Life after Rice Creating a Career more than just looking for a job Steve Sheafor, Hanszen ‘72 Cindy Lindsay, Jones ‘73 C

How We Did It – First Job n Work for a large corporation – Hewlett-Packard  Hands on technical work  Large projects / Teamwork  Management experience S  C

How We Did It – First Job n Work for a large corporation – Hewlett-Packard  Hands on technical work  Large projects / Teamwork  Management experience n What we learned  Overall business perspective – engineering plus marketing, sales, support, etc.  Opportunity to look for product ideas  What’s the problem to be solved?  What do people want and need? C

How We Did It – First Startup Experience n Dialogic Systems n Mainframe terminal processor n Raised $48M ($100M in today’s dollars) n Technical & Marketing issues created a spectacular failure n Great contacts established S

How We Did It – First Startup Experience n Dialogic Systems n Mainframe terminal processor n Raised $48M ($100M in today’s dollars) n Technical & Marketing issues created a spectacular failure n Great contacts established n What we learned n Leading edge technology n Small, highly skilled teams n Working with entrepreneurial people (mentors & investors) n Chance to see the difference that one person can make S

How We Did It – Starting a Company n Cornerstone Imaging n Graphics processors n Raised $9.1M from personal contacts n Flexibility - tried several market/product approaches n Initial Public Offering 1993 C

How We Did It – Starting a Company n Cornerstone Imaging n Graphics processors n Raised $9.1M from personal contacts n Flexibility - tried several market/product approaches n Initial Public Offering 1993 n What we learned n You MUST be a risk-taker n Huge personal investment of time & money n Opportunity to create something from the ground up n Technology and business play n Risk-takers enjoy personal rewards for success C

How We Did It – Second Startup n Sitera Incorporated n Network Processors - NPUs n Selected Colorado for lifestyle and technology infrastructure n Raised $34M mostly from previous contacts n Identified market and created product category n Acquired by Vitesse Semiconductor in 2000 for $750M S

How We Did It – Second Startup n Sitera Incorporated n Network Processors - NPUs n Selected Colorado for lifestyle and technology infrastructure n Raised $34M mostly from previous contacts n Identified market and created product category n Acquired by Vitesse Semiconductor in 2000 for $750M n What we learned n Technology & business model are both critical n Who you know is very important n Build a team that can get the job done n Pick a market that can / will be huge n Get your product to market quickly (not perfectly)  Timing is EVERYTHING! S

What We Are Doing Now n Working with startup companies n Business plans n Raising money n Technical analysis for investors n Marketing consulting n Patent consulting n Product development n Infomercials n Continuing to build contacts and expertise for the future B n Working with Rice n Board of Trustees n Rice Alliance n Connexions n Teaching

What Was Important in Building Entrepreneurial Careers? n Worked for great companies and people n Found mentors n Learned from failures n Stretched and tried different jobs n Focused on being a great team member and learning from everyone on the team n Clearly understood the business aspects as well as the technology C

Entrepreneurial Skills for Success n Look for problems that need to be solved or what the market needs n Knowledge - Research, trend analysis, market experience, extrapolation to a future or currently non-existent market n Determine how to quickly meet the need n Design Team – Engineering skill, experience, execution, flexibility n Integrated effort with marketing, sales, support, finance, etc. n Ensure that your solution is unique and patent protected n Innovation - Creativity, focused solution(s) - can be technical, market, business model uniqueness n Find your biggest customer base and go after them first n Sales Expertise - Targeted marketing & selling, excellent presentation skills, good cost/benefit analysis, sales persistence n Create a viable Business Model S

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