After almost 6 years with Mobius Venture Capital, the time has come for me to move on to my next challenge. It is with mixed emotions, saddened as I leave behind some very strong relationships within both Mobius and my portfolio companies forged in the crucible of great change, while at the same time energized by the opportunities that lie ahead for me.
When I joined Mobius back in 2000, no one could articulate to me what I would actually be doing (reading business plans?) but I joined because Gary Rieschel seemed like he would be a great mentor. It was supposed to be a two year gig before spinning out and doing a "real" job. After my two years were up I was fortunate enough to be promoted to Principal and given the opportunity by the partnership to source and manage my own investments. Three and a half years, four investments (Atreus, Clarus, Sendia, Visage) and $35M paid in capital later I have learned a great deal and have a renewed respect for the entrepreneurs who take the leap of faith to start something new and strike out for unchartered territory.
So what's next for me? The short answer is that I am definitely staying within the world of innovation. Right now it's a question of looking at a number of options and evaluating where my skills, experience and perspectives best fit. It's an exciting time for value creation with Web 2.0 reducing the cost of launching a business, the emergence of MVNOs unleashing some creativity into mobile applications, and a generation of users who have grown up on the Internet and continue to experiment and integrate its use into daily life.
So for now let me say a big "thank you" to the team at Mobius. I couldn't have wished for a more supportive and passionate group to launch me on my venture career.
Given your VC experience would you ever participate in a show like the dragon's den? And do you think the show is realistic? (I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the series but it was popular in England and Australia, where entrepreneurs have the opportunity to pitch their business to VCs on national television). I’ve been following the production of the Canadian version that will air this fall (http://www.insidethedragonsden.com/), and as a young entrepreneur it looks pretty exciting... but I´m not sure how respected it is amongst VCs, what would you think of a show like this?
Posted by: Sammy Leung | August 15, 2006 at 09:03 AM
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Posted by: Off the Dutch Coast | January 11, 2011 at 06:59 PM
When I joined Mobius back in 2000, no one could articulate to me what I would actually be doing (reading business plans?) but I joined because Gary Rieschel seemed like he would be a great mentor. It was supposed to be a two year gig before spinning out and doing a "real" job. After my two years were up I was fortunate enough to be promoted to Principal and given the opportunity by the partnership to source and manage my own investments.
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