Roizen believes startups should have venture capital, but at the right time and used judiciously. She talks about the Barbell syndrome, where startups raise money for the first and last rounds, but not the rounds in between. It is very difficult to raise these middle rounds, which allow startups to treat money better.

Previously, Roizen says it used to take three years for startups to reach liquidity; now the time frame is five to seven years. As a result, she recommends startups get to know the VC well and trust them because they will be working with the VC for many years. Now as an entrepreneur, she says, you have to work for a living!

Roizen talks about what she would look for in a VC. From her perspective, acquiring a VC is the only time you're getting someone to work for you and pay you at the same time. She recommends people populate their investor pool with VCs who will add value to their company.

In an interview with Forbes magazine, Roizen projects what will happen in 2002. Mobius Venture Capital is excited to move forward. Since the bubble of 2001, companies that should have died have died, and those that are struggling are beginning to gain some traction.

Heidi Roizen, managing director for Mobius Venture Capital, explains that Mobius Venture Capital has $1.5 B under management in current fund, $1 B in prior fund, and 100 active portfolio companies. There are ten VCs at Mobius who invest mostly in software, communication, wireless, next generation and web services, she says.

VCs give entrepreneurs money and want to get a lot more of it back sometime in the future, Roizen says. Unlike VCs, corporate investors generally want an early view into the technology and sweet deals from a business development perspective. If you are taking money from corporate investors, Roizen cautions, make sure you know what they want and what you want.

Timing is everything when starting a company, Roizen says. Mobius raised their money in a good time and now have a lot of gas in the tank, she notes. Some companies needed money in June 2001 when people were not answering phone calls. She considers this an example of bad timing.

Roizen talks about her experience in taking venture capital. She learned that if one can use venture funds judiciously to raise the inflection point, then it makes sense to do it. For her, it was an economic decision. Other reasons to take VC money involve credibility issues. Customers want to see that you have partners and money in the bank to prove that you will be around, she says.

Roizen talks about performance and limited partners in venture capital. Smaller funds on the most part are suffering. A large funds success depends on what a startup's past performance has been.

It is important that the startup team have experience - a combination of grey hair and youth is good, says Roizen. VC's have learned that it is not wise to fund a team with only college students, but older people cannot get funding without youth. VC's are looking for a technology to exploit with a team of individuals comprised of young and experienced members.