Milamber Blog

We don’t train people how to become good MD’s or CEO’s and when we do give them the role we don’t really give them the support mechanisms they need to truly maximise their potential.

Having ended up coaching a few MD’s or CEO’s recently I found myself reflecting on the best way to help these individuals when dealing with issues.  

Firstly, you need to recognise their role is lonely. MD’s often don’t have anyone they can confide in to be able to just talk through issues or challenges they are contemplating dealing with. i.e. they can’t talk to staff (because talk turns to gossip) because they might be addressing sensitive issues that are going to make staff jittery.

Secondly, when dealing with working out how to handle these issues or challenges MD’s or CEO’s often just need some space and time to talk through things to see if they have missed something or a chance to reflect or discuss the various options (because there are usually several routes to sorting out an issue). Interestingly, what I have found is just by LISTENING and the other person talking to you that process of communication forces them to formalise their thinking and helps them clarify a plan or strategy or tactic as to how to address the issue or challenge. This process of talking things through helps sanity check what they plan to do, and makes sure they have not missed anything obvious by being in the trees and elevates them to having more of a helicopter view on the situation.

Thirdly, once that initial communication has happened they start to realise where the holes are themselves, or where a plan is ropey and needs further work. And if not you can nudge them to think about areas that need further thought. Plus by being the third party and not in the weeds of the day to day you get a much better helicopter view of what the problem is and the solutions being proposed and can give guidance or direction to help them hone a clearer solution.

Finding and Angel Investor – 5 things you need to know.

Looking for someone with deep pockets and big ideas? How to find an angel investor who can take your company to the next level.

By Geoff Williams

Posted 7/ 25 10 at 5:15 PM

The article can be found at: http://smallbusiness.aol.com/2010/07/25/how-to-find-an-angel-investor/

In Section 2…………………………………

‘And what should be in that business plan? Andy Hasoon, CEO of Milamber, an innovation consulting firm based in London, says your business plan should cover three things: What you are doing (product), why you are doing it (market need), and how you are going to do it (execution). Explain how the business will make money, with documents projecting your estimated profit and loss, a balance sheet summarizing your financial data and projections on your cash flow. “Remember, cash is king,” Hasoon says.’

This is to let you know that our Consrtium Milamber CDO just missed out in securing the EC funding this time round. We were very close – 16th out of 137 applications of which 12 were funded so we missed out by just 4 places as the results below show.

The good news is we will be re-entering into the next Call to make another submission. As the saying goes if at first you don’t succeed try again – especially when we got so close!

The results on this Call are as follows:

Like all things applying for funding is at some level a numbers game – a total of Euro56m was allocated to this Call for STREP and IP Research Projects – this funding covered several Research Themes in the areas of digital preservation, digital libraries and cultural heritage. In the end it seems that greater than half the Call Value went to the larger projects classified as ‘IP’ projects. This left an estimated €25m to fund the various STREP projects.

There were two areas that covered STREP projects;

Digital Preservation – Advanced Preservation Scenarios.

Cultural Heritage – Advanced Cultural Experiences.   

In total an unprecedented 137 applications were made in our area (it seems that due to the lack of funding in the world in these times the volume of applications rose substantially from the norm).

Typically for a given Call a score of 12 would have been sufficient to get funded, however, in this call in total only 12 Projects (including IP and STREP) were funded and a score of 13.5 was necessary.

PERA were genuinely shocked at the level of applications and the score required to secure funding unfortunately we had no control over the quality or quantity of rival bids.

And to get a sense of just how close it was for us we were ranked 16^th out 137 for all the STREP and IP applications and of those only 12 were funded so we missed out by just 4 places. 

Quick Highlights.

1. 137 proposals were submitted to our objective (6.4.1) of which 92 were STREPs.
2. The EC retained the top 12 proposals out of the 137, and required a score of 13.5 in order to get funding.
3. Milamber CDO came 16^th out of 137.
4. Out of the top 12, 7 STREPs were funded and 5 Integrating Projects (IPs).
5. Milamber CDO came 11^th in the STREPs.

Thanks to all the team and the Consortium for all their hard work – we shall see if we can get better luck in the Autumn when we try again.

The Milamber CDO Consortium has had some positive initial news to our EC Funding application.

We have had back our Evaluation Summary from the EC Funding process for the Milamber CDO Project – in summary we scored 12.5 out 15 which is classified as a ‘very good’ score and effectively puts us in the ‘eligible for funding’ score range of between 10.0 and 15.0 points.

However, we still do not know whether we have got (or not) any funding!

That information is still to follow…………all that we are told is that it basically boils down to how heavy the competition is / was, and how many parties the EC have decided to fund in the end.

PERA will be finding out over the next few days ‘when’ we get to know that important piece of news. We will keep you posted!

Summary of Scoring System:

0- The proposal fails to address the criterion under examination or cannot be judged due to missing or incomplete information

1- Poor. The criterion is addressed in an inadequate manner, or there are serious inherent weaknesses.

2- Fair. While the proposal broadly addresses the criterion, there are significant weaknesses.

3- Good. The proposal addresses the criterion well, although improvements would be necessary.

4- Very Good. The proposal addresses the criterion very well, although certain improvements are still possible.

5- Excellent. The proposal successfully addresses all relevant aspects of the criterion in question. Any shortcomings are minor.

The proposal must score the minimum threshold of 10 to be eligible for funding.

Our Scores for each section:

Section 1 – Scientific                     4.0 / 5.0

Section 2 – Management             4.5 / 5.0

Section 3 – Exploitation              4.0 / 5.0

Section 4 – Ethical                         N/A

Total                                                 12.5 / 15.0

For those who like percentages:  83.3%

Our joint letter (text below) from 110 Entrepreneurs on Capital Gains Tax was sent to each and every Conservative and Liberal Democrat MP, and also featured prominently in many newspaper and other media outlets, leading up to the budget.

We have reason to believe it had a significant impact in persuading the government to take a more pro-business approach to CGT in June’s emergency budget.
 
Whilst the new maximum rate of 28% is far from ideal, and the increase in entrepreneurial relief of little long term relevance, we believe the budget is a good result considering Liberal Democrat demands of it rising to as much as 50%.
 
These are links to some of the media coverage we received in the run up to the budget.
 
BBC News:

19/06/2010: Government warned over CGT rise

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/10356053.stm

Financial Times:

19/06/2010: Business Opposition

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5e101cba-7b04-11df-8935-00144feabdc0.html

Telegraph:

19/06/2010: Budget 2010: 110 business leaders write to George Osborne over CGT

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/capital-gains-tax/7839610/Budget-2010-110-business-leaders-write-to-George-Osborne-over-CGT.html

Express:

19/06/2010: Raising Capital Gains Tax ‘could cut the country’s income by £2.5bn a year’

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/181756/Raising-capital-gains-tax-could-cut-the-country-s-income-by-2-5bn-a-year-

Scotsman:

19/06/2010: Blanket gains tax increase ‘threatens UK’s recovery’

http://news.scotsman.com/uk/Blanket-gains-tax-increase-39threatens.6372647.jp

Guardian:

21/06/2010: George Osborne facing budget backlash

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jun/20/george-osborne-facing-budget-backlash

Text of Letter:

Sir,
 
We, the undersigned entrepreneurs, have built a wide range of new and respected businesses in a variety of sectors and are proud to have created many thousands of UK jobs and hundreds of millions of pounds of UK tax receipts.
 
We write this letter with respect to the changes to the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) regime expected in the UK’s forthcoming Emergency Budget.
 
We support many of the changes proposed, particularly those preventing unscrupulous high net worth individuals disguising income as Capital Gains.

We also understand and support the Coalition’s rationale for raising CGT on short term speculative investments, particularly those that encourage market volatility, in order to reduce the current public sector deficit. Many understandably see it as unethical that speculative investments such as spread betting which bring no material benefit to the UK economy, remain entirely tax free.
 
However, we believe any blanket increase in CGT could have a significant long-term detrimental effect on entrepreneurial activity in the UK.
 
Entrepreneurial businesses, particularly start-ups, today compete for customers, investment and talent in a global marketplace. The net effect of a unilateral CGT tax hike in the UK would drive talented executives abroad and discourage international investors from placing equity investments in the UK, resulting in reduced growth, less entrepreneurship, fewer jobs and of course, reduced tax revenues.
 
We would therefore urge the Chancellor to consider zero-rating CGT for all types of genuine equity investments or start-up incentive schemes, provided assets and options have been held for a significant period of time, such as twelve months or more.
 
Such a policy would help the UK become the natural home for innovative entrepreneurial start-ups, creating new jobs and delivering long term recurring tax revenues.
 
Such an approach is essential if UK business is to successfully compete on the global stage and if the UK economy is to experience solid sustainable economic growth over the coming five years and beyond. 

[ENDS]

Eco-Innovation Awards:

If your company has developed a new “green” solution that could really work but has still not found its place in the market – then you could access a grant that could give you the cash to help take that product to market.

Through the Eco-innovation funding scheme, the EU wants to support innovative products, services and technologies that can make a better use of our natural resources and reduce Europe’s ecological footprint. With its objective to bridge the gap between research and the market, CIP Eco-innovation contributes to the implementation of the Environmental Technologies Action Plan (ETAP).

There is nearly € 200 million available to fund Eco-innovation projects between 2008 and 2013.

The Call for proposals 2010 is open. Deadline for submission of applications is 9 September, 17:00 (Brussels local time).

Find out more at:

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/eco-innovation/index_en.htm

In 2002 I was at an event at Said Business School (University of Oxford) and came across a young entrepreneur called Elon Musk who had previously founded PayPal and the Zip2 Corporation and in 2002 was in the process of founding and becoming CEO and CTO of SpaceX. This was a guy that I wanted to keep an eye on over the years.

Today was a great day for Elon and his team at SpaceX and a promising step forward for the US space program, as they make progress towards expanding the human presence in space.

Here is a summary of the achievements:

SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies Corp.) announced that the inaugural flight of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle successfully launched and achieved Earth orbit right on target, marking a key milestone for SpaceX and the commercial space flight industry.

Preliminary data indicates that Falcon 9 achieved all of its primary mission objectives, culminating in a nearly perfect insertion of the second stage and Dragon spacecraft qualification unit into the targeted 250 km (155 mi) circular orbit. SpaceX also gathered important aerodynamic data during ascent and vehicle performance, which will be used in final preparations for the upcoming NASA demonstration and missions to the International Space Station (ISS).

“This is a major milestone not only for SpaceX, but the increasingly bright future of space flight,” said Elon Musk, CEO and CTO, SpaceX. “It was an incredible day for the employees of SpaceX, but it is important to note that we did not do this alone. I’d like to thank from the bottom of my heart all of our supporters in NASA—particularly the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) office—the US Air Force, the FAA and our customers. Their support has been critical to this success.”

SpaceX currently has an extensive and diverse manifest of over 30 contracted missions, including 18 missions to deliver commercial satellites to orbit. In addition, the Falcon 9 launch vehicle and Dragon spacecraft have been contracted by NASA to carry cargo, which includes live plants and animals, to and from the ISS. Both Falcon 9 and Dragon have already been designed to meet NASA’s published human rating standards for astronaut transport, allowing for a rapid transition to astronauts within three years of receiving a contract to do so. The critical path item is development and testing of the launch escape system, which would be a significant improvement in safety over the Space Shuttle, which does not possess an escape system.

The NASA COTS program has demonstrated the power of what can be accomplished when you combine private sector responsiveness and ingenuity with the guidance, support and insight of the US government. For less than the cost of the Ares I mobile service tower, SpaceX has developed all the flight hardware for the Falcon 9 orbital rocket, Dragon spacecraft, as well as three launch sites. SpaceX has been profitable for three consecutive years (2007 through 2009) and expects to remain modestly profitable for the foreseeable future. The company has over 1000 employees in California, Texas and Florida, and has been approximately doubling in size every two years. A majority of the future growth is expected to occur in Texas and Florida.

Falcon 9 lifted off at 2:45 p.m. (EDT) / 18:45 (UTC) from Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station located on the Atlantic coast of Florida, approximately 5.5 km (3.5 mi) southeast of NASA’s space shuttle launch site. The Falcon 9 launch vehicle is powered by a cluster of nine SpaceX-designed and developed Merlin engines. Using ultra pure jet fuel and liquid oxygen, the engines generated nearly a million pounds of thrust for the vehicle upon liftoff. View a high definition liftoff video clip here.

The Merlin engine is one of only two orbit class rocket engines developed in the United States in the last decade (SpaceX’s Kestrel is the other), and is the highest efficiency American hydrocarbon engine ever built. The Falcon 9 first stage, with a fully fueled to dry weight ratio of over 20, has the world’s best structural efficiency, despite being designed to higher human rated factors of safety.

Well Done to Elon and his team – a great moment for the commercial space industry!

Today, Jason Velody and I went to a Technology Strategy Board event to learn how to apply for some of the new grants that they are making available in the digital space.

We began with an excellent(!) ‘Key Note’ speech given by Bill Thompson – Bill being the early adopter that he is gave us a presentation using the newly released iPAD – as with all technology the first 15 minutes of the presentation started without this device until the various members of the technical support team had got it working with the old school technology.

It was good to catch up with Bill – as we have not see each other since Net Media days.

http://www.thebillblog.com/billblog/

So what does the Technology Strategy Board do?

On 8 May 2008 they launched their Strategic Plan: “Connect and Catalyse – a strategy for business innovation.”

The plan sets out their focus over the next three years as well as provide a longer term perspective.

TSB want to make the UK a global leader in innovation.  To do so TSB need ensure the UK is a place where:

• business is successfully competing at the forefront of technology and innovation developments globally;
• Government provides a supportive and coherent environment which allows innovation to thrive;
• society understands, embraces, values and is excited by innovation and technology.

The Strategic Plan explains the journey TSB will take to reach the destination of the UK becoming a global leader in innovation and how TSB will work to ensure UK business success by:

• providing leadership;
• working with different parts of Government to simplify and connect the innovation landscape;
• ensuring the UK has the necessary capability in underpinning technologies;
• addressing major challenges to create new business opportunities;
• investing in people, networks and creating a culture supportive of innovation. 

To do all of this, the Technology Strategy Board has a budget for 2008-2011 of £711 million plus aligned funding from the Regional Development Agencies of £180 million and at least £120 million from the Research Councils. 

TSB will also continue to work with Government Departments and the Devolved Administrations further increasing the funding from those organisations aligned with our strategy. 

With over £1 billion to invest over 3 years TSB have the opportunity to start to make a difference in changing the innovation environment in the UK.

Here’s one way you can access monies via: Knowledge Transfer Partnerships

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) are a UK-wide programme enabling businesses to improve their competitiveness, productivity and performance.

A KTP achieves this through the forming of a Partnership between your business and an academic institution (such as university, further education college or research and technology organisation), enabling you to access skills and expertise to help your business develop.

The knowledge sought is embedded into the business from the knowledge base through a project, or projects, undertaken by a recently qualified person (known as the Associate), recruited to specifically work on that project. KTPs can vary in length from 1 to 3 years (classic KTP) and from 10-40 weeks (shorter KTP), depending on the needs of the business and the desired outcomes.

KTP enables new capability to be embedded into the business and has benefited and continues to benefit a wide range of businesses across many sectors, including micro sized, small and large businesses, third sector organisations or public. 

Tel: 0870 190 2829

http://www.ktponline.org.uk/business/business.aspx

Found this cartoon and used it in recent presentation. It speaks for itself.