John Harbison talks real data behind investing
On this week’s episode, Marcia Dawood dives into the real data behind outcomes and exits with John Harbison. In addition to being an ACA Board Member with Marcia, John is a member and Chairman Emeritus of Tech Coast Angels, one of the largest angel investment groups in the country, where he has invested in 60 companies.
John tells us how he started out launching startups for security tech company Raytheon, bringing 2 companies to liquidity events within a year and a third to $800 million in revenue in 7-8 years. He describes how he took that experience to angel investing and joined TCA in 2003.
TCA was formed in 1997 and has invested over $260 million into over 500 companies. John discusses how the over 400 members of TCA bring a wide array of expertise to investments, how crucial having that expertise is to helping startups grow, and how collective learning is monumental in making successful investment decisions.
John and Marcia discuss the data John analyzes as part of the ACA data analytics committee and how real data will show investors how to make smarter investments that gain higher returns. ACA publishes a yearly Angel Funders Report and monthly Angel Insight Publications that show measurable data on investments made by many angel groups throughout the country, including TCA. With this data, investors can now make more educated decisions on investments through factually tested hypotheses rather than opinion.
They also look at what the data says about the best time to invest in a company, the difference between investing through convertible notes versus priced equity, and how important early growth and valuation increases during investment rounds are to an early investor’s return. John gives listeners some examples of his own investments and how they were affected by these significant factors.
John and Marcia close the episode with some discussion on TCA’s largest exit, exiting with a 360x return, and how patience plays a large role in the success of an investment, with TCA’s largest exit taking 15 years.
This episode is packed with great information backed by real data that can help any investor make smarter decisions. After listening to the episode, check out the links to find out more information.