SVASE Event: 'Startup-U SFO: Validating Your Proposition' February 14, 2008

Event: 'Startup-U SFO: Validating Your Proposition'

Date: Thursday, February 14, 2008 At 11:45 AM
Duration: 1 Hour 45 Minutes
Contact Info:
DLA Piper 153 Townsend Street, Suite 800 San Francisco, CA 94107 Please note additional parking expenses will be incurred if you choose to park in DLA’s garage. DLA Piper does NOT validate parking. Contact Name: Anne Donker Contact No: 415.378.3966 Email: [email protected]
URL: svase.org/index.php?option=com_extcalendar&Itemid=149&extmode=view&extid=1233

Validating Your Idea

As an entrepreneur, it is easy to believe that your idea is superior to that of your competition. But, can you validate whether your value proposition meets the needs of a demanding market?

Join SVASE, as our panel of seasoned entrepreneurs and investors walk through the validation of an early-stage company.
- Is there a market for what you are selling?
- What are the characteristics of your market?
- Is your market large enough to get investors excited?
- Do you know who your competitors are?
- What are the resources available to research your competitive landscape?
- How can you differentiate yourself from the pack?

Skip Glass, Operating Partner, Foundation Capital

Skip Glass has joined Foundation Capital as an Operating Partner. As an Operating Partner, Skip will be assisting Foundation Capital portfolio companies and helping to assess potential new investments. With more than 20 years experience as an entrepreneur, investor and advisor to dozens of successful software, networking and security companies, Skip is ideally positioned to leverage his experiences and extensive contacts in order to benefit Foundation Capital portfolio companies. Skip has an extensive operating background including CEO and President of URoam (acquired by F5), COO of Kiva (acquired by Netscape), VP of Field Operations at Illustra (acquired by Informix), VP of Marketing (Sybase) and trading area manager at IBM.

Prior to Foundation Capital he worked with Canaan Partners representing them on the boards of Voyence (acquired by EMC), Groundwork Open Solutions, Vue Technology and Vidient. As an early stage investor, Skip has invested in several technology startups including Sygate (acquired by Symantec), SleepyCat Software (Acquired by Oracle), eHealth Insurance (IPO), Azimyth (privately held) and Retention Education (privately held).

Skip holds a BS from Sacramento State University and an MBA from University of Arizona. Skip has also used his entrepreneurial expertise in the charitable world having participated in and helped to fund a number of organizations. He was the recipient of the J. William Brownsfield award for outstanding civic contribution. In his rare moments of downtime, Skip can be found cycling, hiking, and vacationing with his family.

Julie Wainwright
Julie Wainwright began her 25-year career in management as a brand manager for the Clorox Company. A CEO for nearly a decade, she was previously the CEO of Bellamax, a San Francisco-based company that provides digital photo enhancement services. Prior to Bellamax, Ms. Wainwright was the interim CEO at OntheFrontier, an East Coast-based firm that does strategic consulting for emerging growth countries. She has also served as CEO of Pets.com, Reel.com and Berkeley Systems.

Jonathan Cobb, Founder and CTO, Kiptronic
Jonathan is the technology visionary and heart and soul of Kiptronic. Initial work on Kiptronic started for him in 2004, with the help of a lot of coffee, energy drinks, sleepless nights, and a highly tuned notion of where media consumption was heading. Jonathan's passion drove the first iterations of Kiptronic, from angel-funding to venture-funded company.

He has held numerous senior engineering positions in a number of Silicon Valley startups, most recently as Senior Software Architect for Covalent Technologies, an enterprise-class software and services company. He has also played integral roles in founding and running several start-ups including Hyperic Software, producers of HQ, a popular IT management software system. He holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Washington University in St. Louis.

Popular FAQs regarding Startup-U:
What is the cost of this event?
A $5 (member) or $15 (affiliate/non-member) registration fee, plus a $1.50 credit card processing fee, includes event and lunch, available through advanced online registration. A $10 or $20 fee is collected at the door.

What is the format of a Startup-U event typically?
Generally speaking, each event begins with an introduction by the host followed by a brief talk about SVASE and self-introductions by each of the attendees. After the introductions, the host introduces a speaker (usually 20 minute presentation, followed by group discussion) or the discussion topic; the exact format varies based on the host and that variety is what makes this event so exciting!

Who should attend?
Startup entrepreneurs, anyone thinking about forming a startup, service providers, angels and VCs active in the Silicon Valley information tech and biotech entrepreneur communities. Past participants include:
Current and aspiring entrepreneurs
Venture Capitalists, Angels and other members of the funding community
Service Providers (e.g. human resources, contract programming, etc.)
Independent Consultants (e.g. sales, marketing, engineering, etc.)

Do I need to be a member of SVASE to attend this event?
Non-members and guests of members are welcome to attend any 2 SVASE Startup-U events. Afterwards, we recommend that non-members become members of SVASE. For more information on the benefits of joining SVASE, please visit our website at www.svase.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=category§ionid=4&id=100&Itemid=109&Itemid=59 or alternatively, you can also join at the event itself.

What if I have more questions?
Please contact the Host for this event: Anne or Dan at [email protected]

This event is co-sponsored by DLA Piper, www.dlapiper.com

Official Website: http://svase.org/index.php?option=com_extcalendar&Itemid=149&extmode=view&extid=1233