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| |  | | Pitch deck analysis is good and useful, but a methodical UX teardown can serve as a roadmap for founders and product teams who are pressed for time. Steve O’Hear interviewed Peter Ramsey, a user-experience expert who opened a dozen bank accounts with incumbent and challenger banks so he could record “every click, screen and action.” "Quite literally, I opened 12 real bank accounts," he explains. "You remember the stress of opening one account? I did that 12 times, [and] it was probably a terrible idea. But I really needed to control as many variables as possible, and this was the only way of doing that." Ramsey is releasing his analysis with case studies on his company’s web site, but Steve landed an interview and early access to some of his key findings in an extensive Extra Crunch Q&A. We’ll even let you know which bank took first place. We’re off on Monday for Memorial Day, so have a relaxing long weekend. Thanks for reading! Walter Thompson
Senior Editor, TechCrunch
@yourprotagonist Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: yangyang / Getty Images | | Enterprise reporter Ron Miller reached out to a dozen investors who are active in SaaS companies to find out what they’re looking for in their next investments. Their responses were detailed and varied, but the future of work and DevOps were recurring topics. If you’re interested in learning what these VCs are thinking and talking about these days, please read: - Max Gazor, CRV
- Navin Chadda, Mayfield
- Matt Murphy, Menlo Venture Capital
- Soma Somasagar, Madrona Ventures
- Jon Lehr, Work-Bench
- Steve Herrod, General Catalyst
- Jai Das, Sapphire Ventures
- Max Gazor, CRV
- Ed Sim, Boldstart Ventures
- Martin Cassado, Andreessen Horowitz
- Vassant Natarajan, Accel
- Dharmesh Thakker, Battery Ventures
Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Juana Mari Moya / Getty Images (Image has been modified) | | As Clydesdale-sized unicorns wait on the sidelines for the IPO window to reopen, a number of API-based startups have been “raising capital in rapid-fire fashion,” writes Alex Wilhelm, a signal that these firms have solid business models. To discern a trend, he studied six recent raises that suggest these high-growth companies are very well-positioned to ride out the current uncertainty. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Darren Murph | | As Head of Remote for a company with more than 1,200 employees in 65+ countries, Darren Murph not only helps GitLab shape culture and internal policy, he’s also an evangelist. In the opener to a two-part interview, Murph offers guidance for companies that were compelled to make WFH their default and talks about building productive teams with shared values — when no one has met each other in real life. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Steve Jennings / Getty Images | | In Part 2 of their interview, Darren Murph discusses the massive rush to creating remote work environments, creating work/life balance, and explains the concept of “short toes.” Read more | | | |
| |  | | Dear Sophie: Fallout from COVID-19 is forcing our startup to downsize. What legal requirements do we need to consider if we're laying off foreign-born employees or scaling back their hours? — HR Manager in San Mateo Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: | | Alexia Bonatsos of Dream Machine and Niko Bonatsos of General Catalyst joined Alex Wilhelm for an episode of Extra Crunch Live this week to talk about where they’re investing their time and money these days. The conversation touched on a wide range of topics, so Alex gathered some transcribed highlights regarding the future of AI, today’s fundraising climate, “and the possible impact of the downturn on VC-backed founder diversity.” You can watch/listen to the full chat on YouTube — if you’re an Extra Crunch member. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / Bryce Durbin | | In spite of pandemic-fueled layoffs, acquisitions and other travails, the analyst who coined the term “micromobility” says the industry is poised for a comeback. "The companies involved may not survive a crisis," Horace Dediu told TechCrunch. "We don't remember the fact there were 3,000 automobile companies in the United States prior to Henry Ford's Model T. We don't remember all the electrical suppliers out there and the consolidation that took place in the electrical field with Westinghouse. There's a lot of historic references we can cite. But the fact of the matter is that up until the crisis there was an over-investment where probably too much capital was allocated to the industry chasing business models which are not sustainable…I think there will be a washout with a kind of consolidation and we're seeing that already." Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / Bryce Durbin | | Managing Editor Danny Crichton writes that VCs are more likely to use veiled language like “we will be engaging less” or “we are unlikely to do our pro rata going forward,” instead of saying, “we are writing you off; don't call us — we'll call you.” Watching someone cut the rope you’re hanging from is upsetting, but if you can gather information and get clarity on some key issues, you’ll be prepared “to work through this thicket of feeling.” Read more | | | |
| |  | | Verizon Communications CEO Hans Vestberg will appear on Extra Crunch Live to discuss the business impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the challenges associated with managing 135,000 employees during a global health emergency. Given his broad portfolio, we’ll see if he has any insights for founders about managing a company at scale, but we’ll also discuss Verizon’s 5G rollout, a subject of interest for many startups. Sign up here to join Extra Crunch so you’ll have a chance to ask a question during the chat. Verizon Communications is TechCrunch’s parent company. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Marvin E. Newman / Getty Images | | A report from Sandalphon Capital offers gloomy news regarding tight cash runways and fundraising in the Midwest’s startup scene, but “it also reflects more optimism and green shoots than we anticipated,” writes Alex Wilhelm. The report gathered data from 197 CEOs in the region, so Alex examined the study with a focus on COVID-19's direct impacts, runway and fundraising situations, and overall CEO optimism. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Jung Getty / Getty Images | | Six of the world's leading CISOs shared their COVID-19 experiences and their plans for the future, providing insights on how cybersecurity companies should develop and market their solutions to emerge stronger: Ian Amit, Cimpress
Colin Anderson, Levi Strauss & Co.
Al Ghous, ServiceMax
Adrian Ludwig, Atlassian
Rinki Sethi, Rubrik
Elwin Wong, Ross Stores Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: rudall30 / Getty Images | | To gain some insight into the post-unicorn era, Alex Wilhelm revisited a 2010 blog post by developer/entrepreneur David Heinemeier Hansson titled “Facebook is not worth $33,000,000,000.” “DHH wrote that profits matter, companies are ultimately valued on them, and that companies that don't scale financial results as they add customers (or users) aren't great,” Alex summarized. “All of the arguments work.” Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Richard Drury / Getty Images | | After the check is cut, founders and investors enter the next phase of their relationship, which means it’s time to establish good habits when it comes to communication, trust and transparency. Creating a three-month timeline will help founders who want to get the most value out of their investor relationships — and it’s Entrepreneurship 101. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: TechCrunch / Flickr | | Box CEO Aaron Levie started his company 15 years ago in a dorm room, but today, he’s the executive of a publicly-traded company who’s preparing to enter his second economic downturn. In an Extra Crunch Live chat on May 28, we’ll ask how he’s applying what he learned during the 2008 crisis to the current moment and if he has any guidance for companies that are speeding up their digital transformation during the pandemic. Extra Crunch members will have a chance to ask questions during the discussion; please sign up here so you can participate. Read more | | | |
| |  Image Credits: Peter Dazeley / Getty Images | | Forget what you’ve learned, advises Mikael Johnsson, co-founder and general partner of Oxx, a growth-stage VC firm that invests in European SaaS companies. “The world has changed for everyone, and nowhere is this more true than in fundraising.” To help founders find their balance on this shifting landscape, he offers five basic survival strategies. The first? “Adjust your expectations.” Read more | | | |
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