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Startup Archive
Ben Horowitz on how startup founders should run board meetings
As Ben explains, the most valuable thing that comes out of a board meeting is that it’s a forcing function to take a step back and make sure the game plan is right.
So the first thing you want to make sure to do is come prepared with data that provides a good overview of where the company is at:
“If you do that and present that at a board meeting and then have time to discuss interesting issues, then you’re doing pretty good. Like you’re in the 95th percentile.”
Ben also advises founders to make sure you’re getting the right kind of strategy from your board:
“One of the things you’ll notice when you’re running a company is the knowledge gap between the people in the company and the people on the board starts out small and then gets big over time. So when you start your company, your VC will have all these really interesting insights.”
But after a year, you’ll know every bit of customer feedback and product decision cold. So your VC’s advice on product strategy won’t be that valuable. Where they can be useful though is asking: What are you not doing?
“One of the problems in running a company is you spend all your time and energy optimizing, tuning, refining, A/B testing, and getting really good at what you’re doing. But then there’s this whole world of stuff you’re not doing and one of those things may be something you should do.”
If you give a good board the right context, they can help you identify things you should be doing but haven’t yet considered (e.g. entering an adjacent market, buying a company, etc.)
“That’s a lot easier to see from the outside than from the inside. You want the right kind of strategy from the board, not the wrong kind of strategy.”
Video source: @kevinrose (2012)
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Ben Horowitz on how startup founders should run board meetings
As Ben explains, the most valuable thing that comes out of a board meeting is that it’s a forcing function to take a step back and make sure the game plan is right.
So the first thing you want to make sure to do is come prepared with data that provides a good overview of where the company is at:
“If you do that and present that at a board meeting and then have time to discuss interesting issues, then you’re doing pretty good. Like you’re in the 95th percentile.”
Ben also advises founders to make sure you’re getting the right kind of strategy from your board:
“One of the things you’ll notice when you’re running a company is the knowledge gap between the people in the company and the people on the board starts out small and then gets big over time. So when you start your company, your VC will have all these really interesting insights.”
But after a year, you’ll know every bit of customer feedback and product decision cold. So your VC’s advice on product strategy won’t be that valuable. Where they can be useful though is asking: What are you not doing?
“One of the problems in running a company is you spend all your time and energy optimizing, tuning, refining, A/B testing, and getting really good at what you’re doing. But then there’s this whole world of stuff you’re not doing and one of those things may be something you should do.”
If you give a good board the right context, they can help you identify things you should be doing but haven’t yet considered (e.g. entering an adjacent market, buying a company, etc.)
“That’s a lot easier to see from the outside than from the inside. You want the right kind of strategy from the board, not the wrong kind of strategy.”
Video source: @kevinrose (2012)
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Dimitry Nakhla | Babylon Capital®
$PLTR has a market cap of $187B and is forecasted to reach $5.5B in revenue by 2027
This means it’s trading at approximately 34x its projected 2027 revenue
While $PLTR is an excellent business with strong long-term prospects, its valuation is challenging to justify
+379% YTD https://t.co/jpRdC1iWoJ
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$PLTR has a market cap of $187B and is forecasted to reach $5.5B in revenue by 2027
This means it’s trading at approximately 34x its projected 2027 revenue
While $PLTR is an excellent business with strong long-term prospects, its valuation is challenging to justify
+379% YTD https://t.co/jpRdC1iWoJ
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Stock Analysis Compilation
Kathmandu Capital on Gigacloud Technology $GCT US
Thesis: Gigacloud’s cost-efficient logistics and expanding global footprint position it as a leader in bulky item e-commerce
(Extract from their Q3 letter) https://t.co/QmMDa2XW1D
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Kathmandu Capital on Gigacloud Technology $GCT US
Thesis: Gigacloud’s cost-efficient logistics and expanding global footprint position it as a leader in bulky item e-commerce
(Extract from their Q3 letter) https://t.co/QmMDa2XW1D
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Quiver Quantitative
US Representative Ann Kuster is retiring at the age of 68.
She said she is trying to set a better example, by not staying in Congress forever.
We have not seen Kuster trade any stock in her decade in office. https://t.co/I2OUPBtwJI
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US Representative Ann Kuster is retiring at the age of 68.
She said she is trying to set a better example, by not staying in Congress forever.
We have not seen Kuster trade any stock in her decade in office. https://t.co/I2OUPBtwJI
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Quiver Quantitative
Viasat stock has now risen 41% since we posted this report.
It's been just over a month.
Up another 6% so far today: https://t.co/nYhpBOBcHn
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Viasat stock has now risen 41% since we posted this report.
It's been just over a month.
Up another 6% so far today: https://t.co/nYhpBOBcHn
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InsideArbitrage
🚨 $NNDM Nano Dimension terminates CEO Yoav Stern effective immediately.
Yoav Stern, CEO since Jan 2020, was not re-elected as a director at the Dec 6, 2024 AGM.
- Appoints Julien Lederman as Interim CEO. Julien Lederman currently serves as the company's VP of Corporate Development since 2021.
- The Board is conducting a comprehensive search for a permanent CEO.
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🚨 $NNDM Nano Dimension terminates CEO Yoav Stern effective immediately.
Yoav Stern, CEO since Jan 2020, was not re-elected as a director at the Dec 6, 2024 AGM.
- Appoints Julien Lederman as Interim CEO. Julien Lederman currently serves as the company's VP of Corporate Development since 2021.
- The Board is conducting a comprehensive search for a permanent CEO.
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Stock Analysis Compilation
Silver Beech on WillScot $WSC US
Thesis: WillScot’s industry leadership, margin expansion, and cash generation create a strong foundation for continued growth
(Extract from their Q3 letter) https://t.co/R82TvAPKcx
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Silver Beech on WillScot $WSC US
Thesis: WillScot’s industry leadership, margin expansion, and cash generation create a strong foundation for continued growth
(Extract from their Q3 letter) https://t.co/R82TvAPKcx
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Offshore
Video
Startup Archive
Vinod Khosla: “70% of investors add negative value to a company”
When junior team members at Khosla Ventures ask Vinod if they can serve on portfolio company boards, Vinod responds:
“You haven’t earned the right to advise an entrepreneur. Just because you got an MBA and joined a venture firm doesn’t mean you’re qualified to advise an entrepreneur.”
Vinod believes one of the best ways to earn that right (but not the only way) is to build a large company yourself:
“Have you gone through how hard it is, how uncertain it is, how traumatic it is to go through?… If somebody has never dealt with this decision-making under ambiguity, they’re not qualified to help you… Whose advice to trust on what topic is the single hardest decision an entrepreneur makes. It’s also where the right investors can really help you.”
He gives the example of asking a marketing executive at IBM for marketing advice:
“They’ve never dealt with things where the market isn’t established… They’re not qualified to invent whole new markets.”
He also recalls a recent argument with a co-investor who wanted their healthcare portfolio company to hire a healthcare executive from an established company:
“They wanted this healthcare person who had never dealt with change beyond 2% a year, and I’m like, experience doesn’t matter. The rate of learning matters [for a role like this].”
Video source: @ycombinator (2019)
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Vinod Khosla: “70% of investors add negative value to a company”
When junior team members at Khosla Ventures ask Vinod if they can serve on portfolio company boards, Vinod responds:
“You haven’t earned the right to advise an entrepreneur. Just because you got an MBA and joined a venture firm doesn’t mean you’re qualified to advise an entrepreneur.”
Vinod believes one of the best ways to earn that right (but not the only way) is to build a large company yourself:
“Have you gone through how hard it is, how uncertain it is, how traumatic it is to go through?… If somebody has never dealt with this decision-making under ambiguity, they’re not qualified to help you… Whose advice to trust on what topic is the single hardest decision an entrepreneur makes. It’s also where the right investors can really help you.”
He gives the example of asking a marketing executive at IBM for marketing advice:
“They’ve never dealt with things where the market isn’t established… They’re not qualified to invent whole new markets.”
He also recalls a recent argument with a co-investor who wanted their healthcare portfolio company to hire a healthcare executive from an established company:
“They wanted this healthcare person who had never dealt with change beyond 2% a year, and I’m like, experience doesn’t matter. The rate of learning matters [for a role like this].”
Video source: @ycombinator (2019)
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Stock Analysis Compilation
Diamond Hill on Huntington Ingalls Industries $HII US
Thesis: Huntington Ingalls’ unique position as a key U.S. Navy supplier ensures long-term demand visibility and growth opportunities
(Extract from their Q3 letter) https://t.co/Nvq45BnUXQ
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Diamond Hill on Huntington Ingalls Industries $HII US
Thesis: Huntington Ingalls’ unique position as a key U.S. Navy supplier ensures long-term demand visibility and growth opportunities
(Extract from their Q3 letter) https://t.co/Nvq45BnUXQ
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