June 2, 2014 at 11:15Away RusValley hackercast Anna Dvornikova - audio podcast and article text
And again, the Hackerkast RusValley.com (a collective blog of Silicon Valley residents) is in touch . In our next issue, we communicate with the charming and influential woman of Silicon Valley - Anna Dvornikova, who recently received the Silicon Valley Women of Influence 2014 honorary award, along with other outstanding women residents of Silicon Valley (100 in total).
Anna is the president of the AmBAR business association , the organizer of the SVOD investment-entrepreneurial conference and the managing partner of the TEC Ventures fund .
In this issue, we discussed:
- What is the SVOD ( Silicon Valley Open Doors ) investment-entrepreneurial conference
- What do startups get from the conference if they do not intend to stay in the Valley
- What startups were shot after speaking at SVOD
- As an idea for a “set of the right people” has become an international platform
- Star guests of SVOD 2014 - George Zachary (early investor of Twitter), Alfred Lin (partner of Sequoia Capital, main investor of WhatsApp), Trip Hawkins (founder of Electronic Arts) and others (full list on svod.org )
- AmBAR Business Association - ecosystem for Russian-speaking professionals in America and abroad
- To whom Anna is grateful for the Silicon Valley Women of Influence award
- Where the TEC Ventures fund invests
- SupportMe's hungry workdays
- Unknown story about Paypal
- Failures - key to success
- Lack of focus for Russian startups Interview
text:
Alex:Hello. This is a hackercast RusValley with the support of the American Business Association of Russian-speaking Professionals AmBAR. And with you, the leading podcasts are Alex Erokhin, Ivan Tsybaev and Alexander Protsyuk.
Today we have guests Anna Dvornikova, president of the American Business Association of Russian- speaking Professionals AmBAR and founder of the annual investment and entrepreneurial conference SVOD . As well as managing partner of the Tec Ventures venture capital fund . Good afternoon, Anna.
Anna: Good afternoon guys.
Alex: Let's start with questions about the SVOD conference. Anna, in a few words, remind our listeners what SVOD is, and what is hidden behind the words of an investment-entrepreneurial conference?
Anna:Decoding SVOD - open doors to Silicon Valley. Initially, the idea was to serve as a springboard for international startups in the Valley. Bring startups, show them to investors and introduce them to local entrepreneurs. So that these companies find here partners, investors, marketers, lawyers, people who are involved in sales. All the professionals who participate in the system of building a technological startup.
Initially (since we are Russians), startups came from Russia, Ukraine and the countries of the former USSR. But, over time, companies from Israel, Canada, the UK and other countries began to arrive. In the future, SVOD became a kind of springboard in search of financing and partners, not only for international companies, but also for local startups.
For us, this was a kind of success, since our main specialization was in companies that come from outside the Valley. But now the conference has become so popular that many local companies founded by Stanford and Berkeley students come to the conference and speak to an audience of investors to get financing.
What are we doing for this and how have we come to this?
We invite TOP investors from TOP funds of the Valley to come and look at startups. What is important for investors here? Firstly, they watch what is happening in the Valley and beyond - they hold their hand on our pulse. For them we made a certain pipeline, i.e. We specifically select companies that interest them. Therefore, they come to SVOD from year to year and receive information about new startups that they have not seen before. Such a mutually beneficial exchange. And on the other hand, entrepreneurs come to get acquainted with investors. So it turns out an investment-entrepreneurial conference.
Ivan: That is, the conference stands for Silicon Valley Open Doors. But in Russia they say more - Silicon Valley, and here in the Valley, more often they say - Silicon Valley. And there are a lot of holivars on this subject.
Anna: It's true, but it doesn't really matter. In addition, SVOD is a business conference. It's not about politics ... it's just about business. We are glad to see guys from anywhere in the world if they make an interesting product or service and consider that their service or product can be global. And also, if they want to understand how potentially interesting they are doing.
For example, we had companies that are not our target audience. Companies that want to return to their country after the conference and open a business there. However, they come to SVOD and get an opinion from the investor about how much what they are doing is right. Communicating in the audience, they get new tips and ideas. They come back with a new worldview and completely change either the product or the direction of the business, which is also very important.
When you spin in your little environment, you don’t understand what is happening outside. And coming to SVOD, the guys begin to see the global picture and understand where to move the company.
It is also very important that SVOD is a boutique conference. In the sense that up to a thousand people gather at SVOD, and therefore any participant has the opportunity (if he is active enough) to communicate with everyone who is present at the conference. With speakers, with investors, with your colleagues in the audience. Usually, when you come to large conferences (from 4 thousand people), you do not have the opportunity to talk with everyone, including speakers, because they are most often taken off the stage after the performance.
Ivan: Well, yes. I noticed that on SVOD it is very easy to chat with many speakers or special guests. And, for example, at TechCrunch Disrupt, where I was when Mark Zuckerberg and Marisa Mayer spoke, there was no such possibility. After the performance, they immediately went backstage.
Anna:Of course. With us you can say 2-3 words about your company, exchange a business card or make an appointment. And again, if you are active enough, you will be able to communicate with all participants, get to know and continue interaction. SVOD is about establishing contacts and connections.
Ivan: Could you say a few words about Russian startups who came to the SVOD conference and fired? For example, Zingaya. What else?
Anna: Another WikiMart, OkToGo - these are all startups, the first performances of which took place at our conference.
Alex: OkToGo is a travel startup, a competitor to the notorious Ostrovok.ru, as far as I remember?
Anna: Yes, you're right.
Ivan:I will add about EverNote. I met with his CEO and founder, Phil Libin. He said that participating in SVOD was an important step in the life of a startup and helped take off.
Anna: Well, yes. They just spoke at the first SVOD, it was a company from Russia, and it turned out that the investor (Troika Dialog) noticed them and, subsequently, invested.
Alex: I have a question, Anna. What was the original idea of the SVOD conference, and what did it transform over time?
Anna:The main idea was to somehow create the infrastructure to help entrepreneurs find investors in the Valley. Imagine 2005, 10 years ago. Historically, there were startups from Russia and Ukraine. But evolution took place, and the conference became more famous. Success stories became visible, and, accordingly, companies began to come not only from the countries of the former USSR, but also from Europe, Canada, and even startups from the Valley.
Ivan: This year, as far as I know, among the guests are CEO of Electronic Arts, Andrew Wilson. How will the performances go? What other interesting guests will be?
Anna:We build a conference in different ways, so it often happens that a speech is held simply in the format of a conversation with an invited guest. Sometimes it happens that we talk on a predetermined topic. And look how the whole conference is being built.
The main idea is the performance of startups in front of an audience of venture capitalists. We select startups, about twenty. This is usually very difficult, because there is a large flow of applications. Again, what was the evolution of the conference - at first there were very few applications from companies that knew about SVOD and submitted applications, and their quality was not the highest. And now we see a stream of very interesting companies. And sometimes it’s very difficult to select these 20 applications. But the program is designed in such a way that we simply can’t take it anymore.
Then we invite TOP investors and successful entrepreneurs to talk about how they got to life such what trends exist. We ask them to tell what is happening in the area in which they work, what awaits this area, how they see further development. Here is the same Phil Libin (CEO of Evernote, a company that costs 2 billion. Now) came and told how he builds the company, how he sees his role as CEO, so that he would advise other entrepreneurs.
We had the same thing when Max Levchin (founder of PayPal) came to us. And very often it gives the guys an idea of what kind of investors are sitting in the audience. By the way, PayPal was sold to eBay for 1.5bn. and now Max sits on the board of directors of Yahoo. He is also the founder of Yelp and many other companies. Now Max is already an angel investor.
Therefore, when there is a conversation with an investor on the stage, entrepreneurs understand that this investor is what his interests are, what his focus is. Because every investor has his own focus. They do not do “everything."
Also, in a conversation with an entrepreneur, it is important to see that this person was once the same as you. Understand who he is now, what happened, what was important to him in this life. Compare your path and vision with that person’s vision. Such discussions are very popular and help the guys move forward in life.
Ivan: Who comes with us this year?
Anna:Of the investors, George Zachary, Managing Partner of the Charles River Ventures venture fund, which is on the Midas list (List of the 100 coolest venture investors). He is the first investor in Twitter, Yammer and several others. He has a special flair for startups. For the guys who will later be successful.
For example, in the story of Twitter: he invested in the previous company, which was before Twitter. That is, he invested in guys entrepreneurs. And this company was not successful. Well done guys, they understood this in time and decided to return the money to investors. And all the investors took the money, but George did not take it. He encouraged the guys and said that they would definitely do something. I asked them to leave him $ 100 thousand and do something else. And their next project was Twitter.
What discussion will we have with him? We will talk about what is a successful investment in startups at an early stage: luck, knowledge or some special vision. My personal opinion is a cross between all this. Let's see what George answers.
Alfred Vin, a partner at Sequoia Capital, a member of the board of directors of Airbnb, Qiwi and some other campaigns, also comes to speak with us. And he was also the chairman of the board of directors and CEO of Zappos. And with Alfred, we will talk about the future of consumer internet, what is happening in this area. There will certainly be a ton of other questions from the moderator, but this is the main topic.
Ivan: I see. Guests will be selected very top, very eminent, it will be possible to communicate with them without problems after their performance.
Alex:Anna, tell me, what does AmBAR do and what do you do directly?
Anna: AmBAR is a little different. This is an ecosystem of Russian-speaking professionals. The idea was to unite Russian-speaking professionals, industry and technology in the Valley. But the idea has grown and developed into such an international movement and international platform.
The idea of AmBAR is not new. She was on the surface. In the Valley, almost any nation has its own association. Probably, No. 1 is an association of Indians, the so-called Tai.
Ivan: Yes, there are Indians, Germans, Scandinavians. The Scandinavians have a funny name for Silicon Valley Vikings - the Vikings of Silicon Valley.
Anna: Absolutely everyone. But if you look objectively, AmBAR is probably No. 2 after Tai. The most powerful group.
Ivan: There are so many Russians in Silicon Valley. According to a recent survey, there are almost as many Russians, even slightly more than Indians, to the surprise of many.
Anna: So, the idea is to create a platform on which people can talk about business. There are various interesting speakers, but the basis is about business.
Alex: Very interesting indeed. I still have information that you received the Silicon Valley Woman of Influence Award. Congratulations on this. What does such recognition mean? How can you characterize the contribution of women to IT?
Anna:Thanks. It was a great surprise and great honor for me that such a well-known magazine in the Valley (Silicon Valley Business Journal - Ed.) Recognized me as one of the most influential women in the valley. For me, this is not only a personal reward, but also a reward for the whole team. It is especially important, as it shows that the work of our entire team is worth a lot, and that we are doing, in general, the right things.
I would never have received the award if there were no people next to me with whom we are moving together with AmBAR, and SVOD, and TecVentures. This is my partner, Stas Kirman , who has been working with me in all projects for many years. And Tanya Fedorova, which recently joined as CEO of AmBAR and became the foundation of our team. Of course, such recognition is very pleasant. It’s especially pleasant because much more people have learned about what we are doing. We are moving in the right direction.
Alex: Actually, the team is very important, I know for myself. I am of the opinion that you need to delegate, share your vision, your goals. And people who believe the same thing can join you and become your team. Based on this, I am building a team in getStart.me .
Anna:Exactly. A lot of people go through our organizations. And, in most cases, only those people remain who share with you your vision and your goals, life principles. And each specializes in its own, each has strengths, and these sides are complimentary. Therefore, such a wonderful team was created.
Alexander: Anna, we have not yet touched on the topic of your foundation. Please tell me where you are investing and what are your projects?
Anna:The fund is called TecVentures and we invest in startups at an early stage of development. The idea is this - the company must be in the Valley. Most of all we can help the local company as we are here and the company is here. But the founder does not have to be from America - Europe, Russia, India, China, it does not matter to us at all.
There is one company whose founder is a Russian-speaking young man whom his parents took to New Zealand. He grew up there, then came to Stanford to get a business education. Before that, he already had a company that he sold. And I was absolutely bribed by the fact that he spent the money received from the sale of the company. I bought a house for my parents and paid for my education at Stanford. This immediately suggests that it is important for a person in life.
He came up with the idea to create a project, which is now called Transcribe Me. We met him here in the Valley. We talked, worked, watched how he and his team are developing, what progress they have. We really liked the team and what they are doing, and we invested in them.
I mainly deal with companies and look at people. I’m trying to understand how these people can achieve something. I think this is the most important thing. You can have a great idea, a great product. But if you cannot continue the difficulties, if you are not a leader, if you do not have a vision for the future, if you cannot be flexible in different circumstances, it is very difficult to achieve something. On the one hand, be flexible, and on the other hand, clearly see where you are going. See and clearly follow what you believe in.
Alex:That is, "I see the goal - I see no obstacles."
Anna: There will always be obstacles. One ends, the other begins. The ability to overcome them is important here.
Ivan: Here I recall a picture of the path to success. We think that this is a straight line uphill, but in fact - ravines, mountains and obstacles.
Anna: Yes, in fact, this is a very big job. Here we were the first investors in Support Me, the founder is a woman. We invested, everything was fine, but then the company was dying. The product was made great, it was necessary to raise the following money, but nothing went. A lot of reasons can be in such situations.
The leader spoke at various conferences, competitions, and everyone said it was an absolutely wonderful idea. Naturally, we supported as much as we could. It got to the point that she accidentally admitted to me in a conversation that she was ready to apply for state support. In America, people who have nothing to eat, apply for and receive state support, food cards.
She invested all the money, and the company was on the verge of complete closure. It worked non-stop, I do not know when she was sleeping. At any time, day or night, I could call, and she answered me. It was evident that she worked. And recently, the company raised more than a million dollars, although initially it was aimed at 750 thousand. And many still had to refuse, just top investors invested money.
Alex: Some success on the verge of a foul. But the girl squeezed.
Anna:It often happens. At AmBAR and TechСlub, we have an association aimed at combining business interests. And we often arrange mini-speeches to investors. Interesting business guys also come, telling about their fate and successes. There is no company that has not survived the times of crisis. Take at least Levchin with Paypal - they practically bent, slept in the office. Take any, absolutely any company - there will be a story.
Ivan:An interesting story about Paypal, by the way. Allegedly, they were going to close the company. The whole team sat down, decide to close. And one employee says: “Now, it seems that there is a positive trend from some company, called EBAY. Let’s work with them for another month and see how it goes. ” And they did not close the company, and they went cooperation. And then they were bought for 1.5 billion.
Anna: Very interesting. I never heard about this story. Max came to us in 2005, we even have a record of this performance. Absolutely amazing. Although I do not remember him talking about it. Yes, constantly similar stories happen.
Alexander:That is, if all is well, then most likely you have a non-working business, and you will not sell it for one and a half billion. In general, expect difficulties if you want to create a good startup.
Anna: You know, some kind of intuition and faith is probably important here. There is something that you strongly believe in, within reasonable limits, of course. After all, there are a lot of people with initially impracticable ideas. If you are a reasonable person, really, really believe, invest a lot, then this is sure to shoot. The stars take shape like this, you work, work, work and think: everything, that’s it, there’s no more strength - and at this moment something is sure to happen. But for this to happen, incredible efforts must be made. This is happening to me.
Alex:I have a question about success and failure. I heard that in the Valley they very easily share their failures. And this is the key to success. Do not be afraid to share with people, discuss, hear tips, etc. Russian entrepreneurs are only coming to this. How can you comment this? Is this so at all?
Anna: I think that a person who has not had setbacks in life ... again, I don’t want one measure ... this is a failed person. We, only going through failures and difficulties, can achieve something. And in the Valley, this is absolutely right. A person, having gone through failures, gained experience and clearly drew some conclusions. Making his next company he will be based on this experience, conclusions, and will not make these mistakes.
Who do they like to hire? Of course, they take guys from universities ... But experience is appreciated. And experience comes over the years. It was when a person went through many difficulties and failures. This is completely natural. Do not be shy that life has been a failure. It's great if you managed to overcome them.
Alexander: Here in the Valley they already ask how many companies you have failed.
Anna: Yes, here is Levchin. Paypal - seems to be his fifth company.
Alex: I heard somewhere saying: "your fifth company will be successful." If you make 1 company per month, you will succeed in 5 months. And if every week - then after 5 weeks.
Anna:To do 1 company per week is unlikely. I’ll touch on such a topic: in Russia, guys do a startup, then do something else. Sprayed. Having multiple startups is great. But for the investor, this is a red flag. If you are doing a startup, you should be focused on 200 percent. If this is the 25th startup, then maybe if you are in an incubator - another thing. But if you are a young entrepreneur, and you have an idea, then you need to deal with this idea day and night. Nothing else should worry you. The company you do once a week is not serious.
Alexander: That case with a girl-leader who had nothing to eat ... That's how our friends and colleagues do in Russia. They work in web studios, earn money, and invest this money in startups. Do you think this is spraying?
Anna: In short, yes. Life, again, can be different, you have to spin, do a bunch of other things. But, of course, you cannot focus on a startup for 200%. Maybe he will someday shoot ... But someone will definitely appear who will run and do this round the clock, and he will simply get ahead of you.
Alexander: That is, the recipe is to quickly learn to earn money or go after an investment in a venture fund?
Anna: Both. A venture fund is not a charitable organization; it looks at how quickly you can earn. Again, you can make money today or in the future, but it should be very, very likely.
Alex: Thank you, Anna. There was a very interesting conversation, I hope to see you soon at the conference in June.
Anna: Be sure to come in June. There will be our SVOD conference on June 11-12 at the Museum of Computer History, by the way. So you can go see the museum to everything else.
Alexander: I’m talking with colleagues and many people say to me: “I’ll definitely come to SVOD, there’s such a familiar hangout, you can find new friends.
Anna: Yes, come on guys. We are waiting for you and all the listeners on the 11-12th. We will be very glad to see everyone. And we hope that SVOD will also bring success to all of you.
Thank you for your attention and for the positive feedback. Subscribe to our blog on Habr , Twitter , Facebook , Google+ , VK , YouTube channelto stay updated on Silicon Valley. Previous posts can be viewed on RusValley.com .
Anna is the president of the AmBAR business association , the organizer of the SVOD investment-entrepreneurial conference and the managing partner of the TEC Ventures fund .
In this issue, we discussed:
- What is the SVOD ( Silicon Valley Open Doors ) investment-entrepreneurial conference
- What do startups get from the conference if they do not intend to stay in the Valley
- What startups were shot after speaking at SVOD
- As an idea for a “set of the right people” has become an international platform
- Star guests of SVOD 2014 - George Zachary (early investor of Twitter), Alfred Lin (partner of Sequoia Capital, main investor of WhatsApp), Trip Hawkins (founder of Electronic Arts) and others (full list on svod.org )
- AmBAR Business Association - ecosystem for Russian-speaking professionals in America and abroad
- To whom Anna is grateful for the Silicon Valley Women of Influence award
- Where the TEC Ventures fund invests
- SupportMe's hungry workdays
- Unknown story about Paypal
- Failures - key to success
- Lack of focus for Russian startups Interview
text:
Alex:Hello. This is a hackercast RusValley with the support of the American Business Association of Russian-speaking Professionals AmBAR. And with you, the leading podcasts are Alex Erokhin, Ivan Tsybaev and Alexander Protsyuk.
Today we have guests Anna Dvornikova, president of the American Business Association of Russian- speaking Professionals AmBAR and founder of the annual investment and entrepreneurial conference SVOD . As well as managing partner of the Tec Ventures venture capital fund . Good afternoon, Anna.
Anna: Good afternoon guys.
Alex: Let's start with questions about the SVOD conference. Anna, in a few words, remind our listeners what SVOD is, and what is hidden behind the words of an investment-entrepreneurial conference?
Anna:Decoding SVOD - open doors to Silicon Valley. Initially, the idea was to serve as a springboard for international startups in the Valley. Bring startups, show them to investors and introduce them to local entrepreneurs. So that these companies find here partners, investors, marketers, lawyers, people who are involved in sales. All the professionals who participate in the system of building a technological startup.
Initially (since we are Russians), startups came from Russia, Ukraine and the countries of the former USSR. But, over time, companies from Israel, Canada, the UK and other countries began to arrive. In the future, SVOD became a kind of springboard in search of financing and partners, not only for international companies, but also for local startups.
For us, this was a kind of success, since our main specialization was in companies that come from outside the Valley. But now the conference has become so popular that many local companies founded by Stanford and Berkeley students come to the conference and speak to an audience of investors to get financing.
What are we doing for this and how have we come to this?
We invite TOP investors from TOP funds of the Valley to come and look at startups. What is important for investors here? Firstly, they watch what is happening in the Valley and beyond - they hold their hand on our pulse. For them we made a certain pipeline, i.e. We specifically select companies that interest them. Therefore, they come to SVOD from year to year and receive information about new startups that they have not seen before. Such a mutually beneficial exchange. And on the other hand, entrepreneurs come to get acquainted with investors. So it turns out an investment-entrepreneurial conference.
Ivan: That is, the conference stands for Silicon Valley Open Doors. But in Russia they say more - Silicon Valley, and here in the Valley, more often they say - Silicon Valley. And there are a lot of holivars on this subject.
Anna: It's true, but it doesn't really matter. In addition, SVOD is a business conference. It's not about politics ... it's just about business. We are glad to see guys from anywhere in the world if they make an interesting product or service and consider that their service or product can be global. And also, if they want to understand how potentially interesting they are doing.
For example, we had companies that are not our target audience. Companies that want to return to their country after the conference and open a business there. However, they come to SVOD and get an opinion from the investor about how much what they are doing is right. Communicating in the audience, they get new tips and ideas. They come back with a new worldview and completely change either the product or the direction of the business, which is also very important.
When you spin in your little environment, you don’t understand what is happening outside. And coming to SVOD, the guys begin to see the global picture and understand where to move the company.
It is also very important that SVOD is a boutique conference. In the sense that up to a thousand people gather at SVOD, and therefore any participant has the opportunity (if he is active enough) to communicate with everyone who is present at the conference. With speakers, with investors, with your colleagues in the audience. Usually, when you come to large conferences (from 4 thousand people), you do not have the opportunity to talk with everyone, including speakers, because they are most often taken off the stage after the performance.
Ivan: Well, yes. I noticed that on SVOD it is very easy to chat with many speakers or special guests. And, for example, at TechCrunch Disrupt, where I was when Mark Zuckerberg and Marisa Mayer spoke, there was no such possibility. After the performance, they immediately went backstage.
Anna:Of course. With us you can say 2-3 words about your company, exchange a business card or make an appointment. And again, if you are active enough, you will be able to communicate with all participants, get to know and continue interaction. SVOD is about establishing contacts and connections.
Ivan: Could you say a few words about Russian startups who came to the SVOD conference and fired? For example, Zingaya. What else?
Anna: Another WikiMart, OkToGo - these are all startups, the first performances of which took place at our conference.
Alex: OkToGo is a travel startup, a competitor to the notorious Ostrovok.ru, as far as I remember?
Anna: Yes, you're right.
Ivan:I will add about EverNote. I met with his CEO and founder, Phil Libin. He said that participating in SVOD was an important step in the life of a startup and helped take off.
Anna: Well, yes. They just spoke at the first SVOD, it was a company from Russia, and it turned out that the investor (Troika Dialog) noticed them and, subsequently, invested.
Alex: I have a question, Anna. What was the original idea of the SVOD conference, and what did it transform over time?
Anna:The main idea was to somehow create the infrastructure to help entrepreneurs find investors in the Valley. Imagine 2005, 10 years ago. Historically, there were startups from Russia and Ukraine. But evolution took place, and the conference became more famous. Success stories became visible, and, accordingly, companies began to come not only from the countries of the former USSR, but also from Europe, Canada, and even startups from the Valley.
Ivan: This year, as far as I know, among the guests are CEO of Electronic Arts, Andrew Wilson. How will the performances go? What other interesting guests will be?
Anna:We build a conference in different ways, so it often happens that a speech is held simply in the format of a conversation with an invited guest. Sometimes it happens that we talk on a predetermined topic. And look how the whole conference is being built.
The main idea is the performance of startups in front of an audience of venture capitalists. We select startups, about twenty. This is usually very difficult, because there is a large flow of applications. Again, what was the evolution of the conference - at first there were very few applications from companies that knew about SVOD and submitted applications, and their quality was not the highest. And now we see a stream of very interesting companies. And sometimes it’s very difficult to select these 20 applications. But the program is designed in such a way that we simply can’t take it anymore.
Then we invite TOP investors and successful entrepreneurs to talk about how they got to life such what trends exist. We ask them to tell what is happening in the area in which they work, what awaits this area, how they see further development. Here is the same Phil Libin (CEO of Evernote, a company that costs 2 billion. Now) came and told how he builds the company, how he sees his role as CEO, so that he would advise other entrepreneurs.
We had the same thing when Max Levchin (founder of PayPal) came to us. And very often it gives the guys an idea of what kind of investors are sitting in the audience. By the way, PayPal was sold to eBay for 1.5bn. and now Max sits on the board of directors of Yahoo. He is also the founder of Yelp and many other companies. Now Max is already an angel investor.
Therefore, when there is a conversation with an investor on the stage, entrepreneurs understand that this investor is what his interests are, what his focus is. Because every investor has his own focus. They do not do “everything."
Also, in a conversation with an entrepreneur, it is important to see that this person was once the same as you. Understand who he is now, what happened, what was important to him in this life. Compare your path and vision with that person’s vision. Such discussions are very popular and help the guys move forward in life.
Ivan: Who comes with us this year?
Anna:Of the investors, George Zachary, Managing Partner of the Charles River Ventures venture fund, which is on the Midas list (List of the 100 coolest venture investors). He is the first investor in Twitter, Yammer and several others. He has a special flair for startups. For the guys who will later be successful.
For example, in the story of Twitter: he invested in the previous company, which was before Twitter. That is, he invested in guys entrepreneurs. And this company was not successful. Well done guys, they understood this in time and decided to return the money to investors. And all the investors took the money, but George did not take it. He encouraged the guys and said that they would definitely do something. I asked them to leave him $ 100 thousand and do something else. And their next project was Twitter.
What discussion will we have with him? We will talk about what is a successful investment in startups at an early stage: luck, knowledge or some special vision. My personal opinion is a cross between all this. Let's see what George answers.
Alfred Vin, a partner at Sequoia Capital, a member of the board of directors of Airbnb, Qiwi and some other campaigns, also comes to speak with us. And he was also the chairman of the board of directors and CEO of Zappos. And with Alfred, we will talk about the future of consumer internet, what is happening in this area. There will certainly be a ton of other questions from the moderator, but this is the main topic.
Ivan: I see. Guests will be selected very top, very eminent, it will be possible to communicate with them without problems after their performance.
Alex:Anna, tell me, what does AmBAR do and what do you do directly?
Anna: AmBAR is a little different. This is an ecosystem of Russian-speaking professionals. The idea was to unite Russian-speaking professionals, industry and technology in the Valley. But the idea has grown and developed into such an international movement and international platform.
The idea of AmBAR is not new. She was on the surface. In the Valley, almost any nation has its own association. Probably, No. 1 is an association of Indians, the so-called Tai.
Ivan: Yes, there are Indians, Germans, Scandinavians. The Scandinavians have a funny name for Silicon Valley Vikings - the Vikings of Silicon Valley.
Anna: Absolutely everyone. But if you look objectively, AmBAR is probably No. 2 after Tai. The most powerful group.
Ivan: There are so many Russians in Silicon Valley. According to a recent survey, there are almost as many Russians, even slightly more than Indians, to the surprise of many.
Anna: So, the idea is to create a platform on which people can talk about business. There are various interesting speakers, but the basis is about business.
Alex: Very interesting indeed. I still have information that you received the Silicon Valley Woman of Influence Award. Congratulations on this. What does such recognition mean? How can you characterize the contribution of women to IT?
Anna:Thanks. It was a great surprise and great honor for me that such a well-known magazine in the Valley (Silicon Valley Business Journal - Ed.) Recognized me as one of the most influential women in the valley. For me, this is not only a personal reward, but also a reward for the whole team. It is especially important, as it shows that the work of our entire team is worth a lot, and that we are doing, in general, the right things.
I would never have received the award if there were no people next to me with whom we are moving together with AmBAR, and SVOD, and TecVentures. This is my partner, Stas Kirman , who has been working with me in all projects for many years. And Tanya Fedorova, which recently joined as CEO of AmBAR and became the foundation of our team. Of course, such recognition is very pleasant. It’s especially pleasant because much more people have learned about what we are doing. We are moving in the right direction.
Alex: Actually, the team is very important, I know for myself. I am of the opinion that you need to delegate, share your vision, your goals. And people who believe the same thing can join you and become your team. Based on this, I am building a team in getStart.me .
Anna:Exactly. A lot of people go through our organizations. And, in most cases, only those people remain who share with you your vision and your goals, life principles. And each specializes in its own, each has strengths, and these sides are complimentary. Therefore, such a wonderful team was created.
Alexander: Anna, we have not yet touched on the topic of your foundation. Please tell me where you are investing and what are your projects?
Anna:The fund is called TecVentures and we invest in startups at an early stage of development. The idea is this - the company must be in the Valley. Most of all we can help the local company as we are here and the company is here. But the founder does not have to be from America - Europe, Russia, India, China, it does not matter to us at all.
There is one company whose founder is a Russian-speaking young man whom his parents took to New Zealand. He grew up there, then came to Stanford to get a business education. Before that, he already had a company that he sold. And I was absolutely bribed by the fact that he spent the money received from the sale of the company. I bought a house for my parents and paid for my education at Stanford. This immediately suggests that it is important for a person in life.
He came up with the idea to create a project, which is now called Transcribe Me. We met him here in the Valley. We talked, worked, watched how he and his team are developing, what progress they have. We really liked the team and what they are doing, and we invested in them.
I mainly deal with companies and look at people. I’m trying to understand how these people can achieve something. I think this is the most important thing. You can have a great idea, a great product. But if you cannot continue the difficulties, if you are not a leader, if you do not have a vision for the future, if you cannot be flexible in different circumstances, it is very difficult to achieve something. On the one hand, be flexible, and on the other hand, clearly see where you are going. See and clearly follow what you believe in.
Alex:That is, "I see the goal - I see no obstacles."
Anna: There will always be obstacles. One ends, the other begins. The ability to overcome them is important here.
Ivan: Here I recall a picture of the path to success. We think that this is a straight line uphill, but in fact - ravines, mountains and obstacles.
Anna: Yes, in fact, this is a very big job. Here we were the first investors in Support Me, the founder is a woman. We invested, everything was fine, but then the company was dying. The product was made great, it was necessary to raise the following money, but nothing went. A lot of reasons can be in such situations.
The leader spoke at various conferences, competitions, and everyone said it was an absolutely wonderful idea. Naturally, we supported as much as we could. It got to the point that she accidentally admitted to me in a conversation that she was ready to apply for state support. In America, people who have nothing to eat, apply for and receive state support, food cards.
She invested all the money, and the company was on the verge of complete closure. It worked non-stop, I do not know when she was sleeping. At any time, day or night, I could call, and she answered me. It was evident that she worked. And recently, the company raised more than a million dollars, although initially it was aimed at 750 thousand. And many still had to refuse, just top investors invested money.
Alex: Some success on the verge of a foul. But the girl squeezed.
Anna:It often happens. At AmBAR and TechСlub, we have an association aimed at combining business interests. And we often arrange mini-speeches to investors. Interesting business guys also come, telling about their fate and successes. There is no company that has not survived the times of crisis. Take at least Levchin with Paypal - they practically bent, slept in the office. Take any, absolutely any company - there will be a story.
Ivan:An interesting story about Paypal, by the way. Allegedly, they were going to close the company. The whole team sat down, decide to close. And one employee says: “Now, it seems that there is a positive trend from some company, called EBAY. Let’s work with them for another month and see how it goes. ” And they did not close the company, and they went cooperation. And then they were bought for 1.5 billion.
Anna: Very interesting. I never heard about this story. Max came to us in 2005, we even have a record of this performance. Absolutely amazing. Although I do not remember him talking about it. Yes, constantly similar stories happen.
Alexander:That is, if all is well, then most likely you have a non-working business, and you will not sell it for one and a half billion. In general, expect difficulties if you want to create a good startup.
Anna: You know, some kind of intuition and faith is probably important here. There is something that you strongly believe in, within reasonable limits, of course. After all, there are a lot of people with initially impracticable ideas. If you are a reasonable person, really, really believe, invest a lot, then this is sure to shoot. The stars take shape like this, you work, work, work and think: everything, that’s it, there’s no more strength - and at this moment something is sure to happen. But for this to happen, incredible efforts must be made. This is happening to me.
Alex:I have a question about success and failure. I heard that in the Valley they very easily share their failures. And this is the key to success. Do not be afraid to share with people, discuss, hear tips, etc. Russian entrepreneurs are only coming to this. How can you comment this? Is this so at all?
Anna: I think that a person who has not had setbacks in life ... again, I don’t want one measure ... this is a failed person. We, only going through failures and difficulties, can achieve something. And in the Valley, this is absolutely right. A person, having gone through failures, gained experience and clearly drew some conclusions. Making his next company he will be based on this experience, conclusions, and will not make these mistakes.
Who do they like to hire? Of course, they take guys from universities ... But experience is appreciated. And experience comes over the years. It was when a person went through many difficulties and failures. This is completely natural. Do not be shy that life has been a failure. It's great if you managed to overcome them.
Alexander: Here in the Valley they already ask how many companies you have failed.
Anna: Yes, here is Levchin. Paypal - seems to be his fifth company.
Alex: I heard somewhere saying: "your fifth company will be successful." If you make 1 company per month, you will succeed in 5 months. And if every week - then after 5 weeks.
Anna:To do 1 company per week is unlikely. I’ll touch on such a topic: in Russia, guys do a startup, then do something else. Sprayed. Having multiple startups is great. But for the investor, this is a red flag. If you are doing a startup, you should be focused on 200 percent. If this is the 25th startup, then maybe if you are in an incubator - another thing. But if you are a young entrepreneur, and you have an idea, then you need to deal with this idea day and night. Nothing else should worry you. The company you do once a week is not serious.
Alexander: That case with a girl-leader who had nothing to eat ... That's how our friends and colleagues do in Russia. They work in web studios, earn money, and invest this money in startups. Do you think this is spraying?
Anna: In short, yes. Life, again, can be different, you have to spin, do a bunch of other things. But, of course, you cannot focus on a startup for 200%. Maybe he will someday shoot ... But someone will definitely appear who will run and do this round the clock, and he will simply get ahead of you.
Alexander: That is, the recipe is to quickly learn to earn money or go after an investment in a venture fund?
Anna: Both. A venture fund is not a charitable organization; it looks at how quickly you can earn. Again, you can make money today or in the future, but it should be very, very likely.
Alex: Thank you, Anna. There was a very interesting conversation, I hope to see you soon at the conference in June.
Anna: Be sure to come in June. There will be our SVOD conference on June 11-12 at the Museum of Computer History, by the way. So you can go see the museum to everything else.
Alexander: I’m talking with colleagues and many people say to me: “I’ll definitely come to SVOD, there’s such a familiar hangout, you can find new friends.
Anna: Yes, come on guys. We are waiting for you and all the listeners on the 11-12th. We will be very glad to see everyone. And we hope that SVOD will also bring success to all of you.
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