Technology & Cyber Strategy for the Mergers & Acquisitions Industry

The never-ending battle: An eternal part of the venture capital process is sourcing new deals. No competitive VC outfit merely sits around while anonymous business plans filter through their info@bigmoneyvc.com address on their website. In fact, many have proprietary channels they have forged to maintain a competitive edge and ensure the "first-look" luxury whenever possible. Increasingly, VCs are turning back to university research for new breakthroughs and these often come in the form Technology Transfer offices which exist to commercialize and develop new ideas which are the property of the university.  I wrote an paper on the VC landscape while at Columbia Business School so please excuse me while I quote myself: " Where will the new deals come from? Sourcing is often a critical differentiating factor for VC firms. Bringing untouched, solid deals to the table is as important as appropriately evaluating them. Traditionally, many firms referred to their pipeline as a p...

Interview with Ramana Jampala at SAS Investors, 2006, Columbia Business School Who will VCs choose to work with? Good Teams   Assessing the team is often more important than the business thesis itself. It is standard for investors to place heavy merit on the value of the management team they are reviewing. Relevant industry experience is critical but some investors feel that they are not truly comfortable with the team unless they have specific experience successfully running a similar early-staged company in the same sector, even going to far as to seek out entrepreneurs with established track records looking for a 2nd home run. Good Technologies It is interesting also to note how important qualitative factors have become in screening management teams. Mr. Jampala also noted that people seeking funding for their business should appear dedicated and “hungry” to succeed. This is what compels investors to put their money and faith in potential management team. While this may not be a rad...