Recipe for Success

From: Gregory Alan Bolcer (gbolcer@endeavors.com)
Date: Fri Mar 16 2001 - 14:52:56 PST


http://www.infoconomy.com/pages/strategy/group19967.adp

Winblad's idea of an 80/20 rule. This model is completely
ridiculous as these numbers change over time. R&D at 15%? That's
only 2-5% over what traditional companies are spending on R&D.
If you can't outpace a traditional company on R&D, that 2-5% isn't
going to be enough to gain a long term competitive edge
or circle a niche market.

She keeps calling them like that, she's going to run out of numbers.
I can see at the end of your first couple of VC rounds that's a good
rational target to aim for. I mean, if some angel gives you $2M,
are you going to spend 15% of it in the first 6-9 months on doing
R&D or are you going to spend 97% of it to do R&D? The answer is
97% as you company grows, the R&D budget stays the same, but the
percentages change. A $2M R&D costs out to a $13.3M outlay. If
your company makes it to a tens of million dollar valuation and
raises a first (VC) round or a second round in the teens, then
eventually you need to be spending at the same R&D level but
introducing the other costs as the company settles.

Greg

-- 
Gregory Alan Bolcer        | gbolcer@endtech.com    | work: 949.833.2800
Chief Technology Officer   | http://www.endtech.com | cell: 714.928.5476
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