You think you are the superstar sales guy. Or you are the CEO and are telling me that you have a superstar sales team. This is what I would expect from you: Run our play. if the play doesn't work we are changing the play. But you have to run the play. You have to … Continue reading Superstar Sales: Run The Play.
Deals seem to fall apart last second. Investors step away from their commitment. A large customers is having some hiccups just when you're closing the round. A partner leaves the venture firm just when you're trying to get the signatures. A clause with the employee stock options pool confuses a corporate investor and they put … Continue reading It’s not done until it’s done.
When you work in a high-risk industry of startups -- whether as an entrepreneur, an employee, a VC, or a consultant -- there will be failures. You know that. And you are always surprised how much they hurt. You would think by now surely you've learned how to cope with it. It's painful and frustrating, … Continue reading Why Do You Keep Doing It?
Yesterday I published a quick survey what CEOs, CISOs, and cybersecurity professionals think are the most successful VCs. The answers were somewhat surprising: There was no clear leader, and very few picked VCs that had outstanding exits over the past 15 years. So why do so many supposedly great cybersecurity VCs -- the "most successful", … Continue reading Most Successful Cybersecurity VCs: The Last 15 Years. (Part II)
At some point, every CEO is a first-time CEO. I've met and worked with phenomenal first- time CEOs. They had all internalized leadership lessons from their mentors and bosses, and had a clear vision about cultural norms and responsibilities to their companies. As a venture capital investor, I wish some of them also were more … Continue reading What I wish first-time CEOs would know.
