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Browse: Home / Derek Pilling

Derek Pilling

Derek Pilling

The Power of a Blank Page

The Power of a Blank Page

By Derek Pilling on February 29, 2016

This week was jam packed with Board meetings. During one of them, I experienced a presentation tactic I had not seen before. Before sharing the tactic, a brief word on board meetings and presentations. Board meetings are necessary, frequently productive, but all too often miss the mark in terms of their focus. Many Board meetings I attend […]

Posted in Business, Featured Posts | Tagged Uncategorized

Adapting to the Great Reset

Adapting to the Great Reset

By Derek Pilling on February 23, 2016

You would have to be hiding under a rock to have missed the shift in private tech investor sentiment that has become apparent over the past several weeks. Truth is, this shift has been underway for some time. The final stage – when the change in psychology fully reveals itself in the popular tech media – always arrives […]

Posted in Business, Featured Posts | Tagged Entrepreneuriship, ipo, unicorn, workhorse

Unicorpse and The Moral Hazard of Making Unicorns

Unicorpse and The Moral Hazard of Making Unicorns

By Derek Pilling on January 8, 2016

I’m sure that many more thoughtful than me has written about the moral hazard of venture capital. In economics, moral hazard occurs when one person takes an unreasonable risk because someone else will bear the burden of the negative consequences. In the age of unicorns, the moral hazard in venture capital has never been greater. Moral hazard […]

Posted in Business, Featured Posts | Tagged Company Building, Entrepreneuriship, Growth Equity, lessons learned, moral hazard, Raising Capital, unicorn, unicorpse, venture capital

Negative Churn

Negative Churn

By Derek Pilling on March 4, 2015

In a board meeting yesterday, we had a brief discussion around “negative churn”. Negative churn is a catchy phrase and apparently a hot-topic in some SaaS circles. I like some of the concepts and disciplines that an understanding of negative churn implies, but I also think it is an unnecessary concept that actually makes it […]

Posted in Business, Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged churn, Customer Loss Churn, negative churn, Organic Growth, Revenue Churn, Revenue Lift, saas, SaaS Metrics

Kindred Disciplines: Growth Equity and Growth Hacking

Kindred Disciplines: Growth Equity and Growth Hacking

By Derek Pilling on January 14, 2015

Growth hacking is now a mainstream term in tech circles, particularly those that are consumer-focused. Growth hackingdefinitions abound, but generally emphasize a data driven, creative and flexibly opportunistic approach to customer acquisition. Many would argue that growth hacking is simply a new term for an old concept – marketing. While the functions, tools and skills […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged CAC, customer acquisition cost, Customer retention, Customer Success, Growth Equity, Growth Hacking, lifetime customer value, LTV, product market fit

Throw Out Your 2015 Strategy and Budget Right Now

Throw Out Your 2015 Strategy and Budget Right Now

By Derek Pilling on January 7, 2015

The arrival of a new year (and the beginning of a new one) brings a flurry of cognitive churning. As individuals, we 1/ reflect on the year passed, 2/ ritualistically write and read predictions for the next year, and 3/ make resolutions and set goals that are intended to inspire us to greatness during the […]

Posted in Business, Featured Posts | Tagged 2015, alignment, budget, Budgeting, flexible opportunism, intention, Life Hacks, purpose, strategic intent, strategic planning

We Sell the Ultimate Commodity – Money

We Sell the Ultimate Commodity – Money

By Derek Pilling on May 1, 2014

Last month I participated in a panel discussion at Denver University organized by Maclyn (Mac) Clouse. Mac is a long-time educator and supporter Denver’s entrepreneurial community. I was joined by Peter Adams, Executive Director of the Rockies Venture Club. Mac’s setup for the discussion was “dangerous” because he offered both Peter and I the opportunity […]

Posted in Business, Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged DU Finance Forum, Growth Equity, lessons learned, Mac Clouse, Peter Adams, Raising Capital, restrictive covenants, Rockies Venture Club, value-add, venture capital

Improv at the Office: Yes, and…

Improv at the Office: Yes, and…

By Derek Pilling on March 19, 2014

When I get really busy, I communicate less effectively. Truth is, I don’t listen as well, I get short in my responses and I cut off conversation prematurely, because I’m so focused on getting onto the next thing. I’m not proud of it, but it happens. The First Rule of Improv When I was in […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged and, business communication, communication, improv, lessons learned, yes

Founder Liquidity and Growth Equity

Founder Liquidity and Growth Equity

By Derek Pilling on March 13, 2014

I’m seeing more and more growth equity financings come to market with an over-sized component of the financing allocated to existing shareholder liquidity. I’ve seen enough of these transactions to consider it as a trend and to wonder what is motivating it. Founder Liquidity in Context Whereas liquidity isn’t typically a feature of venture financings, it is […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged founder liquidity, Growth Equity, investment bankers, Raising Capital, risk, venture capital | 1 Response

Finding harmony between advice and self-interest

Finding harmony between advice and self-interest

By Derek Pilling on January 31, 2014

I just wrapped one of those calls where I had the opportunity to give advice to an entrepreneur that runs counter to my short-term interests. In this case, it is a story of a first-time entrepreneur who has built a $7 million revenue business and is wrestling with the decision whether to take growth capital […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship | Tagged Entrepreneur, exit, Growth Equity, lessons learned | 1 Response

What is an entrepreneur to do when restrictive covenants become restrictive

What is an entrepreneur to do when restrictive covenants become restrictive

By Derek Pilling on January 27, 2014

Restrictive covenants are standard features of venture capital, growth equity and private equity transactions although each investor type has its own standards. Restrictive covenants are the actions a company cannot take without investor approval. A short list of typical restrictive covenants includes: A sale of a Company or sale of a majority of the Company’s […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged Growth Equity, lessons learned, restrictive covenants, venture capital, Working with Invesors

What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Peyton Manning

What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Peyton Manning

By Derek Pilling on January 24, 2014

I’m not a huge football fan. But I do marvel at the drama of professional football. In particular, I admire what Peyton Manning has done for the Broncos the past two years. His individual contributions are well documented. But what I’ve been most impressed by is the positive impact he seems to have had on the […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged contingency planning, execution precision, greatness, leadership, lessons learned, Peyton Manning, Random, selflessness, urgency, work ethic

The fallacy of averages

The fallacy of averages

By Derek Pilling on January 23, 2014

A discussion with a portfolio company CFO  reminded me that statistics are a dangerous thing and averages are misleading. “There are three types of lies — lies, damn lies, and statistics.” Most businesses analyze their performance using overly simplistic tools. For an extreme example, imagine a scenario where the average customer produces monthly recurring revenue […]

Posted in Business | Tagged average, decision-making, histogram, lessons learned, mean, median, statistics

Basics of Unit Economics Analysis

Basics of Unit Economics Analysis

By Derek Pilling on January 22, 2014

When an investment passes our first-screen at Meritage Funds, the first deep-dive we typically do is on the unit economics of the business. Unit economics are the fundamental financial building blocks of a business. If you can pin down the unit economics, you can determine contribution margins, break-even points and perform ROI calculations all of which […]

Posted in Business | Tagged average customer lifetime, capital expenditures, churn, contribution margin, Economics, Growth Equity, Investment Selection, marginal operating costs, Raising Capital, unit economics

Growth Equity Investors are Hedgehogs; VCs are Foxes

Growth Equity Investors are Hedgehogs; VCs are Foxes

By Derek Pilling on January 21, 2014

Growth equity is increasingly being recognized as an investing discipline that is separate and distinct from venture capital. That being the case, how does one distinguish between a venture capitalist and a growth equity investor. In my mind, growth equity investors are hedgehogs; venture capitalists are foxes. Allow me to explain. Ever since I read […]

Posted in Entrepreneurship, Featured Posts | Tagged Good to Great, Growth Equity, growth equity invetors, growth stage businesses, Jim Collins, venture capital, venture capitalists

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