I had the opportunity to attend the University Private Equity Conference, where I got an
in-depth look at the traditionally hidden world of private equity. From panels on venture capital and entrepreneurship to leveraged buyouts, to the basics such as liquidation and legal, UPED tackles all the issues in private equity today.
It was a very good conference. I learned a lot, met some pretty cool people, and had some really good meals (including possibly the best steak dinner of my life). A few notable entrepreneurs that were there who either spoke or who I met personally were Tim Westergren, founder of Pandora.com, Paul Ahlstrom, managing director of vSpring Capital, Brian Beutler, Founder of Alianza Communications, Amy Lewis, Founder of Mediconnect, Josh Coates, Founder of Berkeley Data Systems, Bryan Sims, Founder of Brass Media, Jonathan Greenblatt, Founder of Ethos Water, and Ryan Money, Founder of HireVue. A few takaways from the conference:
- Unlike many other professions there is no clear cut path to becoming a Venture Capitalist. It is a varied and crooked path, with may routes to the same end destination.
- A strong social network is critical for business success. Athough few of the speaker mentioned social networking specifically many mentioned how doors of opportunities where opened because of connections they had.
- It is easier to gain market share in tight nit industries where leaders are know each other because when you do a good job with one company they are more likely to talk to others which could land you new clients more easily.
- Venture Capitals want to invest in companies where the entrepreneurs are committed more to their idea than making money, while the VCs themselves care more about just making money.
- In order for a new innovative product or service to be successful it has to be significantly better than its old alternative. Since it takes money and effort to change, even products that are twice as good as the existing one aren’t good enough to be successful. Products must be ten times as good in order to significantly change an industry. These are the kind of products that VCs want to invest in.
All in all the conference was well worth the time and money. It is something I look forward to attending again in the future.
