Off to Ireland

Oops - not been great in keeping up with blog postings..
Been away on a consulting gig (enterprise architect/strategy) for a large USA retail firm. The joys of the larger companies!


Off to Ireland for a few weeks (23 Oct - Nov 6) and hoping to meet up with some software startups. Talked with some before but would be great to meetup in person and see the "real story" trying 2 get a startup going in Ireland.

In Galway, Dublin(maybe), Cork and possibly Clonmel. If anyone is interesting in (organising) a meetup (Barcamp/OpenCoffee or whatever -even pub 'visit') please let me know.


Hoping to talk to/meet (interview for blog posting etc.) :

Fergus Burns - nooked
Evert Bopp - WiMax
Conor O'Neill - LouderVoice
Joe Drumgoole - PutPlace
David Copithorne - Waveson
John Ward - Cengal
Paul Walsh - Segala
Jonathan Hill - Infacta
David Lenehan - PollDaddy
Tom Raftery
Ken Thompson - Swarm
Walter Higgins - Sxoop/pxn8
Bernin Goldback - podcasting
Aodhan Cullen - Statcounter
Keith Bohanna - dbTwang
Frank Fullard - CEB
Brian O'Malley - EI
Donncha O'Caoimh - pictures!
James Cooley, John Breslin - DERI
James Corbett- Grazr
Pat Phelan - Cubic
Sean O'Sullivan
David Doherty - 3G Doctor
Niall Larkin
Vinny Glennon
Dominic Herity - Redplain
Julian Ellison/Yongchun Ji - Tablane

lots more .. but can only type so much ... on my way... bring that brollie :)

Lal

Advisors: can’t live without `em

Frmo Paul Fisher's blog - Advisors: can’t live without `em:

if a company is using an advisor then it tells an investor a lot about an entrepreneur:

1) None of the quality entrepreneurs I know want to become an expert in raising capital. They are happy to know their ratchet from their double dip but they want someone else to put it all in context.

2) None of the entrepreneurs I know want to spend enormous swathes of time raising capital. They want to spend time on their companies: development, A-B Testing, business development, sales, collecting cash: whatever. Happy to talk to investors, but lets keep it in perspective.

3) None of the entrepreneurs I know want to talk to just one investor. They know it’s a good market. They know the best companies get multiple offers. They want the CHOICE.

4) What most entrepreneurs DO want, is great investors. They do want the brand, the strategic input, the operational advice, the workshops and the conferences, the exit planning, the introductions and the profile building that comes with great investors.

A decent corporate finance advisor gives an entrepreneur these things

Lal

Pitch to a Dublin waiter and Win free trip to OCC London

Paul Walsh from Segala is at it again :)

He had tried to arrange a dinner outgoing in Dublin for startup entrepreneurs but had to postpone at the last minute (I'm sure there was a lot of happy waiters :)

So he's arranged another Curry dinner evening on July 2nd, 2007

...prize of a trip to OpenCoffee London where introductions will be made to potential partners and investors. All you have to do is pitch your product/service to a waiter in one minute. If you’re from the UK I’ll arrange for another prize.

...Business should be fun!

Trust the Irish to have a different slant to the elevator pitch; but then there is less of them in Ireland compared to other big cities. Hmm! maybe we can get some research firm or some univ's guys 2 check that out ?

Now boys don't forget to leave a tip!


Lal

20 sec pitch: Fergus Burns, Nooked, Ireland

Fergus Burns from Irish Web 2.0 startup Nooked does a speeeeeedy 20 sec "pitch via PodTed's Silicon Valley Minute at the Web 2.0 Conf in San Franciso.

Nooked Feedwizard enables marketers to use RSS technologies to deliver one-to-one marketing to consumers.

Anyone seen a faster summary ?

Spotted on James Corbett blog

Lal

Business Angels have €20m to invest in startups- Dublin, IRL

from Business Plus online Feb 2007

The Halo Business Angels Partnership has announced that it has raised €20m to invest in startup and developing companies


The partnership is a pilot programme and has resulted from a joint initiative between Enterprise Ireland, InterTrade Ireland and the Irish Business and Innovation Centres. It is designed to match private investors with pre-screened investment opportunities in early stage and developing businesses. The programme is being managed by the Dublin Business Innovation Centre (DBIC).

DBIC said that four companies have received cash investment of €100,000 each in the past six months. Average investment amounts should range from €25,000 to €100,000.

DBIC chairman Hugh Governey said: "This fills a gap in the market for early stage companies which have major potential but which are outside the radar of traditional venture capital companies. We are interested in continuing to attract angels and investee companies. Our goal is to create excellent opportunities for investors and early stage funding for successful Irish companies of the future".

Welcoming the announcement, enterprise minister Micheál Martin said "Angel investment in countries such as the US has played an important role in helping to build a knowledge economy. This programme is unique in that it harnesses the experience of entrepreneurs and investors many of whom have already built successful companies in Ireland".

Although DBIC is responsible for co-ordinating the Business Angels partnership, it is available in the South West, South East and BMW regions through the offices of Cork BIC, West BIC and South East BIC


anyone know who got the 'funding'?
anyone applied and got turned down?


Lal

NovaUCD Entrepreneurs Live seminar- Apr 2007 - Dublin, IRL

from Business Plus online mag

Yep - I know its past, as it gone, over, done, dusted...
anyone go to it, any feedback ?


04/04/07: Benchmark Capital partner and Bebo director Barry Maloney was the first guest speaker at the NovaUCD Entrepreneurs Live seminar series


Maloney advised entrepreneurs to "set themselves ambitious goals which will require sacrifices, to hire the best and to never ever give up".

The Entrepreneurs Live seminars will bring leading Irish entrepreneurs talk about their experiences of setting-up and running their businesses. During each seminar attendees have the opportunity to ask questions of the guest speaker. The series continues each Tuesday lunch time (1 pm to 1:50 pm) until April 24 in the William Jefferson Clinton Auditorium, at UCD and attendance is open to all.

Three other Irish entrepreneurs will be speaking at the series: Oliver Tattan, founder and chief executive of Vivas Health; Garry Moroney, founder of Similarity Systems; and Dermot Lawton, director of eBay European Services.

The series is being organised by UCD technology transfer centre NovaUCD with the backing of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Enterprise Board.

Commenting on the event, NovaUCD director Dr Pat Frain said: "The Entrepreneurs Live seminars attract a large and diverse audience and stimulate a lively and enthusiastic debate on issues relating to entrepreneurship and innovation and the establishment and development of technology-based companies. The level of interest at these seminars is evidence of a growing culture of entrepreneurship at UCD which augurs well for Ireland's ability to generate the new knowledge-intensive and innovative enterprises which are critical for the sustained development of Ireland's knowledge-based economy".

Lal

Anyone apply for Top 15 EU Startups competition?

(OOPS - this one got stuck in the Web2Ireland blog Drafts Q :(    )

Anyone know or enter for this?
Deadline was by May 2nd, and happens on May 10th in Madrid.
I found it via Richards post on ReadWrite

StartUp2.0 is a competition of European web 2.0 sites whose objectives are to promote and reward the European startups (either created or willing to do so in the future) that work in the field of 2.0 technologies.

The Irish boys not up 4 this and fancy a trip 2 Spain (with cheap RyanAir flights) ?

I see our man Tom is on the panel...

Should EI or someone be keeping a 'diary of relevance' for Irish startups?

Fergus gave a mention earlier

Lal

Views on Goverment subsidies from Vinod and UK

from Library House latest newsletter:

Keep an open mind on subsidies 

For many entrepreneurs, the mere mention of subsidies has them shaking their heads in disbelief. Vinod Khosla, a founder of Sun Microsystems and a serial entrepreneur, said he viewed companies that rely on government backing with great suspicion. But Mr Khosla, speaking at Library House’s Essential Cleantech conference last month, did entertain the possibility of limited subsidies for very new industries.

The fact is, like it or not, governments are getting increasingly involved in venture capital. They recognise the positive effect that well-directed investment can have on jobs, GDP growth and, importantly on public morale.

For this reason the most prolific European investors, according to VenturePedia, are High-Tech Gründerfonds Management, which partners with the German government, and funds run by Scottish Enterprise, which are also state-backed. High-Tech Gründerfonds Management has made 49 investments in the last year while Scottish Enterprise funds have made 45. The average deal size involving these organisations is less than €1m, indicating they are operating at a micro level, targeting companies that are below the radar of most venture capitalists.

There are also a number of hybrid investment companies, that are ostensibly privately-owned but whose funds are swelled by government money. One of these, Bridges Ventures, the venture capital group set up by Sir Ronald Cohen to invest in deprived parts of the UK, will this week make its 27th investment, lifting to £26.5m the amount of capital it has spent since being set up in 2002.

Bridges raised £40m for its first fund, including £20m from the UK government, with capital also provided by Sir Ronald's charitable trust, as well as private equity executives Jeremy Coller, Nigel Doughty and Jon Moulton, retailer Tom Singh, and listed private equity group 3i. But its second fund of £50m had no government money.

Although micro financing may look unattractive to many VCs given the amount of due diligence that is required to complete a deal, this may be a false impression. Phil Newborough, the chief executive of Bridges claims his funds are outperforming the rest of the VC market. That should, at the very least, give the sceptics food for thought.



Interesting...
I'll comment some more as I write about goverment involvment/support on the Irish scene and startup eco-system.

Lal

Start your own business course- Dublin, IRL

OOPS - this one got stuff in the Web2Ireland blog Drafts Q :(
so its a little late !

In case anyone is interested in this : Start Your Own Business: Starts Thu, 17th May 2007

Venue: Nutgrove Enterprise Park, Rathfarnham, Dublin 14
Find on Map

Who Should Attend?
Anyone who is looking to become their own boss but who is not sure where to begin. By the end of the 6 session course, participants will have achieved the following:-

Prepared and assessed a professional Business Plan
Learned about how to market their business
Understood the concepts of business taxation
Gained information on possible sources of funding
Understood the importance of cash-flow management
Learned about the legal aspects of business formation, including health and safety and insurance considerations.

Certification from ILM (Institute of Leadership & Management) is available.

Duration
6 weeks (one evening a week from 7pm - 10pm).
There is a 30 min break during each session.

Session 1: Tue, May 17th Business Plan Development
Session 2: Tue, May 24th Marketing
Session 3: Tue, May 31st Law & Taxation
Session 4: Tue, June 7th Finance
Session 5: Tue, June 14th Sales
Session 6: Tue, June 21st Guest Speaker/Conclusion

Course Fee
Only €195 per person. Places are limited.

Lal

3 days 2 apply: Essential Web 2007 Europe’s top web innovators -Library House- London

Library House is seeking the fifteen most innovative businesses to present at the Essential Web conference this June. A panel of industry experts will select the very best companies to present to an audience of leading investors, business, and media players. If you would like your venture to be considered please nominate yourself by Friday 25th May

Date: 27th June 2007, 8:00am - 8:00pm
Location: BFI IMAX Cinema, Waterloo, London

Essential Web 2007 is a one-day showcase celebrating Europe’s web innovators.

Key themes

Mobilising the web: how do mobile web and internet web work? Is the technology up to scratch? Where are the biggest opportunities for entrepreneurs?
Social, social, social: The explosion of vast social networks and the countervailing surge of micro-blogging
Monetising the web: Great idea. Now how do you make it make money?

Raw companies: pre-funded start up companies screened by Library House and a panel of experts to represent the newest, most innovative and exciting web ventures in Europe.
Hot companies: investor-backed ventures on a fast track to growth.
Star companies: mature web ventures - market leading or looking towards exit.
Plus: insight from experienced entrepreneurs, dealmakers and commentators.


As an entrepreneur behind a web venture you will qualify for a special rate of £95 (a £200 discount on the early bird price) to attend the event, and if your company is selected to present you will be refunded the £95*.

All entrepreneurs who qualify for this special rate have the option to:
Attend a special day's training at no extra cost
Access a database of venture-backed companies until 27 June at no extra cost


The audience will vote for the best presenting company of the day, who will receive a year’s access to Library House's VentureConnect events series (£4,950 value) and our VenturePedia database of competitive intelligence on top European venture backed companies (£4,950 value).



This programme will focus on successfully presenting to investors and addressing a large audience with impact. Please note that attendance is not a requirement for selection.

Agenda for training days
9.00am Arrival and coffee
9.30am Session 1 commences: Elevator Pitch
Company elevator pitches. Each delegate presents company elevator pitch. The whole group gives feedback. Facilitators give feedback.
10.30am Break into two groups for each facilitator to give additional coaching and advice on elevator pitch. Further rehearsals
11.30am Revised elevator pitches presented back to entire group
12.00pm Session 2 commences: Company presentation
Break into two groups for each delegate to give 10 slide/10 minute company presentation to respective group. Each group gives feedback.
1.00-1.45pm Break for lunch
1.45pm Facilitators score each presentation and give feedback to overall group
2.15pm Delegates breakout to work on improving company presentations Facilitators circulate amongst delegates and spend min 20 mins one one-to-one basis with each delegate during this period. Further rehearsals.
4.45pm Final company presentations in two groups with external opinion-former (ideally VC or corporate investor) in attendance.
5.45pm Review and close Once you have booked a ticket we will send dates and locations of these free training sessions.



Investor attendees to Library House events in the past few months have included:

3i, Acacia Capital Partners, Advent Venture Partners, Add Partners, Albany Venture Managers, Aloe Group, Amadeus Capital, AMF Ventures, Atlas Venture, ATOS Origin, Benchmark Capital, Bridges Community Ventures, BT Group, Cambridge Capital Group, Capricorn Venture Partners, Catapult Venture Managers, Celtic House Ventures, Chesham Holdings, CLS Holdings, Enterprise Ventures, E-Synergy, Esprit Capital Partners, Eden Ventures, ETV Capital, First ventures, Foresight Venture Partners, Foursome Investments, Impetus Partners, Intel Capital, Katalyst Ventures, Mitsui Capital, Quester, Scottish Equity Partners, Siemens Venture Capital, Sofinnova Partners, SRPE, TLcom Capital Partners, TTP Venture Managers, Zouk Ventures, Warburg Pincus, Wheb Ventures, YFM Group


Lal
 

Innovate Europe 2007 Wrap-Up and Angels/funding

Rudy De Waele has a summary (just copied his part of Angels/funding in EU) from the Innovate Europe 2007 Wrap-Up

Power Angels panel, composed of:

* Klaus Hommels, Venture Partner, Benchmark Capital
* Oliver Jung, Investment Manager, Adinvest
* Saul Klein, Venture Partner, Index Ventures
* Simon Levene, Partner, Accel
* Mark Tluszcz, Managing Partner, Mangrove Capital Partners

Here my rough notes from that session:

- 20 relevant vc’s and 20 angels in europe
- 30 investments last year, diversification (oliver)
- a lot less opportunities in EU then elsewhere
- just less deals in EU
- too much advertising as biz model for tech startups, Oliver likes to see more real pure business models build on revenues
- 50% funded seed companies will not survive
- too many companies on to few opportunities
- more people starting companies then people joining companies
- great talent pool in europe
- great examples serve as role model
- first 50 people building a team are fundamental!
- need more people joining teams than starting companies

Conclusion: it’s all about smart entrepreneurs and passionate people

Lal

Wanna pitch? Microsoft Campus, Silicon Valley - June 2007

from Event Launch : Silicon Vally 2007

Following the success of the initial Launch: Silicon Valley event in November 2006, we are pleased to announce Launch Silicon Valley 2007 will be held on June 5, 2007, at the Microsoft Campus in Mountain View, CA. The event, co-presented by Silicon Valley Association of Startup Entrepreneurs (SVASE) and Garage Technology Ventures, provides the next generation of emerging technology companies with the opportunity to pitch their products to, and network with, an audience of Silicon Valley’s top movers and shakers. The first Launch: Silicon Valley event featured 29 top startups, presenting their products and services to an audience of over 180 VCs, Angels, corporate business development executives, prospective customers and partners, bloggers and media.

Launch: Silicon Valley 2007 is designed to uncover and showcase products and services from the most exciting of the newest startups in information technology, mobility, security, digital media next generation internet, life sciences and clean energy. Launch: Silicon Valley 2007 will feature new companies that are ready for launch, but are not yet well known. These are companies that have a product or service available (as of June 5, 2007), but have not been out in the marketplace for more than a few months. Companies that are interested in presenting their products at Launch: Silicon Valley 2007 should send an Executive Summary of no more than 2 pages to Launchsv@svase.org by latest May 13, 2007

Up to 30 of the most interesting companies will be invited to present their product or service at Launch: Silicon Valley 2007, and to network with the audience of Silicon Valley’s top movers and shakers at the Pre-LSV Event Party on the evening of June 4, as well as at the event itself on June 5. The CEOs of the companies voted “most promising new company” in each of the six sessions will also receive invitations (for two) to attend the prestigious Ernst & Young “Entrepreneur of the Year” Gala Dinner on June 29 at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco.

Costs approx $750. got until May 13th 2 sign up!!

Here's what 2 of the presenting companies from Launch: Silicon Valley 2006 have to say:

Launch: Silicon Valley was an extremely valuable event for cFares, as it was there that we met the firm that subsequently became the lead investor in our latest round of finance. We would not have achieved as much progress as we have without Launch: Silicon Valley.

Vajid Jafri
Founder & CEO
cFares

Since L:SV we closed series A with Innovacom and ATA and have gone on to win large customer deals across the Telco and mobile social networking world. We’re growing significantly and are now looking at closing a new round of funding as well that we will announce sometime early next month.

On the team side, we’re up to well over 50 people and are looking to be over 120 by end of this year across the globe. We currently have people on the ground in Santa Clara, Beijing, Karachi, Tokyo and soon to expand to Hong Kong, Paris, London, Dubai and Bombay.

So things are going quite well so far. Thanks much for giving us the opportunity to present at L:SV; it was indeed a very good show for us.

Faraz Hoodbhoy
CEO, PixSense, Inc.



Lal