Monthly Archives: February 2009

About Kleiner Perkins first fund (episode 3)

Eureka! After my previous episodes on KP’s first fund (episode 2 and episode 1), I got more.

A few days ago, I received an “old” book, The New Venturers: Inside the high stakes word of venture capital by John G. Wilson (Addison-Wesley, 1985). This is a great book about the early history of venture capital and Wilson had many interesting data. Chapter 5 “The New Entrepreneurs” is about Kleiner Perkins and Wilson publishes there KP’s first fund portfolio and performance. The data are consistent with Golis’ data in my previous post but still different…

Unfortunately Wilson does not mention his sources and when I asked Perkins again about these, he answered: “Each name rings true in my memory, but I have no idea if the numbers are accurate.   I think John Wilson got his hands on one or our reports  to the Limited Partners—not directly from us.  It’s probably all correct.”

If anyone can help me knowing more, i.e. access to KP’s LPs (Wilmington Securities for example) or to John Wilson… there might be an episode 4!

Carol Bartz and Yahoo

Carol Bartz is an exceptional woman. The new Yahoo CEO had given an interview in 2002 that you can read in the book Betting It All. Author Michael Malone described her two passions: Fight Cancer and Girls and Math: “Girls in general have no interest for math. I think that in fact they are dissuaded.” On the more general topic of women and technology/business, she added: “I left 3M because I could not evolve just because I was a woman. […] You are a woman, what are you doing here?” and she also said: “But being a woman in Silicon Valley is to be part of a minority”. The topic of woman in technology is seldom and clearly not enough developed.

Carol Bartz is also amazingly energetic : “I was still running my company while I was having my chemotherapy”.

Finally among the ingredients required for entrepreneurs, she quotes uncertainty that you have to be ready to accept. “Facing the many jobs I took, I was not comfortable because I was wondeing if I was the best for it.” But she also added: “if you cannot make it, you just have to go across the street and try with someone else… which is always possible in Silicon Valley.”