We also dug up some old incriminating tape of Stephen sharing his true feelings on running VentureLab … a rare moment for sure – definitely tune in for that.  We also discussed the upcoming Venture Atlanta 2009 conference, and some of the new opportunities (and focus) on true early-stage companies.  Good stuff.

The good Mr. Blake suits up, takes the mound, and throws heaters at a a group of folks in Atlanta that just can’t seem to get with the program.  Another great selection of listener emails and a dash of StartupLounge humor to top it all off. Enjoy!

Sponsors for this episode:
Be sure to click the logos below and visit our sponsors – without them, we simply couldn’t do all of the things we do.

Shownotes and Interview Questions:

As usual, we had lots of related follow-up questions and side discussions, but here is a good sampling of the questions we asked on the show:

• Give us the pitch for the new ATDC, EII, adn the ATDC Seed Fund!
• Talk about the ATDC re-organization.  Why now and why this way?
• How long have you had the idea for re-organizing the ATDC/VentureLab/SBIR entities the way you have?
• How is the reorganization going to impact the ATDC Seed Fund’s operations?
• How will the reorganization impact your deal flow?
• As you were being considered for your new post, clearly this was on your agenda.  How prominent were these ideas as you discussed the new position?
• Why should entrepreneurs be excited about the reorganization?
• Is the ATDC still considering a bricks-and-mortar facility in Gwinnett County?
• Will the reorganization change how you make investment decisions and commitments?
• Could the reorganization increase ties with state entities with similar missions, such as the GRA Seed Fund or some of the programs the Georgia Department of Economic Development?
• How long will it take to complete the reorganization?
• What has the reaction been from the VC community to the reorganization?
• What are existing companies within the ATDC saying about the reorganization?
• Why is GA Tech on board with this concept?  You are seemingly diverting away captive resources.
• As you execute upon the reorganization, what do you see as the greatest challenge?
• What do you see as the greatest need that the reorganization will address?
• How do you see your role as a startup catalyst changing?
• How will you measure success?
• How long until we see the changes on the ground?
• In the ATDC press release, you said, “ATDC will open its membership to all technology entrepreneurs in Georgia, from those at the earliest conception stage to the well-established, venture-fundable companies. We’re interested in any technology business opportunity.”  How much more open will the organization be to supporting early-stage companies?
• Does the ATDC need an image makeover to get buy-in from entrepreneurs and if so, how do you go about that makeover?
• You have started making open office hours available.  Is that going to become a permanent activity?
• If you were to give one piece of advice to entrepreneurs listening to this podcast, what would it be?

Listener Emails Read and Answered on the Show:

Alicia: I am currently at a crossroads in my business. I started the company in 2004 and filed a provisional patent application in Oct. 2008 based on some methodologies that I created in working with my small business clients. I have financed my company via “bootstrapping” and have now reached a point where I realize that I need a capital “angel.” I need to develop a prototype for the technology I’ve created, but I’m not sure if I should raise funds, seek a technology partner, or simply sell/license the idea. Any advice and support is greatly appreciated.

Erica: I am launching a new internet business and I need to get a quote for web design work.  My question is this.  How can someone get an accurate quote for Web design on their new internet business without giving away the idea?

Karthik: I am sick of all the conflicting messages and behavioral “to-do lists” from investors!  One investor says he wants to see 10-12 slides in my pitch, another guy tells me that with only 12 slides I didn’t give him enough information.  One investor told me that he expects his entrepreneurs to have maxed out credit cards before he will take me seriously, and another investor told me that maxing out personal credit cards was a sign that I take too much risk and am potentially irresponsible with money, as it is expensive debt.  It seems like investors nitpick on everything, and I am spending a lot of time lately creating revisions of presentations and other documents just to make some potential investor happy.  Any advice?

Rob MacArthur: Scott, I read your post “Creating a Winning Advisory Board” – and had a question. I am currently in need of such a board. I have a list of potential board members and have done up a short package for them. I will send an introductory letter or email and attached will be the following:

• 1 page summary on why I need a board;
• 1 page on expectations, mix of board I am looking for;
• 1 page on existing businesses;
• 1 page reference letter for those who do not know me at all.

From your perspective, is this too much info/not enough? Any thoughts or advice on what should/should not be included would be appreciated.

Guest Bios:
Stephen Fleming, Vice Provost, Enterprise Innovation Institute at Georgia Tech

Stephen Fleming has more than 13 years of private equity experience at the general partner level. Prior to his venture capital career, he spent 15 years in operations roles at AT&T Bell Laboratories, Nortel Networks, and LICOM – a venture-funded startup.

An Atlanta native and summa cum laude graduate of Georgia Tech, Fleming is active in the “alternative space” industry — an investor in three private aerospace companies and is a founding member of the Space Angels Network. He also serves on the boards of trustees for the Spiritual Living Center of Atlanta and for Tech High School, a charter high school emphasizing science, math and technology in urban Atlanta.

Fleming is a member of the IEEE, the American Physical Society, the Optical Society of America and a number of regional technology organizations.

David Sung, Startup Catalyst and ATDC Seed Fund Manager
Having been involved with startup companies as both an entrepreneur and a venture investor, David has a unique perspective as an advisor for ATDC portfolio companies. Operationally he has held roles from engineering to CEO resulting in two IPOs and two acquisitions.

Prior to joining the ATDC, David was a Managing Director at HIG Ventures where he focused on venture capital investments primarily in datacenter infrastructure, semiconductor, and enterprise software.  Before joining H.I.G, he was a Partner at Commonwealth Capital Ventures, leading investments in storage networking and enterprise security. Before entering the venture capital business, Sung was Co-Founder and CEO of Crescent Networks and a Co-Founder of Cadia Networks. Sung also held engineering, marketing and executive management positions at Cascade Communications, Avici Systems, FORE Systems and Bytex Corp. Sung received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Northeastern University.

Miscellany:

Enjoy! To play it, use the tools at the top of this post – you can play it via the embedded Flash player by pressing the big play button at the top, or download it to play on your computer or MP3 player. You can also take advantage of our iTunes feed.

Podsafe music used within this episode:

• Underground by Roadside Attraction
• All Out of Beer by Possible Oscar
• All the Money in the World by Hutch

Our format is a little out of the norm as far as podcasts go. We treat our efforts as a true “show” rather than a super-concise (limited) vehicle for delivery of information. Therefore, the podcasts can run a bit long (actually, it is largely driven by the guests and their responses.) While we try to have very substantive discussions, we also try to have a lot of fun along the way (and that tends to elongate the programming a wee bit.) Our theory is that if we are having fun during the show, hopefully, you will be having a little fun listening as well.  And if you still think our shows are too long, frankly, we just don’t care.

Here is the breakdown for the show, in case you want to hop around.

A special thanks to Stephen and David for coming in and hanging out with us!

We welcome your continued feedback as well! If you have an interest in appearing on the show, becoming a show sponsor (hint, hint), have some suggestions for topics, have feedback, or would just like to email us and tell us to “shove off”, we invite you to contact us.

Enjoy!

As a bonus, Scott throws the service provider community “Under the Bus.” Also, you won’t want to miss the announcement of the first StartupLounge.com Capital Connections event!

Sponsors for this episode:
Be sure to click the logos below and visit our sponsors!

Shownotes:

This was a fabulous chat that provided a lot of insights into VentureLab and the commercialization process at Georgia Tech. If you are interested in the commercialization of technology in a university setting, you will definitely want to tune in and give this show a listen. Likewise, if you are interested in the emerging commercial space flight industry, this is a must-hear podcast. Stephen shares his insights on what it is like to innovate in an environment where infrastructure isn’t readily available.

Soundbytes:

One out of eight technologies assisted by VentureLab has enough potential to become an actual company. The rest are commercialized/licensed to other companies.

Georgia Tech is averaging close to 400 inventions per year (over one per calendar day, close to two per business day.)

VentureLab is “Georgia Tech only”, although the ATDC is not. VentureLab fits a lot earlier in the process than ATDC. If ATDC is the incubator, we are pre-natal care. Our exit criteria looks a lot like the ATDC’s entrance criteria.

Georgia Tech graduates 10 percent of the radio frequency (RF) engineers in the world. 10 percent of the published wireless papers come out of Georgia Tech.

Less than 20 percent of the 400 inventions per year come out of wireless/RF. About 20 percent come out of the College of Computing. About 20 percent of those inventions are now coming out of biotech.

The first tourists in space are going there because they are rich people and want a new experience. The people after are going to be industrialists who want to become incredibly, incredibly, filthy rich. And I believe they will be.

We managed to turn R&D into a revenue-generating activity.

Essentially, we called up the FAA and said “We’ve got this rocket-powered vehicle we’re flying over inhabited areas over southern California, is there some paperwork we should be filling out?”

The advice that I give as an XCOR board member is really the same as I would give to any other startup. You really concentrate on the basics. You concentrate on delighting your customers. You concentrate on making sure the cash-in is greater than the cash-out every month. You concentrate on staying a step ahead of the competition, in whatever it is you are building. And something good will happen.

Of course, there is much more content contained within the show itself. Enjoy! To play it, use the tools at the top of this post – you can play it via the embedded Flash player by pressing the big play button at the top, or download it to play on your computer or MP3 player.

Links referenced within this episode:

• VentureLab
• XCOR Aerospace
• Jacket Micro Devices
• Armadillo Aerospace
• Adams Capital
• PeachPodStudios
• National Personnel Services
• SON Capital
• Technology Association of Georgia

Podsafe music used within this episode:

• Sundial by Bill Derome
• Wilford Brimley Hates Your Diabetes by Smart Bomb Radio
• All the Money in the World by Hutch

Tune in and find out!

Our format is a little out of the norm as far as podcasts go. We treat our efforts as a true “show” rather than a super-concise (limited) vehicle for delivery of information. Therefore, the podcasts can run a bit long. While we try to have very substantive discussions, we also try to have a lot of fun along the way (and that tends to elongate the programming a wee bit.) Our theory is that if we are having fun during the show, hopefully, you will be having a little fun listening as well.

Here is the breakdown for the show, in case you want to hop around.

A special thanks to Stephen for coming in and hanging out with us!

We’ll be back soon with Joey Silver and Doug Spear with DLA Piper. In addition to chatting about what they see in the Atlanta early-stage market, we’ll be discussing some legal basics for startups.

We welcome your continued feedback as well! If you have an interest in appearing on the show, becoming a show sponsor (hint, hint), have some suggestions for topics, have feedback, or would just like to email us and tell us to “shove off”, we invite you to contact us.

And don’t forget – the StartupLounge.com message forums are up and running. If you need help with any aspect of your venture, we welcome you to jump in and get the help you need!

Enjoy!