Operating at the Intersection of Technology and the Capital Markets
Category: Venture Capital
The grow-at-all-costs venture capital culture of the past 20-plus years ruins companies. How? Far too much focus is placed on revenue growth at the expense of sound operations and profitability. Too many venture-backed companies grow at a pace that far outstrips those companies' ability to scale operations in a manner that supports growth. The result … Continue reading VC Culture Ruins Companies
Founded in 2017, Capital Markets Gateway ("CMG") is working to automate the IPO process, an effort that is long overdue. CMG was highlighted in today's WSJ. The firm's platform aggregates data from issuers, underwriters and investors and provides real-time information and analytics to users that otherwise would be aggregated, error checked and tabulated by hand. … Continue reading Automating The IPO Process
To date approximately 90% of TEK2day content has been free to readers. That will change on September 1st when the majority of our content will move to "premium" status including 100% of our long-form content. Certain of our articles - those of the single paragraph nature - will remain free to readers. Premium TEK2day articles … Continue reading Nothing’s For Free
Too few CEOs fully leverage the power of variable compensation to drive desired employee behavior and outcomes Last week we discussed the AI CEO vs. the Cyborg CEO. Assuming we could build a CEO with perfect intelligence there remains the question of how that CEO should communicate with his/her direct reports and employee base so … Continue reading Link Variable Compensation To Desired Outcomes
Robotic Process Automation ("RPA") flirted with Tech stardom in 2018 and 2019 as a number of companies in the space received significant Technology press. UiPath's recent $750 million Series F round and its lofty $35 billion post-money valuation (Alkeon Capital and Coatue led the round), points the spotlight squarely on the space once again. Read … Continue reading RPA’s Day In The Sun
The Venture Capital model is broken. VC interests are not aligned with the best interests of their limited partners nor of their portfolio companies. VC's push portfolio companies too fast in a short-term greedy effort to maximize valuations at the expense of operational rigor: VC's push portfolio companies to generate warp speed revenue growth at … Continue reading Venture Capital Is Broken
Amazon is developing a reputation for poor deal etiquette. Specifically (as reported by the WSJ), Amazon is using intelligence gathered by its venture arm during deal due diligence to develop competitive offerings. Microsoft, Google, Walmart, Alibaba, Shopify and others will likely capture a percentage of venture and M&A deal flow that otherwise would have gone … Continue reading Poor Reputations Travel Quickly
Regardless of who wins November's general election we expect higher corporate income tax rates in 2021 or more likely 2022. Today's 21% U.S. corporate tax rate will likely climb back to 35% or higher should Trump win re-election or to 40-45% should Biden win the Presidency. We expect companies to control expenses as a result … Continue reading Higher Corporate Income Tax Rates and Advanced Automation Are Coming
Layoffs are not only taking place across the retail, restaurant, travel and hospitality industries. A number of other industries including the Technology industry have absorbed their fair share of layoffs as well. Some early-stage Technology companies are conserving cash by replacing cash compensation with equity. The list below includes approximately 60 companies (primarily Tech companies) … Continue reading Layoffs Have Extended Beyond Hotels and Restaurants
Time for VC's to write down their portfolios. The same holds true for Private Equity portfolios. We led with VC's in the title because venture-backed valuations bear little resemblance to any economic reality whereas private equity valuations are largely grounded in reality. Public company valuations are not going to snap back to normal. The U.S. … Continue reading Public Service Message to VC’s: Time to Write Down Your Portfolios
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