Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Randy Komisar joined Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers as a partner in 2005. Several years prior, Komisar partnered with entrepreneurs creating businesses with leading edge technologies.
He was a co-founder of Claris Corporation, he served as CEO for LucasArts Entertainment and Crystal Dynamics, and he's acted as a "virtual CEO" for such companies as WebTV, Mirra, and GlobalGiving. He was a founding Director of TiVo where he remains current chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee. Earlier, Komisar served as CFO of GO Corporation and as Senior Counsel for Apple Computer, following a private practice in technology law.
Komisar holds a BA in Economics from Brown University and a JD from Harvard Law School. He is a Consulting Professor of Entrepreneurship at Stanford University and author of the best-selling book The Monk and the Riddle, as well as several articles on leadership and entrepreneurship. His most recent book with co-author John Mullins is Getting to Plan B.
Related Links: www.kpcb.com
Last Updated: Thu, Apr 8, 2010
Komisar relates some of the advice that George Lucas, acclaimed director of the Star Wars series, gave him in order to create compelling and visionary ideas: It is difficult to paint on a blank canvas, but it is easier to do so when there are few dots already splashed on. The notion of innovating around inchoate concepts are applicable to the entrepreneurship business, Komisar notes. 
Komisar describes a great entrepreneur as someone that works hard and knows how to take advantage of new opportunities. These opportunities need not be created by the entrepreneur, he says, but by others and the market around them. It is also important to note that even great entrepreneurs fail for reasons beyond their control.
Komisar warns against the concept of a deferred life plan, when people put off what they really want to do for what is expected of them. According to Komisar, this is when you are deferring your sense of excitement and passion for what you really care about. Working hard is not inconsistent with the deferred life plan, he adds, but doing so for a product that you do not have interest in is. 
Though Randy Komisar, KPCB partner and seasoned entrepreneur, proposes that most successful ventures do not find success in their initial business idea, he still maintains there is value in constructing a thoughtful initial plan. Any "Plan A" must flesh out your business' assumptions, challenges, and risk mitigation. Those critical first thoughts on paper help the entrepreneur to create a language with which to discuss their strategy and move forward.
A specialist in early-stage ventures, Randy Komisar of KPCB describes a typical work day for himself, and offers insight into they type of contact he likes to keep with his vested interests. Of the ten CEO's he works with in a cycle, a usual day will start by touching base with three or four of them. He spends some time reviewing new potential projects; checking references, etc. And he notes that he spends a tremendous amount of time reading up on various market sectors and verticals.
Randy Komisar, a partner with VC firm KPCB, opines on the most recent trends for investment as of Spring of 2010. He points out that the consumer internet is a difficult business to gauge, and gives that sector a yellow light. However, he gives a green light to green and sustainable ventures, noting that they have the potential to build a tremendous asset in legacy businesses. Komisar is also a fan of substantial and "unsexy" tools for consumers, such as patents and home equity protection applications, as they, too, are a large growth area currently attractive to the VC set.
Can one truly develop a business plan before having a product or a customer in-hand? Not very successfully, contends KPCB partner Randy Komisar. In this clip, Komisar discusses the premise for his book, "Getting to Plan B", in which he points out how often the theory of a start-up succumbs to its execution. Komisar goes on to point out that thinking of Plan B as part of the process can change the way we think about constructing and managing the start-up.
Komisar talks about what he looks forward to in his career and life. He advises others who are unsure about the future to find ways to optimize their situation, the people they work with, and the flow of available opportunities. He also notes that the notion of being in motion is an important aspect of who he is and what he enjoys doing. 
Komisar explains how the original TiVO concept went through multiple transformations. Originally, the TiVO entrepreneurs wanted to create a stand-alone VCR box that would be sold by large retailers. Over time and with the guidance of Komisar, the entrepreneurs realized it would make better sense to offer TiVo as a service instead of a hardware product with low-margins. 
According to Komisar, the nature of the work in Kleiner Perkins is very hands on. He meets with companies every week to build their strategies, partnerships and relationships. For this reason, it is no surprise that many companies from around the world move their management teams to Silicon Valley to build the business; the ecosystem in the area is very reinforcing. On the other hand, this is also why it is difficult for a venture capitalist to back and support a company that exists entirely in another country. 
Randy Komisar, a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and author of the best-selling book The Monk and the Riddle, talks about how innovation occurs at Kleiner Perkins. Instead of giving projects a thumbs up or thumbs down, the firm uses a set of filters to review and improve these projects. Through this process of iteration, innovation and problem solving occurs between investors and entrepreneurs, he notes. 
According to Komisar, creating visibility and driving sales are two different tasks. Marketing channels are pretty well honed, but driving sales requires more attention. As an entrepreneur, you play a large part in creating the demand for your product and Google is not going to do that for you. You have to convince people that your product will save them money, he says.
Komisar believes that the ability and commitment to building businesses rather than just investing in it is what makes successful venture capital firms.
Don't avoid taking a leap of faith, says partner at KPCB Randy Komisar, but be certain to correctly define it. What's key in successfully making the jump is that it prioritizes three questions you're forced to answer, providing extreme market and product focus. The result will either flatten your idea or make your business soar.
Dunn believes that lack of transparency has led to a lack of competition in the non-profit world, which has witnessed an absence of business rigor. She is confident that there is an opportunity for radical transformation in the non-profit world.
Komisar talks about his transition from teaching at Stanford to getting into the structured environment of venture capital firms. He discusses the things he found appealing about his job as a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers.
To find companies to work with, Komisar engages in a sort of dating process. First, the company has to be referred to him by a trusted source. Second, he holds a meeting in order to get to know the person and find out what they are trying to do with the business. Komisar is only interested if the business is an interesting opportunity and the person is someone who has merit and can make a difference. This process of getting to know the founder can take months before Komisar is willing to commit.
Komisar explains that there are different types of entrepreneurs for various stages in a company using an analogy from his book, The Monk and the Riddle. Early stage entrepreneurs, like a bloodhound, seek out resources to get the company off the ground. To grow the company, an operation leader is needed, like a husky that is willing to pull the sled and get the company to a public market liquidity. If the company ever faces difficult situations, a rescuer, like a St. Bernard, tries to save it. 
In conversation with Stanford's Tina Seelig, KPCB's Randy Komisar points out that while customer feedback is a good idea, it should not be the de facto driver for products and solutions. Too often, consumers miss the mark on inventions (such as ATM's and mobile phones) because they can't conceive that they would ever need them. The smart entrepreneur, says Komisar, asks questions to determine if there is a market need, rather than testing a first-to-market product itself.
Dunn and Komisar give advice to graduating students from Stanford University to never stop learning as well as spend a considerable amount of time to figure out the things one is truly passionate about.