10 questions to ask your vc

Filed in archive Entrepreneurship on January 24, 2005

Dispatches has the right questions what to ask you VC:

"

• How big is your fund?
  There is no point trying to raise $1 million from a $1 billion fund.
  



• How much is left in the fund after commitments and reserves for follow-ons are accounted for?
  Is there enough "dry powder" in the fund to support your company's needs over time?
  


• When do you intend to go out fundraising?
  In
  other words, are you going to Disappear for six to 12 months
  immediately after making an investment in my company and joining my
  board of directors?
  


• When you fundraise and tell the story of your three
  most successful investments, how will you describe how value was
  created for LPs?
  The answer to this question will give
  you some insight regarding how you might be expected to create
  value. For example, if the firm's biggest success came as a
  result of increasing valuation multiples through the consolidation of a
  fragmented industry, your company's strategy of creating value through
  innovation and organic growth might not be a great fit.
  
  


• Who is on your firm's investment committee?
  Depending
  on the firm, your primary contact may not be among the small group of
  founding partners who may be making key investment decisions.
  


• What was your firm's advertised IRR when you raised your last fund?
  If
  the firm raised its most recent fund based on an advertised trackrecord
  of, say, a 60% internal rate of return, you might want to question
  whether your plan's forecast of, for instance, a 30% IRR is really
  going to maintain your investor's interest over time.
  


• May I get a copy of the "book" you sent around when you raised this fund?
  What
  promises did the general partners make to their limited partners when
  they raised their last fund? How might those promises impact the
  fund's relationship with your company?
  


• What do you think the exit will be on this investment? Do you think it will be a financial buyer or a strategic buyer?
  You
  are going to be asked this question. It's only appropriate that
  you find out up front what the expectations of your investors are
  regarding this critical issue.
  
  


• As you think about how to shape the company so that it
  is optimally positioned for that exit, what three things do you think
  need to be done in my company?
  The general partners are
  measured against their ability to deliver value to their
  investors. By what metrics will you be judged?


• What was your firm's biggest disaster as an investor? How did the investment go sideways?
  There
  is a difference between a bad result and a bad investment. Does
  the investor know the difference? How did they behave?