Spanish startups and NBA players: my starting lineup

The new NBA season is around the corner and for any given fan that translates into excitement. I have been a big fan since the Jordan vs. Magic days and, although my interest in the league at some point kind of plateaued out, the increasing addition of Spanish players to the league and my living in the US for 5 years re-sparked my passion.

It is a fact that in the last years we have enjoyed the best basketball generation in Spain ever and the fact that in season 2016-17 we will have 10 Spanish players in the NBA proves that once again. Over the years, an increasing number of Spaniard players has flown across the pond to conquer the Americas - the Gasol brothers being the main case in point - and that is something that we can also increasingly say about Spanish startups.

So, as the new season unfolds, I just thought about giving a shot at coming up with my starting lineup of Spanish startups (across different sectors) that are pushing hard at taking over the US (and global) markets. Obviously, it is hard to pick just five, as plenty of them are doing a great job, so please excuse my bias :). There we go:

1. Ricky Rubio - CARTO: Ricky is regarded as a great defender, passer and stealer, he is one of the best PG in the league. His Timberwolves seem to finally have a promising, yet still young, roster. Success may not be far away. If I had to bet on big success for a young Spanish startup, my chips would go for Carto, the Madrid and New York-based company focused on discovering and predicting key insights from location data. I love what they do and the endless possibilities their product and services offer. They have raised $31M so far and have a great team in place.

2. Pau Gasol - SCYTL: Pau is the best example of NBA success for a Spanish player to date. Little needs to be added, except for the fact that after joining the Spurs he should have another shot (GS Warriors permitting) at another ring. Along these lines, Barcelona-based electronic voting company Scytl has been around for some time (it is not a startup anymore I'd say), has an established presence in the US and there are rumors that it may file for an IPO on the Nasdaq in 2017 after having raised more than $100M in venture capital. There is so much young startups can learn from Scytl, same as young players from Pau.

3. Chacho Rodriguez - WALLAPOP: Chacho is about to start his second stint in the NBA at the 76ers after a not very successful time in Portland and a number of subsequent super fruitful seasons at Real Madrid. Philly is a team that continues to be rebuilt since Allen Iverson's departure and that enjoys the support of Philly's very passionate fans. Chacho has now the ability, experience and the minutes to shine. Following its becoming one of the recent darlings of the Spanish VC scene after attracting a huge (yet non-monetized) community of users to its classified ads marketplace, Wallapop has embarked on its US adventure by merging its US operations with Letgo. However, it will be a tough battle with entrenched players such as Craigslist and others.

4. Marc Gasol - ALIENVAULT: Marc has already enjoyed a pretty long career in the U.S. (in fact, since his high school days upon his family relocation when Pau joined Memphis), has critically helped the Grizzlies get to the next level so they compete face-to-face with the best, plus has also been able to make a personal impact in the league as one of the undisputed best centers. AlienVault was founded in 2006 by Spanish entrepreneurs and since then it has become a quasi-US company based out of Silicon Valley and a very relevant player as a platform providing security solutions for compliance and management threats. The company has raised $118M to date and may pride itself of having renowned investors such as Kleiner Perkins. Does it smell like unicorn here?

5. Willy Hernangomez - SHERPA: Willy will be starting his NBA career at my dear Knicks after a far from ideal last season at Real Madrid. A big challenge for him, as the weight of the Knicks jersey and of the Madison Square Garden is widely known.  The additions of Rose and Noah, the growth of Porzingis and the steady hand of Phil Jackson will hopefully be a good support for Willy. Although its AI-based personal assistant in Spanish has been in the works for quite some time, Sherpa has finally launched and jumped into the battlefield where it will be facing tough opponents such as Apple's Siri or Microsoft's Cortana. Sherpa has already shown big potential after entering into a partnership with Samsung and the growing Hispanic demographic in the US is out there waiting. 2017 will be a significant milestone for the company.

Let's see how the season goes.

Startups e inversores: algunas lecciones de Jason Mendelson de Foundry Group

Hace un par de semanas tuve la oportunidad de asistir a una conferencia organizada por Telefonica Open Future para hablar de temas de venture capital y de financiación para startups. A tal efecto, los organizadores tuvieron la brillante idea de invitar a Jason Mendelson, co-fundador de Foundry Group, uno de los fondos de venture capital más reputados y rentables del mundo. 

Jason y su socio, otro mito de este mundillo, Brad Feld (tiene, por cierto, un blog bien recomendable) escribieron hace años el libro "Venture Deals: Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist" que se ha convertido en un clásico a la hora de entender las claves de los procesos de fundraising. Según indicó Jason, los principales motivos por el que escribieron el libro fueron “teach entrepreneurs and piss off VCs”. Todo un ejemplo. Por cierto, ahora el libro también está disponible en español gracias a la traducción de Manuel Matés, co-fundador del fondo español Big Sur Ventures.

La charla se centró en recomendaciones y best practices para emprendedores que acuden a venture capitalists en busca de financiación. Aquí comparto algunas de las cosas que más me llamaron la atención:

1)  Cómo acceder a un VC: ser referido por alguien es sin duda la mejor manera. Curiosamente, sin perjuicio de ello, Jason indicó que alrededor del 15% de sus inversiones tienen origen en una llamada a puerta fría del emprendedor.

En ese sentido, si uno va por esta última vía debe ir sí o sí bien preparado porque solo tendrá “one shot to amaze” al inversor, lo que implica tanto conocer bien el background del interlocutor como ser 100% transparente y manejar todos los KPIs y detalles sobre la propia empresa al dedillo.

2) Qué no hacer en ningún caso: tan importante es saber qué hacer como saber qué no hacer. En este último sentido, apuntaba Jason dos grandes errores a evitar: por un lado, no estar preparado (tanto respecto a uno mismo y a su empresa como respecto al VC con el que se va a hablar); por otro, pasarse de autoconfianza llegando a la arrogancia (evitar cualquier sensación de entitlement).

3) Inversores y área geográfica: aunque el approach es diferente en cada fondo, Jason opina que “el antiguo modelo de ser un inversor en tu ciudad ya no es tal”, de manera que hay fondos que invierten más allá de sus fronteras geográficas. Echando un vistazo al perfil de cada fondo y a su portfolio de participadas resulta relativamente fácil hacerse una idea de si siquiera merece la pena contactarle en vista de su ámbito geográfico de inversión.

4) Discutiendo la valoración: es un tema siempre sensible y recurrente y la práctica varía según los fondos. En Foundry Group no discuten demasiado sobre esto y tratan siempre de llegar muy cerca de su mejor oferta desde el primer minuto de conversaciones.  Yo siempre recordaré lo que me dijo Federico Antoni, co-fundador de ALL VP,  fondo líder de América Latina: más allá de la cifra que uno tenga en mente, “tu empresa vale lo que el mercado diga que vale”. En otras palabras, de nada sirve un poner un numerito en tu deck.

5)  Negociando un term sheet: aquí  igualmente variará en cada caso, pero Foundry Group publica en su web un montón de información sobre term sheets – interesante verlo – y sólo negocia option pool, puestos en el consejo y valoración.

6)  La importancia de las aceleradoras: en opinión de Jason, son un player importante para los VCs porque con su selección y aceleración de empresas reducen algo el riesgo para los inversores y dan mayor credibilidad a los proyectos. De manera que si existe la opción de entrar en una, más allá de lo que aporte (indica Jason que es clave mirar su track record, red de mentores, dinero levantado por sus empresas seleccionadas a la hora de elegir), puede facilitar procesos futuros con fondos. Startupexplore publicó hace poco una referencia sobre las que considera mejores en España.

Por último, me llamó poderosamente la atención que Jason indicó que “ser el CEO de una startup es el trabajo más solitario del mundo” y que por eso resulta fundamental que un VC no solo aporte dinero sino que sea capaz de “estar ahí para el fundador y para escuchar sus problemas”. Es por ello que considera fundamental que un CEO sea resiliente, tenga estabilidad emocional y sea capaz de celebrar sus victorias.

Hasta la próxima.

My summer vacation and the sharing economy

Speaking about the sharing economy is nothing new. However, when you think about it, it has not been around for such a long time even though we may feel that it is indeed the case. But the truth is that the first companies of this kind were born less than a decade ago - do you remember (some are still around) Ecomodo (2007), Crowd Rent or Share Some Sugar (2008)? Neither do I...

In short, technology has disrupted several industries by making them more efficient, in a way not seen before. This video explains in three minutes the fundamentals behind the rise of the sharing economy, being efficiency the key word at stake.  

But in addition to increased efficiency, the sharing economy as untapped multiple regulatory issues. At the end of the day, the regulator runs always behind the market - you cannot regulate something that has never existed before - and the incumbents in the market are not happy when the, in many cases, quasi-monopolies they enjoy are threatened. The legal issues that, even today, global sharing economy leaders such as Uber (drivers employee status, antitrust issues vis-a-vis taxi drivers) and Airbnb (apartment owners crackdown) are facing in key markets such as the U.S. and Europe have been notorious.

In my view, certain trends cannot be stopped, even more so when users love the service. Incumbents, adapt or get ready to die.

Spain has been, and still is today, a particularly tough market for sharing economy companies. However, little by little the latter are finding ways to overcome legal hurdles and to adapt their business models and operate. And for those of us willing to use them they are increasingly becoming irreplaceable.

A good example of how relevant they have become to me has been my latest summer vacation: Car2Go, Uber, Airbnb, Blablacar. I have used them all and they all have had a common denominator: cost savings + convenience + addressing a need. In other words EFFICIENCY:

(1) UBER: I used it to kick off my vacation in style, by getting from work to the train station. I had to make a stop on the way to pick up some stuff and, even with such a stop, I saved 30% over a regular cab (I hate it when cabs charge you an extra just because you are getting to/from a train station).

After multiple regulatory issues and fights with traditional cab drivers, UberX is finally running in Madrid. The service differs slightly from that in the U.S., as drivers need a specific license to operate (therefore, not anyone can be an Uber driver). Brand new cars in great condition, friendly drivers, increasing supply of cars and competitive pricing. Bye bye taxi!

(2) BLABLACAR: for the second phase of my summer vacation I needed to get from a town in the province of Almeria to another town in the province of Cadiz, both in Southern Spain. In the absence of my own car, I had two alternatives - bus and train - each involving a 5h+ trip and approximately €20. I took a Blablacar for €10 and within less than 2 hours I was at my destination. Plus I shared the ride with three very friendly people.

I have recently become a Blablacar user. It essentially saves me time and money on frequent routes (I still sometimes feel like traveling on my own using "traditional" means, though), and I have now realized that it may be a life saver on less common ones.

(3) AIRBNB: finding a nice and affordable place to stay at a popular spot on the second week of August - peak season in Spain - a week in advance may be impossible. You either sacrifice quality or price. Airbnb did it for me: I found a room at a great house next to a golf course and 10 minutes away from the beach at a very low price.

I have been using Airbnb for many years, mainly for leisure trips and renting the whole place for myself. However, over the last six months I have gone a step farther, using it for work travel and renting private rooms within a larger house. So far so good.

(4) CAR2GO: I used it upon my return in Madrid to get home, instead of taking a cab (or Uber). There were cars available nearby at the time and I was not in a rush to get anywhere. A very cheap and enjoyable drive in an empty Madrid to get ready to get back to work.

The new electric car-sharing platform that has been around in Madrid since last November has become a must for me. It is one third cheaper than a cab, it is convenient as you can park anywhere for free, plus you are "in control" as you drive yourself. A perfect subway match to move around the city and to prevent you from the temptation of buying your own car.

Well, it seems like these four guys are gonna stick around for quite some time. I am sure others will be joining soon too.

Kevin Durant, Tesla, Brexit ...takeaways para startups

El mes de junio ha sido rico en acontecimientos de muy diverso tipo. Y varios de ellos, muy distintos entre sí, me han dado algunas ideas para este post. A priori, pensar que podemos aplicar algunas enseñanzas del Brexit, del reciente accidente de Tesla o del flamante fichaje de Kevin Durant por los Golden State Warriors al universo startup resulta una quimera. Pero ya veréis como tiene sentido.

1. Kevin Durant...o la importancia de contagiar una mentalidad ganadora

Esta portada de Sports Illustrated que vi ayer resume perfectamente cómo se ha venido sintiendo Kevin Durant en su exitosa carrera. Y supongo que esto llegó a su máxima expresión estando 3-1 arriba contra los Warriors en la final de la conferencia oeste de la NBA de este año.

Su marcha a los Warriors anunciada ayer se puede interpretar de dos formas. Como la decisión fácil de irse a un equipo que le da probablemente más posibilidades que ningún otro de ganar el anillo el año próximo, abandonando el proyecto de los Thunder, bastante sólido pero no tanto. O bien como una decisión en la que está dispuesto a renunciar en cierta medida a su condición de mega estrella en Oklahoma en aras de un bien mayor: ganar el anillo.

En el plan de convencer a Durant se ha volcado toda la organización de los Warriors, desde Steph Curry hasta los dueños y director deportivo. Todo el mundo ha empujado en la misma dirección, como una sola fuerza. 

Y es ese querer alcanzar un sueño (exit) dándolo todo, ese aglutinar y alinear los intereses comunes para que todos los "estamentos" (empleados, management, accionistas) de la startup renuncien en parte y de forma razonable a su interés propio en aras de un objetivo superior lo que constituye la fuerza motriz, el viento de cola para un proyecto emprendedor. Y no es que sea recomendable, es que para mí es condición sine qua non.

2. El accidente mortal de un Tesla... o la importancia del día a día

Si hay una empresa (y un líder) que en los últimos tiempos ha despertado admiración - la cual profeso personalmente - esa es Tesla (y ese es Elon Musk). Tras la presentación el pasado mes de marzo de su más reciente modelo, el Model 3, Tesla consiguió 400.000 pedidos (valorados en unos $14.000 millones) en una semana. Si a eso unimos las continuas noticias sobre su mega fábrica de baterías en Las Vegas, rumores de adquisiciones corporativas, los éxitos de SpaceX (que ayudan sin duda, siquiera por asociación con Musk)... Días de vino y rosas, vaya. Y de repente, cuando todo iba rodado, llega el primer accidente mortal de un Tesla con piloto automático. Imposible estar a salvo del día a día.


Para una startup en proceso de crecimiento y eventual consolidación el día a día es fundamental. El mercado pronto olvida un gran partnership entablado con una gran empresa, o una potente ronda de financiación suscrita por inversores con pedigree, o el lanzamiento de un nuevo esperanzador producto. Los cambios en las dinámicas del mercado, la presión de los competidores, los intereses de los distintos stakeholders alrededor de la empresa. Cualquier circunstancia puede hacer en cualquier momento que se tuerza un camino que poco antes de preveía recto y despejado. 

3. Brexit...o la importancia del liderazgo

Semanas antes de que se celebrase el referendum en Reino Unido, un buen amigo que vive y trabaja en Londres ya apuntaba que era éste un lío en el que el otrora flamante primer ministro Cameron se había metido solito. Exceso de confianza? Asunciones erróneas? Desconexión con la realidad? Probablemente una mezcla de todo derivada de éxitos pasados (i.e. las últimas elecciones que ganó holgadamente). 

Más allá de las consecuencias "macro" para el ecosistema emprendedor europeo del Brexit, que bien resumía Gary Stewart (Director de Wayra UK & Telefonica Open Future en Reino Unido), a mí me parece que Mr. Cameron y su gente de confianza midieron horriblemente. Y esto es algo que puede suceder, y de hecho sucede a menudo en las startups. 

No seré yo quien descubra que la importancia de los equipos es capital en las startups. Un equipo puede hacer muy bueno a unos líderes mediocres. Y unos líderes mediocres pueden hacer malo a un buen equipo. Y un buen equipo y unos buenos líderes muy probablemente se harán mutuamente muy buenos. Pero para que esta ecuación funcione debe fluir la comunicación, deben conocerse las inquietudes, temores y aspiraciones de cada lado, deben todos ser capaces de ponerse en los zapatos del otro, deben todos comprender y empatizar con los intereses del otro. No valen las asunciones ni los puntos de vista unilaterales. Porque un día te despiertas y ha ganado el Brexit.


Food for thought. Hasta la próxima.

The digital media battlefield as ad blocking forces are deployed

I like technology, digital trends, the media landscape...and if I had to pick a hot topic affecting all of them lately my choice would be the ad blocking phenomenon. I guess I am a little biased after having worked at an adtech startup for the last 7 months, but still...

It is obvious that since the advent of the internet, traditional media have suffered declining advertising revenues as readers have shifted from paper to digital editions. Publishers have effortlessly (and not always successfully) tried to find business models (subscriptions, diverse freemium schemes, 100% ad-based, etc.) to rebalance their top lines.

Such eagerness to generate increasing digital revenue has in most cases led to a proliferation of advertising at the cost of the user experience. We have reached the point where such ad proliferation has caused many users to find their navigation experience increasingly disturbing, intrussive, annoying...in short, a perfect storm for ad blockers (and an opportunity for new non-intrussive advertising formats).

According to a report by PageFair and Adobe, ad blocking will result in almost $42bn in foregone revenues in 2016 globally (rising from $21bn in 2015). The same report points out double-digit YoY increases in users' ad blocker adoption.

Bad news for publishers as their already somewhat weak digital revenues are impacted by a tidal wave. Obviously, publishers are trying to react by forcing users to disable their ad blockers in order to navigate a site or by kindly asking them to do so...We have just known that, for instance, leading French publishers such as L'Equipe, Le Monde or Le Figaro are pushing together against ad blockers.

This is obviously bad news for advertisers as well. Along these lines, Fast Company reported in January that at the last Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) annual conference, Adblock Plus (one of the leading players worldwide) was kicked out.

It is probably easier said than done but at the end of the day the solution is about finding a balance between revenue and user experience. It sounds obvious, I know. As users, we have to understand that publishers have to pay salaries, premises, technology, etc (like any other business!), and that advertising plays a critical part in that. We cannot demand "free" quality content just like that and we should tolerate some reasonable degree of advertising. At the same time, publishers have to acknowledge that it does not make sense that any given user just wants - in a majority of cases - to close a pop-up as soon as it opens, or skip any pre-roll as soon as it kicks off.

And it is in this context that finding and implementing new advertising formats - native advertising, programmatic technology, etc. - that provide relevant (as opposed to general), quality (as opposed to junk) information to users may be the key to finding that balance. Happy, recurring users mean more traffic which, in turn, should translate in higher revenue. But finding the right formula for this equation is still something in the works.

Startup fundraising - some simple, yet practical, lessons (I)

Over the last few months I have been working on fundraising. It is a challenging process that takes time, effort and organization. At this point I can share some piece of advice based on my own experiences which will hopefully help entrepreneurs and/or startups going through this process for the first time.

There is a lot of thorough literature out there on this topic, which has been contributed by people way more experienced than I am and who for sure have many more war stories than I do. My goal is not to provide the definitive fundraising guide but to simplify things a little and just provide some easy steps for those who get involved in this process for the first time or so. These are a few:

(1) Invest time in research: there are hundreds of investors out there and each one of them is different.  Put in some good prep time to figure out who you can contact as a potential investor in your venture. Some things to look at are:

• investment stage: angel investors and investment clubs tend to focus on very early-stage investments (ie. seed), while venture capital funds range from seed stage to early, growth and later stage - follow the letters typically attached to post-seed financing rounds in which they have participated (A, B, C, etc... - moving along the alphabet means later stage);
• sector focus: venture capital investors typically target different sectors but that does not mean that everyone targets everything. Do not waste time and energy approaching those funds whose investment strategy lies outside of the sector where your startup operates; 
• geographic focus: make sure the investors you target typically fund companies from your continent / region / country;
• business model: leaving geography and vertical aside, some investors primarily or exclusively focus on specific business models. For instance, marketplaces are really hot these days. 
• who does what: funds' websites typically provide information on the team members, their backgrounds and areas of expertise (but not necessarily their respective emails). Identify who in each team is potentially best suited re: your company;
• Crunchbase is your best friend: it is the best free database out there to research for investors and to identify rather quickly - do not forget to check investors' websites too - who can be a potential good fir for you

(2) Get introductions from your network: VCs, in particular the most reputed ones, receive countless pitches, so being able to stand out from the crowd to get their attention is critical. You will hardly succeed if you go through their general "info@vc.com" inbox. Analyze your network (e.g. LinkedIn) and ask friends, colleagues, fellow startups and other contacts to make an introduction for you; this will certainly not guarantee any funding but it will at least give your pitch a better chance to be read.  Plus it may help that friend of yours to score a point with the VC if the latter decides to fund your project.

In the absence of an introduction, find ways to avoid the general inbox. Look for the right person's email (see last bullet above), reach out via Linkedin or Angelist, etc...

(3) Try to build rapport and credibility from the outset: you are not going to be given many opportunities (most likely you will just have one shot) to get any given investor's attention. Making a good impression from minute 1 may give you the chance to start a conversation. On the contrary, a bad first impression will shut the door in your face. Yet obvious, these are some things to take into consideration:

• avoid typos, both in your communications and in the pitch deck;
• write an effective email (in particular if you have not been able to secure an introduction): in addition to some general guidelines like these, try to build a connection (e.g. referring to the addressee's past investments or industry focus, following up from a previous event where you met) with your counterpart and do your best to capture her interest (e.g. the "magic" your product is bringing to the market, any awards or competitions your startup may have won);
• be professional in everything that you do: reply promptly, follow up timely, etc.

(4) Organize yourself: unless you are operating in a very niche space (in terms of sector and/or geography), the research mentioned in (1) above may result in multiple potential leads. This means that you are going to be communicating with a lot of people/organizations and that the flow of information (who and when you have contacted, outcomes from calls/email exchanges, follow up actions, contact details, etc.)  will be very significant. You may think that your amazing memory will be able to retain everything clearly, but that is wrong. Find ways - a CRM, spreadsheets, organization tools like Redbooth etc. - to keep your information organized; otherwise you will be wasting the precious time that you need for a whole lot of other things.


In subsequent chapters I will be touching on a number of other aspects to be accounted for during the fundraising process. But I hope this helps for the time being.

Musings on (changing) corporate cultures

I think that for the first time ever I am spending a relatively significant amount of time thinking about corporate culture. I am pretty sure that the main reason why this is happening is due to the fact that, after 10+ years working in "traditional" companies, a few months ago I started to experience what working in a startup environment means. It was a much sought after move but, leaving other considerations aside, I can acknowledge that the cultural change has been very significant.

When you join an established company with a long history and solid values behind it, you know (or think you know) the kind of game you are getting into. You may agree or disagree with all or some of those values but at the end of the day, it's typically been about getting the job that you want (or that you thought that you wanted). In addition, you realize over time - in particular if you look back at those jobs early in your career - how those values and cultures have shaped your own work ethos. And you realize that even more as you move into a brand new space that has little to do with what you were used to (and which in some instances you don't buy into in full).

I have attended the European E-Commerce Conference taking place in the city of Bilbao, Spain, which focuses on different aspects of the startup and digital ecosystems. Interestingly, I have ended up attending - driven more or less by my subconscious, I'd say - a couple of sessions focused on corporate culture and organization. I just wanted to share some thoughts that have caught my eye:

1. Design for uncertainty. The days where an organization was designed to fit and thrive in a peaceful, stable, quiet ecosystem are gone. Change is all over the place and it is here to stay. Companies need to be built to adapt to permanent change, to uncertainty. It is indeed a dramatic shift.
2. Culture mirrors founders. Several speakers in a panel agreed that in most cases a company's culture is (and should be) the result of its founders' values. But this is no guarantee of success as some founders may be willing to create and maintain a culture that is completely the opposite of that of the kind of talent they are willing to attract to build the company they want. 
3. In absence of a culture, build one. Sometimes there is no corporate culture as such in place and, in that case, it is central to build one. This is a process that needs to be implemented top-down with the CEO and management fully onboard. But a culture cannot be created overnight, it takes time and there are multiple levers to be used (e.g. recruiting, technology, practices)  
4. Bureaucracy vs. non-bureaucracy. People hate the idea of corporate bureaucracy. I dislike it too and it has traditionally driven me a bit crazy to "waste" my time in it. Ask anyone and they will assure that they would do anything to get rid of bureaucracy at the workplace. But as bad as it sounds, it is also true - in particular considering how quickly technology, work trends, markets, etc., are changing - that it may also be a bit of the glue that keeps things together.
5. Hiring vs. inspiring: Steve Cadigan pointed out during a round table that, increasingly, people do not want to be hired but be inspired. I can't think of a more powerful statement aiming at the very core of any given company's culture. You need to make your company appealing so you are able to both retain your employees and be able to attract valuable talent - this is the most powerful marketing tool within your reach.
6. Integrating the new stuff. There is technology out there that can help any company achieve a more cohesive culture. For instance, Slack was mentioned several times as a great way to foster communication, sharing and transparency. At the same time, it is necessary to integrate traditional ways of working (ie. 9-to-5) with increasingly popular trends such as remote work and freelancing. 

At one of the sessions reference was made to the "Netflix company culture deck". As most of the audience, I had no idea about what that was (all the speakers in the panel knew about it and now I understand why!). A simple google search has led me to it. It is from 2009 but it's great and still fully applicable today. It was once referred to as "Silicon's Valley most important document ever". It is a long one but I strongly recommend you to have a look.

This will do for now, yet I think I am going to continue thinking about all this stuff as I get used to the new variables in this game I am playing.

3 apuntes sobre el South Summit 2015

El pasado viernes 9 de octubre terminó el South Summit, la conferencia española más importante - y una de las más importantes de Europa - en el ámbito de la tecnología y el emprendimiento. Fueron dos días y medio intensos y productivos, si bien el balance final habrá que realizarlo dentro de unas semanas, una vez vayan madurando los diversos leads generados.

Algunas ideas que me vienen a la cabeza tras mi primer South Summit:

- necesitamos más South Summits en España: en líneas generales, se trata de un evento muy bien organizado y de calidad. Me parece una iniciativa muy buena y me quito el sombrero ante María Benjumea por impulsar este evento.

Lo importante es que esto no se convierta en simplemente algo de tres días al año, sino que cada vez más y en colaboración con otras iniciativas y con el apoyo de las grandes empresas y de los poderes públicos, vayamos poco a poco creando un ecosistema y cultura más favorecedores para las startups en España.

- ay, nuestro nivel de inglés...: me gustó que el idioma "oficial" de la conferencia fuese el inglés, me parece un paso interesante y valiente en la dirección de quitarnos esos complejos que tenemos desde pequeñitos los españoles a la hora de hablar idiomas.

Dicho lo cual, el nivel de inglés medio sigue siendo bajo (el presidente del gobierno fuese incapaz de dar su discurso en inglés) y eso es, sin duda, un problema muy importante a la hora de que inversores, sobre todo los extranjeros, decidan confiar en emprendedores españoles que quieren internacionalizar sus negocios.  En este sentido, me llamó en especial la atención y me sorprendió - para mal - el manejo del idioma de algunas personas con puestos de mucha responsabilidad en grandes multinacionales. No sé cómo serán capaces de defender su gestión cuando vayan a comités en EEUU, por ejemplo.

El gráfico muestra el English Proficiency Index realizado por la empresa EF. Si queremos competir en el ámbito internacional en igualdad de condiciones, tenemos que estar arriba en este ranking. Desafortunadamente, estamos en mitad de la tabla.


- el poder del networking: sin perjuicio de asistir a algunas charlas y aprender cosas nuevas, es evidente que a conferencias como estas se va fundamentalmente a conocer gente, ya sean inversores, partners, proveedores o potenciales clientes. Me resultó en este sentido inspiradora la charla que nos dio Alex Barrera en el bootcamp celebrado en el Google Campus un par de días antes del comienzo de South Summit.

Dado que uno de los objetivos primordiales del foro era poner en contacto a inversores y emprendedores, quizás eché de menos algo más de tiempo y recursos dirigidos a posibilitar dicha interacción. Aunque conseguimos algunos leads interesantes, creo que era una ocasión ideal para hacer muchísimo más.

También me resultó curiosa, y útil, la puesta a disposición de los asistentes de una app llamada Bizzabo que permite una gestión integral de eventos, incluido el contacto entre la comunidad de asistentes. Si bien sufrió algunos problemas técnicos en varias ocasiones, ofreció un valor añadido al networking tradicional en persona e improvisado.


En conclusión, un evento muy interesante que espero que perdure en el tiempo y siga creciendo. Será la mejor señal de que vamos por el buen camino.

Netflix as a paradigm...or it's the content, stupid!!

There is no doubt that the significance of content in the media and digital spaces is paramount, and that thousands of reports, articles, books and posts have been written about it. Even major corporate deals have been reportedly completed - Verizon's recent acquisition of AOL is a case in point - on the basis of content. 

Content is king and becoming more and more significant. And when speaking of content, Netflix is one of those names that comes to mind right away. I have had some sort of direct experience about this most recently. 

Netflix, HBONow, Sling, Hulu, Amazon Prime... it is amazing how quickly you can get used to the seamless experience of having all the shows, documentaries and movies (i.e. content) you want within your reach at any time, without neither ads nor schedule constrains. Today, I am all in when it comes to cutting the cable cord. And I was not aware that I felt so strongly about it until circumstances have forced me to change my adopted habits and get back to cable tv.

My entertainment menu while in the U.S. came from over-the-top services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime and, more recently, HBONow. I have digested content like crazy, at my own pace, whenever I have wanted to. However, after landing in Spain I confirmed my fears: none of these services is available in Spain (well, Netflix just announced its forthcoming Spanish launch on October 20, thank god). That has led me to Telefonica's pay-tv offering which, in turn, has quickly discouraged me from watching tv at all. I can't stand the experience, I seldom find interesting content at a time that works for me.

Unfortunately, Spain has traditionally be at the very top in the global piracy rankings, both in relative and absolute terms. It is also often said that this is the result of a country culture. I am not gonna say that the latter is not partially true, but I am also pretty sure that the reality would be a very different one had Netflix or others been around for quite some time. Changing the existing mindset and making people pay monthly to get content is going to take a while.

Speaking of Netflix as a paradigm of good and relevant content, I couldn't help sharing their latest native advertising campaign - Cocainenomics, on the occasion of the premiere of "Narcos" - on the Wall Street Journal. It is jaw-dropping.

Native advertising is a growing trend in digital advertising: it is the practice of making an ad on a platform resemble the look and feel of whatever content the user is there to see or read. This a growing digital advertising segment has been forecasted to be worth $5-10 billion in 2016.  

All experts point out that, in order for native advertising to become the more engaging tool it is for the user, advertisers need to be able to tell stories, to connect with their audience, to address the later's needs. And content - more accurately, the meaningful and quality content - is the secret ingredient that guarantees success, for both publishers (more money) and brands (more brand awareness)...and readers (engagement). 

Tech (and others) talent vs immigration: the ultimate US fight

I am not a big boxing fan. In fact I have only watched one fight in my life (Pacquiao vs Mayweather a few months ago, of course) so I do not understand much about it. However, over the last months I have learnt a lot about fighting and related tactics. So far I have lost, but there are a couple of rounds still left.

A lot - see this article for illustration - has been written about the shortage of talent being a relevant challenge for the tech industry these days in the US. There is a real need to fill thousands of roles and no domestic talent is often available. This obviously harms growth and development, which is critical for startups. In this context, tech companies face a very complex legal environment when trying to fill that gap with qualified foreign workers. Obviously, I am sure that other industries feel similar pain and would also benefit from tapping foreign talent in an easier way.

Shortly after I graduated from b-school in New York in 2008, the Trouble Asset Relief Program (TARP) was passed. Billions of dollars were funneled to troubled US banks (main MBA hirers at the time) which, in practice, were prohibited to hire foreign workers without tapping the American workers' pool first. As much as this hurt back then, I totally understand today that a government wants to be protective of its own citizens and put its domestic labor force to work after pouring so much money in. 

But today the situation is completely different in America. Unemployment in the US is at around 5% (which, once frictional unemployment is subtracted, results in almost "full employment") and lots of companies are unable to find what they need within the domestic labor workforce. A massive legal spider web makes it super hard to hire foreign workers: the universe and variety of visas is crazy, the calendar is crazy (e.g. why an H-1B visa that you get in April is not activated until October?), costs are crazy, etc...In short, regulation acts as a huge deterrent.

It is clear that living in a country that is not your own and where you live and work in a foreign language is tough and requires anyone in such situation to compete with local talent. At the same time, it is obvious that companies themselves want to hire the best and, if that means hiring non-national talent, it should happen at their own risk. Such behavior should not be prevented just because of administrative burdens, in particular at times when there is almost full employment, as I pointed out before.

I am a JD, have an MBA from a top US school, have worked for reputed employers, have lived in the country for almost 5 years during which I have significantly contributed to the US economy on a daily basis, have paid taxes deriving from pretty high salaries, have complied with my social security obligations and kept a clean criminal record. Today, that is not enough to get a work visa. I went one step farther and secured a signed offer with a thriving New York-based startup who was kind enough - I often pinched myself in disbelief for their amazing loyalty and care - to go through the pain of sponsoring me a visa. I quit my job and was ready to join. However, 3 months of paperwork and administrative fighting later, my visa was denied (it is in the appeal phase now) and I left (who knows if it will just be temporary) the country.

There is a lot of discussion these days around immigration in the US thanks in particular to pretty unfortunate comments by characters such as Donald Trump. It is a fact that there is a lot of illegal immigration in the US but it is not less true, in my view, that it would be hard for the economy to work as it does without having such illegal workforce contributing its long hours and effort as it does. But that is a different debate.

It's a bit of a paradox that illegal immigrants are in practice allowed to work in the country and that when you try to play by the book - having, supposedly, all the qualifications and a job offer in place - you face the risk of being kicked out. As I tell my friends, these are the rules of the game and you have to accept them from the outset and regardless of the final outcome. When you go into the ring you are going to be hit, whether you win the fight or not.

I'd advocate for a framework where more flexibility is given for hiring qualified foreign talent. It is bad for US companies trying to grow and thrive; it is bad for foreign companies that want to settle and generate wealth in the US but are not allowed in many cases to hire who they need; it is bad for the international candidates, many of which are US educated and committed to making an impact in the country; and, ultimately, it is bad for the US themselves, in terms of foregone taxes and significant contributions fueling the economy (salaries in tech are traditionally high), among others.

My "round 12" is about to start, let's see what happens - Ding!

Learning from tech leaders I admire

Today I have read a very interesting piece that Fast Company - one of my must-read publications -  has recently produced on Uber and its CEO Travis Kalanick. It is priceless to better understand the company's ethos and driving forces. This has led me to think a bit about some of the people in tech I admire.

When it comes to leaders in the technology space, a few names come to mind quickly to the general public. A simplified classification I have come up with - Forbes, for instance, has its own ranking of "The Richest People in Tech" - would break down such leaders in three groups:

(1) those who are no longer active or in executive roles but whose influence is still undoubted today (Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, Bill Gates);

(2) those who have rather recently disrupted the world (and continue to do so) and have already significantly cashed out (Mark Zuckerberg, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, Jeff Bezos, Mark Cuban); and then

(3) those whose companies are on the verge of becoming - to some extent they already are - the next big thing (Travis Kalanick, Elon Musk, Brian Chesky)

Week-in week-out I read a lot of stuff about many of them. And there is always stuff you can learn and try to apply to your more mundane existence. Some takeaways for my own sake are the following:

- long term vision vs. short term profit: I love Amazon's Jeff Bezos' approach to this and how he continues to drive innovation at Amazon by continuing to invest heavily in new services and products (Prime, Amazon Web Services, you name it...), instead of giving in to The Street's pressures for boosting the company's present stock price. At the end of the day, and as obvious as it sounds, the latter will be accomplished if things work out just fine - the last months' stock price evolution being a good example.

- challenge the statu quo: I am gonna go with Uber's Travis Kalanick. I love his strength to challenge what is widely perceived as a legally-protected dated monopoly (i.e. cab service) in pretty much all countries around the world. When customers love your service the regulators can do nothing but ultimately changing the rules of the game.

- dare to dream: nobody in my view is better at this than Elon Musk. From the hyperloop train to life in Mars; from space "tourist" travel to the perfect car. If I had to pick one guy as "the" visionary, I'd pick him. Such "visions" are sometimes broadly praised and some other times hammered. However, few people feel indifferent.

- learn, learn, learn: when Mark Zuckerberg started to take the stage as Facebook's CEO and main spokesperson he was widely criticized for his relative weakness with presentation and public speaking skills. He has invested time and effort in getting better and the results have been evident, his notorious recent presentation in Chinese being a great example. Just because one is at the top of the world does not mean that he knows it all. Be humble and never stop getting better.

- be generous: you can call tax planning...or you can call it giving back to the community. Or you can argue that it is a bit of both. But the huge contributions that the likes of Microsoft's founder Bill Gates continue to make to try to make the world a slightly better place should not be unnoticed.

These are just some ideas. There are a zillion others. But I do know that working for and/or with someone you admire and look up to makes your work more rewarding. Plus it commands an extra "something" that at the end of the day results in self-improvement, additional commitment and increased loyalty. 

A millenial trapped in a Gen Xer?

It is not easy to look back and self-assess one's career and progression. It is even harder - in particular in countries/societies that are rather traditional when it comes to what is considered "right" (college degree - job - wife - mortgage - kids = stability) - to take a detour in your career as you grow older. People, in particular those from older generations than mine, tend not to understand the rationale and motivations to abandon the "right" path.

It is obvious to me that such decisions are, to some extent, driven by your personal circumstances. If you have no financial (mortgage, student loans) and/or personal (spouse, partner, kids, sick relatives, etc.) obligations, there is more room to take chances and risks that otherwise you wouldn't. And a bit of common sense is always appreciated, as in any other area.

I can speak about all this based on my own experience. In my mid-late twenties I left a promising career as an attorney at one of the main global law firms to switch paths and to go on the once-in-a-lifetime experience of studying a top full-time MBA and living in New York. Now in my mid-late thirties I have quit a stable, very well paying job at a top firm, to (at least try to) pursue a career in technology/startups, and to even explore launching my own business. It is that time of my life where I need to feel passionate about what I do, experience a feeling of belonging and enjoy doing whatever it is that I do. For me, now is the right time. It is probably the only time in my life so far where my personal circumstances, my aspirations and my degree of risk aversion (whatever that is) are aligned.

Kleiner Perkins' view on millenials

Call it wishful thinking, call it dissatisfaction, call it not settling for just money... or simply call me a millenial in the body of a (late) Generation X guy. From a values standpoint, I feel much closer to the former than to the later (for whom the future is gloomy, according to Bloomberg), maybe I should have been born just a few years later...

Over the last 4 years I have continued following closely, becoming increasingly acquainted and further embracing my passion for technology and the startup scene (as I predicted in a post in 2011, I have for the most part been monitoring all this activity via Twitter instead of by blogging). All this has led me to work hard - reading, networking, interviewing... - to give one last try at making a professional move into such space.

A few months ago I signed an offer to join a great NY startup. All seemed to be ok until US Immigration Services came my way by denying a work visa - it is no relief (it is actually quite sad), though, to see that a lot of people in the startup world are facing similar issues in the U.S.. This is one for the next president to address.

This is the somewhat uncertain situation where I stand now, yet more energized, committed and optimistic than ever before.

Back to blogging 4 years later

Time does indeed fly. It's been 4 years since my last post and a lot of things have happened since then. I have now decided to resume my blogging activity as a new chapter of my life opens up. Big decisions have been made and I am eager to find out what is coming next.

In the coming months, I am counting on being able to use some time to write and it just feels right to get back to this.

Since 2011, even if my professional activity had little to do with it, I have continued following closely, becoming increasingly acquainted and further embracing my passion for technology and the startup scene. As I predicted in a post in 2011, I have for the most part been monitoring all this via Twitter. All this has led me to work hard - reading, networking, interviewing... - to give one last try at making a professional move into this scene.

Everything was flowing nicely until US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) came my way by denying a new work visa. I see this as just a hurdle that has given rise to the somewhat uncertain situation where I stand now. However, I am confident to overcome this; in fact I feel more energized, committed and optimistic than ever before.

New stories coming soon. Stay tuned

Innovation against crisis

The latest unemployment figures in Spain have been disclosed this week. Sadly, there are more than 5 million people, equivalent to more than 21% of the Spanish population with working age. It is not a nightmare, but it could easily be. Not long ago we were talking about the doomed 4 million figure and now it is 5.

Not long ago some stats were also made public concerning the number of yearly working hours in OECD countries. Surprisingly, Spain came third, just trailing Greece and the US. Believe it or not, people - those who actually have a job - work in Spain. But seems like our productivity sucks.

But the main problem in my view is that we are still a country stuck in the past. Though we could be regarded as pioneers in areas such as renewable energies, the burden of the construction sector is still with us, we lack an entrepreneurial culture, many people would rather live from multiple public subsidies rather than from a real job, our GDP investment rate in R&D is poor at the very least... how can a country move away from what has been its core - and does not work any more?

A crisis like the one we are suffering should be the best stimulus for a change but I couldn't be more wrong. I'd expect a real an definitive push from public officials but considering our politicians from all colors - easily the worst in the world, more focused on the next election and on keeping their seats, rather than on bringing a new start to the country - we will need change to come from somewhere else. And if it is not the public sector, it will have to be the private one. And that means our larger and more international corporations and us average Joe's betting on new areas of work, new ideas, new products, new technologies, new ways of doing business... In a nutshell, innovation.

I am not a natural-born pessimistic but I would lie if I said that I see things happening as they should across the board shortly. Nonetheless, I'd love to be wrong.