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| WHAT INVESTORS REALLY WANT TO SEE IN
YOUR BUSINESS PLAN |
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The business plan is the primary vehicle for conveying an
organized thought process to investors about your business, your team and your
pathway to success. Successful entrepreneurs and their investors recognize that
to raise capital and grow your business you need a well-conceived and
implemented business plan. Tonight, our panel of accomplished venture
capitalists and entrepreneurs discuss what they want to see in a business plan,
remark on the successful businesses they have funded and what role the plan
played as a precursor to those businesses success. They will share their
experiences and insight in preparing and delivering and funding a "winning"
business plan, provide advice, network with you, and answer your
questions.
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| Panel: |
Ilan Carmi,
Partner at Kodiak Venture Partners, a Waltham, Massachusetts-based venture
capital firm focused on seed and early stage investments in emerging
communications, semiconductor and software companies. With a focus in the
eastern regions of the U.S. and Canada, Kodiak Venture Partners builds
relationships with entrepreneurs seeking accelerated market success. Kodiak's
investment partners are successful high-technology business entrepreneurs who
take a high-impact, hands-on approach to forming, operating, building and
funding market leaders.
At Kodiak, Ilan focuses on communications and
semiconductor investment opportunities. He was the founding investor and
Chairman of the Board of Trebia Networks and is a member of the board and an
early investor in Egenera, BTI Photonics, and Tiaris. Ilan's career has
included extensive entrepreneurial, engineering leadership, and general
management in the chip, data, and communications markets. Prior to Kodiak, Ilan
spent several years with Nortel Networks (as part of the Bay Networks
acquisition) as Vice President and General Manager, responsible for Bay
Networks' router business including multiple products, markets and
acquisitions. Ilan also served at 3Com Corporation as Vice President and
Business Unit Manager, responsible for 3Com's enterprise gigabit switching
business. Before 3Com, he joined a start-up, Chipcom Corporation, where as Vice
President of R&D he built a world-class organization, and delivered two
major platforms to the enterprise market. In addition, Ilan worked for
Fibronics Ltd., in Haifa, Israel, where he was the Director for R&D and
delivered the first Fiber Distributed Data Interface product to the market.
Ilan has a B.S.E.E. and an M.S.E.E. from the Technion (IIT - Israel Institute
of Technology), and was a Captain in the Israeli Air Force for five years. He
is a private pilot and member of the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. |
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Andrew D.
Clapp, Founding Principal of Brook Venture Fund, invests in early
revenue-stage companies seeking $1-3 million and located in the northeast.
Their investment interests are within: medical infrastructure (instrumentation
& software), information technology (especially printing/ publishing
related, database/information), optical, and enabling chemistry. Brook Venture
Fund was founded in 1998 to address the $1-3 million funding gap where most
angel investors leave off and most venture capital funds will consider an
investment. Their average investment totals $2 million, ranging from $500,000
to $3 million and larger amounts by bringing in institutional co-investors.
Individual investors have played an important role in Brook Venture funding
activity. They have provided more than $15 million by co-investing with Brook
Fund in companies and in recent investment opportunities. They have also
provided counsel as well as serving on boards of directors. The partners are
experienced executives and professionals from upper levels of business, the
legal profession, consulting, and investment banking. A number of our
individual co-investors include the principals of other venture capital funds
that want to invest in companies that are earlier stage than those their own
fund invests in.
Previously Mr. Clapp was the Managing Director at
Shields & Company, and before that a Partner at Downer & Company for
seven years. Prior to that he was President of Equifax Research for five years,
and before that, Manager of the Corporate Development Unit at Arthur D. Little,
Inc. for five years. Mr. Clapp is a Director of PISCES, Universal Software,
Linton Truss Affordable Interior Systems, Texterity, Inc. and is a board
observer on iMakeNews. He is a frequent speaker and writer on venture capital
and M&A topics. He graduated from Clarkson University (B.S.) and received
his M.B.A. from the Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth College. |
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Kathleen
Goodwin, Officer, iMakeNews. iMakeNews enables e-marketers to build long
and profitable customer relationships through permission-based e-newsletter
campaigns. Founded in 1998, the company has embraced the principals of
successful e-marketing, leveraging internet technology to provide a "one-stop"
solution for e-newsletter design/ formatting, content management, distribution,
interactivity, data analysis and warehousing, and list management. Their
innovative programs have attracted clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies
like General Electric, Panasonic and Citibank to emerging firms in a variety of
industries.
Kathleen Goodwin brings over 20 years of experience in
technology marketing and management to iMakeNews. Previously, she was
responsible for the worldwide marketing of Ziff-Davis' publishing division, and
shaped the successful launch of several ZD publications and programs. Kathy has
also served as Group Marketing Director and Associate Publisher for PC Magazine
and PC WEEK, and recently has been an advisor to early stage Internet companies
in the New England area. She earned a B.A. in Fine Arts from New York
University. |
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| Moderator: |
Larry Grumer,
Managing Director, Technology Associates & Alliances (TAA), and Chairman,
Boston Entrepreneurs' Network. TAA is a management advisory and investment
company "commercializing technology" for early-stage companies, corporate
spin-outs, and government organizations…bringing their technology research
and commercial product concepts to manufacturing and market realities. TAA
prepares these businesses for: accelerated growth, capital access, higher
valuation funding, faster-time-to-market, strategic corporate partnerships and
business transition. Mr. Grumer has held profit & loss management positions
a Textron (Avco), Arthur D. Little, John Brown Group, and Foster-Miller where
he helped effect their business turn-around. He received a BS in Engineering
and MBA with high distinction in International Marketing and Finance
concentration from Northeastern University. He has held a Top Secret clearance.
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