If you’re in the mood for a really enjoyable film, I recommend Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. In it he uses the latest movie-making technologies to animate 19th century London in all its dark immensity and brooding menace- from the elegant halls of parliament to the ornate rooms of masonic temples to the labyrinthine sewers beneath the city. The sets and staging in and of themselves are a masterpiece and are simply breathtaking. I think the production designer should be nominated for yet another Academy Award. I also came to this film with a sensibility that I did not have when I first encountered Holmes as a young boy reading Conan Doyle. I was of course neither an entrepreneur nor an early-stage investor. Not surprisingly, this time, soon after leaving the theater something I had never considered before really hit me. I was struck by the realization that Sherlock would have made an amazing venture capitalist! "What a perfectly silly notion my dear Watson!", he would no doubt have replied. But I would have to insist and say that VC's and Angel Investors young and old would do well to emulate some of Sherlock’s best qualities. Here they are as I see them:
In his storied baseball career, Curt Schilling has rarely found himself at a loss for words. So it was great fun to watch him sit speechless for an hour as Harvard Business School students dissected his entrepreneurial venture and some of the choices he was making as a manager, leader and strategist. The setting was akin to sitting around the living room analyzing last night's World Series pitching performance. Judging from the rigor of their analysis, the students would have put a bevy of ESPN and newspaper sportscasters to shame. The two classes I taught this week at HBS, based on a case that I co-authored with Professor Noam Wasserman called "Curt Schilling's Next Pitch" (which you can order here from HBS Press), were energized to have Schilling in the classroom alongside his CEO Jen Maclean. Although none of the students can relate to his triumphs and tribulations as a professional athlete (save one student who was a professional soccer player before turning to a business career!), they could all relate to his struggles to launch his gaming start-up, 38 Studios, and his efforts to chart a course for success for the growing company, which now has over 130 employees.
The following was written by Doug Potters, a first-year student at the Kellogg School of Management. Prior to Kellogg, Doug worked at AEA Investors, a middle market private equity firm, in their Small Business Fund. At AEA, Doug contributed to the execution and management of AEA’s investments in PLZ Holdings, Implus Footcare and Sextant Education. […]
The following is from Jason Robinson, a second-year MBA at the Kellogg School of Management. After graduate school and a postdoc in physical chemistry, Jason worked at Intel Corp.’s technology development group in process engineering. While at Kellogg, Jason interned in early stage VC at the Chicago-based I2A Fund. Keynote Speaker: Dick Kramlich, New Enterprise […]
The following was written by Stephen Windsor, a first-year student at the Kellogg School of Management. Prior to Kellogg, Stephen worked in IT, startups, biotech and cancer imaging. Investing in Consumer Internet: Separating the Needle from the Haystack Moderator: William P. Sutter, Jr., Managing Partner, Hopewell Ventures Bret Maxwell (KSM ’82), Co-Founder & General Partner, […]
The following was written by Joel Stanwood, a 2nd year MBA at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. Joel has worked with two private equity growth-oriented funds, focusing on consumer products and healthcare/financial/business services. Prior to Kellogg, Joel served in strategic, operational, and general management roles at Siemens, was recruited into the firm’s international management […]
The following was written by Joel Stanwood, a 2nd year MBA at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. Joel has worked with two private equity growth-oriented funds, focusing on consumer products and healthcare/financial/business services. Prior to Kellogg, Joel served in strategic, operational, and general management roles at Siemens, was recruited into the firm’s international management […]
The following was compiled by Richard Yan, a first-year student at the Kellogg School of Management. Richard previously worked at mid-market private equity fund GarMark Partners, where he analyzed and invested in debt and equity transactions and managed portfolio companies in a wide range of industries. Panel: Digital Marketing & Internet Services: Futures and Exits […]
The following Wharton PE Conference notes are from Carmen Feliciano, a first-year MBA student at the Wharton School. Prior to Wharton, she worked as a Brand Manager in Technology & Consumer Goods. Panel: VC in Emerging Markets Panelists: David Lam (WI Harper Group), Patrick Eggen (Qualcomm Ventures), Vijjay Khanna (GIV Venture Partners), Jeff Richards (GGV […]
The following was compiled by Rohan Deuskar, a first-year MBA student at the Wharton School. Prior to Wharton, Rohan was a serial entrepreneur and most recently ran the Innovation Department at mobile marketing firm Vibes Media. I asked the Wharton conference organizers for their key takeaways from keynotes by John Megrue Jr., CEO of Apax Partners […]