“We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing!” ― Benjamin Franklin The phrase “software eating the world” is a common refrain in the tech industry, and Battery has had a long history of committing to that investment thesis. Recently, we have noticed an interestin … Read More »
Getting from Seed to Series A: Insider Tips from Tech’s Top Early-Stage Funders
What are the secrets to raising a Series A round, if you’re a seed-stage company, in today’s fast-paced but still discerning market? In this podcast—taped at a dinner in San Francisco hosted by Battery Ventures in Sept. 2018—some of the industry’s most prominent early-stage investors tackle this t … Read More »
EmBARKing on a new journey: Dog Walking and the Power of Online Marketplaces
A little less than a year ago, we published the Battery Network Effects Index, a market index including 36 current or previously publicly traded, consumer-Internet companies, each valued at $1 billion or more at the time. We highlighted the companies because all exhibited profound “network effects”, … Read More »
Honesty is the Best Policy: Radical Transparency as a Management Strategy for Founders
During times of difficulty, company founders may be inclined to downplay drama and gloss over problems when communicating with their boards. This temptation is a misstep, says Gainsight* CEO Nick Mehta. In the final installment of a four-part video mini-series, Mehta and Roger Lee, a general partner … Read More »
Together in the Trenches: Managing Challenges in a Founder/VC Partnership
For even the strongest tech CEOs, challenges and difficulties are unavoidable when scaling a business. In the third of a four-part video mini-series, Roger Lee, general partner at Battery Ventures, and Nick Mehta, CEO of customer-success management platform Gainsight*, explain how they work together … Read More »
Board Dynamics 101: Perspectives from A VC and Founder Duo
For founders navigating the stormy waters of entrepreneurship, the effectiveness and engagement of the board can keep a company afloat—or, conversely, sink it. In the second of a four part video mini-series, Roger Lee, general partner at Battery Ventures, and Nick Mehta, CEO of customer success m … Read More »
Marriage, VC-style: How One VC and One Prominent Software CEO Make it All Work
There’s a saying in the technology industry that it’s harder to split from your venture capitalist than it is to get a divorce from your spouse. In some ways, it’s true. But what happens when you and your VC are actually friends before he or she makes an investment—and all the hard years of company … Read More »
Network Effects – The Keys to Ascending the Consumer-Internet Throne
“Category kings”, defined as market-share leaders in particular business sectors, often wind up creating the majority of the market value relative to their competition. This advantage is particularly pronounced in technology: According to some research, over 70% of the value created in technology mar … Read More »
How to Communicate with Your Board During Tough Times
For startup CEOs, tough economic periods are like stressful stretches in a marriage: They test your mettle while making ugly truths impossible to hide. And these days, amid industrywide belt-tightening, “down rounds” and a still-moribund (though hopefully improving) IPO market, many venture-backed CE … Read More »
5 Questions to Ask Before Saying ‘I do’ to Your VC
Most entrepreneurs focus on the hard economics of the deal when they negotiate with investors: percentage ownership, valuation, preferences and other terms. Those things are all important — but so is the soft stuff, especially in today’s volatile market. Think about it. Taking venture capital fund … Read More »