Working with VCs and early stage companies, I’ve been seeing more and more SaaS tools that help automate workflows. As a former employee of various large technology firms, I understand how different the sales cycle can be to implement a new platform for large enterprises so this might not be for those teams. But, from my perspective, there are tools I would recommend to emerging VCs, or startups, that have just been formed to create a more collaborative workflow for a decentralized team.
My recommendations are my own personal opinions when working with these organizations and highlight the various products that I found useful.
From reading and, it is true that there are too many tools out there to choose from so I wanted to recommend the ones that I felt had the most capability and allowed for an easier experience to onboard with a focus on balancing that capability, ease-of-use, and price. For VCs, there is really one north star, optimization of time. From there, that can be broken out into three buckets: LP collaboration (back-office), business operations (front-office), and portfolio collaboration (back + front office).
LP collaboration focusing on the back-office tasks that include tracking potential and current LPs, reporting, and fund administration. Business operations that focus on deal-team activities including sourcing and fielding deals, diligence, and storing data towards the goal of writing term sheets. Portfolio collaboration focusing on the relationship between investors and portcos including tracking portfolio metrics, introducing founders to advisors or potential employees, and generally helping them scale. The world of venture capital and early stage startups is fast-paced, dynamic, and constantly evolving. As a result, it's critical for firms and companies in this space to have the right tech stack in place to help them operate efficiently and stay ahead of the competition. In this article, we'll explore some of the key components of a modern tech stack for venture capital firms and early stage startups.
Recommendations:
Thus, if I were to start a fund or company today, I would pick the following stack:
Customer Relationship Management Software
At the heart of any successful venture capital firm or early stage startup is a solid understanding of their customers. A good CRM system can help you manage your customer interactions, track leads, and manage your sales pipeline.
Financial Management, Human Resources, and Accounting Software
Managing your finances is critical for any business, but it's particularly important for venture capital firms and startups. Accounting and financial management software like QuickBooks, Xero, and FreshBooks can help you manage your expenses, invoices, and financial reporting.
Portfolio Monitoring/Investor Relations:
Communication and Collaboration Tools
Effective communication and collaboration are critical to the success of any venture capital firm or startup.
Video Conferencing: , (open-source) Video Conferencing Note Taker: Internal URL Shortcut Tool: , Password Manager: (open-source),
Related to business operations:
Related to deal sourcing:
Related but geared more for early-stage companies:
Some cool examples of process that I’ve come across:
Methodology
Capability including integrations with other products Related Information/Sources: