Startup Fundamentals 1: Start Right, Avoid Common Mistakes & Pitfalls

Enhance Your Startup’s Capabilities: Participate in Our Workshop!

If you are an entrepreneur looking to turn your ideas into a viable, fundable startup, Access Silicon Valley invites you to attend a comprehensive 3-hour workshop aimed at providing you with essential legal and business knowledge needed to develop a fundable and scalable startup within the startup ecosystem.

This workshop is the first of three sessions in the Access Silicon Valley Startup Fundamental Series, tailored for startup founders, executives, entrepreneurs, innovators, and developers. While attending all three workshops is beneficial, each session offers standalone content.

We appreciate our event sponsor, Snell & Wilmer.

Reasons to Attend This Workshop:

• This initial session in the Startup Fundamentals series will cover essential elements of launching a startup, helping you navigate common challenges that may impede your progress.
• Gain insights from Roger Rappoport, a former entrepreneur and partner at Snell & Wilmer, who co-leads its Emerging Growth and Venture Capital practice group. Roger will share practical strategies based on his extensive experience.

Topics Covered:

Understanding the startup environment can be daunting, but this workshop will simplify complex subjects into clear steps. Here’s a glimpse of what will be discussed:

• Company Formation: Selecting the appropriate entity type for your startup.
• Team Development: Approaches for recruiting and compensating the right individuals.
• Equity Distribution: Fairly allocating equity among co-founders and early team members.
• Key Concepts: Understanding vesting, repurchase rights, rights of first refusal, and when to obtain proxies from co-founders or early employees.
• Fundraising Basics: Learning how much equity to offer investors and how to assess your startup’s valuation.
• Cap Table Management: Developing and maintaining an effective capitalization table.
• Intellectual Property: Ensuring that all IP is owned by your company and creating a solid IP strategy.

The Importance of Avoiding Common Mistakes:

Successfully navigating these obstacles can significantly impact your startup's success. Learn how to:

• Enhance your startup's appeal to investors.
• Select suitable sources and types of funding.
• Retain control over your company.
• Maximize your potential returns upon exit.

Don’t let typical challenges hinder your startup journey. Join us to acquire the knowledge necessary for success! Turn your startup vision into reality—start correctly and steer clear of common pitfalls!

Workshop Materials:

A detailed 50-page digital workbook containing an actionable step-by-step guide will be provided to all registered participants on the event day.

Event Schedule:

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM - Dinner and networking

6:00 PM - 6:15 PM - Introductions of speakers and sponsors

6:15 PM - 7:30 PM - Startup workshop Part A

7:30 PM - 7:45 PM - Break

7:45 PM - 8:45 PM - Startup workshop Part B

8:45 PM - 9:00 PM - Q & A session

Seating is very limited, so please secure your spot promptly.

About the Presenter:

Roger Rappoport, a Partner at Snell & Wilmer and Co-Leader of the Emerging Growth and Venture Capital Practice Group, is an experienced advisor to startups and emerging growth companies, as well as the investors who support them. He guides clients from inception through exit with over twenty years of experience in the startup landscape, focusing on venture capital and angel investor financing, including convertible notes, SAFEs, and other debt financing methods. His expertise also encompasses mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, distribution, development, manufacturing, licensing transactions, executive compensation, and the establishment of equity incentive plans.

Roger has significant experience advising both startups and established emerging growth companies, primarily in sectors such as software, information technology, Internet, communications technology, cleantech, and life sciences. He is a co-author of “Investor Agreements in a Financing Transaction,” a chapter in “Financing California Businesses,” and has contributed to articles on various topics related to startup financing.

He frequently speaks and participates in panels on issues related to company formation and funding strategies.

Before pursuing a legal career, Roger founded a technology company that generated $10 million in revenue.

He maintains strong connections with investors in Silicon Valley and is an active angel investor. As an attorney, he has been involved in numerous transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity, venture capital financing, and complex restructurings.

Roger is also the founder of Access Silicon Valley, a platform designed for entrepreneurs to connect with leading venture capitalists and experienced entrepreneurs. Explore the Access Silicon Valley Video Fireside Chat Series, hosted by Roger, featuring representatives from prominent VCs such as Andreessen Horowitz, Foundation Capital, Floodgate,