Post by Tien Wong

"We're looking for strategic investors." It's one of the most common statements I hear from founders—and one of the most misunderstood. After organizing nearly 500 investor events and working with hundreds of tech and life sciences companies, I've watched founders spend months pursuing strategic investors who were never actually buyers. In this article, I explain why strategic investors are often the slowest money in the room, why curiosity is not commitment, and why many founders have the sequence backwards when it comes to attracting strategic capital. Opus8, Inc. The Big Idea CONNECTpreneur Community Skylar Rallison Emily Baker-McEvilly Avery North New York Private Equity Forums Sheik Akij Carrie Zhang Bei Ma Mei Sun Cephas Sund, JD, MBA Joseph P. Don Rainey Hamlet Yousef Andrew M. Deborah Hemingway, PhD Chris Frew Shawn J. Green Christopher Steele Kelly Schulz John Newby, JD, CAE Tom Weithman Jennifer Taylor Troy Stovall George Davis Tammi Thomas Kendalle Burlin O'Connell, Esq. John F. Crowley