Update from the NSS Team…..
Last quarter of 2012 was a busy one for NSS. Some highlights here:
New in 2013
Category Archives: Emerging Businesses
CEO of NSS participates as Advisor in Larta NIH-CAP Life Sciences
Rudi Scheiber-Kurtz, CEO of Next Stage Solutions is participating in the life sciences Commercialization Assistance Program (NIH-CAP). The program’s purpose is to support SBIR funded companies to commercialize. The feedback sessions are by invitation-only and held in three cities nationwide and in Boston on Feb 3rd and 4th. Boston will have 20 medical device, healthcare, biotech and pharmaceutical companies presenting. This is Ms. Scheiber-Kurtz’s third year of mentoring early stage life sciences start-ups through this program. For more information about the program go to www.larta.org
US Market Access: A Talk on Regulations and live Case Study on Swiss Medical Device Company
A Talk on Regulations and Certifications of Medical Devices for the US Market
Harsha Jattani will give a talk on the need to adapt when marketing themselves in either country. Key aspects on existing laws and legislation will be explored. Following the talk, a panel including Harsha Jattani, Rudi Scheiber-Kurtz, CEO of Next Stage Solutions and Robert Cunningham will lead the case study discussion of RehaxOne, a Swiss medtech start-up, with Co-Founder Frederic LaSala present.
SwissNex Consulate of Switzerland in Boston is sponsoring this event on Monday, Nov 15, 2010
HIRE Tax Breaks Supporting the Recovery
By Lauriston Taylor, Controller Consultant, Next Stage Solutions, Inc. (NSS)
Summary:
The IRS has implemented two new tax breaks under the HIRE (Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act) program that will provide new incentives for employers to stimulate their staffing efforts. Employers may qualify for the following two tax exemptions:
- Payroll tax: 6.2 percent payroll exemption of social security tax on wages, effective dates are 2 February 2010 through 31 December 2010.
- New Hire Retention credit: $1,000 per additional new worker that is retained for at least one year with no significant wage reductions during the later part of the year
Qualified Employees:
Those employees beginning employment after 3 February 2010 and before 1 January 2010 for a period of 60 days have been previously unemployed or worked 40 hours or less. The following situations will qualify:
– hiring a replacement for an existing position that has become vacant due to termination for cause or voluntary resignation
– staffing of a new company and its initial staff
– hiring for public colleges and universities
The staffing additions listed below will not qualify:
– State, local and federal positions
– House hold employers
– Independent contractors
– Employees who are related to the employer or who directly or indirectly own more than 50 percent of the business
The new hire should supply a signed Form W-11 and this should be kept on file for record keeping purposes.
Additional information:
For further details please refer to the IRS website
Form W-11 can be downloaded from this link
Reflections from the NSS CEO Workshop- Sept 21, 2010
The workshop was sponsored by NSS and hosted by WilmerHale Venture Group. The NSS CEO Workshop Series is intended for CEOs of revenue producing companies.
The board room was chuck full at the WilmerHale Venture Group office in Waltham. The invited speakers were Joan McArdle of Mass Resource Capital, Jane Braun of Silicon Valley Bank, Robin Lockwood of Flybridge Venture Partners and Christopher Mirabile of RacePoint Capital LLC. The panel discussion was led by Lee Schindler of WilmerHale.
The focus was around changes in the funding arena and how that has affected each group. We then opened it up to a dialogue with the CEOs.
Here are some interesting facets of this discussion (loosely defined by NSS):
- Significant changes in activity around Angel Groups, almost a flip side between VC and Angel funding.
- More syndications between Angels and VCs. Angels are valuation centric.
- Huge migration in the VC world and closing of funds from 800-900 down to 600-700 VC funds
- Because of high multiples among some VCs, Angels are filling some of that gap
- With uncertainties in economy it has been hard for companies to commit to expansions
- Lots of Re-Capitalizations are happening. Good timing. With lower interest rates it is advisable to reconsider a re-cap with the layers of debt and the different view from lenders a company may have. Mass Capital Resources provides this type of re-cap with a 2-3yr interest only financing. Mass Capital is currently doing deals in the $1M to $5M range and at an interest rate typically between 10% and 12%.
- Companies are starting to invest again. All agreed that they are seeing an uptick in business activities.
- There is a huge Global push
- More VCs give smaller checks
- VC’s today are investing in companies that are capital efficient or not at all.
- It’s more difficult to get investment in a product or services business than it is in a software business.
- How do you get a highly leveraged company to an exit in today’s market? Not really any differently.
- How can an entrepreneur know how much money to raise? Determine what the life of an investment is and then try to match it with the right investor. For example, an investment of $500K to $2.5M over the life of the investment probably won’t be appealing to a typical VC. Putting in $30M over the life of the investment would be more appealing.
- How often do Angels and VC participate in similar events? There are some forums when a mixture of investors is present.
- How about grants as a way to get some funding? That may be a good thing (it’s non-dilutive) as long as it fits your business strategy. Do not lose focus.
- Whether or not an angel or VC invests in the company depends in large part on how good the entrepreneur is. “Can he/she do it?”
- Best thing to do if you’re raising money – Don’t go around town asking for money. Instead, spend your time building relationships with investment community, asking questions like “what would you do if you were me?”
- M&A activity is picking up and deal flow is up
Our next CEO Workshop will be Tuesday, November 9 from 7:30am-9:30am and the topic will be around “Merger & Acquisitions”. Save the date!
Interview with NSS team member – Steve Dance
Steve Dance is part of the NSS team. He brings over 30 years of high level financial expertise in Life Sciences and High Tech. Steve has raised over $500MM in capital.
Most Satisfying: In your CFO work you have done in the past, what is the most satisfying feedback you got from the CEO?
That the CEO could always count on me to be calm and focused during a crisis.
Most Inventive: Given that as CFO we understand the importance of providing our clients with more than just accounting and financial reporting, share with us a project that truly made you a value creator.
The sale of one of my previous employers to a major biotechnology company was a complex process, with many potential obstacles arising during the negotiation and due diligence process. As CFO, I was part of the negotiation team and provided the bulk of the due diligence materials. I was responsible for resolving the many issues that came up during the sale process. I believe I was able to establish a strong level of trust with the acquirer’s team and we were able to reach agreement on all the issues, and the sale was successfully concluded.
Most Positive: CFOs have different skill set, yet often we are viewed as one of the same. Tell us a story where your actions made a powerful positive change and why.
I was CFO for a biotech company in California that had 300 employees, over 200 of whom were located in Europe, principally in Lyon, France, following a recent acquisition. Since I speak French, I was able to establish good relations with the finance group in France, and ultimately the rest of the management team. I played a key role in ensuring that the needs of the European team were met and consequently was appointed President of European Operations in addition to my CFO duties. The good relationships that I built with the European organization also enabled me to negotiate successfully with the French labor union to avoid a workers’ strike that would have halted manufacturing.
Best Business Book: What should every CEO be reading going forward in this tepid economy?
The Wall Street Journal – still a great way even in this digital age to keep on top of what is happening in the business world.
Funniest Fact: Tell us something funny about you.
I was raised in Wimbledon, England and when I was a kid I used to go and watch the tennis at Wimbledon every year. In those days the players used to walk through the crowds on their way to the courts. One time I got too close to a player and he accidentally trod on my foot. My foot was sore for days afterwards; the player won his match.
What Board Directors should do about Risk?
NSS Advisory Board member Steve Honig, partner in the Boston office of Duane Morris, a national law firm, published an interesting article in Lawyers Weekly. It ponders with the issue around corporate governance and Enterprise Risk Management.
