This year's TechPoint Summit was filled with inspiring stories, new
ways to innovate and many developers reaching out with their
product and to others products as well. One positive side that
has arisen in response to the down turn of our economy is
the strong urge for new development and innovation within
the world of Technology. The drive and excitement needed
to fuel this was filling the air
during The TechPoint Summit and events leading up
to it! When
speaking to innovators, developers and...Read More »
Initially, I will state for the record the apologies of your
friendly, neighborhood Indiana Technology Lawyer for not posting a
blog in a while. I know that you, my loyal readers, have been
waiting with bated breath in the hope that I would again grace
cyberspace with my knowledge and wit. And, alas, I have
failed to deliver. In my defense, this little technology law
firm has been experiencing exponential growth and prosperity, which
has dictated more work for yours truly. But, that is...Read More »
When considering entering into a partnership or making a private
investment in an early stage company, beware of the “idea
guy”. This is a title sometimes used by entrepreneurial
minded individuals who don’t contribute to the growth of the
company through development, sales or management but develop
concepts (ideas) for products or services for some market
opportunity.
From my experience, idea guys often have little ability to manage cash flow or people. Without the proper partners in...Read More »
From my experience, idea guys often have little ability to manage cash flow or people. Without the proper partners in...Read More »
As stated in Part 2 of
this series, a business’ capital strategy is both
directed by the market strategy and leadership
team required to carry out the strategy as well as
directing to the market strategy and team. A
solid capital strategy is based on understanding where you are and
where you need to go.
The first step in developing a capital strategy is to know your revenue projections. If you had the money and team you need, what can you sell and when? In developing a market strategy the...Read More »
The first step in developing a capital strategy is to know your revenue projections. If you had the money and team you need, what can you sell and when? In developing a market strategy the...Read More »
In the matrix of developing a good business model a business will
have:
Most entrepreneurs are good at spotting a market opportunity but are weak in developing the opportunity into a market strategy, leadership (developing the correct team) and capital strategy, yet each is pivotal in business...Read More »
- A well developed market strategy;
- The correct leadership team to carry out the market strategy; and
- A capital strategy capable of funding the market strategy and team through growth.
Most entrepreneurs are good at spotting a market opportunity but are weak in developing the opportunity into a market strategy, leadership (developing the correct team) and capital strategy, yet each is pivotal in business...Read More »
Over the last three weeks I have visited the west coast twice and
Toronto once to help clients work through funding rounds and
strategic acquisitions. I also visited with two angel
investment groups which I work with. The primary purpose of
each trip was to help clients develop and realize their capital
strategy for growth. While most of these entrepreneur clients
are in technology fields, others include a tax planning firm and a
Bollywood project out of Toronto.
It does not matter what world...Read More »
It does not matter what world...Read More »
One of our
very own, Eric Davis, is being nationally recognized for his
success in the October issue of The ABA
Journal. Eric has long been a leader in entrepreneurial
expertise and business law, and is a strong exterior source
contributing to our firm, Alerding Castor Hewitt, LLP. The
article discusses about how Eric jump-started his career and
the many roads on which it has taken him. In the
article, Eric considers himself a "hybrid" because he does not
necessarily fit in just one firm....
The following is a guest post by a fellow Gravity Ventures member and
friend, Dr. Tony Ratliff:
Learning to Pitch Before You Start Raising Capital
By Dr. Tony Ratliff
It only took about six months of deal flow and a handful of “pitches” before I realized that most entrepreneurs are really, really bad at “selling themselves” and “pitching” their ideas and companies to investors.
I cringe every time I listen to a great start-up idea or read a well-written business plan, and then watch in horror as...Read More »
Learning to Pitch Before You Start Raising Capital
By Dr. Tony Ratliff
It only took about six months of deal flow and a handful of “pitches” before I realized that most entrepreneurs are really, really bad at “selling themselves” and “pitching” their ideas and companies to investors.
I cringe every time I listen to a great start-up idea or read a well-written business plan, and then watch in horror as...Read More »
I don't often re-post articles in full glory, but I couldn't resist
with this one. This is a great article from the OMMA (a
magazine of online media, marketing & advertising).
There are some great quotes from quite a few movers and
shakers in the Indiana technology area. As a technology legal
counsel located in Indianapolis, it warms my heart to see this kind
of great press for the area. Personally, I think all
technology firms should move or open offices here.
Big hat-tip to Jay Baer for...Read More »
Big hat-tip to Jay Baer for...Read More »
Once again, Alerding Castor Hewitt sent at team to participate in
the O'Reilly's Irish Bar &
Restaurant golf scramble, benefitting The Alliance for
Responsible Pet Ownership.
On Monday, June 20th, Team ACH assembled a crack team of two litigators, the client relations manager, and our Butler intern - who just happens to also be on the Butler Women's Golf Team - for an fantastic day out of the business law office and onto the links.
Maribeth, Meg, Scott, and Chris
Ready to get our Rory McIlroy...Read More »
On Monday, June 20th, Team ACH assembled a crack team of two litigators, the client relations manager, and our Butler intern - who just happens to also be on the Butler Women's Golf Team - for an fantastic day out of the business law office and onto the links.
Maribeth, Meg, Scott, and Chris
Ready to get our Rory McIlroy...Read More »
Following the launch party on June 2nd, JabuAfrica has instilled their mission, spirit, and passion in the community. The mission of the nonprofit organization is to provide financial and emotional aid to orphans and families who run orphanages throughout Africa. JabuAfrica came together during the adoption process of Dave Castor, managing partner at Alerding Castor Hewitt, and his wife Sarah.
The Castor Family came together over the course of several...
Read More »Determining a valuation for a pre-revenue company is a difficult
process. A Harvard VC formula does not make sense at this
stage as available P/E ratios essentially compare apples to
oranges, cash flow projections are too untrustworthy to use a DCF
method, and there is no such thing as a true market comp.
Investors must rely on qualitative factors in connection to
valuation formulas to determine how much they think the thing is
worth. Some qualitative factors include:
• Is the...
Read More »"A champion is someone who is ready when the gong rings - not just
before, not just after - but when it rings."
-Jack Dempsey
Tooting your own horn, ringing your own bell...We've decided to bang our own gong.
Welcome the newest fixture to the Alerding Castor Hewitt office, the official New Client/Wrapped Mediation Gong.
The litigation and transaction teams didn't have a celebration worthy of new business, so partner Michael Alerding came to me with the idea to buy a ship's bell to ring for each...Read More »
-Jack Dempsey
Tooting your own horn, ringing your own bell...We've decided to bang our own gong.
Welcome the newest fixture to the Alerding Castor Hewitt office, the official New Client/Wrapped Mediation Gong.
The litigation and transaction teams didn't have a celebration worthy of new business, so partner Michael Alerding came to me with the idea to buy a ship's bell to ring for each...Read More »
There is a new Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals opinion that is likely to have a significant impact on SaaS providers. In Digitech Computers, Inc. v. Trans-Care, Inc. (link here), the 7th Circuit focuses on a SaaS agreement for Digitech to provide certain management software licensing components for Trans-Care (an ambulance and medical transportation service). The Court ultimately upheld a breach of contract claim in favor of Digitech, significantly reduced Digitech’s damages award, and...
Read More »Angel investment groups tend to quickly dismiss investor
presentations that cover complicated products and markets.
They tend to lean towards investment opportunities which they
easily understand the market – often even if it as a worse
valuation or lower expected return than other more complex products
or markets.
This is a problem for those more complex technology companies. If this is your company, don’t fret. They key of any angel investor group presentation is NOT to get them to commit...Read More »
This is a problem for those more complex technology companies. If this is your company, don’t fret. They key of any angel investor group presentation is NOT to get them to commit...Read More »
A tech entrepreneur friend recently told me that the concept of an
“evangelist” in tech companies is all but dead. Honestly I
don’t know if it was ever as alive as people thought, but I liked
where he was going with this. I’ve talked to a number of
aspiring entrepreneurs who view their role in their development
stage company as that of an evangelist. Practically what this
often means is that the person has a entrepreneurial idea but no
ability to either develop it, sell it or run the...Read More »
On
Friday, May 6th, Slingshot SEO announced in a
meeting with Governor Mitch Daniels and Indianapolis Mayor Greg
Ballard that the company will create up to 114 new jobs by 2013.
As one of Alerding Castor Hewitt's most beloved clients, we
could not be more thrilled to see how far the search engine
optimization firm has come since its 2006 founding.In just three short years, Slingshot has seen a dramatic increase in employees from 9 to its current 65, and the compan
y
plans to invest upwards of...Read More »The Alerding Castor Hewitt faithful braved the chill and the rain
of Saturday, April 16th to participate in the 2011 Susan G. Komen
Race for the Cure. We're proud to announce that the team
surpassed its goal of raising $1000 to assist the Komen
Foundation's mission to end breast cancer forever and had a
fantastic time walking in downtown Indianapolis.
We'd like to send a big 'Thanks!' to those who donated to the team's efforts and share a special 'Way to go!' with the team members, along with...Read More »
We'd like to send a big 'Thanks!' to those who donated to the team's efforts and share a special 'Way to go!' with the team members, along with...Read More »
All securities offerings fall into one of three classes:
1. Registered,
2. Exempt, or
3. Illegal.
Private offerings of securities are just that – “private”. The key for any private offering is that the offerer may only solicit investors through private methods. There are all sorts of rules around what constitutes private solicitations and to whom the solicitations can be made, but in general "private" means that which is not public. If a business attempting a private offering makes a...Read More »
1. Registered,
2. Exempt, or
3. Illegal.
Private offerings of securities are just that – “private”. The key for any private offering is that the offerer may only solicit investors through private methods. There are all sorts of rules around what constitutes private solicitations and to whom the solicitations can be made, but in general "private" means that which is not public. If a business attempting a private offering makes a...Read More »
Very
interesting article from CNet regarding the proposal to be made by
Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill). The article can be found
here. Basic point of the article is
that Senator Durbin wants to add sales taxes to on-line sellers
like Amazon and iTunes (although I would note that I think
iTunes already has a tax component) for all purchases. The
idea being that brick and mortar stores in a given state shouldn't
have to foot the bill for these new-fangled on-line
superstores. They should have to...Read More »
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