“Unicorn” companies are those that reach the magically perceived $1-billion valuation level before they even have an initial public offering. Bill Gurley has made a mint from investing in some of them, including Uber and Snapchat. Since the term was coined in 2013, the number of unicorns has risen to 80 from 39, Fortune calculated.
But he warned in a keynote address at the SXSW tech-music-marketing festival in Austin in March that Silicon Valley’s Golden Age could soon be over and that some of today’s biggest startups could go down with it.
Other startup investors wondered whether Gurley was being too alarmist, as some have observed in the past.
“I think there will always be things that become really big, and these things will have investors,” Mike Morin, chief operating officer of Start Garden, a $15-million startup-capital fund in Grand Rapids, Michigan, told Chief Executive. Yet “there will be bubbles,” because “there is not symmetry to their creation, but [these companies] come in seasons and cycles.”
In Austin, Gurley warned that “a complete absence of fear” in Silicon Valley had led venture-capital firms to take big risks on tech companies.
So, unicorn companies could face resistance in the markets in the near future. “I do think you’ll see some dead unicorns this year,” Gurley said.
Morin commented that, “in the past,” the creation of some unicorns has stemmed from “an insiders’ game and the ability to buy emerging markets. But connectivity and transparency is making that harder.”
Fundamentally, Morin said, “companies don’t have to be unicorns to be great, and you can kill a great company by trying to insist it become a unicorn.”
Venture investors who want to succeed, he said, should always “invest in big markets, solid business fundamentals and smart founders with character—you know, the stuff we learned in kindergarten.”
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1:00 - 5:00 pm
Over 70% of Executives Surveyed Agree: Many Strategic Planning Efforts Lack Systematic Approach Tips for Enhancing Your Strategic Planning Process
Executives expressed frustration with their current strategic planning process. Issues include:
Steve Rutan and Denise Harrison have put together an afternoon workshop that will provide the tools you need to address these concerns. They have worked with hundreds of executives to develop a systematic approach that will enable your team to make better decisions during strategic planning. Steve and Denise will walk you through exercises for prioritizing your lists and steps that will reset and reinvigorate your process. This will be a hands-on workshop that will enable you to think about your business as you use the tools that are being presented. If you are ready for a Strategic Planning tune-up, select this workshop in your registration form. The additional fee of $695 will be added to your total.
2:00 - 5:00 pm
Female leaders face the same issues all leaders do, but they often face additional challenges too. In this peer session, we will facilitate a discussion of best practices and how to overcome common barriers to help women leaders be more effective within and outside their organizations.
Limited space available.
10:30 - 5:00 pm
General’s Retreat at Hermitage Golf Course
Sponsored by UBS
General’s Retreat, built in 1986 with architect Gary Roger Baird, has been voted the “Best Golf Course in Nashville” and is a “must play” when visiting the Nashville, Tennessee area. With the beautiful setting along the Cumberland River, golfers of all capabilities will thoroughly enjoy the golf, scenery and hospitality.
The golf outing fee includes transportation to and from the hotel, greens/cart fees, use of practice facilities, and boxed lunch. The bus will leave the hotel at 10:30 am for a noon shotgun start and return to the hotel after the cocktail reception following the completion of the round.
