Venture capitalist and company founder shares his deep knowledge on startup strategies
NEW YORK, March 21, 2018 (Newswire.com) - The new SelectBooks Inc. publication The Fundable Startup: How Disruptive Companies Attract Capital (February 2018; $22.95; ISBN: 978-1-59079- 432-6) by Fred Haney, Ph.D., is now available wherever books are sold. In The Fundable Startup Fred Haney shares his tremendous wealth of knowledge in an effort to lend some practical advice to at least a few of those millions of entrepreneurs who dream of starting a viable high-tech company.
During his 45 years of experience working with high-tech and healthcare startups, Haney has hired and fired many CEOs and witnessed the success and failures of many new ventures. His credentials for sharing his expertise on the best strategies to launch a long-term market winner are based on his positions in the industry:
The Fundable Startup is much more than a conventional book about venture capital and entrepreneurial vigor. It speaks in practical terms — no jargon, no clichés — about raising capital and attracting the skills needed to build a business and finding a manager to run a growing concern.
James Flanigan, Business columnist for the Los Angeles Times and formerly Forbes Magazine
- Successful venture capital fund manager
- An angel investor and co-founder of Tech Coast Angels, one of the largest angel investment groups in the U.S.
- Founder of Monday Club, an 850-member mentoring network for startup companies
- Director of over 20 startup companies
- Founding CEO/chairman of five companies
Each year, Dr. Haney witnesses the establishment of multitudes of new high-tech companies by founders who hope to emulate the success of Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. Unfortunately for these ambitious new heads, capital investors have the luxury of selecting from small businesses with the best ideas and skills, and this stacks the odds overwhelmingly against the inexperienced "first-time" founder.
In the sink or swim world of the budding entrepreneur, the common element for those who swim is finding the best methods to appeal to investors. While this is simple enough advice, the devil is in the detail. The "how-to" behind building such an attractive management team is a matter of thoughtful strategic planning and execution. Haney observes that many startup failures could be avoided if the founder adopted a bootstrapping approach to building a "virtual" team, creating a product with exceptional value and getting positive customer feedback — all before approaching investors. The Fundable Startup explains in detail the logic behind this strategy and the specific steps required to implement it.
The Fundable Startup does not try to teach founders how to be a CEO. It argues that there is no substitute for the 15-20 years of experience it usually takes to create a successful CEO. The intent is to inform founders about the fragile nature of a high-tech startup business and the extensive skill set that a CEO must have in order to succeed. The book encourages founders to find a qualified business partner, or CEO, in order to maximize the chances of getting their company properly funded.
The book also contains eight in-depth personal interviews with executives and entrepreneurs that will change the way readers think about managing a startup company. The subjects interviewed include:
- Bryon Merade, whose sales career led to being the founder and CEO of Caldera Medical, developer of urogynecological products
- Dr. Jack Edwards, founder of NovaDigm Therapeutics, developer of vaccines for MRSA, candida and recurrent vulvovaginitis; building a bridge to an experienced CEO
- Josh Stewart, founder of Boost Academy, a good example of "bootstrapping" a startup company.
- Lori Torres, founder of Parcel Pending, a promising "first-time" CEO
- Shy Pahlevani, founder of LiveSafe, developer of a mobile app for reporting crime and a good example of "building a bridge to a CEO and capital"
- Steve Casselman, founder of Virtual Computer, which failed, and DRC which succeeded with the same technology by recruiting an experienced CEO
- Van Honeycutt, retired chairman of Computer Sciences Corporation, an example of climbing the corporate ladder through sales and marketing
- Webb Castor, former Xerox sales manager for the Western U.S., an example of climbing the management ladder through sales and business development
James Flanigan of Forbes and the Los Angeles Times stated, "The Fundable Startup is much more than a conventional book about venture capital and entrepreneurial vigor. It speaks in practical terms — no jargon, no clichés — about raising capital and attracting the skills needed to build a business and finding a manager to run a growing concern." And Dr. Helena Yli-Renko, director of Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California, endorsed Fred Haney as "Highly experienced on both sides of the table — as both a startup CEO and an investor — Dr. Haney is uniquely qualified to advise the next generation of tech entrepreneurs as they embark on their journey."
Dr. Haney is presently scheduling speaking engagements in the Southern California area. His recent activities include a series of Monday Club meetings in January and The Cove at UCI Applied Innovation. Additional events are being planned. For more information on this publication and Dr. Haney's speaking schedule, please visit the website: thefundablestartup.com.
Fred M. Haney, Ph.D., has been actively involved in the creation of high-tech businesses from six different perspectives: as co-founder and chairman of four startups, active director of over 20 companies and as mentor, angel investor, venture capital fund manager and corporate strategic-planning executive.
Dr. Haney served as the founding chairman of NovaDigm Therapeutics, DRC Inc., Media Matchmaker Inc. and PulSentry Inc. At NovaDigm and DRC, he managed strategies that led to the "Series A" infusion of over $25 million in venture capital and he recruited experienced CEOs to manage the further growth and success of the companies.
Dr. Haney has been a hands-on director of several high-tech startup companies, four of which were public companies, including Rainbow Technologies Inc.
In 1984, Dr. Haney founded Monday Club, which has grown into a mentoring network of 850 members that operates in Santa Monica, Torrance and Orange County, California. Monday Club has helped over 400 companies improve their business plans, raise capital and find key advisors and directors.
In 1997, Dr. Haney was one of 10 co-founders of Tech Coast Angels, one of the largest angel investment groups in the United States.
Dr. Haney was the founder and manager of 3i Ventures, California, a subsidiary of London's 3i Group plc, the world's largest venture capital company. He managed the successful investment of $60 million in 80 startup companies producing 19 IPOs and 20 acquisitions.
Early in his career, Dr. Haney managed strategic planning organizations for Xerox Corp., Computer Sciences Corporation Infonet Division and TRW Inc. At TRW, he facilitated the sale of the TRW Datacom International Division and he managed the turnaround and sale of the TRW Vidar Transmission Products Division.
Dr. Haney published My Doggie Says . . . Messages from Jamie, an award-winning book of stories about how his golden retriever communicated various "messages" through her behavior. The book's "messages" are illustrated by 85 color photographs.
Dr. Haney received a Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from Carnegie-Mellon University, an MS in Mathematics from Colorado State University and a BA in Mathematics from Ohio Wesleyan University.
Source: SelectBooks Inc.
Share: