ABOUT THIS EPISODE
The media is filled with experts comparing today’s market with the dot-com crash of 2000. But few, if any, of these experts actually lived and worked through the dot-com boom and bust.
Marc Andreessen is Founder and General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, and Tim Draper is Founder and Managing Director at Draper VC. And both Marc and Tim were either running or investing in tech startups at the time.
So, what was it like to experience the dot-com crash? What did Marc and Tim learn that might give us clarity around how to navigate an uncertain economic future?
On this episode of Boost VC, Marc and Tim join us to explore the likelihood that we’re headed into a recession and explain what they’re encouraging founders to do right now.
Marc and Tim discuss the mistakes they made in the early 2000s and describe why a downturn can be good for the best companies.
Listen in for insight on retaining employees in a remote or hybrid setting and get Marc and Tim’s advice on contingency planning to survive an economic crisis—without losing your business.
Topics Covered
Where Marc and Tim go for their media
Timeless source of info = books prior to 1960
Direct conversations with founders
Science fiction to predict future
What Marc was doing in the early 2000s
Launch Netscape in 1999 at high point in market
Lifting weights to burn off stress
What Tim was doing in the early 2000s
Just raised $1.4B to bring VC to world
Hosted party ‘2001 Cyberspace Odyssey’
What it takes to be a successful entrepreneur
Smart, open to new ideas and determined
Social skills to build team, raise money, etc.
Disagreeable (think against the grain)
The likelihood that we’re headed into a recession
Good people laid off start own businesses
Economy too complex to predict future
What a16z is encouraging founders to do right now
Think in terms of scenarios and contingencies
Consider specific circumstances of your company
Cut deep enough that only do layoffs once
Tim’s experience as an investor in the dot-com crash
Reactive approach, scrambled to raise money
Lost 4 businesses with $100M in revenues
The difference between the dot-com crash and 2008
2000 was equity-driven, credit crisis in 2008
Tech companies don’t run on debt
What Marc did right and wrong in the dot-com crash
Underestimated how bad things could get
IPO saved company from bankruptcy
Why a downturn can be good for the best companies
Eliminates competition
Easier to recruit, gain market share
How to retain employees in a hybrid/remote setting
Create intense social bonding experiences
Management training, employee development
How tech innovation is flowing out of the Bay Area
COVID as catalyst, other cities rise in importance
Texas and Florida are attracting entrepreneurs
How governments are in competition for entrepreneurs
Regulations push businesses out
US can remain #1 if allow startups to innovate
Marc and Tim’s greatest qualities + accomplishments
Tim fearless in engaging with boldest ideas
Marc transformed the VC business
Connect with Marc
Andreessen Horowitz https://a16z.com/
Andreessen Horowitz on Twitter https://twitter.com/a16z
Marc on Twitter https://twitter.com/pmarca
Connect with Tim
Draper Associates https://www.draper.vc/
Tim on Twitter https://twitter.com/TimDraper
Draper University https://www.draperuniversity.com/
Meet the Drapers https://www.meetthedrapers.com/
Resources
Tom Swift Books https://tomswift.net
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205
My Years with General Motors by Alfred Sloan https://www.amazon.com/Years-General-Motors-Alfred-Sloan/dp/0385042353
The a16z Podcast https://future.com/a16z-podcast/
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/sarbanes-oxley_act
Draper Innovation Index https://index.draperhero.org/
Connect with Boost VC
Boost VC Website https://www.boost.vc/
Boost VC on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/boostvc/
Boost VC on Twitter https://twitter.com/BoostVC
Boost VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/boost_vc/
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