Dear SaaStr: What Are the Exit Options for VCs That Fail to Make It in The VC Industry?

by Jason Lemkin | Aug 17, 2023 | Blog Posts, Exit, Fundraising, Q&A | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: What Are the Exit Options for VCs That Fail to Make It in The VC Industry? There is probably no better business to fail at than to be a failing General Partner at a sizeable VC firm. If you fail as an associate, principal, etc. … that’s just like any...

Dear SaaStr: Do Late Stage Startups Prefer to Get Acquired or Go Public?

by Jason Lemkin | Jul 16, 2023 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership, Q&A | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: Do Late Stage Startups Prefer to Get Acquired or Go Public? It really varies.  Especially these days, when the IPO markets are closed.  When it was literally an IPO a Day in 2021, it seemed almost easy.  And today — it seems so far from easy. It Was...

Dear SaaStr: Do Companies Prefer Stock Over Cash When They Acquire Startups?

by Jason Lemkin | Jul 8, 2023 | Blog Posts, Exit, Q&A | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: Do Companies Prefer Stock Over Cash When They Acquire Startups? It depends on how profitable the acquirer is. All things being equal, most tech companies that are very profitable (Adobe, Microsoft, Intuit, SAP, Oracle, Google, Facebook etc) would prefer...

Should I Sell for $50m … Or Push On And Try to Build a Unicorn? Especially … Today?

by Jason Lemkin | Jun 5, 2023 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership | 0 comments

A life poorly lived is a trap Go for it at least once — Jason ✨Be Kind✨ Lemkin  (@jasonlk) May 5, 2023 BusinessInsider had a great story a ways back on Datto’s $1b exit to Vista Private Equity (more on the role of PE in SaaS here).  So much of it...

Acquisitions — If You Do Sell, Try to Make Sure It’s At a Local Maximum

by Jason Lemkin | May 25, 2023 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership | 10 comments

Have a strong M&A offer? Not sure what to do? Look at this pic or a similar one Do you want it? If so, say No If not? Probably just say Yes pic.twitter.com/K483lKnyzd — Jason ✨Be Kind✨ Lemkin  (@jasonlk) April 21, 2021 So I wrote a version of this post...

Dear SaaStr: I’m an Early Employee and Have a Chance to Sell Some of My Startup Shares. Should I?

by Jason Lemkin | Mar 23, 2023 | Career Growth & Advice, Compensation, Exit, Leadership, Q&A | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: I’m an Early Employee and Have a Chance to Sell Some of My Startup Shares. Should I? Goodness. Congratulations on the change for some liquidity.  It’s both exciting — and confusing.  Marc Benioff sold a huge amount of his Salesforce stock before its run...

Dear SaaStr: How Many Deals a Year Do VCs at Bigger VC Funds Do a Year?

by Jason Lemkin | Nov 24, 2022 | Blog Posts, Early, Exit, Q&A | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: How Many Deals a Year Do VCs at Bigger VC Funds Do a Year? Not as many as you’d think. This is a really important question because it creates so many non-obvious VC-founder dynamics. There are some partners that do more but the number is generally 1-2 per...

Dear SaaStr: The Startup I’m Working At is Getting Acquired. How Much Can I Negotiate?

by Jason Lemkin | Oct 27, 2022 | Blog Posts, Exit, Q&A | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: The Startup I’m Working At is Getting Acquired. How Much Can I Negotiate? Unfortunately, as a non-CEO, non-founder of an acquired start-up … you have almost no ability to really negotiate.  You can try a little, but it’s rough. Overall, your ability...

Dear SaaStr: When Should You Sell Your Startup?

by Jason Lemkin | Sep 9, 2022 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership | 0 comments

Dear SaaStr: When Should You Sell Your Startup? Having been through the acquisition process 4x — twice as a founder, twice as a start-up exec, here’s my list of when and if to sell.  Don’t take it literally.  Most startups never get a single good...

Dear SaaStr: When Should You Sell Your Company?

by Jason Lemkin | Apr 21, 2022 | Blog Posts, Career Growth & Advice, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership, Q&A | 0 comments

I was with the CEO of a $XB+ SaaS CEO a little while back He was acquiring a leanly-funded startup. The founder owned so much, he would make more than the CEO. I asked how that felt. "That's his journey. We're on a different journey." — Jason...

Zoom Had a Burn Rate Budget. So Should You.

by Jason Lemkin | Mar 5, 2022 | Blog Posts, Exit, Fundraising, Metrics | 0 comments

There was a very curious thing in Zoom’s financials leading up to its IPO that I am surprised no one commented on, at least that I saw.  But as a founder, it jumped out at me. In 2017, Zoom’s cash burn was exactly equal to its Gross Proft.  In other words,...

What If There Are No Natural Acquirers (For Your Company)?

by Jason Lemkin | Jan 13, 2022 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership | 3 comments

A little while back I had coffee with a very successful VC and we chatted about our views of what’s happening in SaaS.  The things we are both interested in are very similar, our thoughts on risks and markets were well aligned.  At the end, he noted how the key...

If You Sell Your Company, Use a Banker

by Jason Lemkin | Dec 2, 2021 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Leadership | 1 comment

When I sold my first company, I used a banker, an M&A advisor.  When I sold my second, I did not.  Not using a banker the second time was a mistake. The benefits are nonobvious, somewhat counterintuitive — and large. You don’t get THAT much from a...

Dear SaaStr: How Much Do Founder-CEOs Own at Time of Exit?

by Jason Lemkin | Aug 25, 2021 | Blog Posts, Exit, Q&A | 0 comments

It can vary a lot, of course. If you never raise venture capital, the founder-CEO might own 50%, or even 100% in some cases. The founders of $10B+ Mailchimp still own 100% of the company, for example. But, on average, venture-backed founder CEOs tend to end up owning...

The Only Exit “Strategy” Is IPO

by Jason Lemkin | May 25, 2021 | Blog Posts, Exit, Exit Strategy, Fundraising | 1 comment

At least a few times a week, I am sent a deck or exec summary that includes an “Exit Strategy”.  The slide sometimes references a nice acquisition by an adjacent company, or a prior competitor or player in the space.  It’s all fine and good, though I...