by Burch LaPrade | Sep 2, 2017 | Company Blog
The benchmark for growth has changed radically for software companies: Just look at the most successful companies (likely a questionable practice, but, in reality, it is what everyone does): Then…in the era of installed software: It took Microsoft three years from...
by Burch LaPrade | Aug 10, 2017 | Company Blog
August marks the end of our first full year of operations for Gain Compliance. While I’ve chronicled our path in a series of posts (starting with this one) on a semi-monthly basis (more or less), here are my two top-level takeaways: Building a complex product is not...
by Burch LaPrade | Jul 31, 2017 | Company Blog
It’s common practice for software development teams within a company to be distributed, or working on projects together while not sitting in the same office (or even the same time zone). The primary advantage of this is pretty obvious: the best person for the job...
by Burch LaPrade | Jul 14, 2017 | Company Blog
Outside of pitching to individual investors one at a time, the typical ways for a startup to solicit early-stage (angel) investment typically comes in one of two flavors: Angel group: a group of loosely-affiliated, accredited investors who hear pitches as a group, but...
by Burch LaPrade | Jun 14, 2017 | Company Blog
In the world of startups, the process of raising capital is overly glorified by the media and in popular opinion. The reasons that this individual piece of the puzzle commands such mind share are straightforward: It’s visible: this is one of the few activities...
by Burch LaPrade | Jun 9, 2017 | Company Blog
Unicorns are very rare.I’m not talking about the conventional, fairy-tale animal, but rather the Silicon Valley definition: A unicorn is a startup valued at over $1 billion. The term was coined in 2013 by venture capitalist Aileen Lee, choosing the mythical animal to...
by Burch LaPrade | Jun 1, 2017 | Company Blog
Last month, we attended the Prometheus Awards. The Technology Association of Iowa puts on the event which celebrates the accomplishments of a fairly close-knit community in our state. We were nominated for “Outstanding Startup of the Year” for 2016 (alongside a cohort...
by Burch LaPrade | May 5, 2017 | Company Blog
Note: this is the second part of a discussion of product management, following The Science of Customer-Led Software Design. Our goal is build software that is insightful. The work product of a disciplined customer discovery process, in the hands of a talented and...
by Burch LaPrade | May 5, 2017 | Company Blog
Note: this is the first part of a discussion of product management; The Art of Customer-Led Software Design is the 2nd installment. Gain Compliance is trying to solve a complicated business problem. The attributes of our target market — its complexity and the...
by Burch LaPrade | Apr 25, 2017 | Company Blog
When I worked at a larger company, a small part of my VP role was welcoming new employees during their onboarding sessions. Every other week on Tuesdays at 10:35 a.m., I had a dedicated slot to introduce myself and talk about the product strategy team to a roomful of...
