ActSeed is for Entrepreneurs and Startups

On November 2, Foley & Lardner and CONNECT hosted another solid emerging technologies conference in San Diego. The theme this year was “Do You Speak Entrepreneur?”.

While the full day of panel-driven sessions was meant for tech companies, most the wisdom shared applies to almost any emerging company in any industry.

While there was plenty of content about intellectual property, privacy and outsourcing, not surprisingly, the most popular session topics centered on investment, funding and financing.

The opening general session included a panel of local southern California angels and venture capitalists, including JP Lapeyre of the Tech Coast Angels, Ted Alexander of Mission Ventures and Carl Eibl of Enterprise Partners.

One particular exchange revealed some excellent insight worth sharing here with entrepreneurs in any industry.  Even those who are not looking for funding will find this dialogue insightful. The moderator, James Chapman of Foley & Lardner, asked the panelists, “What do you look for in an entrepreneur?”

The answers included:

• “Passion.”
• “People who can get it done.”
• “Done is better than perfect.”
• “It’s all about execution.”
• “Someone willing to have a dialogue with, and listen to, their investor.”
• “Rapport is important.”
• “Self-awareness. Knowing where your gaps are”
• “Adaptability.”

These answers resonate with the ActSeed team and we hope resonate with every entrepreneur. These responses emphasize our mantra that investors seek not only the good idea, but a team with a demonstrated ability to execute the idea in a disciplined, planned manner.

This does not suggest creating a rigid plan and pursuing without regard to realities as they unfold. This also does not suggest “making it up as you go”.

It does, however, underscore the need to have a thorough plan that is constantly being interrogated and refined, which is the foundation and purpose of ActSeed’s Entrepreneur Profile / Evaluation process.

What answers would you add to the ones given by the conference panel?

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