Silicon Valley 2010 – Changes in the Circles of Influence

March 22, 2010 by SGEntrepreneurs
Filed under Events

Newcomers to Silicon Valley are sometimes surprised and perplexed at the ways that the entrepreneurial community interacts with Angels, VCs, and other players such as law firms, accounting firms, and even the local universities (Stanford, Cal Berkeley, Santa Clara, and San Jose State) during the process of company formation raising capital. The process has grown even more complex in the last decade, as the Valley has had to cope with two major recessions in ten years, and as new investment categories in clean energy, air and water and web 2.0 and social networks have emerged very rapidly.

The last decade has also seen the rise of incubators, accelerators, and new government initiatives to stimulate “clean tech” industries, as well as major turbulence in the industry formerly known as “Investment Banking.” For all of these reasons, getting access to the resources you need as an entrepreneur is more complicated in 2010 than it was in the past. This talk will discuss of these changes, and some of the things that entrepreneurs who are new to the Valley are doing to cope with the turbulent environment.

About The Speaker

Prof Tom Kosnik is a Fenwick and West Consulting Professor, Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP), at Stanford School of Engineering. He is also the International Advisor for NUS Entrepreneurship Centre. Prof Tom has an extensive experience in the field of system integration, marketing and business development roles. Currently he is helping business and government leaders to create real time learning programs for stakeholders across their value chains, positioning products, services and brands, execute global sales and marketing campaigns, attract and develop talent as well as to raise money. With his experience and involvements with various start-ups over the past few years, the talk definitely is a must-go for any entrepreneurial minded students.