Ralph E. Grabowski - marketingVP - fact-gathering, analytical Marketing to steer the enterprise

 

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"How To Raise $100 Million"
 

How To Raise $100 Million
Mr. Lapidus reveals how he has raised lots of $$$

By Stanley N. Lapidus and Ralph E. Grabowski

 
Contents

Abstract
PDF Mr. Grabowski's slides with speaker's notes - 1.3 MB
PDF Mr. Lapidus' slides - 1.8 MB
PDF handout (*) - 2 pages, 0.3 MB

They said it!
About the speakers
Dig deeper
Honoring 20 years of the 128 Venture Capital Group

(*) You may find it helpful to have a printed copy of the data on page 2 in front of you when reviewing the slides

 

Honoring twenty years of the 
128 Venture Capital Group (128 VCG)

These invited presentations were delivered on the 128 Venture Capital Group’s twentieth birthday, December 12, 2002.  As part of the birthday celebration, in honor of the 128VCG and its Chairman, Michael Belanger, I first published, on that day, new data from my research into the Marketing/Engineering Investment Ratio™ (M/E Ratio™), including:


M/E the Successes

infinity Angstrom Medica, synthetic bone from nanomaterials
MIT $50K Entrepreneurship Competition Grand Prize Winner 2001
http://www.angstrommedica.com 

the Failures

0.014 Fusion Lighting, microwave-activated high-efficiency lighting 1991 - 2002
Blew through $90 million and shut their doors on December 31, 2002.

0.013 Genuity, Internet 1998 - 2000.  Lost nearly $11 Billion in market capitalization in the two years since their IPO, 99.9% of their value.  Genuity declared bankruptcy on November 27, 2002 affecting 6,462 employees and 3,877 engineers.

0.007 Lotus, office software 1990s
http://www.lotus.com

Pioneered office PC software with the purchase of VisiCalc and with the development of Lotus 1-2-3.  Lost dominate position to Microsoft.   


Financial and human impact

With this new data, the financial and human impact of the investment in upstream marketing (or the lack of investment) by these companies now climbs to:


>1 Trillion dollars

>400,000 jobs created or lost

>150,000 engineering slots developed or gone

 

About the 
128 Venture Capital Group

For more than 20 years, the 128 Venture Capital Group facilitated private investors seeking contact with emerging business ventures.

Established in 1982, the 128 Venture Capital Group was a monthly breakfast networking assembly of individual investors, emerging company representatives, and professional venture capital investors interested in emerging technologies and markets.  Participants were encouraged to introduce themselves and their goals to the group.  The meeting was open to all interested parties, such as management team candidates and professional service providers.  The 128 Venture Capital Group was neither a securities broker/dealer nor an investment advisor and did not charge commission on any capital raised.

Michael Belanger, Chairman
128 Venture Capital Group
Bedford Road
Lincoln MA 01773
781-259-8776

After more than twenty years and 275 monthly meetings, Michael Belanger retired the 128 VCG to focus on his own startup, Jarg.  December 9, 2004 was the last monthly meeting.

 

A 128VCG success story

One purpose of the 128 Venture Capital Group, and other support organizations, is to foster team formation.  Gordon Sharp, an entrepreneur,  came to one of the very first 128VCG events, more than 20 years ago, because his startup was floundering.

Yes, Gordon Sharp met Ralph Grabowski at that meeting.  Gordon and Ralph teamed up to kick-start Phoenix Controls and make it flourish. 

Together, raising the Marketing/Engineering Investment Ratio™ to 1.25, they performed the up front Marketing process to understand the customer problem, validate the market, establish customer payback, and launch the company.  Most importantly, Competitive Intelligence (CI), led to significant product changes, two patents, dramatic product differentiation, decisive market viability, and a defensible position.

“Market research that gave us a handle on where to go,“ said Gordon Sharp.  Phoenix Controls created a new market, Variable Air Volume (VAV) building controls, dominated their market, and was sold to Honeywell with a handsome return to the investors and to Gordon Sharp.   See the Phoenix Controls case study.

 

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next, "Market Research Drives Revenue"  "Market Research Drives Revenue"

 









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Abstract
PDF Mr. Grabowski's slides with speaker's notes - 1.3 MB
PDF Mr. Lapidus' slides - 1.8 MB
PDF handout (*) - 2 pages, 0.3 MB

They said it!
About the speakers
Dig deeper
Honoring 20 years of the 128 Venture Capital Group

(*) You may find it helpful to have a printed copy of the data on page 2 in front of you when reviewing the slides

 
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