Mike Manclark of Leading Edge Accepting the Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award

Costa Mesa, CA (PRWEB) May 08, 2012

Leading Edge Aviation Services (LEAS), the largest commercial and military aircraft painting company in the world, today announced that Mike Manclark, Founder and CEO, has won Orange County Business Journal’s prestigious Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award. Announced on March 21, the awards are presented annually to five individuals who best exemplify the entrepreneurial spirit through their vision, execution, business accomplishments and potential for continued success.

“Mike Manclark’s vision and leadership have propelled Leading Edge into the largest aircraft painting company in the world, counting virtually every major airline as a customer,” said Richard Reisman, publisher, OCBJ. “During the past few years, the company has grown revenue by more than 14% in what’s widely been recognized as one of the toughest periods in history for commercial aviation. It’s accomplishments like these that warrant Manclark’s inclusion in our Excellence in Entrepreneurship Awards.”

Originally founded as an aircraft detailing business at John Wayne Airport, Manclark quickly expanded the business to accommodate a growing need for premium aircraft painting. Within a few years, the company amassed major contracts with clients such as Delta, Continental, United, Air Canada, Southwest, the U.S. Military and even NASA. Today the company boasts state-of-the-art hangars in eight cities across America, revenues of more than $ 46M, and a total of more than 1,300 employees.

“This has been another landmark year for Leading Edge, and we are honored to have our accomplishments recognized by the OCBJ,” said Manclark. “We are proud to be part of a community that values and supports entrepreneurship and innovation.”

About Leading Edge Aviation Services

Headquartered in Costa Mesa, California with state-of-the-art facilities nationwide, Leading Edge Aviation Services, Inc. is the largest, most advanced commercial and military aircraft painting company in the world. Founded in 1989, the company’s undeniable success is attributed to its strong vision and a continuous commitment to quality and excellence. Today, Leading Edge delivers an extensive range of commercial services including aircraft interior and exterior painting, OEM production coatings application support, mod-center painting services support, VVIP aircraft interior completions and exterior paint, aviation graphics, aircraft weighing, long- and short-term aircraft storage, field audits, fleet assessments, interior deep cleaning, and aircraft exterior wash and polish. For more information, visit our web site at http://www.leadingedgecorp.com.

About the OCBJ

Each week, the Orange County Business Journal delivers the most complete package of news and information on Orange County’s companies, industries and businesspeople. It is comprehensive, authoritative, concise and entertaining. Presented in a lively and accessible format, the Business Journal is required reading for Orange County executives, managers and professionals—written in an up-tempo, breezy style that reveals the drama, excitement and fun in business. For more information, go to http://www.ocbj.com.

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Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Phoenix, AZ (PRWEB) May 17, 2012

MBA Women International is pleased to announce four women executives in leadership roles have joined the board: Laura Freeland, Vice President, American Airlines Cargo Revenue Management; Kate Pullman, vice president of Staffing Operations for Prudential Financial; Neena Newberry, President of Newberry Executive Coaching & Consulting; and Lesley Johnson, CEO/Founder of L. Johnson PMP, LLC a project management services company.

“We are very pleased to announce such an impressive group of new board members to our team,” says Janice Kleinwort, President of MBA Women International. Kleinwort is Director Economic Affairs, Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development at Arizona State University. She is completing a Master’s Degree at Arizona State University, School of Non-Profit Studies.

More about the new board members:

Laura Freeland is currently Vice President, American Airlines Cargo Revenue. Freeland will serve as the Treasurer and Finance Director for MBA Women International. She has held a wide variety of management roles in Finance including as Controller, Marketing and AA Vacations. Freeland has served on several other boards including: Board of Big Thought, the Dallas Opera, the African American Museum, as Treasurer and Board member for the Dallas Women’s Foundation, and as the Treasurer for the Swiss Avenue Historic District. Freeland holds an MBA from University of Maryland.

Kate Pullman is vice president of Staffing Operations for Prudential Financial, a global, diverse Fortune 100 financial services company headquartered in Newark, NJ. She is responsible for the delivery of operational services and technical solutions — including background verification and employment eligibility (I-9) processing, vendor oversight, technology implementation and utilization — to the company’s US-based recruiting teams, hiring managers, and applicants. She also leads strategic initiatives. Pullman holds an MBA from Rutgers University.

Neena Newberry has been advising and coaching clients for twenty years in midsize to Fortune 500 companies. As the President of Newberry Executive Coaching & Consulting, LLC, Newberry works with companies to strengthen their pipeline of leaders through coaching, development programs, workshops, and facilitation. Neena’s experience spans several industries and she specializes in working with high performing women leaders to get even better results. As a former Director at Deloitte, she led Performance Management & Career Planning for their 40,000 US employees and prior to that worked for ten years in the Consulting practice. Newberry serves on the United Way Women of Tocqueville Steering Committee, is President of ICF North Texas and is on the board of the Dallas McCombs Alumni Chapter. She holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Texas.

Lesley Johnson is the CEO/Founder of L. Johnson PMP, LLC a project management services company. Johnson has worked for the last fifteen years in the software consulting arena. She has provided consultant services for various Fortune 500 companies leading and assisting in the implementation of ERP software packages, including Oracle, PeopleSoft, SAP, Hyperion, BaaN, and several custom-designed software packages. Much of Ms. Johnson’s experience has been in the Telecommunications industry. Johnson is the President of the Atlanta Chapter of MBA Women International as well as serving on the national board of directors for MBA Women International. She holds an MBA from Northeastern University in Boston.

MBA Women International will hold their annual Leadership Conference and Career Fair October 18-20 in Phoenix Arizona. “We hope to have over 60 corporate partners that will be recruiting and have a great selection of speakers and workshops for professional women and for MBA students,” adds Kleinwort. Already the organization has commitments from the following corporate partners: American Airlines, GE, Human, Deloitte , Ernst and Young, Intel, Petsmart, Cricket Communications, MetLife, Inc. and Prudential. More information about the conference is available.

ABOUT MBA Women International:

MBA Women International is a not for profit organization dedicated to the advancement of business women as corporate leaders, executives and entrepreneurs- enriching workforce diversity around the world.

We serve four related client groups: female MBA students, female business professionals and entrepreneurs, universities and corporate partners. Visit http://www.mbawomen.org.

To find out more about joining a MBA Women International student chapter or a professional chapter contact: Philana Kiely at philana(at)mbawomen(dot)org.

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Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Orlando, FL (PRWEB) May 11, 2012

Best stocks can help individual investors take their investing edge to the next level of performance. Both active investors and traders, just by browsing BestStocks.biz for few minutes everyday, can get comprehensive overview of current stock market.

At BestStocks.biz, the entire investing landscape is cut, diced and sliced to help find best performing stocks and top ETFs across various sectors of the stock market. Users can then quickly and easily find top performing sectors and stocks to take advantage of current market trends for profitable investing.

BestStocks.biz tries to address the most frequent questions from users – “what are the best performing stocks?”, “which sectors are outperforming and what are the best stocks in a particular market segment (e.g., best dow stocks, best china stocks, best tech stocks)?”, “what are best stocks below $ 10?”.

At BestStocks research, a combination of stocks and ETF performance data along with fundamental, quantitative and technical analysis is used to help answer above questions. For instance, for every major stock market segment, there is Top 10 Stocks section with best short term technical trends.

BestStocks.biz chief architect, Subu Vdaygiri, “We are not investment advisers but individual investors and we wanted to develop website that can help fellow small investors research stocks and identify best investing opportunities by themselves. In todays stock market, all investors need to be active so that they can have best performing investments. Hence we wanted to build a website that can not only inform and educate them quickly about best performing stocks but also be fun and easy to use.”.

BestStocks.biz publishes results of its stock analysis and research after market trading session is over so that users can quickly summarize day’s trading action and get information quickly. In addition, what differentiates BestStocks.biz from other financial information websites is not only its analytics but also its website design, presentation and usability.

BestStocks.biz web specialist, Ms. Pravi Rottla, “Our main priority was to make BestStocks.biz simple and easy for our users to be able to drill down to particular market segment of interest (e.g., “best dividend stocks”) and find best performing stocks within that sector. The user can then quickly browse detailed performance, technicals, fundamentals and charts of various stocks belonging to that sector on blog-like page rather than having to go through multiple web pages. This makes for great user experience on new devices like tablets”.

For every market sector, from large cap to small cap to global equities to commodities, BestStocks.biz has put all related stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) together in “one screen” approach so that users can easily compare performances and stock charts across any sector. Users can now easily find best ETFs or stocks to help power their portfolios. For instance, one can check if a stock (e.g AAPL) is a best stock and get complete performance analysis in just one screen.

Individual investors and traders can visit BestStocks.biz for the latest stock analysis and research. Also, to access directly, please bookmark or remember to type BestStk.com in any web browser.

Contact:

Pravi Rottla

BestStocks.biz

Phone: 407.777.3252

Email: prottla(at)beststocks(dot)biz

Web Site: http://www.beststocks.biz

Keywords in browser: BestStk.com

Follow us on Twitter: BestStocks_biz

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Portland, OR (PRWEB) May 11, 2012

On May 23, 2012, FundingPost (http://www.FundingPost.com) will host a panel discussion with local Angel Investors, Venture Capitalists, and Corporate VCs at its “Portland VC and Angel Event,” sponsored by Perkins Coie and OAF. FundingPost has organized 200+ sold-out venture events over the past 11 years. The FundingPost Event registration and information are online at: http://www.fundingpost.com/breakfast/reg1.asp?event=199&refer=PR

Venture Capitalists and Angel Investors will gather at FundingPost’s upcoming event to discuss the trends in Early-Stage Investing, hot sectors, sectors that these Angels and VCs look at, things that are most important to them when they are considering an Investment, the best and worst things an entrepreneur can do to get their attention, give additional advice to entrepreneurs, current events such as deal terms and crowdfunding, and, of course, the best ways to reach these and other Investors.

Speakers:

Rick Gibson, Angel Investor, Desert Angels

Scott Sandler, Angel Investor, Oregon Angel Fund

Angela Jackson, Managing Director, Portland Seed Fund

Matt Miller, Managing Director, Walden Venture Capital

Peter Weiss, Angel Investor

“We are excited about our first event in the Portland area. It’s a fantastic opportunity for an early-stage company to meet face to face with investors,” said Joe Rubin, Director, FundingPost. “Early-stage VCs are always on the lookout for great ideas, and FundingPost is proud to provide a forum for these investors to locate promising new ventures.”

As with all FundingPost events, there will also be pitching and plenty of networking time for the entrepreneurs to meet the investors during the cocktail party! There is still space available, but the seating is limited! To register to attend, visit:

http://www.FundingPost.com/breakfast/reg1.asp?event=199&refer=PR

ABOUT FUNDINGPOST:

With over 11,000 CEOs and 750 Venture Capital Funds attending events in 22 cities nationwide; a Printed Dealflow Magazine; and a deal-exchange website with over 7,800 VC & Angel Investor members and over 150,000 companies, that has, on average, made an introduction of an Investor to an Entrepreneur every business day since its inception; FundingPost believes that it is important to reach investors in every medium possible – both online and offline. FundingPost has been responsible for Millions and Millions of dollars in Venture Capital Raised! For more information, please visit: http://www.fundingpost.com

ABOUT PERKINS COIE: Founded in 1912 in Seattle, Perkins Coie has more than 850 lawyers in 19 offices across the United States and Asia. The firm is celebrating its 100th anniversary of representing great companies ranging in size from start-ups to FORTUNE 100 corporations. Attorneys in our Emerging Companies group represent clients in a variety of fast-moving industry sectors, including, among others, life sciences, Internet, software, digital media, retail, telecommunications and cleantech. Perkins Coie has handled thousands of venture financings over the years and has significant experience handling a variety of private debt and equity financing transactions for both emerging company and venture capital clients. U.S. News Best Lawyers ranked Perkins Coie as 2011-2012 “Law Firm of the Year” in Venture Capital. For more information, please visit: http://www.Perkinscoie.com

ABOUT OREGON ANGEL FUND (OAF)– Founded in 2007, OAF is a community supported, professionally managed, investor driven angel fund backed by the leaders of Oregon’s business and technology community, the Oregon Growth Account, and the Oregon Community Foundation. OAF invests $ 5 million annually in the most promising startups and early-stage growth companies in Oregon and SW Washington. Over 700 jobs have been created by the 24 companies in the portfolio. For more information, please visit: http://www.OregonAngelFund.com

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Baltimore, MD (PRWEB) May 08, 2012

ClearOne Advantage, LLC today announced that its Chief Executive Officer, Tomas Gordon, was named a finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2012 program in Maryland. The award recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Awards will be presented at a special gala on June 28 at the Baltimore Waterfront Marriott.

Now in its 26th year, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Program has expanded to recognize business leaders in more than 140 cities in more than 50 countries throughout the world.

Regional award winners are eligible for consideration for the Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur Of The Year Program. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur Of The Year Overall Award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California, on November 17, 2012. The awards are the culminating event of the Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Forum, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies.

Sponsors

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored in the United States by SAP America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

In Maryland, local sponsors include Baltimore Business Journal, Cassidy Turley, Clearview Consulting, DLA Piper, The Mergis Group, PNC Bank and SmartCEO.

About ClearOne Advantage, LLC

ClearOne Advantage is a full-service debt resolution company providing resolution of credit cards and other unsecured debts. Our executive leadership team is comprised of financial industry professionals with expertise in many of the industries that provide consumer lending services, making ClearOne Advantage the obvious choice when looking to resolve debt. To learn more about the products and services that make ClearOne Advantage an easy choice in debt resolution, call 1-888-785-5376 or visit ClearOneAdvantage.com.

About Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year®

Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year is the world’s most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs. The unique award makes a difference through the way it encourages entrepreneurial activity among those with potential, and recognizes the contribution of people who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. As the first and only truly global award of its kind, Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses, recognizing them through regional, national and global awards programs in more than 140 cities in more than 50 countries.

About Ernst & Young

Ernst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide, our 152,000 people are united by our shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. We make a difference by helping our people, our clients and our wider communities achieve their potential.

Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit http://www.ey.com.

This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP, a US client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

(PRWEB) May 04, 2012

“Capturing Foreign Capital to Fund Projects through EB-5 Program Seminar” hosted by Brian Su, a leading expert on EB-5 marketing in China and Korea, is attracting commercial real estate developers, immigration attorneys, investment bankers, EB-5 executives, and venture capitalists, among others, to be educated on the latest happenings and trends in the Chinese and Korean immigrant investors market.

The June 8, 2012 event hosted at Embassy Suites Austin Central, will be centered on how to secure EB-5 funding from wealthy Chinese and Korean immigrant investors. The EB-5 regional center program has been a growing success, with much foreign investment pouring in from China and Korea. Rapid growth specifically in the Chinese economy has made the EB-5 program more relevant than ever before. The number of wealthy Chinese is growing at 9.7% annually, according to the GroupM Knowledge – Hurun Wealth Report 2011. Additionally, Merrill Lynch and Capgemini’s Asia-Pacific Wealth Report 2008 shows that in 2007, high net-worth individuals in China placed 21% of their assets in real estate versus a worldwide average of 14%. The preference the wealthy Chinese show in real estate, along with the current drop in housing prices and a steady RMB, have made real estate investment in the U.S., along with the EB-5 program, more appealing than ever before. In the past five years, more than $ 3 billion of foreign capital have been invested into the U.S. through EB-5, creating thousands of jobs in a variety of industries. Nearly 70% EB-5 Visas are issued to Chinese investors this year. The Seminar aims to help U.S. companies and individuals tap into more of this foreign capital.

The day-long event will be headed by Mr. Brian Su, who is well equipped to help U.S. capital seekers utilize the EB-5 Program. Mr. Su acts as President and CEO of Artisan Business Group, Inc., a national consulting firm specializing in the development of market offerings for business projects seeking foreign capital. Additionally, Mr. Su acts as President of the China EB-5 Market Council. He is also a member of the Association to the Investment in the USA. Guest speakers include Mr. Kevin Wright, President of Wright Johnson LLC, Mr. Clem Turner, Attorney of Clem Turner, Esq. Homeier & Law, P.C. and Dandan Zhou, CEO of Texas Investment Regional Center.

This year’s event will provide both EB-5 professionals and those inexperienced with the program a great opportunity to learn more about Chinese and Korean market trends. Attendees of the event will obtain knowledge and experience that will be invaluable in their efforts to obtain EB-5 foreign capital. Those attending the event also have the opportunity to meet the prior day with Artisan Business Group’s CEO, Mr. Brian Su, for a 1-hour private consultation.

For more information regarding the event, registration, or a private consultation with Mr. Su, please visit: http://www.TexasEB5Seminar.com.

Press Contact:

Artisan Business Group, Inc.

http://www.EB5NewsBlog.org

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

FastCasual.com 2012 Top Movers & Shakers

Charleston, SC (PRWEB) May 01, 2012

FastCasual.com recently released their 2012 Top 100 Movers & Shakers seventh annual report. This year they expanded the list to include the top brands, people, trends and technologies. Selected as No. 3 in the “Top Technology Trends,” PeopleMatter followed Coca-Cola’s Freestyle beverage dispenser and the Apple iPad. PeopleMatter became the first and only talent management solution to don the list, along with some PeopleMatter customers and customer executives. Unsurprising, as it is also the only comprehensive, “Hire-to-Retire” solution designed specifically for hourly workforces like the foodservice industry.

“With so many innovate brands, people and technology shaping the fast casual segment, it really is difficult picking the best of the best, but we believe our list highlights the true movers and shakers,” said Valerie Killifer, senior editor of FastCasual.com. “PeopleMatter and the concepts highlighted in our annual report, represent the true spirit of entrepreneurship the segment represents. We couldn’t be more pleased with our rankings this year.”

PeopleMatter customers and customer executives that made the “Top 50 Restaurants” and “Top 20 People” include:

Wildflower Bread Company: The company ranked No. 9 for their innovative menu and undeniable attention to detail in every aspect of the business. In the “Top 20 People” Louis Basile, Founder of Wildflower Bread Company, ranked No. 6. He is a founding member and chairman of the Fast Casual Industry Council, as well as a newly elected National Restaurant Association board member.

MAD greens – Inspired Eats: Ranked No. 12 for their HR best practices and technology. The company also joins PeopleMatter on the “Top Technology Trends” at No. 5 with the MAD greens Food Allergy App. The mobile app helps customers identify foods or ingredients they should avoid for health purposes.

Boloco: At No. 18, inspired burrito chain Boloco received the Green Restaurant Association’s first two-star rating. Consistently adding new and different options to their menu, as well as giving back to worthy causes set Boloco apart from the rest.

Burger Lounge: PeopleMatter customer ranked No. 21 in the “Top 50 Restaurants.” Calling their slogan – “We do common things uncommonly well” – an understatement, Fast Casual touted the burger chain, “the epitome of über: -cool, -organic, -eco.”

Noodles and Company: Recognized at No. 22 for kid-friendly dining, the company plans to manage impressive growth projections by streamlining HR management with the PeopleMatter Platform. Kevin Reedy, Noodles & Company CEO and Chairman, also made the “Top 20 People” at No. 17. The report cited Reedy as an executive to watch and hinted that he may possibly win entrepreneur of the year.

“It’s really quite an honor to have made Fast Casual’s Top 100 list,” said Nate DaPore. “To have been in the market less than three years and already be recognized as an industry leader, as well as having customers that are some of the most innovative Fast Casual restaurants out there, makes the entire PeopleMatter team incredibly proud of what we are accomplishing.”

About PeopleMatter

PeopleMatter provides the only comprehensive talent management solution for the service industry. We help employers identify, develop and engage dependable talent to provide exemplary customer service. PeopleMatter’s platform of HR tools handles hiring, scheduling, learning, recognition and performance management. Our integrated technology manages the process, so employers can focus on the talent. PeopleMatter. The name says it all. PeopleMatter is headquartered in Charleston, S.C., and on the Web at http://www.peoplematter.com.

Attachments

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Cincinnati, Ohio (PRWEB) April 27, 2012

SmarTravel (http://www.mysmartravel.com) is proud to announce its 2012 partnership with Kings Island in Mason Ohio. As a major sponsor of the park, SmarTravel will be onsite each day the park is open greeting visitors and giving them the opportunity to win $ 50,000 cash or a car valued up to $ 70,000.

“Partnering with Kings Island is a perfect fit for SmarTravel,” says SmarTravel President David Wise. “As the largest amusement park and water park in the Midwest, Kings Island attracts visitors from near and far. We look forward to the opportunity to meet and greet folks all season long.”

Kings Island opens for the season on April 28.

About SmarTravel-

SmarTravel is a travel company offering great vacations at wholesale prices.

Founded by Ohio businessman and community leader David Wise in 2001, the goal of the company is to provide families with affordable quality vacations. SmarTravel offers its clients the opportunity to vacation in many popular resort areas, where the company and its partners own, lease, or otherwise have access to resort accommodations. SmarTravel utilizes a simple and proven concept: to buy vacations in bulk and pass the savings on to the traveler.

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Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Hidden Costs

(PRWEB UK) 25 April 2012

The recent investigation by consumer group ‘Which?’ has highlighted that some home and car insurance providers are charging high fees for standard policy changes and renewals. The report highlighted examples of charges of about £30 -£35 to change simple details such as a surname or address. More surprisingly the consumer group also named and shamed insurance firms that charge drivers a fee for renewing and setting up their policies.

The report went on to look at the levels of interest being charged to motorists who opt to pay their insurance in instalments rather than in a single lump sum. Most of the companies investigated were found to be charging between 29% and 32% in interest dependent upon the policy type.

All of these charges are often buried in policy small print and the report appealed to insurers to make sure information relating to fees is more clearly published on websites and within policy documentation.

Andrew Goulborn, Commercial Director for Tiger.co.uk commented: “Shoppers need to be savvy and always check the small print. Using sites like Tiger.co.uk to compare car insurance provides motorists with the perfect opportunity to shop around, check through the policy details and click through to provider sites to read more if needed. We would also suggest that shoppers to always try to pay their premium in one single instalment so as not to incur interest charges. A good way to do this is to pay on a 0% on purchases credit card so that you can pay the sum back with no interest over a given period”.

©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Dave Lavinsky, co-founder and President of Growthink

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) April 21, 2012

Dave Lavinsky, President of leading entrepreneurial consulting firm Growthink, Inc., has recently revealed exactly what a venture capitalist is, what they are looking for, and how entrepreneurs can go about raising venture capital.

“A venture capital firm is a financial institution that focuses on providing capital, in the form of equity, to companies who offer them the prospects of significant growth. The partners and associates at venture capital firms are known as venture capitalists. The term “VC” or “VCs” applies to both venture capital firms and venture capitalists,” said the President and co-found of Growthink, Inc., whom since 1999 have helped 500,000 entrepreneurs start and grow their own company.

“Unlike angel investors, who invest their own money, VCs are professional institutions that invest other people’s money. VC firms raise capital for their own funds from sources which primarily include pension funds, financial and insurance companies, endowments and foundations, individuals and families, and corporations.

The VCs are then charged with providing a solid return on investment on this money. This is the one thing that every VC wants. By providing a solid ROI to their investors, VCs earn bonuses and raise more funds so they can stay in business.

VCs earn returns for their investors by finding high growth companies, making investments in them at favorable terms, guiding and nurturing them, and enacting a liquidity event (e.g., selling the company or having it complete an initial public offering).”

According to Lavinsky, venture capitalists are extremely rigorous in their investment decision-making process because they are utilizing other people’s money, and are judged and compensated by the performance of their investments.

As a result, VCs tend to only invest in companies with significant market potential of $ 50 million, $ 100 million or more.

“This is because even with all their relevant experience, the average venture capital firm will lose money on half the companies they invest in and only break even on a third,” Lavinsky says.

“Where VCs make their money is on the approximately 20% of companies they invest in that see explosive growth and provide remarkable returns of 10 times to 100 times or more on their investment. Industry insiders sometimes refer to the 2:6:2 rule. This rule is that an average portfolio of ten VC investments will include two losses (e.g., companies go bankrupt), six moderately performing companies (may break-even on the investment or lose a little) and two very successful returns.”

Lavinsky also reported how an analysis by Bygrave and Timmons of VC funding found that just 6.8% of investments returned ten times or more on the invested capital. Conversely over 60% of investments lost money or failed to exceed the amount of money earned if the capital had been put in an interest-bearing bank account, according to Lavinsky’s findings.

“The result of this analysis is that typically a venture capitalist will want to see the ability to get 10X their money back or more from investing in your company (they are seeking ‘home run’ investments which compensate for the 60% of their investments that don’t pan out) . As such, for every $ 1 million you are seeking from VCs, you must show them a realistic scenario where you can turn it into $ 10 million,” said Lavinsky.

Lavinsky is keen to highlight that the primary goal of a venture capitalist is to make significant money from investing in an entrepreneur. As a result, the entrepreneur needs to show them how they can earn a 10X return.

“If your company can potentially give VCs a 10X return, then seeking venture capital might be right for you,” he said.

To help entrepreneurs find a venture capitalist for their company, Lavinsky has also revealed his simple step-by-step plan:

1. Develop a list of VC firms

Lavinsky recommends that entrepreneurs start by creating a list of venture capital firms.

2. Narrow the list

“Each venture capital firm invests based on particular characteristics (e.g., some only invest in software firms), so you need to make sure your list only includes VCs that are interested in your type of venture,” said Lavinsky.

3. Make sure the VC is active

According to Lavinsky, many VC firms that have websites aren’t active and aren’t making new investments. “You don’t want to waste your time contacting and talking with these firms,” Lavinsky says.

4. Find the appropriate person to contact

This is a critical step, according to Lavinsky. “Venture capital firms are comprised of individual partners and associates. If you contact the wrong one, you’ll be dead in the water.”

5. Send the VC partner or associate a “teaser” email

“You don’t want to send the VC a full business plan or executive summary initially. Rather, you need to send them a ‘teaser’ email to see if they are interested. You don’t want to ‘over shop’ your deal,” Lavinsky says.

“Once the VC ‘bites’ on your teaser email, the next step is generally to send them your business plan. Following that you’ll do an in-person presentation(s), receive and negotiate a term sheet, and then sign a formal agreement and receive your funding check.”

According to Lavinsky, the process of finding a venture capitalist is a lot of work, but when that multi-million check is finally received, the entrepreneur can significantly grow their company and it will have been well worth the effort.

About Growthink

Growthink, Inc. is a leading provider of business plan services. Growthink has also developed several training products and tools for entrepreneurs, including a business plan template, a private placement memorandum template and a marketing plan template. To learn more about Growthink’s products and services, call 800-506-5728.

©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.