When Harvard Business School’s Dean, Nitin Nohria, took office, he outlined five priorities to shape his agenda for the School during his tenure: curriculum Innovation, Intellectual ambition, Internationalization, Inclusion, and closer ties to the University (Integration). At HBS Alumni Angels of NY, we have worked on a series of initiatives in line with all 5...
[Continue Reading]Interview with Harry Stebbings: How VCs Find Startups and How To Add Value Once Invested
Harry Stebbings posted an interview with me on “How VCs Find Startups and How To Add Value Once Invested”, among other topics. This was his 95th interview on his 20 Minute VC podcast series. Listen here...
[Continue Reading]How Star Wars will help you raise capital for your company
When you’re raising money, you’re telling a story. So who are some of the best stories and storytellers? Greek mythology, the Bible, and in modern times, George Lucas and the Wachowski siblings. Star Wars and the Matrix are both modeled on Joseph Campbell’s wildly influential book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. In The...
[Continue Reading]Corporate VC: obligatory or oxymoron?
When I meet with executives from large corporations, they’re often worried. And they should be; the feeding frenzy in the innovation economy is in some cases because startups are eating the lunch of more established companies. To quote a friend, if you’re an executive at an established company, your job is to blow on the ice...
[Continue Reading]How long before venture capitalists (and angel investors) get liquidity?
It’s fascinating to be an angel investor, but do most angels actually make positive returns? And even more important, how long until they get liquidity? The theoretical returns look extremely attractive; we’ve identified 12 different studies showing annual returns of 18-54%. But the bad news: according to CB Insights, the average time for VCs to...
[Continue Reading]How enterprise can learn from the innovation economy
One of the core functions of a VC is to identify the next generation of disruptive companies. I presented last month to a Microsoft senior executive offsite on how large corporations can do the same, to inform their investing, M&A, and competitive intelligence. My presentation was based on my research on deal origination best practices...
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