Innovation Toronto » Startups

Twenty Startups Pool Resources To Recruit Developers

innovation2 — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 14:27:52 +0000

Big tech companies may be preparing to downsize, but startups are still hiring like mad. Particularly engineers.

It’s hard for one startup to get noticed above the crowd, but what if twenty of them pool their resources, hold a competition and throw a five day party for top recruits? That’s the goal of Gnip and 19 other Boulder, Colorado based startups who are pitching in $5,000 each to host a multi-day job fair at the end of October.

Engineers are invited to upload their resumes and apply for 100 spots at the event. The applications will be reviewed by the companies, and a total of 100 people will be invited out for an all-expenses paid three day trip. Twenty applicants are rotated through each day over a five day period, with dinners and parties each night.

Read more . . .

This sounds like a perfect project for Toronto startups! Anyone interested in helping to organize something like this please contact: rsmith[at]innovationtoronto.com. Let’s see if we can’t build some momentum.

V.C. Nation - A Post-Google Fraternity of Investors

ron — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 14:42:39 +0000

Librado Romero/The New York Times

“I had one of the best jobs in the world,” said Chris Sacca, who left Google. “But there is a world of opportunity.”

SAN FRANCISCO — Chris Sacca had a plum job as the Wi-Fi guru at Google. But with his stock options fully vested, he left the Internet search company this month for a new career as a venture capitalist.

Mr. Sacca, 32, joins a growing number of Google millionaires hoping to parlay their newfound wealth into even greater riches by bankrolling technology start-ups.

Andrea Zurek, a former manager for a Google ad system, left in October. She is considering an investment in a company started by another Google alumnus.

Read more . . .

Founders Fund Closes $220 Million Second Fund

ron — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 17:45:47 +0000

“Sean Parker said today in a phone interview that a glut in venture capital, combined with reduced capital needs of most startups, has led to a shift in balance of power between entrepreneurs and VCs. Founders Fund recognizes that shift and has evolved does deals a little differently because of it. For example, they invented and promote the issuance of a special class of stock, called Series FF, which allows entrepreneurs to take money off the table much earlier in their company’s lifecycle. They also allow significantly more liberal voting rights to founder board members than many other funds.”

Read more . . .

Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.

The Twice Shy Entrepreneur

ron — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 18:26:12 +0000

Silicon Valley these days is made up of two kinds of entrepreneurs (I’m painting with broad strokes, bear with me). The first group is the old guard. These are people who started companies during the late nineties and up until the 2000 stock market crash. The second group was either in school during that period, or doing something other that working in the tech world, and have started companies after the fallout from the crash.

Generally speaking, experience counts for something. So you’d expect entrepreneurs who’ve been through the ups and downs of a tech startup to have an advantage over the newcomers. Or at least have an equal chance at success. But in fact the opposite may be true. A number of venture capitalists I’ve spoken with have said that too many “old guard” entrepreneurs are not being bold enough in their business decisions, and it’s hurting their startups.

The first VC to bring this up to me was CRV’s Saar Gur at a recent conference. Since then I’ve brought it up with a number of other VCs. Across the board they agree - many entrepreneurs from the first bubble are overly cautious, and hurting their businesses.

Read more . . .

Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.

Google Options Make Masseuse a Multimillionaire

ron — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 02:45:26 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 11 — Bonnie Brown was fresh from a nasty divorce in 1999, living with her sister and uncertain of her future. On a lark, she answered an ad for an in-house masseuse at Google, then a Silicon Valley start-up with 40 employees. She was offered the part-time job, which started out at $450 a week but included a pile of Google stock options that she figured might never be worth a penny.

Read more . . .

Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.

Important Questions Startup Co-Founders Should Ask Each Other

ron — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 02:01:03 +0000

One thing I have learned in my experience with startups is that if you are not careful, you are as likely to experience as many challenges with your co-founder(s) as you are with the business itself.

The following are some of the most important questions that should be resolved as early in the process as possible. In most cases, these issues only get more difficult over time.

Top 10 Critical Startup Co-Founder Questions

Read more . . .