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Well, not much has been happening in August as I took a couple weeks to vacation in the Seattle/Vancouver/Whistler area – what a beautiful part of North America!  Between that, the summer lull in networking events, and the vacations of others it has been a fairly quiet month.   It has become increasingly apparent to me that the kind of position I am seeking (early-stage, VP-level, marketing/product development, electronics) is fairly specific and that hitting upon it at the right place and time is challenging.   I’ve therefore increased my focus on developing a startup concept of my own.

Towards this end I’ve got two sets of activities.  First, I continue to meet with the ex-Raytheon colleagues I’d previously written about to explore a variety of ideas.  Several interesting ones have emerged that I am investigating in greater depth.  Second, I recently met a young, technical entrepreneur who had a successful, small-scale trial of a service business concept last summer and is looking for help to refine and scale his idea.  It is a bit of a different type of business that what I had envisioned for myself but it is interesting and is something I’m spending time exploring further.

In parallel with all this I am working to arrange for a trip to the Bay Area to expand my networking range.  There is a lot of activity there that I have not tapped into.   My thinking is to spend a week or two out there in late September or early October connecting with investors and entrepreneurs.  I’m trying to leverage my existing contacts to identify appropriate contacts in advance.  It’s been slow going so far but I’ve got a couple so far.

That’s it for now…the journey continues!

I’ve found restarting my networking to be a bit sluggish…don’t know if this is a summer phenomenon or an outcome of letting things lapse for a while. Having said that, I did recently reconnect with three engineers/engineering managers I worked with long ago at Raytheon.  They, after working at a few startups, find themselves back at Raytheon via acquisition and are interested to leave and create their own startup.  The nice thing about this group is that they form a strong basis for an experienced, engineering team. We had an initial meeting this week to reacquaint ourselves with each other and start talking about ideas.  We’ll be meeting again in late August after various vacations get out of the way.

I also had two meetings this week with local startups.  One is a provider of intelligent power distribution equipment for electric grids while the other is a specialty semiconductor company in early stealth mode.  In both cases it is too early for them to be expanding/creating their commercial teams but there would likely be a need to do so in 2014.

I’m finding in my search, as with many things in life, timing is critical.  I’ve encountered many interesting startups with whom I’d be a good match. However, I’ve either been too early or too late in finding them.  I suppose I just need to continue to broaden my outreach and give it more time and eventually I’ll hit upon the right company at the right time.  In parallel, I’ll be continuing to talk with my ex-Raytheon colleagues and see if something interesting emerges there.

In reflecting back on the past six months one conclusion I come to is that I need to be more aggressive in my outreach.  I had used this blog solely for the documentation of my thoughts and experiences.  However, as I restart my search, I recognize that this blog has accumulated a reasonably-sized readership over a broad geographic area.  I’ve therefore decided to write this post clearly stating what I am looking for and what I bring to the table.  If any readers are aware of either appropriate opportunities or other people with whom I should talk please let me know.  I can be reached at ronn.kliger@gmail.com

What I’m looking for:  an early-stage startup

I define “early stage” startup as one that does not yet have any products on the market.  My involvement could be either by joining an existing startup or founding my own.  Below are the key characteristics I’m seeking:

• A leadership position (VP-level or above)
• A focus on marketing and/or product development or, alternatively, a general management position
• The development and commercialization of new technology involving electronic components or systems

What I bring to the table:  experience, commitment, and low risk

Experience

Throughout my career, from my time as an RF engineer, to a project manager, and to a general manager I’ve always focused on the development or commercialization of new technology.  The best example of this was the ten year span in which I started and grew Analog Devices’ iCoupler business.  This experience involved all of the key activities I am looking to repeat within a startup context:  selecting focus markets and delivered benefits, defining products and product roadmaps, building a customer base, recruiting/developing/managing teams, and leading an organization’s execution.

Commitment

I have prepared myself for this career change and I am committed to working at an early-stage startup.  In January, after 16 years at my previous job, I left it specifically for this purpose.  Leading up to that point I had prepared myself and my family for this change from a variety of perspectives:  financial, lifestyle, emotional, etc.  My two children are grown and have left the house.  I’m therefore able to commit a large amount of time to a new enterprise and am also open to relocation—both within the U.S. or to many foreign countries.  Bottom line, whatever startup I end up at will get someone who is both willing and able to stay the course for the long term.

Reduced Risk

What I am alluding to here is my financial flexibility and what it implies to either an existing startup or potential co-founders.  As noted above I have prepared for this career change and am in a position where I am not under pressure to immediately replace my previous income.  What this means to an existing startup are two things.  First, I am able to engage initially on a trial, no/low-cost basis to evaluate fit.  (This turned out to be important in a recent experience I wrote about here.)   Second, if/when things progress to a permanent engagement I have a large degree of flexibility in terms establishing the appropriate cash/equity mix.

For potential co-founders the implications are in terms of getting a new venture off the ground—both in terms of keeping expenses low as well as contributing seed capital.  

In Closing

As I restart my search I thought it useful to describe at a high level what I am seeking and what I have to offer.  I have intentionally left out details on my experience to prevent this from reading like a resume.  (My LinkedIn profile can be viewed here.)  Having said that, I am happy to discuss my interests and qualifications in greater detail with any interested party.

I’ve taken a couple weeks off since parting with the startup I’d written about below.  I’ve had time to reflect and have no regrets about that experience.  It’s unfortunate that the founder wasn’t really ready to have me lead her company but we were only able to discover that by giving it a try.  It was fortunate that this discovery happened quickly and we were able to easily disengage.

So…what’s next?  In the eight weeks since getting involved in this last startup I’ve let my networking lapse.  In hindsight, this was a mistake.  I’ve learned quite a bit about startups and myself since leaving Analog Devices.  But despite this, I feel like I am back to square one.  I’ll need to fire up my networking again, re-establish contact with startups that had promise, and redouble my efforts to find new candidate opportunities.

I also have a renewed enthusiasm for starting my own business.  I’ve encountered a number of people who share this interest and whose skills compliment mine.  Several also share my ability/willingness to go a while without a paycheck.  What’s needed, of course, is the right concept on which to build.

Come Monday it is back to the drawing board on both fronts:  looking for a startup to join and seeking a concept on which to found my own company.  More later….

The new opportunity I had written about has not worked out.  It involved joining a small company as its CEO.  This company has been led by its founder who is a technologist.  She had concluded that she wanted to bring in a CEO to run the business, grow it to its full potential, and allow her to focus on the technology.  I had been introduced to the founder by one of her advisors and after several meetings we decided to give it a try.

Before jumping right into this we set up a six week mutual trial period as I have already written about.  The idea was that we see how we work together before we lock ourselves into a long-term commitment.  This was fortunate because we quickly learned that the founder was really not ready to handover operational control despite her original intentions and we decided to part ways.  Here’s what happened.

The two key things I focused on during my brief tenure were the company’s product development and manufacturing.  In these areas, the company lacked focus, structure, and an ability to prioritize so I concentrated on addressing those needs.  This involved a variety of decisions such as personnel assignment and subcontractor selection in which the founder and I both remained involved. 

This was to be expected since I was new to the operation and had a lot to learn.  But what started to bother me was the manner in which these decisions were getting made.  As we got deeper into my time there I started realizing we were not communicating very well and that the founder was having trouble letting go.  Of even greater concern—extrapolating forward in time when much bigger issues would be in front of us—were signs that we would struggle with such decisions while seeking to maintain an good, effective working relationship.

After five days I raised these concerns with the founder.  She acknowledged them but we decided to continue and see if our open acknowledgment might help us improve things.  It did not.  Instead, I think it triggered deeper reflection and by Day 7 we had both independently concluded that this was not working out.

We discussed this on Day 8.  The founder noted that she felt a deep need to remain in control of operational issues and realized she had erred in her original assessment that she wanted to hire a CEO.   I expressed the view that what she really needed was an operations person reporting to her who could execute on the decisions that she makes.  We complimented ourselves of starting with just the trial period which allowed us to easily part ways.  We wished each other well and left on good terms.

Thus ends my first seven days of startup life!  While it is disappointing that it didn’t work out it was a good learning experience.  I got a first-hand account as to how important it is that a startup’s principals are able to work well together.  I also got a brief-but-impactful experience as to what it is like to work at a company with no support personnel such as shipping, payroll, IT, etc.   And lastly, I experienced that feeling of being fully on the hook for making things happen.  This was not totally new to me as when I had started the iCoupler business at Analog Devices the dynamic was the same—no pre-existing products, customers, team, or processes providing momentum.  However, it has been over ten years since I had that experience so it was helpful (and exciting) to feel it again.

So, what’s next?  Well, I’m going to take a few weeks off now to just step back.  With the exception of a brief February vacation I’ve been going at this full blast since leaving Analog Devices.  This last experience has rekindled my interest in starting my own business although I have also encountered a variety of startups doing very interest things.  I need a litte time to reflect and consider my next steps.  Besides, summer has started and it would be good to enjoy it for a short while!

Ok, here’s what’s going on.  The situation I wrote about a week ago has progressed to the point where the founder and I have decided to give each other a try.  What we’ve decided is to enter into a six week trial period where she’ll have an opportunity to see what value I bring while I’ll have an opportunity to assess the team, the company’s products/technology, and how those are viewed by customers.  This also will give us a chance to see how well we work together and whether the chemistry is right.

There are no commitments in either direction beyond the six week period.  However, if at the end of this period we both want to proceed further I would then come on board as an employee.  At this point, as the situation is still tentative I’m going to refrain from describing the company and my role in detail.  I’ll just say that it is a leadership opportunity in which I’ll have a chance to greatly impact this company’s fortunes.

As I progress deeper into the trial period I’ll write further about the experience making sure to talk about similarities and differences from big company life.  That’s all for now.  I’ve got an early morning tomorrow!

I have been focusing lately on one particular position I had written about previously as a candidate opportunity.  Things are not yet finalized so I am refraining from writing about any details just yet.  But it is a position that I think will provide me with challenge, learning opportunity, and gratification that I have been seeking.

The founder of this company and I are in the midst of discussing various particulars.  Once things are finalized and certain I will update this blog with more information.  I am also uncertain as to whether to continue this blog once I start in my new role.  The purpose of this blog was to document my transition from a large company to a startup.  One could say that my transition is complete once I start at my new company.   On the other hand, one could also say that my transition will continue time as I acclimate to my new situation and start making an impact.  My inclination is to continue this blog but I’ll revisit the question once I actually reach that point.

Since my last post three options have emerged as “real” opportunities.  These are startup opportunities that are of interest to me, are seeking to immediately expand their leadership teams, and have expressed interest in me.  Interestingly, they are arrayed along a risk/reward spectrum that helps me think about them and assess their relative attractiveness.  (For me, the “reward” component encompasses a variety of factors beyond just financial reward.  Also of importance is the ability to make an impact on a company and its customers, employees, and fortunes; the opportunity to learn new skills and take on new challenges; and the gratification from successfully creating something new and meaningful.)

At the most conservative end of the spectrum lies an opportunity to join a Boston-area semiconductor startup that is seeking to apply its technology to develop a standard products business.  This company already has a few vertically oriented businesses and is looking for someone to focus on and lead this new business.  I met with the CEO and COO of this company a couple weeks ago and discussed their needs and my background in depth.  Of particular relevance was my iCoupler^® experience at Analog Devices.  This was a role where I had done a very similar thing (albeit with the support of a large corporation) in terms of starting at zero with a new technology, figuring out which markets to target, determining the right products, engaging with the right customers, developing a team, and building a broad, profitable business spanning multiple applications.  I had been introduced to this company by one of their investors and was the first candidate with whom they’ve spoken.  They noted that they would follow up with me after going through their search process over the next few weeks.

At the other end of the risk/reward spectrum is an opportunity to be a co-founder in a new startup.  I don’t have many details on this yet but I was recently introduced to someone with a new product concept that is in the process of having a patent application filed.  She has a potential technology co-founder and is seeking a business person to round out the initial team.  I need to reserve judgment until I hear more about the concept and explore it more deeply, but the possibility of participating in a founding team definitely interests me.

The third option lies in between in terms of risk and reward.  It is with a Boston-area test equipment startup that has boot-strapped itself to a position where it is shipping product and is looking to scale.  Their founder is looking for a “business person” who can drive sales/marketing/business development in the near term and help transition this small team into a larger, more impactful company over the longer term.  I have had several meetings with the founder and welcome this opportunity to get involved in a company early.

Given what I know today it is this last opportunity that interests me the most.  It offers me a greater opportunity to learn and make an impact compared to the semiconductor company which offers a role that would have many similarities to what I’ve done before.  On the other hand, I am intrigued by the notion of starting my own company and am reserving judgment until I learn more about that option.  I expect that to happen over the next 2-3 weeks and would then hopefully be in a position to make a decision how to proceed.  I should note, of course, that all this assumes that the decision-makers involved conclude that I am the person they want.  While I’ve receive positive signs in this regard none of these engagements has yet reached the point where I have been formally offered a position with any of these options.

In any event, it feels good to be looking at a few solid possibilities now.  What’s interesting is that only one of these has emerged from my primary strategy of seeking introductions from investors.  The other two came via introductions from a former colleague and from an experienced entrepreneur.  This just underscores the importance of casting a wide net in a search like this and engaging with as many people as possible.

In late April I wrote that I had identified six startups of interest that are likely to expand their leadership team within the next six months.  Since then, I have spoken with four of these six companies as well as have found six additional ones.  Below is an update of where things stand.

“Original Six”

All four of the startups with whom I’ve spoken have identified a need to expand their leadership team in the next six months but are not ready to do so immediately.  Three of them are focused on securing their next round of funding before they add a new executive.  Of these, three are confident this will happen by the end of the summer while the third seems to be struggling and has a lot of uncertainty as to if and when it will get funded.  The fourth company with whom I’ve spoken is well-funded but is still working to determine exactly what kind of executive they want to add and when.  A position of interest may emerge from one of these four later this year but for now I a considering them to be “on hold”.

I have not yet spoken with the remaining two companies.  I am meeting with one of them this coming week while the other has not yet responded to the introduction I received from one of their investors.

“New Six”

My continuing outreach to investors and others has yielded introductions to a second set of startups that may be expanding their leadership team this year.  So far, I have spoken with just one of these companies and am following up with the rest.

• Four are in semiconductor or semiconductor-related areas, one is a test equipment company, and the sixth is a smart-grid equipment company.
• Three are in the Boston area, two in California, and one is in Canada
• Three are at the seed/angel stage, one has Series A funding, and two are at Series B or later.

Within this composite set of twelve companies there certainly are some that are of higher interest to me than others.  There also are certainly some that will have a greater interest in me than others.  For now I am maintaining a wide funnel and am engaging with them all.  Even if I do find a match the likely initial arrangement would be one in which I work on a fixed-duration “interim” basis with no commitment from either the company or myself.  This is beneficial to both sides as it provides a risk-free way to assess whether a match is truly a good one before committing to a permanent relationship.

This also provides, for companies not yet fully funded, a way to engage me without committing to a significant cash expense.  I am able to go without a steady paycheck for an extended period of time and am comfortable favoring equity over cash in a compensation arrangement.  But that is a story for another day once I find that match I am seeking.  For now, the search continues…

As I talk with more and more startup CEOs who are seeking leadership help a common theme has emerged.  In the overwhelming majority of situations it is experienced execution leadership that is needed as opposed to things like strategic planning, marketing, and customer engagement.  This is reflective of the fact that I have been targeting Seed and Series A companies where the priority is to get the first product commercialized.

What I’ve found, in general, is that these CEOs are looking for an experienced executive who can bridge the gap between having a prototype and shipping a commercial product.  The precise needs vary but in general they encompass the following:  translating customer inputs into a product definition, establishing a disciplined product development structure, leading the product development team, establishing a supply chain, and ramping up production.

The typical situation I’ve encountered involves a CEO with just modest experience or fully consumed raising money coupled with a set of young, aggressive technologists that have succeeded in building a prototype and attracting customer interest.  In these situations the CEO has recognized that a new skill set and focus is needed to bring his first product to market and that an experienced operations/product development executive is required.

I think I once again am writing about something that is obvious to experienced entrepreneurs and investors but was not to me until I started talking to these CEOs.  But that’s ok as that is precisely in line with the expectations I had established for myself upon leaving Analog Devices—that I would end up spending as much effort learning about startups as in seeking out my next position.

So, what does this mean for me?  Fortunately, I have a lot of experience leading product development teams and am confident in my ability to take on such a role.  Having said that, a pure product development role is not what I had been seeking out of concern it would take me too far away from customers, the marketplace, and an ability to impact a company’s strategy.  But my impression so far is that these startups’ product development leadership roles are not so narrowly defined.  If that’s the case, and I can find a product development leadership position that has a sufficiently strong connection to the marketplace and the company’s strategy, it would be attractive.  For now, I am simply continuing my outreach to VCs and the CEO’s they refer me to.