 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
Today's startup companies are important contributors to innovation of new
products and services in the energy field. This page contains information
from both startups and venture capital companies. What do they think is
important?
Global Energy Hub presents selected results of a large survey of energy
startups in the United States. The questionnaire includes topics such as:
economic development, deregulation impact, and challenges at startup.
The links on the left hand side of this page will take you to selected
information from this survey. If you are interested in obtaining the full
survey of 55 questions, please contact us.
The survey will soon include companies from Europe and Asia. If you are
interested in participating or partnering with GlobalEnergyHub in this
important process, please contact us.
products and services in the energy field. This page contains information
from both startups and venture capital companies. What do they think is
important?
Global Energy Hub presents selected results of a large survey of energy
startups in the United States. The questionnaire includes topics such as:
economic development, deregulation impact, and challenges at startup.
The links on the left hand side of this page will take you to selected
information from this survey. If you are interested in obtaining the full
survey of 55 questions, please contact us.
The survey will soon include companies from Europe and Asia. If you are
interested in participating or partnering with GlobalEnergyHub in this
important process, please contact us.
- Experiences raising funds
- Challenges during the
startup period
- Challenges during the
startup period
MANAGEMENT TEAMS - VCs - ANGELS
Building a Management Team
As venture capitalists know well, the quality and breadth of the
management team determines a firm’s capabilities to respond to
challenges. Venture capitalists invest in unproven ideas, but only
on the condition that the management team is capable. Building a
management team is a critical step in making a venture project
attractive for such investors.
Rarely will a startup have all the needed players on the
management team right away; key members will need to be added
as the firm evolves. Furthermore, the makeup of the required key
leaders changes as the firm grows. A growing trend is to change
the management team as the company changes. In as many cases
as not, the top leadership of firms have changed by the time a
successful firm does an initial public offering.
To be viewed as world class, your management team should
comprise a range of backgrounds so that, in aggregate, it has deep
knowledge of the target market, technological expertise, experience
in startups, connections, operational insights, PR prowess,
international market experience and other capabilities specific to
your strategic focus. Members of your Board of Advisors can help
you identify weaknesses in your current team that you may need to
fill.
Venture Capital
Venture capital firms raise money for venture funds from large
investors, for example pension or insurance funds, and then invest
these funds in risky ideas or companies with potentially high
returns. A given venture fund might be invested in 5 to 15
companies over a couple years, and each partner (a “VC”) is
responsible for a few investments per year. These partners collect
a salary plus a share of returns to the fund over a minimum level.
Typically a venture capital firm invests in an entrepreneurial
company after the product or service has been tested and initial
market information has been collected. This reluctance to fund the
earliest venture phases cycles back and forth, however: In the early
nineties it was very difficult to get venture capital funding for
startups, while during the Internet frenzy of the late nineties most
venture capital firms got involved in early financing phases, even
seed capital for firms based only around an unformed idea. The
high flying Internet financing bubble may now be behind us,
however, and venture capital are once again becoming reluctant to
finance the early stages.
A typical venture capital firms receive over 1000 requests for
funding each year, of which they fund 2 to 5, or under a half a
percent. Each partner receives many business plan summaries to
review each week. Unless the plan comes to them with the
recommendation of someone they know or the business idea
addresses a market they have already identified as interesting, they
typically scan them very quickly and move on to the next.
To maximize your chances of being considered seriously for
funding, you should:
1) Research which venture capital firms invest in your kind of
project; market arena, venture company’s geographic location, and
investment phase.
2) Network to find someone who knows a VC in the firm and is
willing to provide an introduction.
These steps are in addition, of course, to the basics of assembling
a top-notch management team and third-party alliances; honing
your business idea so that strategic, marketing and operational
issues are thoroughly thought through; preparing a well written
business plan summary (some venture capitalists will expect to see
a full business plan), preparing a 15 minute presentation, and
priming the management team to answer difficult questions a VC
might ask.
Assuming you are successful, it will normally take four to six months
to raise and collect capital from venture capital firms.
Angel Capital
Angel capital is probably the more common source for new ventures
in the very earliest stages. Angels are private, wealthy individuals
who invest in risky projects.
For the most part, angels are unorganized and like their privacy,
making them hard to locate. To reach most, you must network
through acquaintances to find wealthy individuals. Wealth is not
sufficient, as you will need to find individuals who have some
previous connection with your market arena and thus are more
likely to find the market risk of your project acceptable.
Some angels operate in organizations. In these organizations,
angels meet to hear presentations by entrepreneurs seeking
funding and, if they are convinced, put together a financing
package from some combination of members. To be one of the
lucky few chosen to present to the group, you must be sponsored
by a member. Networking to reach a member can build your
chances appreciably, though most have a formal application
process that, in theory, is open for anyone.
Building a Management Team
As venture capitalists know well, the quality and breadth of the
management team determines a firm’s capabilities to respond to
challenges. Venture capitalists invest in unproven ideas, but only
on the condition that the management team is capable. Building a
management team is a critical step in making a venture project
attractive for such investors.
Rarely will a startup have all the needed players on the
management team right away; key members will need to be added
as the firm evolves. Furthermore, the makeup of the required key
leaders changes as the firm grows. A growing trend is to change
the management team as the company changes. In as many cases
as not, the top leadership of firms have changed by the time a
successful firm does an initial public offering.
To be viewed as world class, your management team should
comprise a range of backgrounds so that, in aggregate, it has deep
knowledge of the target market, technological expertise, experience
in startups, connections, operational insights, PR prowess,
international market experience and other capabilities specific to
your strategic focus. Members of your Board of Advisors can help
you identify weaknesses in your current team that you may need to
fill.
Venture Capital
Venture capital firms raise money for venture funds from large
investors, for example pension or insurance funds, and then invest
these funds in risky ideas or companies with potentially high
returns. A given venture fund might be invested in 5 to 15
companies over a couple years, and each partner (a “VC”) is
responsible for a few investments per year. These partners collect
a salary plus a share of returns to the fund over a minimum level.
Typically a venture capital firm invests in an entrepreneurial
company after the product or service has been tested and initial
market information has been collected. This reluctance to fund the
earliest venture phases cycles back and forth, however: In the early
nineties it was very difficult to get venture capital funding for
startups, while during the Internet frenzy of the late nineties most
venture capital firms got involved in early financing phases, even
seed capital for firms based only around an unformed idea. The
high flying Internet financing bubble may now be behind us,
however, and venture capital are once again becoming reluctant to
finance the early stages.
A typical venture capital firms receive over 1000 requests for
funding each year, of which they fund 2 to 5, or under a half a
percent. Each partner receives many business plan summaries to
review each week. Unless the plan comes to them with the
recommendation of someone they know or the business idea
addresses a market they have already identified as interesting, they
typically scan them very quickly and move on to the next.
To maximize your chances of being considered seriously for
funding, you should:
1) Research which venture capital firms invest in your kind of
project; market arena, venture company’s geographic location, and
investment phase.
2) Network to find someone who knows a VC in the firm and is
willing to provide an introduction.
These steps are in addition, of course, to the basics of assembling
a top-notch management team and third-party alliances; honing
your business idea so that strategic, marketing and operational
issues are thoroughly thought through; preparing a well written
business plan summary (some venture capitalists will expect to see
a full business plan), preparing a 15 minute presentation, and
priming the management team to answer difficult questions a VC
might ask.
Assuming you are successful, it will normally take four to six months
to raise and collect capital from venture capital firms.
Angel Capital
Angel capital is probably the more common source for new ventures
in the very earliest stages. Angels are private, wealthy individuals
who invest in risky projects.
For the most part, angels are unorganized and like their privacy,
making them hard to locate. To reach most, you must network
through acquaintances to find wealthy individuals. Wealth is not
sufficient, as you will need to find individuals who have some
previous connection with your market arena and thus are more
likely to find the market risk of your project acceptable.
Some angels operate in organizations. In these organizations,
angels meet to hear presentations by entrepreneurs seeking
funding and, if they are convinced, put together a financing
package from some combination of members. To be one of the
lucky few chosen to present to the group, you must be sponsored
by a member. Networking to reach a member can build your
chances appreciably, though most have a formal application
process that, in theory, is open for anyone.
- How to promote startups
- Business incubators,
are they wanted?
- Business incubators,
are they wanted?
- Effects of deregulation on
entrepreneurs
entrepreneurs
| USA Startup Survey |
Global Energy Hub displays
selected results of a large
energy startup survey
conducted in USA. To obtain a
copy of the entire survey of 55
questions, please contact us.
selected results of a large
energy startup survey
conducted in USA. To obtain a
copy of the entire survey of 55
questions, please contact us.
| STARTUP SURVEYS |
| European Startup Surveys |
| Asian Startup Surveys |
SURVEYS
- How to promote startups
- Business incubators, are
they wanted?
- Business incubators, are
they wanted?