Guide, Advise and Inspire: How Startup Boards Drive Growth and Exits

An Overview of the Principles, Skills and Concepts Every Early Stage Company Board Member Needs to Succeed. Written by two of Boston’s most active and experienced early stage investors and board members, “Guide, Advise and Inspire” is a handbook and desk reference for both new and experienced board members sitting on early stage company boards.

Working with early stage companies presents many different challenges, and demands a wide variety of skills from directors. Easy to read with a fast-moving conversational Q&A format, this comprehensive guide will help any early stage board member gain the skills and insights needed to improve CEO effectiveness, drive company performance, and increase shareholder value in these nascent undertakings.

Overview of Contents:
Part I - How to Be an Effective Board Member in Early Stage Companies - is designed to review the fundamental concepts early stage company board members need to know, including: - Building a Great Board - Board Structure and Mechanics - How Boards Support Management Teams - How Early Stage Board Directors Add Value - Building Great Director-CEO Communication - A Guide to Startup Board Meeting Prep - How to Run a Great Board Meeting - The Importance of Board Relationships - How to Make a CEO Successful in the Role - Helping CEOs Build Great Teams - Recruiting A New Director - Fundamentals of Director Compensation - Legal Duties for Directors - Basic Financial Controls - Liability Insurance for Directors

Part II - Perspectives and Techniques for Maximizing Investment Returns - helps board members understand the underlying concepts in creating great shareholder outcomes in an early stage company, including: - An Introduction to Early Stage Investors and Exits - Understanding Key Deal Terms and How They Affect Your Returns - The Importance of Alignment Between Investors and Management - Early Stage Investing Exits: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly -How to Plan for an Exit and Understand the Timeline - Timing Exits to Coincide with Key Company Inflection Points - Finding the Right Buyer for Your Company - Raising the Right Amount of Financing to Achieve a Successful Exit for the Investors - Why Early Exits are So Critical to an Early Stage Portfolio

Part III Tools and Templates - These guides and templates make it easy to put into everyday use the practical advice outlined in Part I and II of the book. - Guidelines for Successful Board Meetings - Sample Board Meeting Dashboards - Sample Board Meeting Minutes - A Guide for Evaluating Board Performance - Recruiting Guide for Early Stage Company Boards - How to Conduct a CEO Performance Review - IRS Section 83(b) Election Form - Directors & Officers Insurance Concepts - Checklist for Planning Exits

Based on a wealth of practical experience, this guide boils down this sometimes tricky subject matter into a very clear, concise handbook board members and investors of all experience levels will want to keep as a regular reference.

Hambleton Lord is Co-Founder of Seraf and the Co-Managing Director of Launchpad Venture Group, an angel investment group focused on seed and early-stage investments in technology-oriented companies. Ham has built a personal portfolio of more than 35 early stage investments and is a board member, advisor and mentor to numerous start-ups.

Seraf Co-Founder Christopher Mirabile is the Chair of the Angel Capital Association and also Co-Managing Director of Launchpad Venture Group. He has personally invested in over 50 start-up companies and is a limited partner in four specialized angel funds. Christopher is a frequent panelist and speaker on entrepreneurship and angel-related topics and serves as an adjunct lecturer in Entrepreneurship in the MBA program at Babson.

Due to their combination of roles as investors, advisors and angel group leaders, Ham and Christopher were named among Xconomy's "Top Angel Investors in New England."