Comments for 10,000 Startup Hours - David Cummings http://davidcummings.org One short post a day - @davidcummings on Twitter Thu, 31 May 2012 04:00:16 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ Comment on Bringing ‘B’ Players in to Scale Fast by Joe Gallagher http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/30/bringing-b-players-in-to-scale-fast/#comment-6116 Thu, 31 May 2012 04:00:16 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5049#comment-6116 I think there is a distinction between “letter ranked” (A-Z) candidates and “fit ranked” candidates. There are plenty of amazing people out in the workforce that are just not good fits for a company’s culture. Right on to say that both C candidates and poor fit candidates can hurt an organization, but each type requires a different filter. Competency tests in the skills required for the job (or the environment if growing and roles are more fluid) and company vote/veto processes that control for culture fit.

]]> Comment on Bringing ‘B’ Players in to Scale Fast by Luis Gonzalez http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/30/bringing-b-players-in-to-scale-fast/#comment-6115 Thu, 31 May 2012 03:43:05 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5049#comment-6115 I have found that a B player can sometimes become an A player with proper mentoring. As long as they are a good corporate culture fit and you have an A manager; you can identify a B players strength and train them to play in the A league.

]]> Comment on Bringing ‘B’ Players in to Scale Fast by adam wexler http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/30/bringing-b-players-in-to-scale-fast/#comment-6114 Thu, 31 May 2012 03:01:57 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5049#comment-6114 hiring a full-time HR specialist would go a long way … if they truly spent 40+hrs/wk recruiting/interviewing (especially proactively), you shouldn’t have to resort to screening the B & C players.

when do you think is the right time to hire HR part-time and full-time?

]]> Comment on The NetSuite SaaS Valuation Outlier by Chuck Schaeffer http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/28/the-netsuite-saas-valuation-outlier/#comment-6113 Wed, 30 May 2012 15:58:06 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5030#comment-6113 It is true that the incestuous relationship among NetSuite and Oracle leads many to speculate an eventual acquisition by Oracle – and that factor is baked into the share price. However, in reality, it wouldn’t take a big premium to acquire NetSuite as primary investor Larry Ellison already owns more than half of the company. Where his shares go so does the company.

NetSuite has enjoyed a strong first to (cloud ERP) market advantage. But that advantage is eroding as SAP and Oracle get the kinks worked out of their cloud ERP solutions. Further, Microsoft will leap into this market over the next 12 months – and I suspect become the SMB cloud leader within 24 months thereafter.

Erik N makes some really good comments. NetSuite manages a strong balance sheet and need not worry about profitability at this point, at least while pursuing a relative green field opportunity and securing market share. Further, while there are many costs that could be eliminated with a NetSuite acquisition, the real upside of course is the revenue. NetSuite’s market positioning would grow dramatically under an Oracle banner.

]]> Comment on Startup Idea: Zipcar Style Model for Supercars by Rich http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/27/startup-idea-zipcar-style-model-for-supercars/#comment-6112 Wed, 30 May 2012 15:05:11 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5026#comment-6112 In CA and NV : http://www.clubsportiva.com

]]> Comment on The NetSuite SaaS Valuation Outlier by Erik N. http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/28/the-netsuite-saas-valuation-outlier/#comment-6105 Tue, 29 May 2012 15:29:47 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5030#comment-6105 NetSuite may be an outlier (I prefer statistical anomaly, but that’s too non-Gladwellian in 2012, or 2008 for that matter) for a number of reasons. The most significant of these is that they offer a full suite of software products in the ERP software market. We all know the huge companies that dominate this market with older technology, but will be challenged (should I say disrupted?) by companies such as NetSuite. Other publicly-traded SaaS companies only offer a narrow niche product line. One could even argue that salesforce.com has a narrow product offering. (If you are interested I’ll tell more about my personal dialogue with Marc Benioff in 2009 regarding his plans to offer an ERP suite) The other companies on your list of publicly traded companies are narrow niche offerings as well in markets such as HR and marketing automation. I am not saying those are not good niche markets, in fact they are quite hot right now, but I am saying they are more narrow than the offering of NetSuite.

The next significant reason is one you have dismissed, growth-rate. NetSuite’s 1-year revenue growth rate is 22%, as you pointed out, but you failed to mention that they have 5-year revenue growth rate of 22% as well. That is quite an accomplishment considering the revenue base from which they are growing and they still have a huge opportunity in the ERP market, which was estimated to be a $45 billion market in 2011.

Not to be forgotten, NetSuite have a very solid balance sheet and income statement with $0 in long-term debt and very strong gross margin of 90% (TTM).

Lastly, if NetSuite were to be acquired, the business can be made profitable very quickly since SG&A expenses are the majority of their operating expenses ($152M as-of 12-31-11) and a large acquirer will likely already have a significant sales force and redundancies can be eliminated.

So the important questions to answer are: How much faster can NetSuite grow in an acquisition scenario with a suitor such as Oracle? How much of the addressable market can NetSuite capture with a sales force such as Oracle? It’s a huge market potential.

]]> Comment on Startup Idea: Zipcar Style Model for Supercars by Pete Franconi http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/27/startup-idea-zipcar-style-model-for-supercars/#comment-6103 Mon, 28 May 2012 13:40:48 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5026#comment-6103 Or there’s Classic Car Club Manhattan (http://www.classiccarclubmanhattan.com/index.php) which has both classics and new cars for an $8,000 joining fee.

]]> Comment on Startup Idea: Zipcar Style Model for Supercars by Reid Maulsby http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/27/startup-idea-zipcar-style-model-for-supercars/#comment-6100 Mon, 28 May 2012 03:42:55 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5026#comment-6100 Good idea. Look at:
Black Diamond Motorsports in Atlanta.
Gotham Dream Cars DreamShare NY.
Etc

Room to apply ease of rental and availability. Should include other levels of ‘daily drivers’ in the fleet as well as chauffeur driven to be the one stop for their transportation needs.

]]> Comment on Handle Initial Partnership Requests Via Email by Johnson Cook http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/26/handle-initial-partnership-requests-via-email/#comment-6097 Sun, 27 May 2012 02:36:26 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5024#comment-6097 Yes there is lots of wasted energy towards partners that never turn into money, BUT… There are also times when awareness of another company’s offering can benefit you. You may be able to better serve your clients, your shareholders, your employees because having these conversations with would be “partners” can be extremely educational. Secondly, you should know that if they called you, they probably also called your competitors….or better yet, are already working with your competitors… So there are countless educational oppportunitiies waiting in the conversation.

]]> Comment on 3 Unconventional Steps for the Hiring Process by chetankhosla http://davidcummings.org/2012/05/24/3-unconventional-steps-for-the-hiring-process/#comment-6095 Sat, 26 May 2012 07:33:06 +0000 http://davidcummings.org/?p=5008#comment-6095 Loved this article…. completely agree.

]]>