KFP Events, Opportunities & News
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Kauffman Fellows Program eBulletin |
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| CEO Recap Table
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There's no such thing as inclement weather, only improper
clothing.
- Anonymous
I've just returned from twelve days in Europe. The day I left
for Stockholm, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch were there, and when I landed
and got to my hotel room some eighteen hours later, they were both gone. I would
spend each day meeting with European funds and LPs and come back to CNN each
night to catch up on the carnage, with one major financial services brand after
another facing the "firesale-or-bust" scenario. Needless to say, it's all anyone
was talking about.
What does this mean for the venture industry? The optimistic
entrepreneur loves large industry meltdowns, because it frees up talent (New
York-based early stage funds are giddy at the IT and marketing talent that will
spill out from Wall Street alone). The optimistic venture investor sees a
correction in asset pricing - thus enhancing the "buy" - followed by 1) a period
of high income taxes that will make capital gains more attractive and 2)
inflation that will enhance the value of those low-cost assets. Pessimists,
however, see a meltdown of historic proportions, and we all know what fear does
to paralyze the market.
The reality - you guessed it - is probably somewhere in between.
Entrepreneurs will keep innovating at full speed while the venture
funds and angels adapt to the new reality, whatever that is. Steve
Kaplan - one of our Deans and a board member of the CVE - will fly out
from the University of Chicago to Babson to shed some light for the
Fellows at lunch on November 6 on just this topic: namely "What just
happened, and how do we respond as venture investors?" And if that
weren't enough, I guess Steve will need to also factor in the news of a
new U.S. President by then.
Please join us.
- Phil
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New York Dates Added for Class 14 Interviews
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We
have a high-quality and full candidate pipe for Class 14. For
efficiency, we have interviews in New York City (in addition to this
week's event here in Northern California). Thanks to those who have
already volunteered to interview. Slots are still available for this
week's interviews as well as in New York. Please contact Neddy Reyes (NReyes@kfp.org) if you can help.
Northern California
Date: This Wednesday & Thursday, October 1 & 2
Location: San Francisco Airport Hyatt in Burlingame
Time: morning, mid-day, or afternoon time blocks
New York
Date: October 21 - 23
Location: Hilton Times Square
Time: morning or afternoon time blocks
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| Fellows on the Move
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Congratulations to our fellows on their latest journeys:
Bob More
(Class 2) has joined Frazier Healthcare as a General Partner in the
firm's biopharma and medical device investment teams. Frazier is one of
the nation's leading providers of venture and growth equity capital to
emerging healthcare companies.
Kevin Greene
(Class 12) has moved to Valhalla Partners in Vienna, VA, and will be
completing the second year of his fellowship under mentor Art Marks.
In October, Jenny Rooke
(Class 11) will move to Seattle to become a Senior Program Officer at
the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The division she will join,
Global Health Discovery, focuses on the earliest stages of research,
from basic science through lead identification. Jenny will be
responsible for shaping strategy and developing and managing grants
intended to enhance the scientific understanding and enrich the
early-stage pipeline of products in areas of the life sciences critical
to the Foundation's mission.
Lak Ananth
(Class 12) has moved to Cisco Systems and will complete the second year
of his fellowship under the mentorship of Alex Yu (Class 7). Working in
the Corporate Development Group, Lak will be responsible for strategy,
investments and acquisitions.
Samrat Ganguly
(Class 11) is now co-founder & managing partner of Capital Square
Partners, a private equity firm based in Singapore and backed by
leading growth capital and middle-market buyout investors across Asia.
CSP has a fund-in-formation, the CSP Asia Growth Fund, targeting
minimum capital commitments of $250 million, and is actively pursuing
investments in the $10-50 million range out of the fund. Samrat would
be happy to discuss potential deals/co-investing, as well as
investments in the fund by prospective limited partners.
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| 9/30 Deadline: Fellows Participation in TrueBridge
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This
coming Tuesday, September 30, is the deadline for Fellows commitments
to participate in the CVE/Kauffman Fellows Endowment Fund. The minimum
investment is $1,000. Please contact Rob Mazzoni at TrueBridge Capital
for complete information ( RMazzoni@truebridgecapital.com). As a partner of
the Center for Venture Education, TrueBridge
Capital has closed on CVE/Kauffman Fellows Endowment Fund I, a $310
million fund-of-funds investing in global venture capital. |
| October Conferences
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IBF Early Stage Venture Capital Investing Conference:
October 22, Fairmont Hotel, San Francisco. The conference will address
key developments facing the today's early-stage venture investing
community. The agenda includes a host of KFP members on the roster:
Program Chairman Vince Occhipinti (Mentor 7), Susan Mason (Class 2),
Jennifer Fonstad (Class 3), Ravi Mohan (Class 2), and Brian Jacobs
(Mentor 11).
Social Capital Markets SOCAP08:
October 13-15, Fort Mason Center, San Francisco. This conference is a
new event and brings together hundreds of leading social entrepreneurs
and investors from around the world. The unifying factor is that the
people and
organizations who participate all bring a deep passion about changing
the world not through grants, but through
sustainable businesses.
Sofinnova Japan Biopharma Partnering Conference: October 14, Conrad Hotel, Tokyo. Presented by Sofinnova Ventures,
along with co-sponsors Sofinnova Partners, NEA, Fintech Global Capital, and
Dievini. This event brings together US and European biotechnology companies
with top Japanese Licensing and Business Development executives for a
day of company presentations, one-on-one partnering discussions and networking. Contact Goro
Takeda, KFP Class 11 (goro@sofinnova.com) or Carol Wentworth (carol@sofinnova.com) for more information.
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KFP Module - Babson College
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KFP
members who may be in the northeast this November are cordially invited
to join Classes 12 & 13 at their upcoming module at the Babson Executive Conference Center.
It takes place November 5-7 and the KFP community is invited generally
to attend sessions and especially to join us for two events.
First:
Learn first-hand about Mr. K's thought process in initiating the
Fellows Program. Michie Slaughter, a close friend of Mr. K at Marion
Labs and the first president of the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial
Leadership, joins us for a fireside chat on Wednesday evening, November
5, with a cocktail reception to follow.
Second: Lunch on
Thursday, November 6 will provide a soapbox for Steve Kaplan, KFP Dean
and Neubauer Family Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at the
Universtity of Chicago GSB. Steve will try his best to shed light on
the current financial crisis: "What just happened, and how do we
respond as venture investors?"
Please RSVP to Leslie Peters (LPeters@kfp.org).
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Dow Jones
VentureSource: Solar Investment Up
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According to Dow Jones
VentureSource, the US solar industry is seeing unprecedented venture
investment, with 20 deals completed and a record $597 million invested in the
first half of 2008, up 76% from the same period in 2007.
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| KFP Upcoming EventsClass 14 Semi-Finalist Interviews - NYC 
Date: October 21, 2008 7:00 AM to October 23, 2008 1:00 PM
Hilton Times Square, New York, NY
Class 12 & 13 November Module
Date: November 05, 2008 to November 07, 2008
Babson College, Wellesley, MA
Babson Module - Fireside Chat & Cocktail Reception
Date: November 05, 2008 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Babson College, Wellesley, MA
Babson Module - Lunch with Steve Kaplan
Date: November 06, 2008 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM
Babson College, Wellesley, MA
Class 14 Finalist Event
Date: February 04, 2009 to February 05, 2009
San Francisco Airport Hyatt, Burlingame, CA
Applications Open for Class 14
Date: June 15, 2008 to February 13, 2009
Finalist: Applications Closed
Affiliate: June 15, 2008 - February 13, 2009
All Events |
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