Common Categories: Movie/TV Show/Other Reactions, Financial Services, Executives, Real Estate, Startups
A good board member takes into account the company context. Early stage ventures need very different help from a board than more mature companies. So being an experienced board member even from the same industry doesn’t necessarily mean the person is the right board member for your company.
“Many excellent firms have their follow-on funding pulled simply because the market needs time to mature until they can cross the chasm, and the VC needs to close the fund. All of that technology, carefuly nurtured team, and a great culture ends up wasted, or acqui-hired for a pittance, whilst the staff ‘phone it in’ until they can vest and escape”
“If I had to choose, companies with an average performance would probably be the ones where I would invest less time, because by definition, things move slower for them”
“Entrepreneurs should put a lot more responsibilities on board members and not be afraid doing so. If the board is only for corp gov and you reporting to them you’ve failed”.
“What has worked really well for me is to prioritize what is best for the company and not for any individual or institution (including ourselves) who holds a board seat”.
“In my experience adding value as a board member has always been key; this means contributing to value creation with a very pragmatic, hands-on approach. Giving strategic counselling to companies’ boards, looking for potential clients and partnerships and contributing to the development of strategic business agreements.”
“We only work with seasoned entrepreneurs who went through the rocky ride themselves and will always adding value during board meetings. These board meetings are always as transparent as possible and is only focusing around strategy”.
“We deal with eventual conflicts and/or lack of alignment with the CEO, before we enter the deal. Our approach to deals is made in such way that everyone’s interests are fully aligned, and we use very straight forward and measurable metrics regarding performance. We keep an open channel with all our portfolio, so these issues can be approached in different angles”
“At the end of a day we are startup in effect, so the main focus is the team, and part returns are proof of our ability. The specific “unique” angles and specialisms that we follow at any one time need to adjust to environmental conditions (regulatory, economic, competitive, cyclical..) and the fund’s ability to pivot depends entirely on our ability as a team”.
“A coach should be a player to get in the mentality of its players otherwise the game is lost before it begins. The basic approach should be first being a player to handle the different and diverse strategies they may apply to different trade levels.”
