Forget Stratford's planned Tech City. If you want to discover where tech startups prefer to hang out, look no further than an online community called ICE. A combination of mailing list and real-world get-togethers, ICE -- the International Conclave of Entrepreneurs -- is a mostly London-based group of around 90 entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem supporters. It was founded by Alex Hoye, an angel investor and CEO of marketing group Latitude, and Joshua March, CEO of social management system Conversocial, who in 2009 organised a ski trip to France with 29 startup entrepreneurs.
Says Hoye: "We became a tight-knit community on that trip. It gave us an outlet to talk in a way we don't day by day about issues we face."
The email list was used initially to gather members for sports, but it soon outgrew that purpose. "Someone who was trying to recruit came on the email list asking where to find the right person," says Hoye. "Then someone else asked about where to find good lawyers." Today, active discussion threads range from opinions on YCombinator to whether to appear in a reality-TV show.
The list is private, and new members are accepted only if they are referred by three members, commit to trips, and contribute to the email list. They must be approved by the founding committee, which "makes sure that people have the right skills and attitude," says Hoye. "We're planning to stay within the Dunbar number of 150 -- which is the ideal for a group to retain strong social bonds". ICE has organised nine trips, which regularly include informed panels with guest moderators. They also have tangible results: according to Hoye, Conversocial received £1.5m funding from VC firm DFJ Esprit, after an ICE event last May.
ICE's members turn to each other for confidential peer-to-peer advice. Their email list consists of discussion threads that can be almost business books in themselves, full of insider tips and crowdsourced answers. Not on the list? Here's a sample of edited extracts.
Building company culture
Sam Barnett (ceo, struq) -- 30 November, 2010
I think the people trying to shape their culture may want to read this [list of 23 insights into Netflix's corporate culture]. I like these three points: lots of companies have nice sounding values, but real values are defined by who gets rewarded and who gets let go. You focus on great results, not process. We're a team, not a family. If anyone else has any insights on building company culture, please share.
Julie Trell (Salesforce.com) -- 30 November, 2010 Then there's Tony Hsieh (pronounced Shay) of Zappos -- it's all about culture over there. However, a little counter to how Sam sees the company.
Alex Hoye (CEO, Latitude) -- 2 December, 2010 I had a good discussion with Sam and I want to clarify one bit from this exchange and add some tangible items: I believe in family, but not necessarily in a high-performance startup. One thing I've done that has seen strong results is implement old-school Jack Welch approach to HR. Whatever the company size, identify the top 10-15 per cent and figure out how to keep them motivated. It can't always be money. Sometimes it's role, latitude for a project; for mid-lower tiers it's mentoring with more senior peeps.
On approaching potential buyers
[Redacted] -- 21 June, 2011 We've recently had an offer to buy our network of sites. We're conscious that it's better to have two offers on the table rather than one. We're wondering how to solicit further interest from other potential acquirers. Is it better to have an intermediary? Any general advice on selling also appreciated.
Ben Tompkins (partner, Eden Ventures) -- 21 June, 2011
The problem with an intermediary is that they will take time to get up to speed, will not be interested unless it's a certain- sized deal and you are trusting them to pitch your business for you. Intermediaries are usually a good idea if you are asking them to identify acquirers for you but probably less useful if you already know who the targets are -- so it sounds like you know who you want to target.
Max Niederhofer (VC) -- 21 June, 2011 Don't obsess about an alternative offer, obsess about your BATNA (best alternative to a negotiated agreement) and whether it's the right decision for you, your baby and shareholders. You can always artificially create a sense of competition/urgency. Get to a valuation after the first exploratory meeting -- if they talk money, they are serious; if they don't, they're just fishing.
Talk to your partners: they know you and are the closest thing to an easy conversation. Mention in confidence that you've had an offer. See if they engage.
Best newswire service?
Joshua March (CEO, Conversocial) -- 4 August, 2011
Looking for some advice -- what's the best newswire, free or paid, for getting releases out as widely as possible?
Colette Ballou (CEO, Ballou PR) -- 4 August, 2011
Beware of free services. In a nutshell, PRNewswire and Business Wire. Is the goal to get the news out as widely as possible, to come up first in search engines, or to get coverage?
If it's the first two (and you are on a budget), work carefully with the wire service to make sure you are using their full capabilities. These days, most services build complementary SEO features into every press release, but only you know the right terms. Spend time, help them get it right. Consider their translation services if non-English markets are important. If you're trying to get coverage and are on a budget, you need to put in some elbow grease. Determine which outlets are key -- National Geographic and Vogue are influential and read by millions, but are not what executives read to get guidance about social-media-management systems. Focus on the right outlets and journalists because they get hundred of pitches per day. Show that you know what they write about, and how what you are doing ties into it.
Down the stairs from the top:
\1. Janna Bastow - ProductCamp
\2. Tom Impallomeni- Swapit
\3. Maria Constantinescu - SlickFlick
\4. Tamás Locher - Lookk
\5. Douglas de Jager - Spider.io
\6. Adil Mohammed - Launch48
\7. Sam Barnett - Struq
\8. Bindi Karia - VC/emerging business lead Microsoft \9. Emi Gal Brainient
\10. Irra K - Soul of Fashion
\11. Nick Thain - Sports New Media
\12. Sam Mathews - Neverbland
\13. David Langer - GroupSpaces
\14. Andy Young - GroupSpaces
\15. Jerome Touze - WAYN
\16. Stephanie Bouchet - RougeFrog
Left to right bottom row:
\17. Andrew J Scott - Urban Horizon
\18. Lucian Tarnowski - Brave New Talent
\19. Lea Bajc - Northzone Ventures
\20. Alex Hoye - Latitude; investor
\21. Kieran O'Neill - Playfire
\22. Josh March - Conversocial
\23. Michelle Dewberry - LikeBees
\24. Jae Chalfin - Sports New Media
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
