Dr. Earl R. Smith II

By Dr. Earl R. Smith II

In this column I would like to discuss ways to meet the financing needs of a growing company. Let’s start from this point: The CEOs principal contribution to the process is to make sure that the correct financing strategies are in place and well focused. Read the rest of this entry »

By Dr. Earl R. Smith II

The beginnings of a good idea

Recently I sat in on a presentation that two founders of a technology start-up made to a frontline venture capitalist. What was most striking about the experience was that, from one point of view, the founders seemed very well prepared. Their presentation was polished and contained all the usual sections, their slide show was professional quality, and they spoke with passion and deep knowledge about their space. The materials which they provided were all neatly and professionally packaged. Read the rest of this entry »

By Dr. Earl R. Smith II

I do a lot of work with companies seeking financing. Whether it is a first round or follow-on, funding for further research and development or marketing and branding efforts, equity or debt financing, a start-up or mid-market company or financing to prepare for acquisition by a strategic buyer, there are strategies which can significantly improve the prospects for success. In this column I want to focus on preparations for and managing the initial meeting with a venture capitalist.

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By Dr. Earl R. Smith II & Marty Secada

Between us we have close to sixty years of working with start-ups seeking venture funding. Over that time we have noticed patterns – most of which lead to failure – in how founders approach the process of presenting to venture capitalists and attempting to arrange venture funding. In this column we will describe Gap Analysis - an approach developed to help focus presentations and significantly improve their chances of success. We will also briefly describe programs designed to significantly improve the chances of successfully arranging funding by combining this important tool with red teaming venture presentations. Read the rest of this entry »

By Dr. Earl R. Smith II

The most the important difference is that early stage investors have to deal with a class of uncertainties that are much the better quantified in the later stages of a company’s growth. Their attitude towards risk aversion and the focus of their diligence can be quite different. Additionally, because there are no significant ‘corporate tracks in the snow’, these investors very often have to make ‘leaps of faith’ based on their gut feel.

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By Dr. Earl R. Smith II

The last column, Financial Strategies – Some Basic Rules, triggered a particularly heavy flow of responses … most of them describing strategies, some of which had worked and some of which had not, that had been deployed in attempts to arrange the necessary financial resources for an emerging company. Thanks to all of you who took the time to send me your ‘war stories’. I plan to weave the best of them into a future column. Read the rest of this entry »

By Dr. Earl R. Smith II

The beginnings of a good idea

Recently I sat in on the presentation of a proposal. It was in response to a request for a proposal (RFP) that involved a fairly significant amount of business. The company that was receiving the presentation to had hired me to advise them on a range of strategic issues. Read the rest of this entry »