[PREMONEY MIAMI] Quotidian Ventures >> Pedro Torres-Picón, "How To : Build an Investment Thesis"
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This document discusses how to build an effective investment thesis. It begins by defining what an investment thesis is - a statement or theory that is put forward to be maintained or proved. It then asks the reader to consider what type of industries or sectors they invest in, and what their overall investment approach is. The main points made are: 1) To develop a strong thesis, investors should ask themselves what industries or types of companies they invest in, and what beliefs they have that others may not agree with. 2) An effective thesis states clearly what types of companies an investor focuses on and what key qualities they look for in those companies. 3) Having a clear, publicized thesis provides focus, allows the
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[PREMONEY MIAMI] Quotidian Ventures >> Pedro Torres-Picón, "How To : Build an Investment Thesis"
- 1. How to: Build an Investment Thesis Pedro Torres-Picón Founder, Quotidian Ventures
- 2. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp What’s a thesis? the·sis - /ˈTHēsis/ noun a statement or theory that is put forward as a premise to be maintained or proved
- 3. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp What do you invest in?
- 4. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp What type of investor are you? Opportunistic vs Sector/Trend Focused vs Thesis Driven
- 5. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Opportunistic Sector/Trend Focused Thesis Driven What type of investor are you?
- 6. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp What’s your thesis? Ask yourself two questions...
- 7. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Q1: What do you invest in? “In investing, you want to stick to the things that you’re best suited to do, where you’re the very best firm possible.” - Ben Horowitz, A16Z
- 8. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Q2: What do you believe? “What do you strongly believe that very few people agree with you on?” - Peter Thiel, Founders Fund
- 9. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Quotidian invests in... Companies transforming large, old-school industries with software.
- 10. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp … and we believe Founder/Market Fit is the most important quality to look for in founders in this space.
- 11. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Why have a thesis?
- 12. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp “Regardless of whether you are Dave McClure or Union Square Ventures, you need an investment thesis and you need to stick to it. And I believe that you need to make it public, articulate it well, and make sure everyone, particularly your target entrepreneurs, know what it is and why.” - Fred Wilson, Union Square Ventures
- 13. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Why have a thesis? Reason #1: Your thesis is your marketing strategy
- 14. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Why have a thesis? Reason #2: Focus and discipline make you a better investor
- 15. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Why have a thesis? Reason #3: Your domain expertise will add value to your companies
- 16. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Why have a thesis? Reason #4: You will build a network of like- minded people
- 17. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp OK, I have a thesis Now what?
- 18. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp You should stick to it ”Once you have a thesis, you need to stick to it. There are all kinds of temptations that come along to invest outside of the core investment thesis. You have to resist them. Discipline is about sticking to what you know and what you believe in totally and completely.” - Fred Wilson, Union Square Ventures
- 19. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp But know when to evolve it ”Strong opinions, weakly held.” - Paul Saffo, Institute for the Future
- 20. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp And have an Anti-Thesis! One thing I learned from a smart VC friend who does thesis driven investing: if you have a thesis, you also need to have an anti-thesis. It's a good discipline to make sure you are really taking a position and not just adopting a theme. - Chris Dixon, A16Z
- 21. Pedro Torres-Picón @pedrotp Further reading... Fred Wilson’s Blog - avc.com Brad Feld’s Blog - feld.com Dave’s Moneyball Thesis: bit.ly/davesthesis
- 22. THAT’S ALL! Email me: p@quotidian.co Follow me: @pedrotp