The First 100 Days
I'm making a new investment this week, a seed round for a promising Web3 company. Raising capital is an essential milestone for many companies. It also is a commitment by the founders for future progress in the business.
I remember feeling deflated and anxious after an early raise for CircleUp. Tired because the until the actual close, the raise itself felt like the milestone. Closing was the successful culmination of a months long ambitious goal that finally came together. It was sobering to remember that the promise fulfillment work had not yet even started.
Anxious because all of the sudden we 10x the resources at our disposal. What was the best way to leverage our newfound assets? What sequence of decisions were needed from that moment forward to be a good steward of the capital entrusted to us?
In politics, the concept of the First 100 Days is a well known framework for prioritizing early efforts of a new Presidency. It comes from the blitz of new activity and energy coming in FDR's first Presidency in the summer of 1934. Since then, every new President is benchmarked using this timeline, and the results are an early indication of how the Presidency will fare.
Startups generally have much less time than a Presidency to prove themselves before a new infusion of capital is needed, which makes the first 100 days after a financing even more important. Here's my thinking for a successful first 100 days for a founder following a capital raise, in order of appearance:
- Mark the Moment. This shouldn't be a cringeworthy rooftop party like in the dot com bubble. A real lunch with a cofounder. A private letter to yourself. Take 1-2 hours and mark occasion in a way that is meaningful to you. Skipping this will increase the chance of burnout. Trust me, these will be the memories that last.
- Leverage the Announcement. Sadly perhaps, fundraising milestones are one of the few events that garner outside interest. Use the opportunity to tell your story focused on potential employees and customers. Why should a great engineer at Google be interested in joining you? These media stories (and podcasts, blogs, social media) will be your evergreen content to attract talent and relationships in the next 12-18 months. Plan accordingly.
- Prioritize Key Drivers. You are now on the clock to deliver meaningful progress in the business over the next year. What milestones are needed? This should have come out in the fundraising process already but if not, now is the time to write these down and share internally. Ensure alignment with the senior team in particular - everyone should be clear on what success looks like with the capital raised. When prioritizing for the next few months, it isn't just what is most important, also consider long lead times. If a new product needs to be built, but you don't have the team yet, hiring should move up in priority, since that is an uncertain variable that could take longer than expected.
- Assemble Kitchen Cabinet. Who can help you think through the challenges the business faces right now? These aren't Board members (you have them already, and that is a different relationship). And, not your colleagues. These are experienced and trusted friends/contacts/investors that will be responsive to immediate, detailed questions. The goal is get to quick text/call relationship with clear advice - could be to connect with an important contact, gut check a key decision, or just reassure you when life is hard. Importantly, these aren't formal roles and they aren't lasting. As your business grows the cast will change, yet having the right set of people for your current moment is invaluable.
- Communicate, communicate, communicate. You now have new shareholders. And, likely a lot of hiring, which means new employees. Hopefully, press or industry contacts as well. Get crisp in your communication of company purpose, products and advantages. Then repeat. A lot. It will feel like you say the same two paragraphs twenty times a day. That is good, and way better than twenty different descriptions of who you are to different people. Your role is moving toward alignment and motivation - staying on script and proactive is critical. Successful teambuilding results from deliberate focus and structure. Time to set in place these structures, including a weekly All Hands, affording the opportunity for you to reiterate the company vision and purpose regularly to all.
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