Or more accurately – how does it feel to be “A VC for a Day”?
I spent a good part of Friday and Saturday last weekend at LBS’ annual Venture Capital Invetsment Competition.
The VCIC is one of the most innovative opportunities for MBA students to get aquainted with Venture Capital that I know of…
It began in 1998 and has survived the tech bubble and the dot-com burst. This year, it is expected to include 40 events across the world.
So what makes it unique?
“At the core of the event is a creative turn of the tables. Unlike business plan competitions in which students pitch their own ideas to investors, at VCIC the students are the investors, and real entrepreneurs pitch to them. It is a very powerful learning experience for both parties. Add to the mix a dozen VC judges, and you have what the VCIC website describes as a “win-win-win.” Students learn (and win cash), entrepreneurs connect with investors and VCs get an early peek at some viable deals.”
Sounds too good to be true? well, last year, a third of the entrepreneurs participating in the programme went on to raise $30M in venture capital! The average hit rate is now close to 20% and on the way up.
Upside? Some interesting deals for participating VCs, networking – of course, and a few hours of interaction with some very smart people (on both sides of the table – entrepreneurs as well as students).
Not surprisingly, quite a few competitors (students) end up at VC firms…Six VCIC alumni have gone on to participate in the prestigious Kauffman Fellows Program and there are many others in various VC firms (including Bill Earner who joined us last year).
As before, I thoroughly enjoyed the sessions and heard some really interesting ideas…including one for aero sports and another for mobile ticketing…I would definitely encourage MBA students (both, current and prospective) to find out more here.
March 4th, 2007
Posted by
Shantanu |
Venture Capital, What VCs really do |
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Ben Holmes of Index Ventures recently gave a presentation at the FOWA Conference in London which builds a neat story around “Everything you need to know about Venture Capital“…
The slides are up on slideshare - worth viewing.
Saul Klein and Fred Destin have also blogged about this.
February 26th, 2007
Posted by
Shantanu |
Entrepreneurship, FAQs for Entrepreneurs, Venture Capital, What VCs really do |
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…aka “putting the value-add back in VC”
I dont have these words in my designation but I would like to think that I am part of the “value add” in Amadeus – something that every VC firms claims to do…some are true to their word…others use it to look good in front of entrepreneurs.
So how does one add value?
Keep Reading…
January 25th, 2007
Posted by
Shantanu |
Venture Capital, What VCs really do |
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In my continuing series of FAQs for Entrepreneurs, I came across this gem…fellow blogger Ventureblogalist’s wiki titiled VC101 with some great links on various VC and Entrepreneurship related topics here (Hat Tip: Max)
Two of my favourites:
“Microsoft will acquire my company” and “VC Primer from an Entrepreneurs’s POV“
On sandhill.com James Quist has a nice story with some guidelines on bootstrapping and raising capital. As he says:
“During our journey, we identified three important guidelines for successfully bootstrapping a company.
Guideline #1: Before starting a business and taking capital, validate your products with real customer pain
Guideline #2: Bootstrap for the right reasons, raise capital for the right reasons
Guideline #3: When you decide to raise capital, find good partners to help grow your business major shareholder.”
Another nice one: A basic (and simply explained) introduction to venture capital by Tom Smith, Partner at Mid-Atlantic Venture Funds…and finally, Rodi Guidero of VantagePoint has a nice list of FAQs on Sfgate.com’s site:
Meanwhile, Rhiannon Evans, who runs TiE’s Mentoring programme has very kindly linked this category on the TiE Members Page…Thanks Rhiannon…
Comments welcome, as always (especially from any entrepreneurs out there).
January 25th, 2007
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Shantanu |
Entrepreneurship, FAQs for Entrepreneurs, What VCs really do |
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Ed Sim recently wrote a nice post about how being a VC is really about people:
“…So in many ways, being a good venture capitalist is dependent on our ability to understand what drives the people we work with, how to constantly challenge them and motivate them, pat them on the back when they need it, and push them harder if they are slowing down…As much as some would like to think that being a VC is about the technology or numbers, it is all about the people.”
I usually have to spend a few minutes explaining to people what is common between my earlier job as a diplomat and being a venture capitalist…Next time I will simply point them to Ed’s post.
Interesting find: It’s Still The Economy, Stupid
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* with apologies to James Carville
December 24th, 2006
Posted by
Shantanu |
Entrepreneurship, Venture Capital, What VCs really do |
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On a tube ride back home – after a long day of meetings agonizing over investment decisions – I was reminded of Stewart Alsop’s quote about some VCs being in the “god category”.
I had read the story before but had only a vague recollection of where it had appeared and what the conclusion was.
Yesterday, a diligent search on the web revealed this gem: “So You Want to be a Venture Capitalist?”
You may have to register (free) to read the article in full but I would recommend it to everyone who is contemplating a career in this business – and to everyone who has spent more than a couple of years on the inside….
Some good quotes from the story:
The first one from one of NEA’s founding partners, Richard Kramlich, hinting at the selection criteria at his firm:
“Two-thirds of the partners who were at NEA in 1997 are no longer at the firm; the surviving third accounted for 85% of the firm’s profit”
John Doerr at Kleiner Perkins, “it takes probably six to eight years and you should be prepared for losses of about $20million…Of course, while we take risk, we work like hell to avoid crashes”…
And finally the “God quote” that was nagging me:
“I think I’ve done very well as a venture capitalist, but I’m not in the god category”, Mr Alsop said. He defines a venture god as someone who has made $100million to $500million on a single investment. His list of industry deities includes Mr Doerr, Mr Kramlich and Michael Moritz at Sequoia Capital…”
Sobering…
I don’t know how many such “gods” exist outside Silicon Valley…in Europe and in Asia…but I feel hugely privileged to work with one of them…
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See also one of my earlier posts, “How to become a VC“
November 23rd, 2006
Posted by
Shantanu |
Venture Capital, Venture Capital in US, What VCs really do |
5 comments
