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JAINA CONVENTION 2017
tors can also help in finding early adapters and business partnerships such as sales channels. Without the correct advice and active help from seasoned professionals in the field it is more difficult to navigate the ever-growing start-up world. Professional venture capitalists, seasoned entrepreneurs, or executives making angel investments could be of considerable help.
No start-up can succeed without a top-tier team. This is probably the most important contributing factor to the success. The team has to be willing to commit countless hours, days, weeks, and maybe even years with significant sacrifices to personal and family life. Ideally, A+ players with low egos are key. In a small team, even one rotten apple can be quite disruptive. In addition to top-tier engineers in a tech start-up a well-developed sales, marketing, and business development is imperative for driving success. If you have a great product but are unable to properly market it or reach the correct audience it will fail, even if its technology is unique and better than any competitor. Additionally, often entrepreneurs grossly underestimate the cost of marketing especially in consumer space and having experts in team helps to keep it under control. A good sales person with verifiable existing deep relationships with the target customers is quite valuable. This helps in building a quick beach head and also reduces the duration of the sales cycle.
The location of the start-up is also a contributing factor in determining success. Placing your company in a "start-up hub" will allow access to the brightest minds and the largest pockets. San Francisco and Boston are prime examples of this ecosystem forming a positive feedback loop. In both cities the brightest minds and researchers are coupled with a high density of venture capital firms and angel investors. Additionally, New York, Seattle, Austin, and North Carolina have emerged as attractive hubs. Other factors include an abundance of qualified advisors, law firms that specialize in start-ups, and specialized accounting and consulting firms. These are helpful in building a capable team for day-to-day operations and the manpower to form a highly helpful and knowledgeable board.
Additional quintessential factors driving start-up success include founders' innate desire to win against all odds and make a difference, intensity of drive and focus, competitive spirit, and a headset that thrives on uncertainties. Also the personal attributes such as communication skills, transparency, and integrity all play a role in success. Yet, a word of caution, many start-ups do not succeed for variety of reason. Even if you have all, timing plays a major role. Many companies that succeeded in the 1999 dotcom boom or in the Telecom boom would not have survived the recession of 2001. This is similar to the 2008/2009 market meltdown. While the reward of success is awesome, the loss though painful is still a valuable experience useful in the next venture.
So at the end of the day, the Jain Principle of Karma applies here as well, you can only control your efforts, not the outcome!
