Randy Komisar, a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, explains his title of Virtual CEO, which does not have a specific meaning.It is extremely adaptive and evolves to his changing roles. The purpose of the title was to provide a sort of identity on a business card that he could point at and say "this is what I do."
The role of the Virtual CEO is peculiar to Komisar and his own strengths and weaknesses.It was created as a way to bring together his diverse experiences in some kind of a flexible role that includes helping to guide emerging leaders and nurture emerging companies.
According to Komisar, he provides the biggest value to companies at the beginning, and his value diminishes as the company grows and becomes more operational.He initially focuses on helping companies develop an overall strategy and business plan at a conceptual level.As the company evolves, he becomes more of the problem solver, rather than the generalist.
Recently, Komisar has noticed that the IPO market is reopening and VCs are becoming anxious to invest.There are a number of companies lined up to go public.There tends to be a lag in the markets of step technologies, while the customers catch up to the advance, but they do catch up and a large amount of value is created in the process, he says.
According to Komisar, what distinguishes the Silicon Valley is not its successes, but the way in which it deals with failures.The Valley is about experimentation, innovation, and taking new risks. Only a small business that can deal with failure and still make money can exist in this environment.It is a model based on many, many failures and a few extraordinary successes.
A basic skill set covering finance, organization, transactions, strategy, and business models can be taught successfully, says Komisar.These skills are useful for engineers because they provide context about the personality and character of entrepreneurship.The case study method is especially effective.However, how to have an entrepreneurial character is something that cannot be taught.Being comfortable with uncertainty and ambiguity is something you either have or you don't, he says.
Komisar explains that there is no balanced life in being a CEO. It is a 24/7 job and is all-consuming.After being a CEO, Komisar decided to cut back and bring his life back into balance so he could have time for all the things he enjoyed. It is essential to stay ethical and never put yourself in a situation where you can't say no and cut back.Maintaining a balanced life is a dynamic quest and changes as your priorities change. People who know and respect you can be a powerful resource in helping you find this balance.
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.