Paul Walsh, the Irish Opportunist

I sent a tweet this morning to say I was going to do a ‘#followfriday’ for the very first time. A number of people asked me what that meant, so I’ve decided to write a short post to explain.

#followfriday is a way of recommending people you follow, to other users on Twitter. The idea is that those being recommended will gain new followers.

I feel so strongly about my recommendations that I’ve decided to write why I’m recommending them as potential people for you to follow.

People I recommend and why

@Sheetalmmehta (London)

Helping companies to go global, Innovation, Social entrepreneurship, Technology, Investment…

Sheetal is one of the most inspiring people I have ever met. Sheetal is the UK Dealmaker for the UK Trade & Investment. She sits on several advisory panels including Shelter, UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women), Digital Diaspora Network for Africa, and the LSE Alumni Mentoring Committee. Her volunteer work is extensive and she is currently writing a book on Social Venture Capital. One of her most notable accomplishments is her new foundation that enables developing communities to access cutting-edge technology based on a social enterprise model.

@Mikeyfletch (London)

Technology journalist, Events, Networking

Mike is an established business & lifestyle journalist. He’s launched three magazines on behalf of UK publishing house Haymarket Media Group & specialises in marketing, media & live events. He is Contributing Editor for Visit London and also owns a part-share in digital networking company Net.works. Mike is also one of the best connected, if not the best connected person in the entire UK events industry.

@PatPhelan (Cork)

Technology with a bias towards mobile, Connector, Innovation

Pat is the founder and President of Cubic Telecom, a well known disruptor in telephony circles and one of the leading voices of Voice 2.0. Pat has developed a number of unique products for the USA, UK and Irish markets including MAXroam, and is a board member of Global Roaming, a NASDAQ listed company (OTCBB:GRDB). Pat has a genuine passion for connecting people and has been responsible for connecting me with some truely amazing people.

@JackieDanicki (San Francisco)

Marketing (true expert in the use of new tools, techniques and trends such as social and Web 2.0), Connector, Writer

Jackie is an extremely direct person who always speaks her mind. She’s an incredibly insightful marketer which is difficult to come by. Almost every marketer and PR expert think they know how to make best use of Web 2.0 tools and techniques. Jackie does - which is why she’s the Director of Marketing at Qik; one of the most innovative mobile products companies in the world. Like Pat, Jackie has a genuine passion for connecting people and has been responsible for connecting me with some truely amazing people.

@Jobsworth (London)

Technology, Social Enterprise, Innovation, Writer, OpenSource,

JP has  spent most of his life working in the space where finance meets technology, for a number of very large firms. Since 2006 he has worked for BT, as part of BT Design, where he is Head of Innovation and Strategy. He has a passion for how work is changing: the paradigms created by globalisation, disintermediation and the web; the implications of virtualisation, service orientation and commoditisation.  JP is an inspiring speaker and writer, who I admire most for his passion for how technology can be put to good use for the benefit of society.

If you decide to follow any of these great people, or you do already, please feel free to retweet my message - they all deserve to be heard by as many people as possible.

You can also leave a comment with the people you recommend on Twitter.

If you read this blog the chances are, you read TechCrunch too. In the unlikelihood you don’t, this will be news to you. Index closing a new fund is great news as earl-stage funding is the most inaccessible area within the investor community. I have a lot of time for the guys behind the fund too - they’re switched on to the Tech scene.

Full story on TechCrunch.

There’s a great post on TechCrunch that will benefit even the most seasoned entrepreneurs who demo products regularly. Keep it simple and get to the point by showing your product within 60 seconds is my favourite tip.

Speaking of which, I was driving behind a car tonight which displayed some kind of advertisement. I couldn’t even read the ‘big’ text when I was almost bumper to bumper. They should have made one point to grab my attention and a phone number.

I read a scary quote on Joe Drumgoole’s blog today. It’s from Director General of the IVCA. (original article can be found on Silicon Republic),

Most of our investments would be in software firms that can grow to scale, not in dot.com companies or because someone has a nice widget … Funding in Irish companies is at its highest now since 2001, but much of these are follow-on investments in existing companies. There is still a lot of work to be done in raising money to seed new start-ups. Venture capitalists are currently raising money but it’s debatable how much of these funds will go into new plays in the next five years.

This is one of the few reasons why wubud, my latest venture, is based in the UK and not Ireland. Not every dot.com company is based on a widget. Follow-on investments is much less risky than investing in few startups. I’m pretty sure the Irish VCs removed ‘venture’ from Venture Capital.

Just read a post on TechCrunch which inspired me to write my thoughts on this subject.

Mike finished his post with

We can assume that the whole startup investing environment is going to get tougher and more competitive as the VCs mature and the startups themselves raise the bar in quality. It’s also now an international market, with some entrepreneurs threatening to move if they don’t get the attention of Euro VCs.

It’s one thing for an investor to ‘get it’. It’s another to back it. I’ve heard so many entrepreneurs complain that although the VCs to whom they’ve pitched, ‘get it’, they all expect to see ‘traction’. It’s easier to invest when a company already has traction, where’s the risk in that. We need to see more early-stage investors willing to take educated/calculated risks.

I’d consider a move to the Valley, not because I don’t feel European investors get what I’m doing. I’d consider a move because there’s an entire ecosystem in one cluster in San Francisco. I’d also consider it because to be quite frank, the numbers add up. There’s a bigger (local) customer based in the US

That said, I’ll find out for myself, exactly what The Valley is like. As I’ve posted recently, I’m heading over with The Web Mission to help with connecting/networking/introductions.

Would you consider a move to SF and if yes, why? If you’re already there, would you consider a move to Europe, or is that just a dumb question?

Original post on TechCrunch