Unlock the Mystery of Sand Hill Road: A Comprehensive Guide to Venture Capital Investment

Kurt C. Davis: Scott does a great job revealing the knowledge, tactics, and negotiations needed to get VC funding. His writing is simple and clear. He guides the reader/entrepreneur through the entire process — from the key questions they will ask to the term sheet. If you are raising money, save yourself a lot of time and headaches, read this first. Thanks for writing it, Scott

United States on Aug 12, 2023

Raskolnikov: The book meet my expectations but nothing more. It explains in clear terms how Venture Capital and the start up ecosystem work. The information is useful and well grounded but this is not a book that seduces you into the topic; in my opinion it lack the human side of the story and hence does not engage you at the personal level.

To me this would qualify as a text book: the authon does not dare to make bold assumptions or give enlightening premises.

One thing I learn is that common mortals usually cannot buy IPO stock and by the time the market opens to them the profits are already reaped: mostly on him - the late investor.

Mexico on May 21, 2023

Luis F. S. Carvalho: As a founder of a VC backed startup, I found the author’s ideas totally realistic and picture the exact scene. One of the best books I ever read about venture capital for scalable business.

Germany on Feb 27, 2023

Agustin: It’s a good and interesting book, but it gets very specific on topics that mostly apply to Series A+ companies.

United States on Jan 05, 2023

Allyson: Read this book for my class on venture capital and really enjoyed it. Author does a great job of storytelling while also teaching about the topic. Highly recommend if you are interested in venture capital or startup funding.

United States on Dec 22, 2022

YasTech Developments: The book was like new even though it was used. Shipped quickly as well.

Canada on Jul 07, 2022

Amazon Kunde: Prior to reading this book, I knew almost nothing about Venture Capitalists (VCs). I live in Europe and am about to start a little business, but without plans on raising VC any time soon, so I'm not really the Silicon Valley type of guy this book aims for. Nevertheless, this book was packed with value for me! I had to put the book down several times mid-reading to take notes and to edit or add the business plan I currently write for my business.

Many business-books use 200+ pages just to bring across one or two vague “mindsets”, but this book is full of specific information about the whole start-up/VC world, that you can implement today. Who are VCs, what motivates them financially and non-financially, where and from whom is the money coming from, what are VCs looking for in a young company and how do they assess a proposal that is often nothing more than some pages of a business plan or some Power Point slides? Which questions should you ask yourself prior to raising money from VCs? How much money should you raise? Etc...

All of these things get answered in this book, including the reasons behind them. All of them are really valuable to know, even if you don’t...

Germany on May 25, 2021

Dhruv Trehan: I have been meaning to get my hands on a book that gives me an overview of the venture capital space. There are several books written about building startups but, there are only a few that introduce the process of seeking venture financing, or provide an insider look at the venture industry. There are many resources on the internet, but none as comprehensive as Scott Kupor's 'Secrets of Sand Hill Road.' The book is written in an easy to follow and engaging tone, and there are several points at which Scott addresses the reader directly and involves them in some quick problem solving, nothing too fancy. These add a lot of value to the book, just as much as the anecdotes from Scott's work at a16z.

India on Jul 06, 2020

Jon H.: Wow. As soon as I heard about this book I knew I was going to read it. But I had low expectations. I'd heard the author promoting his book on several podcasts and when I heard him say things like, "In my book, I pull back the curtain and reveal the secrets used at VC firms," I prepared myself for disappointment.

Boy, was I pleasantly surprised to be wrong!

-The author breaks down all the lingo, jargon, and highfalutin finance double-speak that sounds made up to the layman
-He helps you understand not just the relationship between the VC and the startup, but also the relationship between the VC and the LP
-You get to see the incentive structures LP's and VC's typically agree on, helping you (the entrepreneur) understand what motivates all the parties involved
-The book provides a mock term sheet with realistic numbers and devotes a chapter to each section of the term sheet

I could go on and on....

This definitely isn't a casual read - especially once it gets to the sample term sheet. The book can dive deep into details and abstractions (there were several sections I had to read multiple times - but I guess that's why I'm not a VC!), and that's...

United States on Sep 10, 2019

DanaJ: If I were to describe Scott Kupor’s Secrets of Sand Hill Road in a word, it would be “mistitled.” A more appropriate title would be something along the lines of The Basics of Sand Hill Road. The book does a solid enough job of covering the entire venture backed startup lifecycle in an easy to follow way. However, it’s hard to see how one could classify Kupor’s writing as revealing secrets.

Here and there, Kupor shares some really cool legal case studies that I’ve never come across, such as in the chapter about board member duties. Now that’s quality insight even someone who’s been in the ecosystem for 5+ years can appreciate! And it’s also something that Kupor, a lawyer by training, is particularly well positioned to share. I sincerely wish we’d gotten more of those case studies, legal or otherwise, because they make the whole journey through the startup lifecycle all the more interesting.

Instead, Kupor at times dons the Captain Obvious cape, with pronouncements such as “building relationships [with potential acquirers] is important.” Thanks, Scott, who would’ve thought?!

At the same time though, I recognize I may not be the target...

United States on Jun 15, 2019