Mastering the VC Game: A Venture Capital Insider Reveals How to Get from Start-up to IPO on Your Terms by Jeffrey Bussgang
He describes the inner working of venture firms and what they look for: a strong business proposition, a good plan, solid and experienced management and, these days, some proof of concept, usually with revenues.
Intangible Capital review by Jeremy Phillips
It’s much more fun to read than the rather solemn title suggests, combining strands of history, economics, management, metaphor and common sense, personal experience and anecdote. It’s also a monument to the metamorphosis of management and asset management philosophies from the age of bricks and mortar to the world of the internet.
Switch: How to Change Things when Change is Hard
The brothers break down the change process in a very manageable way: find the bright spots to pattern the effort after, script exact and achievable steps toward the goal, and motivate people as progress is made toward goals. It’s an effective approach to a difficult topic.
So Why Write a Book?
In our consulting business, and in the world around us, we have seen the trend away from traditional manufacturing business to knowledge businesses and the inadequacy of current accounting and management systems to accommodate it. Think about it, 70-80% of the value of the average business is made up of knowledge assets (intangible capital). This shift affects every business from the store on the corner on Main Street to the technology giants. We are utterly convinced that American business cannot succeed by doing things the same old way. It is critical that we begin using new tools to see and manage these knowledge assets explicitly.
Why Do Your Customers Pay You for Your Knowledge?
Last week, I focused on how your company gets paid for its knowledge. Today, I’d like to focus on why your customers are willing to pay you.
This question is all the more acute given my post on Friday about the need to give away knowledge. This fact means that focusing exclusively on how you [...]
The Role of Financial Executives in Exit Planning for Business Owners
The Role of Financial Executives in Exit Planning for Business Owners
Commercial Bankers Must Know the Owner/Manager’s Exit Plan
Commercial lenders must know the Owner/Manager’s exit plan.
Intangible Capital – Putting Knowledge to Work in the 21st Century Organization
Through our consulting business over the last ten years or so, we have seen the movement from the industrial age to the knowledge age accelerate. The inability of current accounting standards to keep up with this shift means that a recent look at the S&P 500 market value revealed that market value exceeded the book value of its component companies by 70%. Additionally, Ernst & Young data from 2007 showed 50% of the value of all mergers was assigned to goodwill and another 20% to other intangible assets. Intangibles are clearly an important factor in how businesses grow today.
The Office Building with a Personality
My building is a great example of how community can enhance a business that many others would consider to be a commodity (office space). How could you create a community for your customers and change the rules of the game in your market?
XPX-Boston Member dinner – May 27
XPX-Boston Member dinner – Thursday evening, May 27 at Papa Razzi, 16 Washington St., Wellesley, MA.
