Startup Whisperer Blog
The Bull Case For eSports
After watching the Winter Olympics and seeing some sports that I would not necessarily consider sports. Ahem, curling anyone? It got me thinking about my time spent on eSports last summer. That project and company are well underway and it was truly thrilling to dig deep into this market. I won't divulge anything that is…
Startup Whisperer Summit Was Awesome!
Last night, I did the first ever Startup Whisperer Summit. I haven’t really dug back into the Seattle tech scene since I moved back over a year ago. There were many new and familiar faces at the event. Some highlights: Pitchbook – they hosted us in their beautiful space in downtown Seattle. …
Some advice from a geek
I am Geekwire’s Geek of the Week. Check it out here. Outside of the self-promotion, my real sincere ask of all of you entrepreneurs is to truly enjoy the moment. Its too easy to worry about the next play or the next thing without basking in the moment. Onward and upward!
DevOps For Dummies
I’m a fan the classic Chevy Chase film, Fletch. If you haven’t seen it, the eponymous hero classically tries to bluff his way through pretending he's an aircraft mechanic. At one point in the film as he attempts to maneuver his way through an inspection of a plane engine, he cunningly delivers the line, “It’s…
Corporate Travel Game of Thrones
Travel is huge, but where is the corporate travel innovation? Travel is one of those monster categories that never ceases to innovate. The global category is over $9 trillion and online travel is over $300 billion . Just when you think that there isn’t any more innovation, another new startup takes on a new twist…
What Is An Entrepreneur In Residence?
I recently spent some time with a Seattle-based venture capital firm, Voyager Capital. Voyager is an early-stage venture firm that focuses on B2B opportunities primarily in the Pacific Northwest. What drew me to the firm is their very different approach to supporting entrepreneurs. They have a craftsman-like view for their investments, bringing in outside resources like Tom…
Five reasons your business plan is becoming obsolete
I recently did a post back in April for VentureBeat titled 5 Reasons Your Business Plan is Becoming Obsolete. In that post, I point out how easy it is get a new business idea or startup tested and vetted without much upfront investment. Many of these themes have honestly been discussed before in other books…
What Can Seasoned Entrepreneurs Teach Millennial Entrepreneurs?
I had a blast doing talking to Jerry Jao who is CEO of Retention Science and a contributor to Forbes. Here is an except below and you can read the rest of the post…… Previously, I’ve written about what a Millennial entrepreneur can teach you about business. To better myself as a CEO, I continue…
A CEO Way With Words
Check out my contributing post on TechCrunch which deals with CEOs swearing and their overall authenticity.
How to Avoid 5 Interview Fails
I'll pile onto every popular post around, with the do's and don’ts on interviewing. Except, my list is extremely cathartic right now — unemployment is on the rebound, and it’s getting harder and harder to get the talent you want. Really, it’s harder to find the talent that you need. Many candidates in the market…
Will YouTube-Based Networks Ever Become Next Generation Broadcast Networks?
Many years ago, I was a founding executive at a company called AtomFilms. It was the brainchild of Mika Salmi and was sold to Viacom much later in its startup life. Atom was really before its time. The company was founded on the principles that entertainment was going to flourish from a new cadre of…
4 Tips To Decide When To Pivot Your Business
People often ask me how hard is it to pivot a business. Younger businesses are always easier to pivot than existing businesses. Not only are larger businesses, well larger, they also have a legacy of existing revenue that will more than likely be cannibalized, reduced, or even eliminated. An example of a recent pivot that…
