Building Ten $1MM Tech Startups in Portland by 10/2010

Portland’s tech startup scene has two primary problems:

Investors: “There aren’t enough fundable startups”

Founders: “There’s not enough seed funding”

It’s a chicken and egg problem:

Investors don’t fund companies until they clearly demonstrate

ability to deliver ROI

Founders struggle to commercialize high-growth projects

without investor-caliber support

Of the 3 main participants in the startup ecosystem,

which is most likely and ableto act first to change this?

GEEKS FOUNDERS

INVESTORS

To answer that question, it’s important to recognize the main role each plays:

Build cool technology

Identify and pursue a

commercializable opportunity

Fund a capable team with

traction, able to generate ROI

GEEKS FOUNDERS INVESTO

RS

We believe founders create viable opportunities for geeks & investors,

so our work begins there.

Build cool technology

Identify and pursue a

commercializable opportunity

Fund a capable team with

traction, able to generate ROI

GEEKS FOUNDERS INVESTO

RS

Portland Ten’s answer to strengthen our local startup community

is to work with founders–

to strengthen their ability to turn a side project into a revenue-

generating startup.

Our philosophy is simple:An engine is required for driving a

car; fancy paint, however, is optional.

For founders with limited funds, time, manpower, and experience,

it's difficult to

stay focusedturn the idea into a viable project with traction

develop the product build the team

launch initial sales & marketing

In other words, founders struggle to build "the engine"-- the critical tasks that convert

a great idea into a legitimate, economically self-sustaining company.

Portland Ten assists founders in accomplishing the critical first 18 months of the startup process:

Clarify and align the conceptCommercialize & manage a project at the $1MM or more level.

Plan and execute milestones in 90-day incrementsInternalize and apply best practices from venture capital, bootstrapping, and project management methodologies.

Our metric for success is to assist ten founders in getting to $1MM in revenue by October 2010.

“10 by 2010.”

We require that participating founders commit to this goal, and we commit our own

resources, network, and reputation to reach this goal

Basics of The ProgramFirst 3 Months

Weekly Founder's Group Metrics Board Tracking SalesEmphasis on Market Validation2 Task Sessions/Week Weekly 1-on-1 Check inSpecial guests & eventsMonthly Friends & Family SocialMonthly Founder’s LunchMonthly Startup Checkup3 startup books & an Uncalendar90 Day MilestonesGoogle group

15 Months Post-Incubation

3 Months of Advisor Check Ins 12 Month MilestonesGoogle group Closing board meeting 15 Months Metrics tracking Alumni pass to future P10 events Monthly Founder's Group Access to P10 network

Timeline & Founder Commitments

TimelineFall applications accepted: beginning July 27Candidates selected: by August 3012 Week Fall Session: September 21- December 13

Founder CommitmentsTuition: $1000/month for 3 months Participation: 6-8 hours per week for 12 weeks10 by 2010: Founders commit to generate $1MM within 18 months of starting the program.

What Our Founders SayBen Parzybok, WalkerTracker

“From the perspective of having successfully put together a boot-strapped product, I was particularly interested in Portland Ten to learn about taking the project to a new level. My short term goals include working through the enterprise sales cycle, understanding best-of-breed practices for startups and connecting with a community that is undergoing the same process. Portland Ten has been an invaluable help as Walker Tracker re-envisions its objectives and gets on task."

Kenneth Beare, Lingofeeds “Portland Ten is driving me to understand Lingofeeds from all angles. It’s exhilarating, challenging in the extreme, and brutally honest at all times. Most importantly, it is helping me put the pieces together to form a successful online venture." "Lingofeeds.com is now five months into Portland Ten, and on the cusp of launching a solid first product. I’ve developed important third party relationships, as well as done significant market validation. All of this has been done on a bootstrapper’s budget. Without Portland Ten, it would all still be a ‘great idea’."

John Metta, Hydrasi “Portland Ten is a group focused on razor sharp honesty. You call them reasons and learn that they are excuses. You call them obstacles and learn that they are your own fears. You call them gold and learn that they are just really horrible, horrible ideas. It’s hard and often painful, but so is starting a company and I’d rather take the hard knocks in a room full of peers than one full of angry investors who learned too late that there’s no market for my product.“." "When I started Portland Ten, I had a vague idea. By the end of Portland Ten, I had the foundations of a strong company, and a month later I have a co-founder, waiting clients, and am in full development. We’re bootstrapping with strong revenue-driven goals and a no-nonsense attitude, and funding is now a choice, instead of a requirement."

Dave Miller, BashWorks

“First and foremost Carolynn Duncan’s Portland Ten bootcamp is a hell of a deal. The training is fun, challenging, and comprehensive, with plenty of one-on-one problem solving. I’m learning a ton and having a great time doing it." "Two months after our final session, Portland Ten continues to pay off with new connections, with the application of much improved business practices, and as a motivator to reach the revenue goal to which we committed."

Alan Wizemann, Cularis “We consider the experience and guidance from Carolynn and the PortlandTen to be an invaluable asset to our growing start-up. Through the exercises, their experience, founders groups and private checkups, we have honed our business procedures, product pricing, and go to market strategies while increasing our pre-sales for our upcoming product, ShopIgniter. Coming from a technology background, P10 has helped me dive into the realm of a business development founder and has become paramount to our strategy to become a million dollar company at or before the end of next year. As any start-up founder can tell you, getting the right advice on your company is almost impossible, as is exploring the world of angel and venture capital investment. With P10, we were able to use the knowledge and experience of Carolynn to bridge that enormous gap and help us generate buzz around what we are doing. I highly recommend any new business to try to get into P10, you will be glad you did."

Don Hollerich, DedicatedMaps

"This is my fifth start-up, of which 2 had successful exits, & the other 2, not so much. When I was first introduced to Portland 10, my first reaction was: Been there, done that, why do I need this? But I decided to give it a try. What I found was that I was forced (encouraged) to focus on the things that are important during the start-up phase, like how does this product provide customer value & how does it make money, rather than on just the things that I am good at, like developing software. I wish I had this group at least a couple of times before."

Eileen Quenin, Blabylon “PortlandTen is proving invaluable to me. I spent the past few years "networking" & "talking" about my start up. I was working on it, but not really focusing on the essentials. I didn’t know what the essentials were. I actually had little understanding of the machinations of the market, of what venture capital was about, the "real" business side of thing. I had never actually done true market validations, researched funding, or looked closely at my own biases, blind spots and motivations behind my business/product development decisions. Carolynn provides a wealth of experience and a unique kind of "tough love" that has proven essential to a new entrepreneur like myself. She gives empathy and steadfast clarity. The other founders’ stories and adventures help me discover so much about myself - what it takes to launch and run a successful company. I still believe I can do great job coming up with product/features(s) to meet market needs and guide a company. The boot camp has knocked out (thankfully so) a good deal of grandiosity and naivety. I find it challenging and appreciate the growth it provides. I told a friend, ‘It is like the difference between slumping over reading a magazine on a treadmill and having a personal coach push you to your edge while making sure you don’t injure yourself.’"

Steve Woodward, Nozzl Media "We’re only halfway through our 12-week session, but Portland Ten is already helping put my business back on track — a track I didn’t even realize we had left. Carolynn is relentlessly honest and backs up that honesty with insightfulness, experience and smarts. The program isn’t for the faint of heart, but for an entrepreneur who is ready to learn the tough lessons about what it takes to succeed, it’s the best deal in town."

Staff Carolynn Duncan, Program Director

Serial entrepreneur and subject matter expert in venture capital and angel investment. Hundred Dollar Business, FundingUniverse.com, EPIC Ventures, Eastern Idaho Entrepreneurial Center, TagJungle, Provo Labs.

Nick Cottle, Venture AnalystNick Cottle is a founder of 7 Summits Sports Inc. and has worked to grow a division of the company called Epic Relays. Nick is also currently a full-time MBA student at Willamette University. Previously, Nick worked for HP and received a Bachelor's in Public Relations from BYU.

Advisors

Mark Grimes, Ned.com, NedSpaceSerial entrepreneur and experienced angel investor. NedSpace, Ned.com, and Better World Media Network.

Josh Friedman, NedSpace/Eleven WirelessSerial entrepreneur. Better World Media Network, NedSpace, Eleven Wireless, Starveups.

Rob Wiltbank, Wilamette University, Buerk, Dale, Victor Angel investment expert, Wilamette University MBA program professor, and partner at Buerk, Dale, Victor venture fund.

Kristin Wolff, Corporation for a Skilled Workforce Senior partner with CSW—a Michigan-based public policy firm, working with states, cities and organizations across the US on economic, education and workforce issues.

We enjoy working to strengthen Portland’s startup, tech, and investment communities.

If you’d like to get involved with Portland Ten or recommend a founder for the 10 by 2010

bootcamp, please contact us.

You can also follow updates via Twitter or our blog.

To apply for the current Fall 2009 session, submit an application at http://www.portlandten.

com/apply