Analysis : In the Boardroom
Spin sister
6 May 2008
She’s got a neat product and a funding round of $100m, but what Christina Domecq prizes most about SpinVox is its culture
Structural change
20 March 2008
Jeppe Hansen of nanotech-to-energy company AirNatech argues that entrepreneurs need a different approach to funding
Digital Creed
16 February 2008
Its first feature’s box-office return may have been poor, but Slingshot has set out to change the rules of movie-making
David and Goliath
4 February 2008
How do you keep control when you team up with an industry giant? Skinkers did just that when Microsoft took a stake
Robot wars
1 October 2007
Many university spinouts struggle to manage the transition to a commercial venture - which is why Acrobot, a specialist in robotic surgery, hired Graeme Brookes. So does outside expertise help?
Safe bets
4 September 2007
Richard Marshall's PhD in computer science has helped him build advanced mobile technologies - but turning them into a business spanning alternative theatre and gambling required very different skills
Elevator pitch
21 June 2007
From a chance conversation in a lift to a worldwide content delivery network, CacheLogic's expansion has been rapid. But as Andrew Parker explains, being a global start-up presents big challenges
Open skies
30 May 2007
The Cloud has won plaudits for its City-based wireless network and secured several heavyweight investors. But as Niall Murphy admits, it's made mistakes on the way - and had to think on its feet
Material girl
26 April 2007
Just a year after graduating from design college, Jane ni Dhulchaointigh found herself pitching investors for ₤250,000 to fund a new mouldable plastic. How did she win them over?
Changing the message
22 February 2007
How does a start-up inject an entrepreneurial philosophy into a 14-year-old technology company? Airwide Solutions, created through a 2004 merger, has focused on both products and business strategy
Starter's orders
18 January 2007
Orderwork has grown rapidly since winning backing for its IT skills marketplace ten months ago. Chairman Toby Strauss explains why he went abroad for funding and shares his tips for managing expansion
Safe hands
21 December 2006
Dr Philip Monro's invention was struggling until soldier-turned-entrepreneur Francis Hobbs and his team came along. Now they think they've cracked a new model for inventor/investor relationships
The wisdom of crowds
29 November 2006
Richard Anson is a fan of 'crowdsourcing' - his company, Reevoo, provides a platform for the public to do online product reviews. And he's applied similar networking principles to build his own team
The business developer
23 October 2006
With four spin-outs under his belt from Imperial College, Philip Birch has learned a thing or two about entrepreneurship. Getting patents fast helps - and so does knowing when it's time to move on
High fliers
6 October 2006
Never underestimate the power of publicity. DIY Kyoto, an energy conservation start-up that lets you monitor your electricity usage at home, got its first funding thanks to an airline magazine article
Securing the future
25 August 2006
David Case knows how hard life is for start-ups - he built an award-winning security product but still couldn't crack the market. Now he's won backing to try a radically different business model
Business therapy
31 July 2006
Having helped develop some of the best known therapies at Genentech, Dr Cori Gorman joined a biotech start-up and saw it through to IPO. Now a consultant, she has plenty of advice for entrepreneurs
Upwardly mobile?
25 July 2006
I remember some years ago having a briefing from executives at a service provider about WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) and how it was set to revolutionise the way mobile users access the internet. It didn't, of course - and now it seems like the new .mobi domain could fall into the same trap.
Time to market
26 June 2006
It's a tough call - when do you stop perfecting your technology and aggressively go to market? Medifit Instruments probably waited longer than it should to get funding, but it's now catching up fast
Tapping into a niche
12 May 2006
ImmuPharma has taken a different tack to other young biotechs, from its listing on the small company AIM exchange to the medical needs it's targeting. CEO Dimitri Dimitriou explains its thinking
The business of failure
10 April 2006
How do you keep investors onside when your product development slips or you need to shift strategy? And what metrics do VCs pay attention to? Neil Robertson, CEO of The Neverfail Group, explains
Spread betting
17 March 2006
From the original great idea to the dark days when the cash nearly ran out, ClusterSeven has emerged with a strong order book and its first funding round. CEO Steve Semenzato recounts what he learned
Quantum Leap
23 January 2006
Quantum Dot survived product problems and the dot com crash, becoming one of the first nanotech start-ups to exit through acquisition. Co-founder Joel Martin explains what worked - and what didn't.
Foreign Travels
28 December 2005
Wary of a sceptical UK investment market, London biotech Trigen looked abroad for funding before merging with a German company in 2005. CEO Dr Sanjay Kakkar explains how he's done things differently
Target practice
23 November 2005
Touch Clarity is a rarity from the Internet boom - a solid technology business with real revenues. But it also has lofty global ambitions. How did it get funding - and how is it scaling the business?
Calling Time
9 November 2005
After struggling to establish a market for a new kind of product, London-based Choreology lost its VC backer, put its commercial operations on ice, and switched focus
The Guessing Game
26 October 2005
How widely did you miss the mark with your first set of sales projections? And how meaningful are your performance metrics? Stephen Standring lifts the lid on life at a London-based tech company
University Challenge
19 October 2005
Simon Banks, commercial director of Bloomsbury DSP, found one of his biggest challenges was to fend off offers of help when he set up a company to commercialise his postgraduate research
The Serial Entrepreneur
12 October 2005
What's the secret to raising venture capital? Phil Tee, co-founder of three successful start-ups, says it's all about resolving contradictions.
Judgement Call
5 October 2005
Gareth Roberts, CEO of Novathera, believes entrepreneurs should trust their own judgement. He certainly trusts his own - his first job as CEO was to refocus the company's entire business model.
