My Startup Story
I got startup fever when I was in college. I took an undergraduate Wharton School class called “Principles of Entrepreneurial Management.” No, I wasn’t one of those college kids with a side hustle building a tech startup (and the phrase “tech startup” wasn’t bandied about so much back then). But I did learn how to identify market opportunities and develop new business ideas, how to create a business plan, finance and launch a startup and consider marketing and management challenges. I got the bug. I remember thinking: one day, I’d like to build my own startup.
Working with Seth Godin and Yoyodyne, I saw first-hand how startups worked, grew, the hurdles they faced, successes they achieved and blunders they made. I went on to work in consulting and while most of the companies I worked for were large corporations, facing change or crisis management, I continued to look for opportunities with startups as well.
After a couple of years, and with the blessing of the firm I worked for, I founded my own firm with half a client and a lot of idealism. I was lucky enough not to have to worry about rent (I got office space in exchange for consulting hours with my former employer). Even so, I remember thinking: there’s a whole lot of work you have to do as a founder or startup that most employees don’t worry about. Incorporation, bank accounts, hiring, firing, logos, branding, web development, stationery (remember when biz cards and letterheads were super important?), sales, marketing, new business, and, literally, taking out the trash. To say I was busy is an understatement. But the business grew and flourished which, of course, brought more challenges — managing people, growing a business, and overcoming many unexpected obstacles.
As a young entrepreneur, I spent many sleepless nights, worked a lot of weekends, made a bunch of wrong decisions, and eventually wrote a book about what I’d learned as a young manager and leader, called Tony Soprano on Management. Web Zeit worked for a lot of startups, developing technology and identifying new market opportunities for tech firms and disintermediators. We also worked for private equity firms and investment banks, kicking the tires of startups, looking beyond the numbers at the tech, how scaleable they were, thinking about their teams, competitors, and potential for long-term growth and lasting competitive advantage. Some of them went on to wealth and glory, some failed. I learned a lot (and got pretty good at predicting which ones would thrive, looking at “secret sauce” and hidden pitfalls alike).
Web Zeit was acquired by WPP, and I moved on. I became a partner at a new and exciting company, helmed by young team of techs and marketers, focused on revolutionizing email software. At Mass Transmit, I had two partners, which made things easier, but it was a bigger company, building software, so the risks were greater. My first task was to change the business focus of the company (no easy thing), my second task was to win clients and build the right tech, tools and processes to serve them. Over more than a decade, I saw my share of road bumps, experienced highs and lows in both personal and work life, saw booms and busts, technologies come and go, and worked with a whole lot of startups, in a range of industries and verticals.
When we sold Mass Transmit, I thought for a while about embarking on the next startup, but quickly realized I wanted to work on more than one. I got a freelance gig with Palo Alto software, writing business plans for their LivePlan division.
Today, I work directly with venture funds and startup founders, developing business plans, and mapping out tech and marketing, looking at how to scale, grow, evolve or change. I also work for Celent, where I look at financial services and fintech companies, many of them startups. I work for early stage investors, identifying opportunities and developing business models and competitive analyses. I work with incubators and venture funds, looking for startup gold, and making companies better, more agile, more profitable.
Finally, I work shoulder-to-shoulder with a lot of founders, as a fractional lieutenant, ad hoc marketing department, CTO advisor, coach, funding guru, and sounding board. I’ve worked with some startups for many years; other engagements have been fixed duration, and very specific. The industries have been varied, and the work has been fun, challenging and fulfilling. I’ve worked on or in over 50 startups. Many have succeeded beyond my, or their founders’, wildest dreams. I’m still learning, and I’m having fun, and hopefully adding value, quickly and efficiently. I like being there, being part of the journey, part of the solution. I like to help startups thrive.
