Capital First Investment

Venture capital and buyouts from the investor's perspectiveStart-to-finish advice on identifying winning business opportunitiesEvaluating management, finance, products/services, growth opportunities, and exit strategiesEssential reading for every VC, leveraged buyout (LBO) funds professional, angel, and private investor High risk, spectacular return...that's the idea behind VC investing. But smart investors reduce unnecessary risks and maximize return at every step. You will discover realistic guidance for identifying hidden opportunities...assessing products and markets...evaluating entrepreneurs and managers...negotiating and closing deals...and much more. "Venture Capital Investing also includes insider's tools for expert investing: everything from sample due diligence questions to psychological assessments of entrepreneurs. Whatever your role in investing in new companies, this book can help you reduce your misfires--and supercharge your profits. "Venture Capital Investing shows VC investors and angels exactly how to weed through scores of business proposals and find the gem that will deliver outstanding returns. You'll learn how to assess entrepreneurs and their management teams, and systematically evaluate every facet of the opportunity they may or may not present. The authors walk you through assessing financial statements, market niches, and competitive environments; appraising the real value of new product and service innovations; and investigating businesses that are already operating. They also offer expert guidance on improving your odds by building effective partnerships with your portfolio companies. The authors' best-seller "Venture Capital Handbook isthe top book for entrepreneurs seeking funding. Now, in "Venture Capital Investing, they've created a classic for everyone who invests in small- and medium-sized businesses.

Performing Venture Capital Due Diligence the Right Way Venture Capital Due Diligence provides a clear and complete explanation of the venture capital (VC) due diligence process and shows you how to use it to assess investment opportunities, make smart investment decisions, and increase the return on your overall venture capital portfolio. This comprehensive guide offers a full explanation of the VC due diligence process, from using screening mechanisms that sort out potential opportunities, to assessing the management qualities, business models, legal issues, and even intangibles of target companies. Structured around a number of carefully crafted questions that venture capitalists often ask when performing due diligence, this book puts you-the reader-in the position of a VC conducting due diligence on a particular company. In-depth discussions of these questions and their possible answers pull together opinions from many of the major players in today’ s venture capital industry, including . . . Richard Testa of Testa Hurwitz & Thibeault Ann Winblad of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers Craig Johnson of the Venture Law Group Don Valentine of Sequoia Capital Kevin Fong of the Mayfield Fund . . . and many others who are qualified to comment on the proper methods of performing VC due diligence and making VC investment decisions. An essential guide for anyone involved in venture capital investing, Venture Capital Due Diligence helps you uncover potential problems, while showing you where to look and what to look for when conducting VC due diligence.