What makes Eric Paley a Global Shaker?
Eric Paley is a managing partner at Founder Collective, a venture capital firm that focuses on the seed stage to be “fully aligned with the founding team”.
Eric has led investments for the firm for several top companies, including Uber, Kuvee, Bookbub and Contently. The firm’s early investments in Airtable, Formlabs and Desktop Metal have resulted in billion-dollar valuations in recent months.
The recent portfolio exits for Integral Ad Science, Moat, and Hotel Tonight have propelled him to the top 10 of Forbes’ Midas List.
Prior to Founder Collective, Eric co-founded a creative digital agency called Abstract Edge and a 3D imaging company called Brontes Technologies. In 2006, the company was acquired by 3M.
He writes about venture capital and efficient entrepreneurship on LinkedIn and TechCrunch, warning founders of the dangers of accepting too much capital too soon.
“Money should be raised with clear sight lines to how it will move the needle for your customers and your business, not as a reaction to competitors.,” he wrote on LinkedIn. “Fundraising is not a legitimate forum for competition. Raising more money than competitors can give founders the false sense that they are winning. They aren’t. As a result founders lose sight of legitimate validation of winning the market…Don’t depend on venture capitalists, or anyone other than your customers for validation. Prove your product’s value with traction. Remember, VCs are financiers not oracles.”
Eric has a bachelor’s in government fro Dartmouth and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He also served as an entrepreneur-in-residence at Harvard.
Tags: Investment and Funding, VCLast updated: May 17, 2019
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