Term Sheets and Valuation

Entrepreneurs’ Network

PRE-MEETING DINNER at 5:15 PM (sharp) at Bertucci’s, Waltham.

Meeting Presentations:

Company founders getting ready to raise outside financing do not want to give up more equity than necessary. Investors want more equity for their investment as a reward for the risk they are taking on the young company. Valuation is used to determine a fair trade-off of cash for equity. But, what is a reasonable valuation for a startup? Must this determination be made when first obtaining funds? What terms might an entrepreneur see when presented with a Term Sheet and what are the tradeoffs when negotiating these? How do terms impact founders’ managerial control of investments and operating decisions?

Our panel, including a Valuation expert, the General Manager of a large Angel investment group, and the President of startup, will discuss these issues concerning valuation and term sheets.

A networking session will precede the meeting and a question and answer session will follow the panelists’ presentations.

Speaker Panel:

JOHN FRANSON, CFA, Director of Globalview Advisors LLC, http://globalviewadvisors.com

John’s over 15 years of valuation experience includes valuation of business enterprises, intangible assets, and equity instruments for various purposes including common stock valuations, business combinations, goodwill impairment, corporate acquisitions and divestitures, litigation support, and financial and tax reporting.

Prior to joining Globalview Advisors in 2007, John worked as an independent consultant assisting CFOs with acquisition and divestiture projects, managing capitalization models, assessing business activity, communicating between all stakeholders, and customizing financial presentations. He was also employed with KPMG Valuation Services where he performed valuations in connection with both publicly traded and privately held companies.

John received his MS in Finance from Boston College and his BA in Economics from the University of New Hampshire. He has successfully completed the business valuation curriculum of the American Society of Appraisers (ASA), as well as the national exam on the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). John is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Christopher Mirabile, Co-Managing Director, LaunchPad Venture Group

Christopher Mirabile is the co-Managing Director of LaunchPad Venture Group. Christopher is a full-time angel and an active member of the Boston-area angel investing community with investments in more than 40 start-up companies. He was named one of XConomy’s “Top Angel Investors in New England” for 2012.

Christopher is an adjunct lecturer in the MBA program at Babson College, a regular advisor and mentor to start-ups, and a frequent panelist and speaker. He is a member of the Board of Directors or Board of Advisors of numerous start-up companies as well as several non-profits.

Christopher has served as a public company CFO with IONA Technologies PLC, a corporate and securities lawyer with Testa Hurwitz & Thibeault and as a management consultant with Price Waterhouse’s Strategic Consulting Group.

Christopher earned his J.D. from Boston College Law School and his B.A., with honors, from Colgate University.

Sven Karlsson, CFA, MBA, President & Co-Founder, Platelet BioGenesis

Sven Karlsson, an Eagle Scout, has over six years of experience in business development and financial analysis. Prior to co-founding Platelet BioGenesis, Sven Karlsson worked in Business Development at J.P. Morgan and as a Research Analyst at Seamans Capital Management. Sven received a B.S. in Engineering from Cornell University and an MBA with Distinction from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Moderator:

Michael S. Chester, President, International Manufacturing Consultants, http://www.imcglobaladvisors.com, intlmfg@aol.com, Past Chairman Boston Entrepreneurs’ Network (ENET)

Mike has founded and built companies, set up manufacturing operations, formed strategic partnerships, set up global joint ventures, raised over $40M for startups which he co-founded, both in the US and China, and commercialized technologies. Mike advises startups in high tech, clean tech, biotech, software, and manufacturing. The Chinese government has invested in Mike’s companies. One of his startups provided mobile banking services in China and was acquired by a European company. BioHermes, a biotech which he cofounded in China, was sold in 2010. Mike was VP Business Development for Tonbu, which developed web-based collaborative environments for the electronics industry grew to 142 employees. Mike spent 16 years with IBM designing robots and automation, marketing and selling IBM products to manufacturing companies, setting up global operations and supply chains, and founding an IBM consulting organization for manufacturing clients that he grew into a $20M business. Mike also lived in China from 1986-1987 while consulting to companies owned by the Machine Building Ministry and teaching graduate courses at Hunan University.

Mike earned his BS in Electrical Engineering and MS in Computer Engineering from Syracuse University and his MBA from Union College. He is past Chair of the IEEE Boston Entrepreneurs’ Network, has served on the board of APICS Boston, and was a member of the planning committee of the MIT Enterprise Forum for over 10 years. Mike is a frequent speaker at conferences on Global Entrepreneurship, Supply Chains, Manufacturing, and China business. He is judge and mentor to companies competing the Mass Challenge and the Clean Tech Open. Mike and his sons have competed on the TV show Robot Wars with their robotic rabbit, “Bunny Attack”.