Video Player

Angel Groups in Action: Funding Early Stage Innovation

Moderator: Daniel Roach
Jeffrey Sohl James Geshwiler MBA '00 Edward B. Roberts '57, SM '58, SM '60, PhD '62 Jerry Schaufeld: June 1, 2005; Running Time: 1:30:05

About the Lecture

About the Lecture

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “Every man contemplates an angel in his future self.” Among these panelists, the aphorism might move more along these lines: “The experienced entrepreneur contemplates his future self as an angel investor.”

First, the overview: Whether acting within a group, or as an individual, the angel investor in 2004 was responsible for pumping $22.5 billion into 48,000 ventures, according to Jeffrey Sohl. This compares to the 3,000 or so venture capital (VC) deals made in the same year, totalling $20.9 billion. And while the angel investor “tends to operate in the $50,000 to $1 million range,” quite a bit less than the average VC deal, angels are essential for jumpstarting a new business. Angels are known for patience. That’s because “angels are experienced business people and know how long it takes to build a company to the point of tangible outcome,” says Ed Roberts. But it’s not just their early stage significance that counts, he says. Angels are “in business not solely for the sake of return on investment…They are people who want to participate in more than money. They want to get into the act of a close relationship with an entrepreneur.”

Jerry Schaufeld describes angel investors’ “ability and willingness to reach into the risk of an extraordinarily early deal,” and how this motivates them “to contribute their experience into running and building these companies. James Geshwiler, who runs a group of like-minded angel investors, says, “It’s hard to be an entrepreneur. To know that someone you respect and look up to in the industry says, ‘You’re doing something good enough for me to write you a check,’ that’s a huge psychological validation at a time when probably your friends, spouse and family are saying why are you doing this, why start a company?”

Lecture Details

Location: Kresge Auditorium

About the Speakers

Moderator: Daniel Roach

Manager, Brown & Brown, LLP

Prior to joining Brown & Brown, Roach worked as a financial advisor to several early stage technology companies. He was the Managing Director for Garage Technology Ventures. Before joining Garage, Roach was Director of High Technology Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP in Boston. Roach is a CPA, licensed in Massachusetts, and holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Rochester and an M.B.A. from Northeastern University.

Jeffrey Sohl

Director, Center for Venture Research
Professor of Entrepreneurship and Decision Sciences, Whittemore School of Business and Economics, University of New Hampshire

Sohl previously served as a consultant to the Department of Energy on public policy analysis. He has presented his angel research around the globe and has written for numerous academic and business journals. Sohl also sits on the New Hampshire Governor's Advisory Committee on Capital Formation, and is on the advisory and editorial boards for numerous organizations and publications.

James Geshwiler MBA '00

Chairman, Angel Capital Education Foundation
Managing Director, CommonAngels

James Geshwiler works with angel investors, venture capitalists, academic leaders and entrepreneurs around the country to foster better understanding of patterns and practices in angel investing.

Geshwiler joined CommonAngels in 1999, and since that time has participated in funding 24 companies through over 60 rounds of financing totaling more than $100 million as well as five M&A events and two shutdowns. Geshwiler is a contributing author to Cutting-Edge Practices in American Angel Investing,October 2003. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas, Austin, a master's degree in political science from UCLA, and an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management.

Edward B. Roberts '57, SM '58, SM '60, PhD '62

David Sarnoff Professor of the Management of Technology
Chair, MIT Entrepreneurship Center

Roberts co-founded and directed for nearly two decades the mid-career MIT Management of Technology Program. His "Entrepreneurs in High Technology: Lessons from MIT and Beyond" (Oxford University Press, 1991) won the Association of American Publishers Award for Outstanding Book in Business and Management. He is actively involved as a co-founder, board member, and angel investor in many high-tech startups.

Jerry Schaufeld

Former Director, Slater Fund
Founder and former Chairman of the MIT Enterprise Forum

Schaufeld has a wealth of experience in entrepreneurship, management, and funding of technology-based companies. Schaufeld was a member of the Navigator Technology Ventures Board and Launchpad Angels, and co-founder of Cherrystone Angels. In addition, Schaufeld was a founder and the first Founder and former Chairman of the MIT Enterprise Forum.