Entries by Derek Pilling

A Success Story for Private and Growth Equity

The Minnetonka company Shock Doctor has just passed into the hands of its third private equity owner in the past 11 years, and the managing partner of the new owner couldn’t be more excited about the growth opportunity he intends to nurture. And in talking about it, he sounded a lot like the partners of […]

Founder Liquidity and Growth Equity

Founder LiquidityI’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  often – but not always – a feature of growth equity financings. A modicum of liquidity for key management team members or founders can act as lubricant for a growth equity investment, particularly where the management team founded and has successfully bootstrapped a successful business.

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What is an entrepreneur to do when restrictive covenants become restrictive

Restrictive Covenants - HandcuffsRestrictive 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:

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What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Peyton Manning

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 rest of the team. Sports are a great metaphor for many aspects of life. In this case, entrepreneurs could learn a lot from Peyton Manning and the leadership he’s brought to the Broncos.

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The fallacy of averages

A discussion with a portfolio company CFO yesterday reminded me that statistics are a dangerous thing and averages are misleading.
“There are three types of lies — lies, damn lies, and statistics.”
Skewed distribution

Most businesses analyze their performance using overly simplistic tools. For an extreme example, imagine a scenario where the average customer produces monthly recurring revenue of $10,000.

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