"The most important thing a startup can do is get the basics right... if you don't get them right early you never will." ~ Sam Altman, former President of Y Combinator and current CEO of OpenAI

 

"A startup messed up at its foundation cannot be fixed. If you begin with bad decisions...it will be hard to correct. As the creator of your company, it's your primary role to get things right.  A flawed beginning to your business will result in a flawed future." ~ Peter Thiel, Venture Capitalist, and Co-Founder of PayPal

  

 

Many of the more referenced studies show that approximately 40% of small businesses fail in the first year, over 75% within 5 years, and over 90% within 10 years. In technology, one high-profile study showed that 92% of startups failed within 3 years. 

 

​Flip the odds in your favor in the design phase of your business by effectively creating the right agreements between shareholders, share structure and vesting, financing, governance structures and processes, and the many other details that are often not seen or understood until they become major problems in the context of executive changes, financing or M&A. 

 

With my hands-on experience as a CFO in multiple successful high growth tech companies and as an advisor, together with your vision, we can create a plan and business foundation that is optimized for your success. And you can pursue your idea with confidence and alignment that will show in all that you do and to all with whom you engage.

 

Some Resources:

- Convertible Note Basics by Gordon Daugherty, Shockwave Innovations

- Comparing SAFE to Convertible Notes by Gordon Daugherty, Shockwave Innovations

- Advice for Founders of Startups - Startup Inc.

- Startup Valuation Data from AngelList (Although when last checked the valuation data web page was shut down)

- Startup Valuation Methods from Lighter Capital

- Predicting A Startup Valuation With Data Science by Sebastian Quintero

- Startup Salary and Equity Data from AngelList