May 2013
7 posts
3 tags
Don't Abuse Your Network
Having a good network is one of the most important things for any business development person. You should always be one degree from every company that you need to get in front of.
One thing you need to make sure you don’t do is abuse your network. This can be anything from making a blind introduction without both sides opting-in to asking someone for something that is imposing or awkward. I’m...
3 tags
Meet Cory Vines, The Warby Parker of Activewear
Here is my latest Forbes piece: http://onforb.es/YI9DWG
Let me know your thoughts!
3 tags
Added Content You May Like On The Bottom Of The...
A few weeks ago I wrote a post on Forbes about two companies from Israel that are leading the pack in the content marketing (or ad sense for content) space. I’ve just added one of these companies to my blog posts. In each post you’ll see content below that you may like from around the web.
At the same time, I’m spending $5-10 a month to promote my blog through the Taboola network. Alex’s Tech...
3 tags
The Most Important Thing About First Time BD Jobs
I get many inbound questions about first time BD jobs. The questions range from salary to if one should take the job or not.
The most important thing one should know about first time BD jobs is that if you are (or are going to be) the person responsible for closing deals and scaling the business, you need to either reject the offer (if you haven’t started yet) or quit your job (if you are...
4 tags
When Doing Product Partnerships, Stay Away From BD...
I’ve learned the hard way, when attempting to do a product partnership with another company (i.e. wanting them to integrate your offering) it is best to avoid people in business development roles. Business development can be great in many aspects, but in this area they will slow you down.
What I like to do is map out what an integration would look like. Who is needed to make the integration...
3 tags
Skillshare Online Class Update
In April I taught my first online Skillshare class: Make Deals That Matter: Biz Dev and Partnerships for Startups. I had 349 students sign up and the feedback was very solid.
The Skillshare team informed me that going forward the class would not be tied to a date, rather it would be “always on.” So I’ve closed out my first class and have added the class again with the “always on” in mind. I’m...
3 tags
Dwolla - The New Frontier
If you didn’t see the news yesterday, Dwolla raised a new round of capital, $16.5M led by Silicon Valley venture fund, Andreessen Horowitz. It’s an exciting time to work at Dwolla and it’s great to finally share the news with everyone.
It’s been a year since I joined Dwolla and every day is an amazing challenge. Building a payment network from scratch is no easy task and I’m happy I get to...
April 2013
16 posts
2 tags
VC Is The Easiest Job For The First Few Years
Making a career out of being a VC is not an easy job. You need to score good returns for LP’s (limited partners). If you don’t, you will have difficulty raising a new fund.
So, making a career out of VC is tough. However, in the first few years it’s difficult to tell if your fund will do well. Not impossible, but hard. It’s very easy for VC’s to seem like they are doing well (i.e. companies...
3 tags
Why Do Repeat Entrepreneurs All Make The Same...
Tell me if you’ve heard this story before. ‘Founder(s) builds startup and cashes out for big bucks. Works for big company for a bit and then goes on to build next startup. Raises ton of money, builds infrastructure in terms of company and support in expectation of huge success for second company. Product is built and there is no demand or product is wrong. Founder fails at second startup.’
I...
2 tags
DietBet Is Betting That Losing Weight Is About To...
Here is my latest Forbes piece: http://onforb.es/11nlh5p
Let me know your thoughts!
3 tags
The TechCrunch Writer and Contributor Model
I have always been fascinated by writing and tech press. It’s one of the reasons I started this blog and enjoy contributing to Forbes.
One thing I have noticed is the way some blogs attribute writers in tweets while others don’t. Since Twitter came out a few years ago, there is no denying that they are one of the top methods of distributing content. When a tech blog or content outlet tweets a...
3 tags
Would Anyone Care If Your Startup Disappeared?
As a startup, the only way to tell if anyone truly cares is if you disappear. You don’t need to disappear for long, but if your service or product is unavailable for a period of time and users or clients get upset or complain, then you know they care.
Think about Twitter. When it used to go down for a few hours (it doesn’t really do that anymore) people would freak the f out. People really...
5 tags
Crowd-Sourcing Investigations
This past week I read this piece from Jason Calacanis called Speculation, Investigation & Hacktivism. It got me thinking that there is truly a benefit for someone to build a crowd-sourcing investigations platform.
I think, to start, the product/company should stay away from ongoing investigations. I think the beachhead is cold cases. If you start with cold cases and can solve a few, then...
5 tags
4 Of My Favorite BD/Partnership Tools
I use many different tools on a daily basis in my role in Biz Dev and Partnerships at Dwolla.
Here are 4 of my favorite tools that make me better at my job.
1) Rapportive: This is an awesome plug-in for gmail. It lets you see all your social media accounts and connect through them for the person you are emailing. I’ve also used it to figure out if I’m emailing the right person (as it syncs up...
5 tags
Startup Drama
Every week there seems to be a new drama happening in the startup space. I remember seeing someone post an article (someone please find it so I can link!) that said something along the lines of.. .making movies, music, and other hollywood pieces used to be all about the arts. Then the hollywood space evolved and celebrity and gossip came in. This diluted the arts and it’s now a big facet of...
5 tags
Ranking Applicants For An Accelerator
I was recently asked to join a committee ranking applicants coming in to the Startl + DreamIt accelerator on the education side. This was my first time doing something like this so I asked a few friends who have done this before for the best strategies in terms of evaluating startups. Here is how I looked at the companies:
There are three key aspects to evaluate a company, team, traction, and...
4 tags
Welcome Liz Taub To The Startup Scene
I’m very excited to let everyone know that my wife, Liz, is starting a new job today.
Liz previously worked at Walgreens, leading a program called REDI (Retail Employee with Disabilities Initiative). The program trains and helps people with disabilities get jobs in the retail environment. She initially ran the program in NYC and then scaled it nationally.
Today is Liz’s first day as Executive...
3 tags
Zombies of the Tech World: The VC Brain Drain
Here is my latest Forbes piece: http://onforb.es/XuqzwS.
Let me know your thoughts!
4 tags
The Lazy Persons Guide To Having A Blog and/or...
The most frequent question I get about this blog is how I create so much content every week and how to start a blog. I’ve written about my process and how it works for me. But let’s be honest, most people either don’t have time or are lazy. So I’ve compiled 4 ways you can have a blog and create content and still be lazy.
1) Give Your View
You don’t need to come up with original content. Let...
4 tags
Calling Out A Competitor
I recently saw a company in a very crowded space tweet something negative about their competitor. The first thing I thought was, damn, this company must not be very comfortable in their own skin. They are scared.
It’s the same thing I thought when I saw the Keith Rabois, Yelp board member, negative tweet about Foursquare. Yelp must be nervous about Foursquare (and they should be. Foursquare...
5 tags
The Proper Way To Ask If You Can Make An...
I received an email last week from a friend. She wanted my feedback on the best way to ask someone she knows if they would be open to accepting an introduction. Her friend, Steven, had asked her for an introduction to Rachel. This is what I shared with her.
First Step: Ask Steven for a fresh email with the ask so you can forward it along to Rachel and add a note.
Second Step: Once Steven...
3 tags
15 Things That Can Go Wrong At A Startup
Startups are depicted as a glamorous endeavor. But starting or joining an early-stage company has many pitfalls that can lead to the startup deadpool.
Here are 15 things that can go wrong at a startup.
1) Tech team and biz team don’t agree on vision
2) Investors give bad advice
3) Investors give you good advice but you don’t listen
4) You listen to every piece of feedback
5) You ignore...
2 tags
A Realistic Look At Being A VC
If you haven’t read Fred Wilson’s “When Things Don’t Work Out,” yet, you should. I think it is a great piece and a must-read because it gives a realistic look at being a VC.
Most people, myself included, have thought or think that being a VC is such a hunky-dory gig and it’s just hopping from tech hub to tech hub investing in cool companies. While there is a big piece around having a good time...
March 2013
14 posts
4 tags
How Two Israeli Companies Are Leading The Pack In...
Here is my latest Forbes piece: http://onforb.es/YItRzS.
Let me know your thoughts!
4 tags
Taking the Leap: From Banking to Tech
This is the first guest post on Alex’s Tech Thoughts. It comes from a good friend, Ellen DaSilva. I met Ellen via an introduction by our mutual friend Adam Levin, formerly BD at Meebo, and now VC at Crosslink Capital. Ellen was at Barclays at the time and was looking to make a move to the tech world. She did everything right and now works at Twitter doing awesome things. Her advice here will...
5 tags
Can You Trust An Early-Stage VC With a HIR and...
I’ve been thinking about the concept of a hacker-in-residence (HIR) and entrepreneur-in-residence (EIR). I think these are very cool roles at VC funds. Lots of place have them now. But I have a nagging question in the back of my mind: Can you trust an early-stage VC with your idea/biz when they have a HIR and EIR? First off, stealing ideas is a misnomer. Ideas are valueless, it is all about...
4 tags
The Perfect Startup Idea
To me, the perfect startup idea has the following three characteristics:
1) There is a big vision about how to do something new or better. 2) There is something you can build today that realizes a piece of that grand vision. The solution has at least one foot in today, but also a half of a foot or a full foot in tomorrow (i.e. magic, think Shazam). This allows you to get some immediate...
2 tags
Definer
This past week in Austin, I met two crazy kids who run an app called Definer, that was built with/by Fueled. They just launched it a few hours before I met them at the Angry Bird pool party and I was really impressed with what they have going on. Basically, Definer is a place to share new words and names for friends, places, hashtags, and phrases. I downloaded the app on the spot and must say I...
4 tags
Skillshare Hybrid Class: Intro I- BD and...
I’ve been teaching Skillshare classes since November 2011. I think it is awesome. For me, it’s part knowledge-share, part networking. I have kept in touch with many of the people who have taken the class, and many of them have gone on to get jobs in BD at startups or start their own company. One of the biggest things I have been asked regarding my Skillshare class is if I can come to teach in a...
2 tags
Want To Improve Your Attorney-Client Relationship?...
Here is my latest Forbes piece: http://onforb.es/Xz7fRL
Let me know your thoughts!
8 tags
5 Companies That Excite Me Right Now Part III
In March 2011 I wrote a post titled “Things That Excite Me Right Now.” Then 9 months ago I wrote a post called “5 Companies That Excite Me Right Now Part II.” Here comes Part III. Just to keep track, from the first one, one company got acquired, another company is silently killing it, and another shuttled and is now working as an EIR at GRP. From the second list, one company raised a crazy...
3 tags
Google Glass Is Glorious
I finally had a chance to check out Google Glass at SXSW. I met a guy from Google Drive and we talked about it. Then I met a few engineers and partnership managers from the Google Glass team. I am thoroughly convinced that wearable computing, specifically Google Glass will be the biggest thing in the next few years. One of the things that excites me most is the developer community and its...
3 tags
Note Taking In Meetings
At a certain point in business development and partnerships you have more meetings than you can remember. Each meeting should have some specific follow up. It is impossible to remember them all. This is why it is imperative to take diligent notes at every meeting. I use a basic structure: random notes, roadblocks, and next steps. The random notes section allows me to add anything that jumps...
4 tags
On To The Next One (Deal)
When working in business development and partnerships at a startup, with a product integration solution, you are always looking to the next deal. There is never time to rest. You typically have an API and you need to hand hold the next partner to get their integration up and running. This is not to say you can’t enjoy the wins as they come. Enjoy them. But remember with every new deal the...
3 tags
Eliminating Distractions
Distractions, from what you need to do to be awesome at your job, come in many forms. It could be in the form of emails, it could be in the form of helping others. But once you get distracted during the day, it is hard to get back into the groove. I have been trying to be more efficient recently, like responding to emails at night (non-day/internal) and moving all non-core meetings to Fridays...
3 tags
SXSWi (Baby Please Come Home)
SXSWi 2013 is here. March 8-12. For those that haven’t been before, it is glorious. SXSW is a religious experience for some; a congregation of people who are looking to better the world with technology. This is my third year and I know how to plan. Here are a few quick tips: 1) RSVP for everything. You don’t know where you will end up and it is best to have all your options open. 2) Rep...
5 tags
Rap Genius is Genius
If you haven’t seen Andrew Mason’s Groupon farewell memo, then you should check it out here.
After this came out, New York startup Rap Genius added the farewell memo to its site. Investors, Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen, added notes/explanations of what the letter really means. It is pretty epic, and you can read it here. There are very few startups with no ceiling and Rap Genius is one...
No Forbes Article This Week
Today was a crazy day. I had queued up my first guest post for the blog- and planned to do it on Forbes. I didn’t know, but Forbes policy does not allow for guest posts. You can interview and co-author, but no guest posts.
I’m either going to re-work it for next Thursday (as an interview) or let the guest poster take it elsewhere.
Back to the regular four posts per week, on...
February 2013
15 posts
5 tags
The Most Important Piece Needed To Convince People
I was talking with a friend about a startup founder this past week and we agreed that one of her greatest qualities was that she could always convince people about what she was saying. We dug a little deeper and thought about why this person always convinces people and we figured out that it’s because she always talks with confidence. No matter how much she actually knows about the topic,...
4 tags
Teleportation, Flying Cars, and Time Machines
…These are a few of my favorite things. Is anyone making any headway in these fields? I know that talking about the cool new social, local, photo sharing app is in right now, but what ever happened to the truly innovative concepts that we all dreamed about while growing up? Is it that we are missing too many pieces to get to a place where these can become reality? Is it that it is a...
3 tags
Benefit Cocktails Celebrating #LadiesOnTop
On March 28th there will be an awesome event happening called #LadiesOnTop. My good friend Cheryl Yeoh and her friend Caroline McCarthy are the two U.S. ambassadors for Ladies Trekking Virtual Club, a global group that aims to bring together women who have climbed or aspire to climb Mount Kilimanjaro not just to share their stories, but to give back. The party proceeds from the evening...
4 tags
It Is "Who You Know," But There Is A Silver Lining
There was a great post on a Hacker News a week or two ago called “It’s all who you know?” It’s a great piece that everyone should read. It is also very true. Everyone starts off on a different playing field. But the silver lining is that you can network your way in anywhere. All you need is a little confidence and some time. Some people may have family connections, others may not. But at...
2 tags
Being Competitive
This past weekend everyone was talking about Michael Jordan’s 50th birthday. There was a great piece in the ESPN magazine about what he is up to now. One of the main points of the article was about how competitive MJ is. I definitely identified with that part of it. There are a few levels of competitiveness, some are healthy, others are not. There are also other factors, innate talent for...
4 tags
Can't Knock the Hustle: The First Steps To...
Dwolla Biz Dev Intern, Brian Kil, has put together a Skillshare class called “Can’t Knock the Hustle: The First Steps To Breaking Into Startups.” Brian’s story is a good one and if there is someone who can talk about the persistence and determination behind getting in the startup space, it is him. I’ll be taking the class and I recommend you sign up as well. Only 10 slots are left so sign...
3 tags
Having Others Depend On You
This past week I welcomed a little one into my family. His name is Bartolomeu Taub and he is a 4 pound, 11 week old Havanese puppy. Taking care of a puppy is not a small task and Bart is most definitely a handful. We are crate-training him, so the first few nights were no fun. Now he is sleeping most of the night but it’s still not perfect. At this age there isn’t much time he is allowed to...
2 tags
Balancing Today vs. Tomorrow
One of the hardest things to do at a startup is strike a good balance between what you need to get done today versus what you need to accomplish for “tomorrow.” I’ve begun trying to break down my time and spend 80% on the here and now and 20% on preparing for where I’d like our business to be in the future. It’s not an easy task to determine how much I am truly spending on each, but I’m...
4 tags
The Realities Of The Startup Space
Last year I wrote a short post asking if there is room for a Deadline.com-like tech blog for the tech space. This past week Alexia from TechCrunch wrote a similar post. I wholeheartedly agree with her post and think it is long overdue. It will be hard, but to do this right the person or tech blog would need to have a deep network, be anonymous (up for debate), and fearless. I would love to...
3 tags
Cutting Down On Networking Events
I’ve cut down on how many networking events I attend. The past 3+ years I have been to at least 1-2 events a week, ranging from events I organized (BD Meetup, Digital Learning Series, Speaker Series for VCs, etc.) to just enjoyable events in NY startup scene. I am not recommending that everyone cut down on how many networking events they go to. On the contrary, when you are looking to break...
2 tags
Leaving A Startup On Good Terms
I received an email from someone asking me to touch upon this subject. The startup space is small and close-knit. Which is why leaving startups isn’t an easy subject to discuss publicly. I don’t have much experience leaving startups to join other startups, but I do have some helpful advice about leaving on good terms. 1) Give enough time to transition in the best way possible. Standard time...
3 tags
Forcing Something That Doesn't Work
There are lots of pieces to the startup world that are affected by forcing something that doesn’t work. This could be a product that isn’t gaining enough traction, it could be a plan of business development action that isn’t working, or something else. I’ve been there before. I’ve tried to force products and offerings that didn’t make sense. It never works. The best bet is to build or offer...
