angel Kings' proprietary formula on startup investing. This secret formula is changing the way private equity and venture capital investments happen. Whether you're a new angel investor, venture capitalist, accredited investor, private equity investor, startup founder, or just someone who wants to learn about the hottest emerging deals and how you can get access, read Kings Over Aces... you might just make a lot of money investing in companies you love. If you've been sitting on the sidelines, it's time to get in the game. Instead of hearing about that next big deal and how your friend made money because he invested "early in X," now is your time to profit from the astronomical rise in startup and VC investing. Entrepreneurs are ready to meet venture capitalists just like you. We discuss investing concepts like the Lean Startup method by Eric Ries, discuss how to beat investors from shows like ABC's "Shark Tank," and provide detailed analysis of startups metrics such as cash flow, revenue, burn rate, exponential growth and company valuations. In addition, we analyze startups from Angel List, which is a growing platform for investing under the SEC's JOBS Act. You too can be the next billionaire startup investor.




Building Wealth through Venture Capital


Book Description

Venture capital demystified, for both investors and entrepreneurs Building Wealth Through Venture Capital is a practical how-to guide for both sides of the table—investors and the entrepreneurs they fund. This expert author duo combines renowned venture capital experience along with the perspective of a traditional corporate executive and investor sold on this asset class more recently to flesh out wealth-building opportunities for both investors and entrepreneurs. Very simply, this book will guide investors in learning how to succeed at making money in venture capital investment, and it will help entrepreneurs increase their odds of success at attracting venture capital funds and then employing those funds toward a lucrative conclusion. The authors explain why venture capital will remain the asset class best-positioned to capitalize on technological innovation in the coming years. They go on to demystify the market for those seeking guidance on reaping its rich returns. Learn what it takes to succeed as an investor or entrepreneur, and gain the wisdom of experience as the authors explain key factors that determine outcomes. Through a relaxed, down-to-earth narrative, the authors share their own experiences as well as those of their nationally-recognized colleagues. Illustrative anecdotes and personal interviews expand upon important points, and case studies demonstrate the practical effect of critical concepts and actions. World-class professional expertise and personal experience come together to help you: Understand the nature of both venture capitalists and successful entrepreneurs Develop wealth-building capabilities in investing in or attracting venture capital Learn how entrepreneurs and investors can work together toward a lucrative conclusion Examine the ways in which recent financial regulatory developments and technological advances already in place are democratizing access to venture capital, enabling unprecedented expansion of venture capital opportunities As the field expands through these regulatory and technological developments, savvy participants will have unprecedented opportunity to benefit. Building Wealth Through Venture Capital explains what you need to know, and shows you how to navigate this arcane but lucrative asset class.