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For Entrepreneurs is a blog for startups and entrepreneurs, written by David Skok, a five time serial entrepreneur turned VC (now at Matrix. Partners). It aims to address the key issues they will face in getting started, getting funded, and building a successful company.

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Hi, my name is David Skok. I am a serial entrepreneur turned VC. I have a great passion for helping entrepreneurs and starups. I started my first company a few months after leaving university at the age of 21, and over the next 25 years, founded a total of four companies (Skok Systems, Corporate Software Europe, Watermark Software, and SilverStream Software) and did one turnaround (Xionics). I have had my share of ups and downs. I was lucky enough to have three of these companies go public, one was acquired, and one initially succeeded, but then failed when I moved the company to the US. I often remark that I learned more from that one failure than I have from all of my successes.

After 25 years as an entrepreneur, I became a venture capital partner at Matrix Partners, the firm that had backed my last two companies. I had worked with 15 different VC firms, and Matrix had clearly been my best partner, earning my strong loyalty with their support through some very tough times. I was excited to move to the “dark side” and be in a position to help other entrepreneurs. For the past nine years I have been investing in software and internet companies. As a VC, I have had the very good fortune to invest alongside some spectacular management teams, including  JBoss, who took their Open Source business to a successful exit with its sale to Red Hat, and AppIQ, Tabblo and Diligent Technologies, which have all had successful exits, from their inceptions to their acquisitions by HP and IBM. I currently serve on the boards of Digium (makers of the very popular Asterisk Open Source PBX/telephony software), CloudSwitch, Enservio, OpenSpan, Solidworks, VideoIQ, and HubSpot.

In addition to the articles that I will post, I will also enlist the help of guest bloggers who I believe represent some of the best entrepreneurial and executive minds in the business.

If you would like to contact me, please email me at: dskok (at) matrixpartners.com. I would enjoy hearing from you.

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  • Hi, David - just learned about your blog from Lance Weatherby's blog. Lots of good advice... great of you to share.

    I agree w/ your observation that entrepreneurs are often unrealistically optimistic. In our work w/ clients (mix of startups and established cos), a second tendency we've observed is an undue focus on features and technology and too little attention to other aspects of the value proposition (e.g., problem solved, benefits delivered, etc.).

    After recently spending a day hearing 50+ startups present a brief overview of their ideas/products, I posted on Slideshare a template that we've found useful in helping clients articulate the value proposition for their new product/service. Here is the link:

    http://bit.ly/ahDbSo

    Hope you find this relevant and useful - would welcome any thoughts you may have.

    Phil Hendrix, Ph.D.
  • Kyle Lussier
    Wow, this is the best website I've found online in 15 years on these topics.
  • sonarjohn
    David - your site is a great find for me and very much enjoyed your post on SaaS metrics - many thanks

    John
    www.sonar6.com
  • John, I went to look at your web site, and wanted to see a demo. I was put off by the need to register before I could see the demo. I am a strong believer in not putting that sign up form too early in the sales process as it will dramatically lower your conversion rates. Have you tried A/B testing with and without the form in front of the demo?
    - David
  • John, thanks for your kind comment. It is very much appreciated!
  • Why does the rss feed only include a synopsis of your posts rather than the full post?
  • I am not sure, but will look into it.
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