US Expansion Plans for Tech Companies by Octopus Ventures

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While its dominance in global VC funding is being curtailed, the US is still a leader in innovation investments. In 2017, 53% of the $160 billion venture capital invested globally was invested in the US.
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company market business custom employee tax
http://www.techcelerate.ventures
Helping tech companies raise equity investment
About Techcelerate Ventures

Tech Investment and Growth Advisory for Series A in the UK, operating in £150k to £5m investment market, working with #SaaS #FinTech #HealthTech #MarketPlaces and #PropTech companies.
company market business custom employee tax
Question the Questions
Applying some Socrates to your US expansion plans
Before we start
Since big documents can be hard to navigate, here's how you can make  
the most of all the content we created and curated for you. 
This icon helps you identify the 
resources that are also available  
in the Toolkit section. 
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4. Then Do
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Then Do
Who is leading your team?
Who is on your US advisory board?
How do you set up in the US?
How do you protect your IP?
Where will your office be?
Which taxes are you liable for?
How do you build a talented team?
How can you successfully fundraise in the US?
Who is leading your team?
If the US is your most important market, it merits a key member of the 
core team. Who will you send over from Europe to build up culture?
"Americans love an underdog story, but they want to hear it from the hero's mouth."
The choice of US lead is critical: You need someone trusted by the CEO to build, sell and have complete dedication  
to the effort. We've written before about the various lessons learned by over 50 VC-backed CEOs in the US, and the 
consensus around one particular issue is clear: CEO and/or Founder 
DNA is a necessary - if not sufficient - condition for success in the 
US. When asked about the #1 insight the CEOs tell other 
entrepreneurs about entering the US, the most cited phrase was  
a variation of "a founder has to move to make it work." 
It's a point worth emphasizing, given its importance to your 
success at home and abroad: If you cannot spare a key member of the team, the domestic business is likely not 
ready for the expansion; if you cannot have a key member of the team on the ground, the US operation is likely to 
suffer on a variety of fronts:
US customers will be less likely to trust 
your commitment to this market. 
Market credibility and signaling commitment are 
important given the level of competition in the US.  
purchase products and services from local companies. 
The internal culture is likely to diverge -  
and suffer.
Culture is critical for hiring, retention and brand 
identity - and consequently critical for your success  
as a company. 
"  If it is your most important market: send a key member of the core team.  
Don't hedge. Commit." - Rhodri Thomas, Swiftkey 
Confessions of ventures  
who launched in the US
 Category
Good
Best
LTV
$50
$200+ (repeat spending)
Market Size
$5bn
$100bn+ (growing market)
Revenue Growth
100%+
300%+ (organic growth)
4. Then Do
Just click on logos at the end  
of each testimonial to check out  
the companies that have already 
expanded to the US. 
Confessions of ventures  
who launched in the US
The resource buttons direct you  
to the relevant references and you 
can instantly find out more.
Just click the icon to be 
redirected to the section 
you'd like to explore. 
On the first page of  
each section you'll find a 
clickable content list, so 
you can quickly access all 
your favourite topics.
Each section is presented 
with a different colour 
and clearly highlighted  
so you always know 
where you are.
Introduction  
 
 7 What makes the US so attractive?  
 
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2. First Ask   
 14
Should you expand abroad?  
 
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Should you enter the US?  
 
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Is the timing right?  
 
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What milestones and timelines must you meet?  
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What are the industry dynamics in the US?   
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Who is your competition?  
 
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How do you know you have product-market fit?  
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What is your US ideal customer profile?  
 
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What is your regulatory burden in the US?  
 
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What legal considerations are key?  
 
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Which visa do you need?  
 
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What is your budget?   
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3. Then Test  
 
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How much do you like flying?  
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Have you built a local network?  
 
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Can the industry name your brand?   
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Can you sell like an American?  
 
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How will you price your products?  
 
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4. Then Do   
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Who is leading your team?  
 
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Who is on your US advisory board?  
 
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How do you set up in the US?   
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How do you establish a US corporate entity?  
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What is the right banking solution for you?  
 
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How do you choose the right business insurance?  
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How do you protect your IP?  
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Where will your office be?  
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Do you need capital?  
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Which other US metro areas are worth exploring?  
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Which taxes are you liable for?  
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How do you build a high performing team?  
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How do you hire for a remote role?  
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What is your remuneration strategy?  
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How do you determine stock options for  
your US employees?  
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What benefits do you offer your team?  
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How are you managing your culture?  
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How do you successfully fundraise in the US?  
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-  Snapshot: Successful European companies with 
European-only investor base  
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-  Snapshot: US Investors increasingly investing in 
European Companies  
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What are important considerations in fundraising  
from US Investors?  
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The US VC perspective  
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Guidance on baseline metrics 
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The founders' perspective  
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5. Wrapping Up  
 
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"Could the land of the free cost you the Earth?"  
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Where to go next  
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About Octopus Ventures  
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6. Toolkit  
 
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Guiding questions  
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Irrational "inevitability" & other confessions  
of venture backed European CEOs who  
launched in the US  
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Coming to America: relocation tips  
from the (street) wise  
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Specialists in the field  
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Sample market entry timeline  
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The 4Ws of product-market fit  
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Building your US ideal customer profile  
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Relevant visas  
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Budget  
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Sample budget for new ventures  
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Conferences  
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Advisor compensation  
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Incorporating a US entity  
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Recruiters in the US  
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Metrics for fundraising  
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Software tools for people/talent functions  
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1. Prologue   
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4. Then Do (cont.)  
 
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Question the Questions
Applying some Socrates to your US expansion plans
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1. Introduction
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Prologue
The Question the Questions report 
first appeared in October 2017.
It captured the attention of many,  
so here we present it again with a few  
more questions and plenty of answers. 
The intention however remains the same:  
by feeding these questions through your 
planning process, you will emerge clearer 
about your intentions, your ambitions 
and your readiness to cross the Atlantic.
Introduction
The most famous of all philosophers wasn't into preaching.  
Socrates just asked disarmingly, devastatingly simple questions. 
(They killed him in the end, but that's another story). 
Applying just a bit of his technique to your preconceptions, 
hopes and plans for US expansion could save you 
months of work and possibly even your business.
The US is a massive market and requires a commensurate 
amount of dedication, resources and time. In some 
cases, the cost will be too high, or the timing won't be 
right; in others, the rational choice will be to accelerate 
the US expansion. Ultimately, we'd like to help you 
arrive at the strategy that is right for your business.
If you're looking for simple encouragement, this 
won't be the guide for you. International expansion 
adds a significant amount of complexity and 
risk to any business, and there are no single right 
answers. We've seen companies succeed (and fail) 
by being fast or slow, first or late, big or small.
That's not to say there are no patterns to success.  
While we're not offering you silver bullets, there is 
a lot you can do. Successful US expansion cases 
were extensively planned; failures succumbed 
to a sense of "inevitability" and rushed to 
market entry without robust validation. 
The framework of this document is not intended to 
be exhaustive; rather it is a starting point to drive 
and focus your discussion and help you interrogate 
your US ambition: Could the land of the free cost 
you the Earth? If the risk is too high, slow down and 
focus at home. If the strategy is sound and the 
time is right, we'll help you take the US by storm. 
Joy + hustle from New York,
Team Octopus
Disclaimer: We consider this work a living document. As technology, cultures and market 
dynamics shift, we are ready and eager to evolve with them. After reading this guide, let us know: 
Did we miss something here? We welcome your experiences, counterexamples, additional learnings 
and input - let's make version 3.0 together. 
"  The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on 
fighting the old but building the new."  Socrates
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1. Introduction
What makes the US so attractive?
While its dominance in global VC funding is being curtailed, the US is still  
a leader in innovation investments. In 2017, 53% of the $160 billion venture 
capital invested globally was invested in the US. 
Globally, the sum of capital invested into the venture asset class continues to accelerate. 
Global venture capital invested (10 years)1
 
1 Pitchbook 
2 Ibid 
Capital Invested
Deal Count
Capital  
Invested 
($bn)
United States 
Europe
China
ROW
Total
United States 
China
Europe
ROW
Capital  
Invested 
(%)
4%
3%
2%
6%
8%
11%
7%
11%
8%
9%
4%
3%
6%
9%
5%
4%
12%
19%
27%
27%
13%
16%
21%
14%1
8%
15%
13%
13%
13%
11%
79%
78%
70%
71%
69%
69%
68%
57%
53%
53%
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
And while the US is still a critical player, its dominant position is falling relative to, with investments  
growing in other world geographies.2 
Global venture capital invested (10 years)1
2008
$53.3bn
6,990
2017
$159.8bn
14,727
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1. Introduction
United States 
China
Europe
ROW
Capital  
Invested 
(%)
Capital  
Invested 
($bn)
United States 
Europe
China
ROW
Total
0
10
20
30
40
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
50
When you combine the proven expertise and availability of capital in the US with a population of 
324m4, internet penetration at 89%5, mobile phone penetration at 81%6and smartphone penetration 
at 67%7, the US is a prime market for new technologies. As of 2017 the US GDP stands at $19.39T8 
(versus the UK at 1.98T9, or $2.5T10). According to Gartner's 2018 assessment, annual IT spend of 
Fortune 2000 companies tops $3.7T 10.
Total amount raised in Early Stage VC deals $1M-$25M:3 
3, 12, 13 Pitchbook
4 World Bank
5-9 Statista - Internet usage in the US
10  Converted from  to $ using the December 31, 2017 conversion rate of 1.289 from OFX
11 Gartner
Nonetheless, the US still leads in total capital investment into early stage venture deals. 
Global Early Stage VC deals $1M-$25M:13
Capital Invested
Deal Count
2008
$29.7bn
808
2017
$50.7bn
1,570
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1. Introduction
United States 
ROW
Europe
China
Total
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Capital  
Invested 
($bn)
United States 
China
Europe
ROW
Capital  
Invested 
(%)
The US benefits from strong positioning in certain sectors14 
These headline fundamentals, combined with a robust business infrastructure and openness to innovation, make the 
US seem like a logical next step. That said, succeeding in the US means overcoming substantial risks. Launching and 
scaling in the US market is hard, and even when it is the right answer for your business' expansion, winning here is far 
from certain.
13  Pitchbook 
14  A special thank you to the UK Department of International Trade (DIT) (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/
department-for-international-trade) for their contributions. Aside from developing, coordinating and delivering new trade policy for the UK, the DIT 
helps UK businesses export and grow into global markets as well as expand in the UK
15 www.idc.com
16  Statista
US Corporations are acquisitive: 55% of the 1,570 acquisitions of VC-backed 
companies in 2017 were made by US companies.  
13
Subsector
Potential
Semiconductors & 
Electronic Systems
The US boasts 50% of the global market for semiconductors.
Cyber-security
US is home to 2/3 of the world's privately-owned cybersecurity companies.
Cloud computing
The US will be the largest market for cloud services, accounting for $163bn by 2021  
which is 60% of worldwide revenue.15 
SaaS
Fastest growing segment of cloud-based market. 28 states in the US do not levy sales 
tax on SaaS products including California, Illinois, New Jersey and Maryland, making 
these great locations to consider.
Autonomous Systems 
& Machine Learning
The West Coast of the US has attracted over 40% of all global investment in Artificial 
Intelligence and Machine Learning.
AdTech 
There's a very large advertising industry in the United States - $216bn in 2018, 
accounting for 39% of global ad spend.16 New York is an innovation hub for the industry. 
2. First Ask
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US Corporations are acquisitive, 55% of the 1,570 acquisitions of VC-backed 
companies in 2017 were made by US companies.  
Deal Count
Expansion abroad is unlikely to solve a lack of product-market fit (and might require new products), 
so watch out for expansion rationales that change the geography of an underlying problem. 
"  Our trigger to go to the US was competitor related; someone else was going to 
take the opportunity and it was quite unusual to be in a situation as a consumer 
business where, in the US at the outset, there weren't any peer models."   
Ed Boyes, Hello Fresh 
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2 
First Ask
Should you expand abroad?
Should you enter the US?
Is the timing right?
What milestones must you meet?
What are the industry dynamics in the US?
Who is your competition?
How do you know you have product-market fit? 
What is your ideal US customer profile?
What is your regulatory burden in the US?
What legal considerations are key? 
Which visa do you need?
What is your budget?
Should you expand abroad?
Before making the leap to go international, it's worth starting from square 
one. Why is expansion abroad critical to your company versus focusing on  
your home market? 
Without a well-developed, strategic rationale for international expansion, companies risk under resourcing their 
foreign entry, under-committing executive time and focus, and struggling to scale operations abroad. Stress-testing 
your answers to these questions can help ensure your team and Board are fully committed to the success of the 
international expansion.
Revenue limitations
 What is the potential in the home market?
  Is success in the home market sufficient for  
continued growth or an IPO?
 What are the limitations on the home market?
-   Is it a team constraint?
-   Is it a product constraint?
-   Is it a market constraint?
Sustaining competitive advantage
  Is presence in a single geography detrimental  
to your competitiveness? 
 Do customers demand global services?
  Must you look abroad in order to access specialized 
talent needed to grow the business that is otherwise 
not available in its home market?
  Do you need access to foreign capital that is not 
available in the home market?
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2. First Ask
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Should you enter the US?
If you've decided the US is a critical market relative to other international 
expansion options (i.e. other European markets, Asian markets), it's valuable  
to test its fit to your product.
Have you validated the US market?
  Do you have a deep understanding of product-market 
fit in the US?
  Do you have a good understanding of sales cycle 
differences in the US relative to your home market?
 Have you closed multiple reference customers in the 
US from Europe, or have you run representative  
consumer pilots?
  Do you have ROI / use cases from customers in  
the US?
 Do you have organic inbound leads from the US?
Do the financials work?
 Does the business model work under US constraints? 
  Have you stress-tested your financial requirements 
against US costs?
  What is the competitive landscape in the US, and  
how does it affect your customer acquisition cost  
and positioning?
  Will the investment and growth required to make  
the US entry a success hurt the domestic business?
 Most companies are drawn to the absolute size of the US, unaware of how it is fragmented and 
regional. Differences in consumer preferences, regulatory environments and regional costs can all 
pose challenges to achieving scale in the US. 
Is the timing right?
Timing is key. In our work with European companies, we've seen a pattern of 
success and risk mitigation emerge: companies enter the US either very early in 
their life or later on, when they have a strong business in their home market.
Go early
 Is the US the Company's primary market? 
  Is your primary distribution channel global in nature 
(i.e. via app marketplaces and platforms)? 
  Are you focused on digital health or education (or 
another market where the US is substantially larger 
than European markets, and a complete move can  
be a strategic decision)?
Often European entrepreneurs start building their startup 
in their home territory and then recognize that the market 
opportunity there pales into insignificance compared to 
the market opportunity for the same problem in the US. 
The early US entry is in effect a company move, whereby 
the European home market will be sacrificed in the near 
term. At an early stage, having two offices is often 
unrealistic from a funding, culture and operations 
standpoint. The founders elect to sacrifice (or at the very 
least substantially reduce activity) in the home market 
and commit to the new market completely.
The benefit of this approach is that the team will build 
only one product or service and it will be entirely focused 
on the new market. The startup's stage, funding raised, 
and customer traction then aligns with an early 
company in the US.
Go late
 Have you saturated the local market?
 Have you gone through renewal cycles?
  Is the domestic management team sufficiently  
strong to manage and grow the business in the 
absence of the CEO?
Once a sustainable core revenue and operating base  
has been built in the home market, the CEO or a core 
founder will be able to leave the home market and focus 
on the US with less risk of disruption. Many entrepreneurs 
who have successfully entered the US have chosen to do 
this much later in their company's evolution, often post 
Series C and when the core business is cash-flow break 
even. The Company's internationalization is less of a 
make-or-break move with a self-sustaining business at 
home. Teams can then afford to be measured and 
somewhat clinical, testing, iterating and only recruiting 
behind success. By having a stable core business, the 
pressure on the founder to make the new market work  
is greatly reduced.
Many companies enter the US at the wrong time: When they have initial traction in the  
home market, but before repeatability and scale have fully taken hold. That can put strain  
on a vulnerable position.
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2. First Ask
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6 to 9 months  
planning phase
6 to 12 months  
deployment phase
Beware of the in-between
Those founders who launched an international market before reaching scale in their home territory 
found both markets hard to deliver. The home territory was required to continue to be the engine of 
growth for the business, but with focus and resources now strained, the company now deals with double 
the level of complexity without operational scale. In many cases, those founders had to make the painful 
decision to retrench one to two years later. The knock-on effects of this can also be very painful: a 
business that is subscale in its home market and unproven internationally may struggle to raise 
additional fundraising and may be forced to seek several rounds of potentially dilutive internal funding.
"  It's easy to go too fast or be too early with the US launch before the company  
is prepared to take this challenge. It's a differently structured and 
hyper-competitive market; therefore, European entrepreneurs might benefit 
from considering soft launching there first."  Rytis Vitkauskas, YPlan
What milestones and timelines  
must you meet?
Having milestones and hurdles will help in qualifying your budget and in 
focusing your spending on high performance. What goals do you want to  
set yourself?
A lot of preparation for a move to the US can be done from Europe. Expect to have a 6 to 9-month planning phase, 
then a 6 to 12-month deployment phase where you establish operations on American soil and build out your team.
Graze wanted to test if its proposition resonated with US consumers. It 
allocated an initial budget to build a campaign and serve the US from Europe. 
The team created a landing page to collect US emails and started mailing 
snacks to the US directly from the UK. Once they had established that their 
proposition wouldn't change, they invested in New York operations.
"  For six months, we went into NYC for one week at a time monthly before launch 
(until we made our first hire). We wanted to talk to the key people and get to know 
all the players in the podcast market; I invited people to breakfast  the key NPR 
and WNYC podcasters  and became friends with many of them. That helped us 
very much"  Karl Rosander, Acast
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2. First Ask
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Sample market entry timeline
5%
US opportunity analysis
Initial product analysis 
Initial market analysis 
Initial budget analysis 
Product-market fit
Legal/Financial Considerations
Visas, legals, tax 
Budget proposal
US Leadership
Set US team leader
Regular travel to US
Brand Building
Conferences  
Build advisory board
Office Set Up
Office location 
 
Office location 
Administrative preparation
 
Administrative preparation 
Incorporate in the US 
Talent 
US employees 
Remuneration / options  
Benefits
Culture and communication
 
Regular travel to US
 
Regular travel to US
 
Regular travel to US
 
Regular travel to US
Ideal US Customer Profile
 
Initial product analysis 
 
Product-market Fit
Home business analysis
1. You're ready to consider whether or not the time is right for expansion to the US
2. On balance, it is clear that your business has more to gain than to lose by exploring further
3. You have referenceable US customers and a growing pull from the US market
24-21 months ahead
12-9 months ahead
21-18 months ahead
9-6 months ahead
18-15 months ahead
6-3 months ahead
15-12 months ahead
3 months - D-Day
Planning phase
Implementation phase
Timing of Entry
Set entry milestones
Support Resources 
Banking 
Insurance 
Relevant service providers
 
Banking 
Insurance 
Relevant service providers
 
 
Relevant service providers
 
 
Relevant service providers
 
US employees 
Remuneration / options  
Benefits
Culture and communication
 
US employees 
Remuneration / options  
Benefits
Culture and communication
 
US employees 
Culture and communication
Conferences  
Build advisory board
Conferences  
Build advisory board
Conferences  
Build advisory board
 
Regular travel to US
US Opportunity Analysis
Visas, Legals, Tax,  
Budget Deep Dive
Visas, legals, tax 
Set entry milestones
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2. First Ask
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17Statista - total ad spend in country/population
What are the industry dynamics in the US?
Often the industry dynamics in the US are very different from your home 
market. It's worth validating that you are well placed for sustained growth.
Many European entrepreneurs see the US as an incremental progression from the work they've done in the home 
market, when in most cases, a US operation is a return to square one. The expertise you've amassed at home could 
lead to blind spots in this new environment, if it steers you to make unfounded assumptions. Successful entrants 
question what they know.
Key questions
 What are the existing market restrictions?
  How easily and how frequently can your consumers switch between different companies that sell similar products?
  Why will it be easy for you to enter this industry, but difficult for others to follow in your footsteps?
  How many companies can the industry reasonably sustain?
  What is the value chain for your product/vertical in the US? Who is currently capturing value and how are they doing it?
  Do industry participants in the US control any proprietary methods or processes that are crucial to your expansion?
A cautionary tale is that of London-based ridesharing 
app Hailo. Hailo invested heavily and then spent less 
than six months in the US before it realized there were 
almost no margins to be made due to the price war 
between Uber and Lyft.
When Hailo arrived in New York in 2013 it tried to use the 
same go-to-market strategy it had for London  working 
with local cab drivers to launch its service. It failed to 
build a close relationship with New York cab drivers and 
since Uber dominated the more expensive town car 
market, Hailo was left to try and make money from 
inexpensive rides. It didn't work.
Hailo was forced to lay off 40 employees in New York, 
and the undertaking eventually led to CEO Jay  
Bregman leaving the company.
Despite raising more than $77M from high profile 
investors in the US and Europe, the company pulled  
out of North America in October 2014, shutting its 
operations in Washington, Chicago, Boston, Toronto  
and Montreal.
The Full Story 
"  In the US, you can build to $10M in revenue and not have product-market fit   
we treated the first customer as beacons and to prove the fit of our products."  
Tim Robertson,Vium 
Who is your competition?
With a large opportunity comes more competition. A detailed competitive 
analysis is a cornerstone of a sound decision-making strategy. 
In 2017, US per capita advertising spend was $610, compared to $365 in the UK, $276 in Germany and $184 in France.17 
Most Europeans underestimate how crowded and loud the US market is, and the sophistication of the marketing and 
lead generation efforts of the competition. A great product, crisp value proposition, and effective differentiation are 
paramount to traction in the US.
Current competition
  Who are your competitors  direct, indirect,  
adjacent, up and down the stack? 
 What are their growth rates? 
  Where will they be in one year when your US 
operations are up and running?
New entrants
 What are the barriers to entry in your industry? 
  If you do well, are you going to be hit by a wave of  
new entrants - all chasing after the same market?
 What moats can you build around your offer? 
  What are your key differentiating factors? Are  
these sustainable?
Want insights on your competition? Head to the library
When it comes to evaluating the competitive landscape or conducting bottom up market sizing, you should 
explore the many resources available behind research paywalls.
  University libraries: University libraries hold a treasure trove of resources for conducting market or competitive 
analysis. Many offer free access to otherwise costly research databases such as IBIS World, Gartner, and Frost 
and Sullivan (though subscriptions may vary across universities). In most cases, one can access these resources 
remotely if affiliated with the university.
  University libraries can also provide access to pricey equipment, such as Bloomberg terminals. 
  A formal affiliation with the university typically grants you access to these resources. However, having 
members of your team that are students, faculty, researchers, or alumni could also grant you access.
  Public libraries: Many city or county public libraries similarly offer access to a variety of databases, though 
access can be more limited than that of university libraries.
  If you're in New York, a great resource is the New York Public Library's (NYPL) Science, Industry 
and Business Library (SIBL). 
  If you're in Boston, the Boston Public Library (BPL) also offers industry research articles and 
abstracts from over 600 leading trade and general business periodicals from over 30 countries.
  In order to access public library's resources, you usually need to sign up for a library card by presenting ID and 
proof of residency in the area covered. In some cases, merely visiting the library and accessing/requesting the 
data from a librarian is an option.
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2. First Ask
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How do you know you have  
product-market fit?
Tesco who? Carrefour what? European reference customers will not mean 
much to a US audience. Unless you have local reference accounts and local 
traction, beware of assuming you have or will get fit.
Many European brands - even household names - will be 
unknown to American customers. Your list of European 
references will carry little to no weight with Americans, 
who in many cases think of even international operations 
of the same company as different businesses.  
Customers will expect you to prove that your product 
addresses a local pain point. Doing this will also help you 
understand how to position, localize and in many cases, 
redesign, your product for the US.
To be successful it is not enough to have good technology  you also need to overcome your 
prospective US customers' reluctance to buy from non-US firms: risk and politics. This means being 
hyper-focused on target prospects that you can impact more significantly than the local competition.
Given differences in the retail industry in the US, Conversocial's success with retailers in 
Europe did not translate to the US; instead it found traction with telecommunication 
companies among other sectors.
 
Before you take your product to the US, 
do your research and find out if your 
customers like what they buy. Do you 
have significant inbound requests from 
customers? What do they want your 
product to look like? Just as you did at 
home, you'll need to test your value 
hypothesis. What are the features you 
need to offer in the US? Who is the 
audience that is likely to be interested? 
How will they buy your product? 
The US is BIG and that can be misleading
The size of the US market, and its consequent share of 
"innovator" customers, who want to be at the forefront 
of new technologies, allows for companies to hit millions 
in revenues without proper product-market fit - and 
that can be dangerous.  
Your company might be lulled into believing you've 
found a repeatable formula for scale, right until renewals 
slip, churn increases, and growth slows. 
A study conducted by Startup Genome concluded:
" Startups need 2-3 times longer to validate their market than most founders 
expect. This underestimation creates the pressure to scale prematurely In 
our dataset we found that 70% of startups scaled prematurely along some 
dimension. While this number seemed high, this may go a long way 
towards explaining the 90% failure rate of startups."
More importantly, if you don't have product-market fit in Europe, moving to the US will compound your problems,  
not solve them. What "tells" can you see that demonstrate that fit is real? Is your product growing in the US with  
no marketing?
"  We took recipes from the UK and things  
like curry and lamb just didn't translate,  
which we quickly adapted."  
Ed Boyes, Hello Fresh
 
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Case study: Spotify
In Spotify's case, customer demand for a US version was evident. European adoption had  
been explosive and soon after, there were "breathless blogs and fan sites dedicated to 
discussing the service's US potential." But even this demonstrable demand  and growing 
knowledge of US music listener preferences  was insufficient in justifying a US move.
Who - The customer
  Customer preferences: What are the US customer's preferences? Is my customer's behavior aligned with  
her preferences? 
 Customer acquisition: What is the CAC in the US market?
 Competition: Who are the domestic and foreign alternatives? What is my competitive advantage?
Spotify's business model relied on securing the music rights held by the major US record labels. This would require 
building the right relationships within the US music industry. The company's decision to expand ultimately hinged  
on the reality of securing these relationships and aligning them with their knowledge of customer preferences.
What - The product
 Product value: What value does the US customer extract from the product? 
 Product features: What features of my product are context-specific and need to be revised for the US?
  Product economics: What is my predicted ROI? What are my projected costs, revenues, and breakeven point in  
the US? What new revenue-generating opportunities exist in the US?
In Spotify's case, though its value in Europe free, legal access to vast amounts of music  was indispensable to 
success in the US as well, it made negotiations with US record labels particularly slow and challenging. Critics within 
and outside the labels expressed skepticism at the company's ability to convert free users to premium users under its 
"freemium" model. To assuage the labels concerns, the company tweaked its business model for the US, introducing  
a mid-tier premium customer category and several new features based on US listener preferences.
Where - The local context
  Regional opportunities: Which regional markets in the US best optimize ease of access, speed of product 
adoption, profitability, and sustainability?
  Local restrictions: What US restrictions (legal and regulatory) exist for producing, marketing, distributing, and 
selling my product? How can I surmount them?
  Distribution outlets: Through what media could I develop customer interest in my product? Where could I best  
sell my product to my target customer?
Acquiring licensing rights in the US did not require regional relationships, but Spotify did need to map out alliances 
with regional advertisers  yet another subset of customers. In so doing, the company developed new revenue streams 
by delivering ads filled with local content to "free users" based on their locations. Thus, Spotify's regional strategy 
helped it retain its crucial freemium model and justify its expansion plan.
When - Market timing
 Developing demand: How long does my target US customer need to be educated about my product? 
 Adoption time: How long do customers take to adopt novel offerings in the target market?
  Necessary partnerships: How long would it take to build essential partnerships? When do these relationships need  
to be developed relative to my market entry?
Perhaps because Spotify took two and a half years to prepare and launch in the US, demand for its product was at 
fever-pitch when it launched. Notably, the company entered at a time of uncertainty in the US industry: physical 
album sales numbers had been falling dramatically, and streaming competitors like Rdio had failed to capture popular 
demand. The industry climate, hype around Spotify's product, and the minimal effort needed for customers to test 
the free product accelerated the time between market entry and mass adoption in the US. 
The missing "magic metric"  
for customer success
is the Coolest Music Service 
You Can't Use, Wired
?
?
?
?
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What is your US ideal customer profile?
All companies claim that their strategies are customer driven these days.  
Your ideal US customers may look different from their European counterparts.
You have grown in your home market and are now eager to expand your sales in the United States. However, what 
was valuable to your customers at home might not translate seamlessly to US clients. Validating your Ideal Customer 
Profile and testing your sales process within this new cultural context will be crucial to ensure your scalability in the 
new market.
Identify a primary customer
Founders sometimes sidestep difficult choices by not 
singling out a definitive group as the primary customer. 
But companies who do that risk not being focused  
on anyone.
Define your product or service from the American 
customer's point of view. A frequent comment from 
founders is that the US market is saturated and 
competitive. How do you stand out from what your 
customers already have?
Many customers expect a local presence and local 
services, but not all. You can get started building a  
book of business before you establish operations on  
the ground.
Direct-to-consumer
Direct-to-consumer companies can often acquire their 
customers without a physical presence in the US, since 
digital marketing can drive the sales process.
Having a transferable marketing strategy is important 
here  does your message translate well into American?
"  Interestingly for us, there were two clear learnings 
early on  first, US customers were more willing  
to try new products and were easier to convert,  
so CAC was much lower than in Europe. Second,  
even with the same level of customer satisfaction, 
willingness to refer the product to new customers 
was far higher in the US. Our marginal dollars in 
the US were therefore going a lot further and this 
created an incredibly appealing proposition as it 
was going to be so efficient to grow the business." 
Ed Boyes, Hello Fresh
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Building your US ideal customer profile
Determine the customer's needs
 
 What pain are they trying to solve? 
 
 How does that pain impact them? 
 
 How do they value that impact ($)?
 
  What results would they like to achieve: on an individual basis, and if B2B,  
a department and company-basis?
 
 What are the potential outcomes of those results?
 
  How will those outcomes impact them, on an individual basis, and if B2B,  
a department and company-basis?
Define the ideal sales target within the customer profile
 
  B2B: 
i.  Who are the executives that own the pain point and are empowered to act?  
ii.   What other roles within the target company (between one and three)  
would be productive entry points for outreach? 
 
  B2C:  
i.  Who are the individuals most likely to seek a solution that addresses the pain point? 
Identify how competitors service the customer's needs
 
 Are they considering other vendors or using an in-house solution? 
 
 On which criteria are you being evaluated?
Define the best process for connecting with the customer
 
 What is their typical buying process for a product such as yours?
 
  Can you realistically engage your ideal customer directly or do you need the help  
of a partner with pre-existing relationships?
 
 Where is a critical mass of your ideal customers concentrated? 
 
 Does the customer have to be sought out, or would they come to the service?
Understand the customer's ideal timeline
 
 How long does their typical buying process take? How satisfactory is this to the customer?
 
 What can complicate/extend their buying timeline? When do they plan to buy?
Validating your US ideal customer profile 
Test your product on the new customer
 
 How do these leads respond to your solution? 
 
 What objections do they raise?
 
 What characteristics of those who respond validate your ideal profile? 
 
 What lessons can you learn from those who reject your sales outreach?
Compare your new customer profile to your existing customers
 
 Did you discover significant differences between the US leads and your existing successful customers? 
 
 How do these differences affect your sales process?
 
 How do these differences affect your product development roadmap?
 
  Is the competitor group you are up against the same as that of your home market, or are there 
significant local players you haven't yet faced? What is your key differentiation?
Tweak your new customer profile based on the feedback
 
  How do access to leads and conversion rates increase after you make changes to your ideal  
customer profile?
Resources
  
 
Blueprint for sales growth
Expanding your B2C business 
into the US
Choosing the right customer 
How do I get the biggest bang  
for my new investment buck?
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"  In enterprise sales Americans will buy from domestic 
vendors unless you can prove you are two to three times 
better, or you have US marquee clients that you can 
showcase."  Ian McCaig, Qubit
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18 Source: Law360, Acritas Research
What is your regulatory burden in the US?
Many registrations, licenses, oversight bodies and regulations vary on a state-by-
state basis, so local counsel is key to assess the business impact of compliance.
Is your business operating in a regulated sector? If so, you'll likely be subject to the rules of a number of regulatory 
agencies. Applying for licenses is straightforward, if time-consuming. You'll need counsel to establish which licenses 
you need and what regulation you'll be subject to. The days of entering a market, gaining market share and getting 
regulator blessing retrospectively are ending  regulators are taking an increasingly harder stance on this front and 
want to be approached pre-launch. A significant regulatory variation between states is in taxes, which we will  
cover separately.
Data privacy
Unlike the EU, the US does not have a single overarching 
privacy law. On a federal level, the United States maintains 
a sectoral approach towards data protection legislation 
where certain industries are covered and others are not. 
This has significant commercial implications for 
direct-to-consumer digital marketing, for example. If you 
are purchasing Facebook ads in the US, you have a much 
more expansive set of targeting criteria and tools than in 
Europe, where there are more extensive limitations on 
what customer data can be made available. Given the 
current privacy regulation landscape, your ability to use 
these tools may be further restricted in the near future.
At a state level, most states have enacted some form of 
privacy legislation. This may have an impact on where you 
want to locate your HQ.
Resources
Specialists in the field
Legal challenges after expansion 
Applying for licenses and permits 
General Data Protection  
Regulation (GDPR) 
Cheryl Young - Securities Compliance 
Advisors (SCA), focus on fintech
Ingrid Brydolf - Davis Wright Tremain, 
focus on healthcare
Ashford Tucker - Fross Zelnick  
Lehrman & Zissu, focus on healthcare   
Heidi Lawson & Greg Hoffnagle -  
Cooley LLP, focus on insurtech
What legal considerations are key?
The American approach to law is very different from Europe, and legal counsel 
is part of the cost of doing business. 'Lawyer up' during the planning phase or 
you risk falling over the complicated laws in place across the US.
Companies in the US spend nearly triple the amount 
on legal services for every dollar of revenue than their 
counterparts around the globe: On average, 0.4% of 
every dollar of revenue versus 0.15% for the rest of the 
world.18 The substantial difference stems from both 
higher legal costs and requirements for more services. 
In the US, each party to a lawsuit bears her own legal 
costs. If you're sued, you'll have to pay your legal bill 
regardless of the outcome of the case. Given the 
high costs of litigation, the opposing party knows 
you're likely to settle instead of fighting the case in 
court. This practice leads to a much more litigious 
culture, and the threat (and fact) of litigation is used 
more extensively to further business outcomes. 
Extensive employment regulations at the federal 
and estate level will influence every step of hiring, 
managing and terminating employees. Employment 
discrimination claims are common and expensive.
Because states treat business regulations so differently, 
it's important to have experienced, localized counsel 
to evaluate the different regulatory requirements.
States will differ on legal requirements for setting up 
operations, hiring talent and business reporting.
The upfront cost of expert advice aimed at avoiding 
potential problems and crafting well-worded contracts 
is well invested, considering the price and disruption of 
a lawsuit. 
 
 
 
Specialists in the field
"  In the US, lawyers are part of the competitive dynamic, whereas in Europe  
they confirm agreements."  Chris Wade, Isomer Capital
Daniel Glazer -  
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati 
Victor Boyajian -  
Dentons
Ed Zimmerman -  
Lowenstein Sandler    
Ted Rosen -  
Akerman
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2. First Ask
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35
Business visitor visa
This is an easy visa to get but be careful  the restrictions 
on it are quite tight. You can use this visa for visits during 
your planning process; some allowed activities include:
  Merchants taking orders for goods manufactured 
abroad;
 Negotiating contracts;
 Consulting with clients or business associates;
 Litigating; and/or
 Undertaking independent research.
 Bottom line
When it comes to American work visas, there are many categories to choose from. Immigration policies often change 
with each new Administration and new legislation.
Keeping up with those changes is a full-time job in itself; our advice is to start early and maintain regular contact with 
a reliable immigration attorney.
Specialists in the field
"  The visa process can be a huge battle you've got to be mentally ready for. A good 
immigration attorney will know the details of your various options and can set 
expectations and plan accordingly."  Danny Hakimian, Onfido
Which visa do you need?
Visas and immigration are complex subjects in the States, especially in the current 
political climate. Seek professional counsel and consider your options at the 
beginning of your planning process  it could determine who you send to the US.
A straightforward VISA you can get is an E-1 visa, issued 
for a company that is trading internationally with the US. 
Importantly, the employees of the company must be of 
the same nationality as the company to be eligible for 
E-1 visas.
Otherwise, an L-1 visa (intra-company transfer) is the 
most likely to suit your needs.
If you're a successful entrepreneur, or have extraordinary 
credentials, you could apply for an O-1 visa (applies to 
science, education, business or sport).
Finally, if you are ineligible for or unlikely to get those visas 
then you could apply for an H-1B visa. This is a capped 
visa  companies apply at the beginning of April for a start 
date of October. It is essentially a lottery, with your 
chances of success at roughly 1/3, because a limited 
amount of H-1B visas are provided each year. 
Australia, Singapore and Chile have specialist visa treaties 
with the US that grant nationals of those countries 
additional visas to work in the US. If you are of one of 
those nationalities, research these additional options.
Coming to America: a primer on visas  
for foreign entrepreneurs  
Paul Samartin -  
Ganguin Samartin 
Daniella McGuigan -  
Ogetree Deakins
Gloria Lin -  
Immigration Law Group   
Dana DiRaimondo -  
D&S Boutique Business Immigration
E-2 visa
E-1 visa
H-1B visa
L-1 visa
O-1 visa
You are planning  
to start a company 
in the US
Your company is 
actively involved 
in substantial 
trade with the 
US (at least 50% 
of volume)
You are an 
employee
You have been 
employed by your 
company for at least 
one year out of the 
last three years
You are an 
individual or 
entrepreneur who 
can demonstrate 
extraordinary 
abilities
You are planning to 
invest a significant 
amount of money 
in the US
You are a citizen of 
a "treaty country"
The US based 
position requires 
a bachelor's 
degree or a foreign 
equivalent
You are in an 
executive, manager, 
or "specialized 
knowledge" capacity
-
You are a citizen of 
a treaty country
Your company is at 
least 50% owned 
by citizens of a 
treaty country
Your employer is 
willing to fill out a 
Labor Condition 
Application
The foreign company 
will remain open and 
operational during 
the period of your 
L-1 employment 
in the US
-
Employment visas: changes  
and what to expect
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2. First Ask
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19 Betts Salary Recruiting Data
"  Given the amount of cash you can burn with a market at least five times bigger 
than a European market, higher salaries and more competition, you need to be 
clinical in execution." Ian McCaig, Qubit 
What is your budget?
Personnel is more expensive in the US, as is building a brand. Ensuring you  
have sufficient resources set aside will enable you to stay competitive in the 
fast-paced US market. 
Many founders underestimate how long it will take to establish operations in the US. When planning, many 
companies found it crucial to have someone dedicated exclusively to the forecasting and due diligence of the US 
expansion. In a world of high costs, it is also advisable to have a finance person as part of the team, especially if  
you'll be managing a P&L in country. 
It is not uncommon for companies to spend around 2 years to set up shop in the US properly.
The US employment market for tech-related talent in the large centers is very liquid, and as such employee retention is 
low and costs are high. For example, In London, a Senior Account Executive might cost you 40-60k ($51.5-77k) base 
salary, whereas in San Francisco the same person would command a base of $90-120k.
Additionally, it can be hard to attract high quality local talent without local product-market fit validation.  
That said, hiring from the competition will send a strong market and talent signal and cost you commensurately. 
If you build your budget and planning strategy around specific milestones for performance and de-risking, and stick 
to them, you are likely to invest behind success, and to minimize costly course-corrections.
Budget benchmarks
This is a sampling of what salary and variable compensation could cost you in different geographies, before taxes, 
healthcare and other benefits, which can be an additional 25% of salary.
2018 average  
salary ranges19 
"  It costs a lot to hire here; a lot more than we assumed.  
The competition in the industry for talent is fierce, so expect  
$100k salaries for the best sales people in NYC as the norm.  
They cover costs if they're good though."
*Exchange rate of 0.77 = $1  |  ** OTE refers to On Target Earnings
***  VP of Sales data gathered from clients with $0-20M in revenue that are pre-series A to series C 
San Francisco, CA
New York, NY
Austin, TX
London, UK*
Sales
base
| OTE**
base
| OTE**
base
| OTE**
base
| OTE**
Sales Development Rep.
$45-60K | $65-85K
$45-60K | $65-85K
$40-50K | $60-70K
$33-47K | $47-67K
Account Executive
$70-90K | $140-180K
$70-100K | $140-200K
$50-70K | $100-140K
$53-80K | $106-160K
Sr. Account Executive
$90-120K | $180-240K
$90-120K | $180-240K
$60-90K | $120-180K
$67-93K | $133-186K
Enterprise Sales
$120-160K | $240-320K $120-160K | $240-320K $120-150K | $240-300K
$80-120K | $160-239K
Sales Operations
$80-100K | (+5-20%)
$80-100K | (+5-20%)
$60-80K | (+5-20%)
$53-80K | (+5-20%)
Sales Engineer
$80-120K | $150-160K
$80-120K | $150-160K
$70-110K | $95-145K
$53-120K | $73-160K
Customer Success Mgr.
$55-90K | $75-120K
$55-90K | $75-120K
$55-80K | $75-105K
$53-73K | $67-100K
Sr. Customer Success Mgr.
$80-125K | $105-165K
$80-125K | $105-165K
$70-110K | $95-145K
$73-106K | $100-140K
Account Manager
$75-95K | $105-135K
$75-95K | $105-135K
$55-75K | $80-105K
$71-106K | $106-113K
Sr. Account Manager
$90-120K | $130-170K
$90-110K | $130-155K
$70-90K | $100-130K
$80-106K | $113-153K
Marketing
Marketing Coordinator
$50-80K | (+5-10%)
$50-80K | (+5-10%)
$45-70K | (+5-10%)
$27-40K | (+5-10%)
Demand Generation Mktr.
$115-135K | (+10-20%)
$110-130K | (+10-20%)
$75-95K | (+10-20%)
$60-80K | (+10-20%)
Product Marketer
$140-160K | (+5-10%)
$140-160K | (+5-10%)
$100-120K | (+5-100%)
$53-67K | (+5-10%)
Content Marketer
$90-$110K | (+5-10%)
$90-110K | (+5-10%)
$50-85K | (+5-10%)
$27-40K | (+5-10%)
Sales leadership
SDR Manager
$90-130K | $120-170K
$90-120K | $120-160K
$80-90K | $115-120K
$73-87K |  $100-113K
Inside Sales Manager
$120-140K | $240-280K $130-150K | $260-300K $100-130K | $200-260K
$106-120K |  $212-239K
Head / Director of Sales
$125-150K | $250-300K $110-140K | $220-280K
$100-120K | $200-240K
$120-133K |  $240-266K
VP of Sales***
$170-220K | $340-440K $200-230K
| $400-460K $150-170K | $300-340K
$133-166K | $266-333K
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39
 
Sample budget 
for new ventures
 
Silicon Valley
New York
 London 
Activity
Rate
$ Range
$ Range
$ Range
Corporate setup
 
 
 
 
Incorporation 
legal fees
Annual
$1,000-10,000 
$1,000-10,000 
$500-2,000
Legal fees 
(per hour)
/hr
$300-900
$500-1,000
$175-715
Facilities
 
 
 
 
Hardware essentials
/employee/year
$24,000-72,000
$24,000-72,000
$24,000-72,000
Plus furniture (not 
at co-working)
/employee/year
$12,000-120,000
$24,000-72,000
$24,000-72,000
Office space
 
 
 
 
Lease in SF Bay Area
/SF/year
$60-200
$42-100
$53- 112
Co-work space
/desk/year
$400-600 
$500-1,000
$405-400
Employee cost 
 
 
 
Salary ranges
 
 
 
 
VP level
Annual
$200,000-400,000
$200,000-400,000
$120,000-200,000
Director marketing
Annual
$120,000-220,000 
$100,000-210,000 
$90,000-190,000
Marketing staff 
experienced
Annual
$70,000-140,000
$75,000-100,000
$45,000-100,000
Marketing staff 
entry level
Annual
$50,000-80,000
$50,000-75,000
$20,000-26,000
Admin
 
 
 
 
Director (Acct. HR)
Annual
$140,000-180,000
$150,000-200,000
$70,000-140,000
Staff experienced
Annual
$75,000-140,000
$90,000-120,000
$30,000-50,000
Staff entry-level
Annual
$50,000-85,000
$50,000-75,000
$20,000-26,000
Sample budget 
for new ventures
 
Silicon Valley
New York
London 
Activity
Rate
$ Range
$ Range
$ Range
Employee cost (continued) 
 
 
Outsourced accounting/HR 
 
 
 
CFO
/hr
$200-350
$200-300
$285-500
Controller / 
HR. Director
/hr
$120-190
$125-175
$110-275
Senior accountant/ 
bookkeeper
/hr
$85-150
$85-125
$45-100
Benefits and payroll 
Payroll taxes and 
workers comp
of payroll
15%-30%
15%-30%
13.8%-14%
Health insurance
/employee/year
$350-1500
$400-600
$115-205
Vacation
of salary
0-4 weeks 
0-4 weeks 
0-4 weeks 
Payroll service  
(5 - 10 employees)
/year
$500-12,500
$500-12,500
$625-11,000
Recruiting
of annual salary
20%-35%
15%-25%
18%-35%
Employee morale
/emp/year
$1,200-7,200
$1,200-3,600
$960-8,700
Other
 
 
 
 
Marketing
Annual
$12,000-120,000
$12,000-120,000
$8,000-90,000
Insurance
Annual
$3,000-5,000
$10,000-25,000
$1,000-1,850
H1B visa cost
/employee
$3,000-4,000
$3,000-5,000
$2,220-8,880
Travel
/employee/flight
$1,000-3,000
$1,000-3,000
$1,000-5,000
Bank fees
Annual
$0-1,000
$100-250
$50-500
 
$1,115,431 - 
3,235,450
$1,128,395 - 
2,894,888
$729,450 - 
2,121,330
What else is in your budget?
A typical US expansion budget includes a number of standard considerations. The cost of each line item exemplified 
here will vary significantly depending on where you set up the company. There is a trade-off between being downtown 
in a city (i.e. San Francisco or New York) and saving between 10%-45% on operating overhead costs by being as little as 
10-20 miles away: the distance can affect talent attraction and retention, so it's important to evaluate the talent 
requirements of your company, and the distribution of the population with the requisite skills for your business.
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3 
Then Test
How much do you like flying?
Have you built a local network?
Can the industry name your brand?
Can you sell like an American?
How will you price your products?
41
"  My view is that founders should move to the US for a while, live here six months 
and then assess how to proceed. Familiarity with the market is one of the most 
predictive factors of success when going abroad."  Ari Salonen, Midaxo
How much do you like flying?
Before you open your doors to customers in the US, you should research the 
market in person. There is no substitute for physical presence.
Spend time on the ground
Your competition in the US is highly likely to include American startups and established American companies, groups 
who live and breathe the US market and culture. The reality is that many European companies tend to prepare less for 
US entry than their American counterparts, placing themselves at a disadvantage.
Europeans who had the most success with US entry typically planned an entry phase of at least six months. 
During that time, the CEO would travel to the US frequently to meet potential customers, suppliers, business partners, 
and other people crucial to the early success of the business. 
This engagement phase allowed companies to strengthen their US strategy and business case before committing to hiring 
and building out a physical presence. You should set up processes in your company so that you are able to work remotely 
during the time that you're on the ground in the US: How does the team at home perform under those circumstances?
Contractors
Contractors are useful because they're quick to hire and 
require minimal paperwork to employ. You can use 
contractors for these months of tests while you spend 
time hiring the right people and building out your 
permanent staff.
Key questions
  Have you exhausted the extent of necessary 
adaptations your business will need to undergo to 
have a compelling offer for American customers?
 Do you have product-market fit?
 Do you have two to five reference customers?
 Do you have a replicable sales strategy?
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Have you built a local network?
Your local network in Europe was likely instrumental to your success there.  
The same is true in the US  connections and trust will accelerate your 
expansion in the new market.
Setting up business in a country where you don't have a soft network of ties, experience and trust is a daunting task. 
Elvie had a small but growing proportion of sales from the US, without a US-based team. 
The team had a limited network in the US and was unsure about how to resource this 
market. After 30+ conversations, Elvie had a soft network of entrepreneurs who had scaled 
businesses with similar products in the US, experts and consultants in US retail, leading 
hospitals which could partner with or purchase from Elvie and senior decision makers at 
target retailers. With these local connections, Elvie uncovered additional go-to-market risks, 
commercial opportunities and data that helped it refine its US strategy.
Being part of a US incubator or accelerator can also help with the transition, since you'd likely be provided space, 
advisors, coaches and a network of fellow companies and prospective customers. 
Resources
 
 
 
"  This can be a reality for the newly-arrived outsider. A lot of contract business 
gets done via informal networks built on local knowledge into which you have 
little insight. If you're a local, you know how much a good lawyer should cost, 
who to contact, and what to avoid. As a newcomer it can be difficult to assess a 
situation no matter how long you look at it, even though all the information is 
'knowable' in a concrete way. It just takes a bit of time."  Will Grogan, VanMoof 
3. Then Test
42
"  Preparation is key. We had senior staff travel to the US 
to scope out offices, interview potential candidates for 
roles, and we ran, and continue to run, certain group 
operations in the UK  marketing, CRM, customer 
service, finance, product and tech. It makes no sense 
to replicate central functions for what should be a 
trading hub. Centralize as much as possible, but for us, 
human relationships with hotel partners meant we 
had to double down on building a supply team entirely 
based in the US. We wouldn't scale without being able 
to face-to-face."  
Rob Day, Secret Escapes 
Federal programs and incentives 
Business incentives by state and territory  
State business  
incentives database 
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45
Can the industry name your brand?
Conferences and tradeshows can give you insight on industry trends and  
show partners and customers that you've arrived.
Another way to promote your company is to attend conferences and tradeshows. The scale and caliber of  
the chosen events can help you meet a lot of key people in your sector in a condensed amount of time. Look at 
conferences as a ground war and turn them into competition games for your team: for example, one point for each 
lead, three points for meetings within 30 days of the event.
If your product is an episodic sale, think about how you can become part of the daily conversation in your industry. 
Equip potential evangelists to be seen as market leaders. Have a point of view and narrow down your message - it's 
hard to cut through the noise and get a customer even when you're unique.
Partnerships with complementary brands can also assist in building a profile for your business and becoming known 
to the industry. Ask to sponsor conferences and request their list of last year's attendees: you can connect with 
attendees by having the conference as a point of contact (i.e. "sorry I missed you at XX conference last year  will you 
attend again?").
When it comes to conferences, the GRMA comes up as one of the best (in Retail, and  
now Finance & Insurance)  30-40 CMOs of large corporations in one spot. Find these niche 
conferences for your space.
And finally, send really good cookies. Response rates for these are 20x that of an email 
outreach. For example, Yext's sales team is a fan of sending Jars By Dani to their  
B2B prospects.
Industry
Conference / City
City
Link
Agriculture
SV AgTech 
Conference
Silicon Valley
Blockchain
The Blockchain 
Conference
Austin
Consensys
New York
Cloud
Dockercon
San Francisco
Google Cloud Next
San Francisco
KubeCon / 
CloudnativeCon 
Seattle
Microsoft Build
Seattle
Reinvent
Las Vegas
QCon
New York
Consumer
Consumer Electronics 
Show (CES) 
Las Vegas
Grocery Shop
Las Vegas
Internet Retailer 
Conference 
Exhibition (IRCE) 
Chicago
eTail
Boston
Shop.org
Las Vegas
ShopTalk
Las Vegas
Education
ISTE
Chicago
NY EdTech Week
New York
SXSW Edu
Austin
LearnLaunch
Boston
GSV
San Diego
Relevant industry conferences
www.svagtech.org/wp/
www.theblockchainconference.com/
www.coindesk.com/events/consensus-2018/
2018.dockercon.com/
cloud.withgoogle.com/next18/sf/
microsoft.com/en-us/build
events.linuxfoundation.org/events/kubecon-
cloudnativecon-north-america-2018/
reinvent.awsevents.com/
qconnewyork.com/
ces.tech/
groceryshop.com/ 
irce.com/
etaileast.wbresearch.com/
shop.org/
shoptalk.com/
conference.iste.org/2018/
nyedtechweek.com/
sxswedu.com/
learnlaunch.com/
asugsvsummit.com/
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3. Then Test
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47
Industry
Conference / City
City
Link
Energy
WEEC 
Charlotte
EIA Energy 
Conference
D.C.
Fintech
Money 20/20
Las Vegas
Finovate
Multiple Cities
Future of Money
San Francisco
Empire Startups 
FinTech Conference
New York/San 
Francisco
Food
Future Food 
Tech NYC
New York
Gaming
Game Developers 
Conference
San Francisco
E3
Los Angeles
PAX
Multiple Cities
Healthcare
Digital Health 
Summit
Las Vegas
HLTH
Las Vegas
HIMSS 
Las Vegas
Rock Health Summit
San Francisco
JP Morgan 
Healthcare Summit
San Francisco
Hospitality
The Hotel Experience New York
Insurance
InsureTech Connect
Las Vegas
DigIn
Austin
Industry
Conference / City
City
Link
Manufacturing
QCon San Francisco
San Francisco
Media
New York Media 
Festival
New York
Real Estate
National Association 
of Realtors 
Conference
Boston
Robotics
TC Sessions: Robotics Berkeley
SaaS
SaaStr Annual
San Francisco
Telecoms
Telecom 
Exchange NYC
New York
Content Delivery 
Summit
New York
Travel
Travel & Adventure 
Show
Chicago
   
"  From day one we knew we needed to  
take it to the US. The timing for that was  
as soon as we had product-market fit."  
Alastair Paterson, Digital Shadows
www.energycongress.com/
eia.gov/conference/2017/
money2020.com/
finovate.com/
futureofmoney.com/
empirefintechconference.com/pages/ny2019
futurefoodtechnyc.com/
gdconf.com/
e3expo.com/
paxsite.com/
digitalhealthsummit.com/
hlth.co/
www.himssconference.org/
rockhealthsummit.com/
jpmorgan.com/ 
global/healthcareconference
thehotelexperience.com/
HX2017/Public/Enter.aspx
insuretechconnect.com/
dig-in.com/conference/
digitalinsurance-2018
qconsf.com/
mefest.com/
nar.realtor/convention.nsf/
techcrunch.com/events/tc-
sessions-robotics-2018/
saastrannual.com/
thetelecomexchange.com/nyc/
contentdeliverysummit.com/2018/
travelshows.com/
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49
Can you sell like an American?
Many Europeans think that common language means understanding,  
thereby skipping clarifications and confirmations. Until a contract is signed,  
it is unwise to assume agreement.
Communication
American culture is direct and emotionally expressive. 
Even if you've spoken English your whole life, its style 
might not come naturally. To close deals, you need to 
say what you want and what you offer clearly and 
persuasively.
Conversations will involve less small talk than might be 
your custom; instead, many Americans "cut to the 
chase" in a way that can appear cold to Europeans. 
Americans are not used to the European custom of 
self-deprecation; instead, Americans value projecting 
confidence and self-promotion. Direct feedback (which 
can feel harsh to a European) is much more common 
and should not be cause for alarm.
Going native
Localization is a key part of your US market entry.  
More than the language, it speaks to the message:  
The arguments and phrasing that resonate with your 
American audience. This message might be very 
dissimilar in content and style to your European pitch,  
so make sure you have local input from trusted and 
seasoned partners in developing that content. Contracts, 
currency, marketing collateral, customer service - all 
require revisions. Small slips - such as date formats 
(M/D/Y vs. D/M/Y) can cause miscommunication.
Meetings
Americans are inherently more forward. The US 
approach to business networking is quite different to 
Europe: it is quicker and more transactional. Americans 
have shorter meetings than Europeans: 30 minutes is a 
common standard.
Regional differences in the US can play a significant role 
in business demeanor. A meeting that seemed cold in 
New York might yield a contract on the same day, while 
a warm and enthusiastic reception in Los Angeles might 
only be a measure of politeness and hospitality, not of 
real business interest. 
Web demos
If you're doing enterprise sales in Europe, you'll likely be 
expected to attend a meeting in person. In the US, it is 
not uncommon to sell over web demo or video call, 
given the country's geographic scale. In large and 
complex deals, some face-to-face meetings will still be 
required but the relationship can be developed and 
nurtured remotely. 
"  Early sales wins are crucial; you're burning cash here and you need  
to have momentum; until you have happy flagship accounts you  
shouldn't scale the sales organization."    
Tim Brown, Maxymizer 
"  You need to have 'aggressive selling and marketing' as a mental model  
in the US. It is a market that requires a combination of boldness,  
assertiveness, and professionalism. European founders could rev up  
their approach by a couple of notches."    
Ari Salonen, Midaxo 
49
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51
How will you price your products?
Pricing is often one of the most overlooked drivers of growth. Just as most 
other aspects of your business, your pricing may also need adjustments in  
your US expansion.  
Your pricing model
The unit economics of your business and the timing 
when you can expect to achieve profitability should be 
clear to you. Identifying your basic pricing unit will allow 
you to calculate the Lifetime Value (LTV) of a customer 
once you understand your Customer Acquisition Cost 
(CAC). At a minimum, a profitable pricing model 
requires a LTV/CAC ratio greater than 1 for each 
customer. Overall, the lower the LTV/CAC ratio, the 
longer it will take to recoup the cost it took to acquire 
each customer.
While it seems basic, don't take it for granted that 
economics that work in Europe will be viable in the US. 
Competitive pressures on the pricing side coupled with 
higher CAC in the US can make the economics unviable 
for many businesses. 
With a firm understanding of your unit economics, you 
can find the right pricing model for your company's 
short- and long-term growth strategy: 
  Value-based pricing  setting prices based on the 
perceived value of your product to the customer.
  Competitor-based pricing  using competitor pricing 
as a benchmark to determine pricing instead of 
looking at costs or consumer demand.
  Cost-plus pricing  pricing your products to cover not 
only the cost of production and overhead but also the 
percentage of profit you need.
  Demand-based pricing  as the name suggests, 
pricing that uses perceived consumer demand to 
predict the optimal combination of volume and profit. 
This is more common for wholesalers and retailers.
Of the four pricing models, most early companies are best 
suited, and should aspire to, value-based pricing when 
going to market internationally. Value-based pricing 
requires deep understanding of your target customers and 
the market segment in which you are entering  pre-work 
that helps you determine your localized strategy.
"  On your unit economics, take every single metric and stress-test every  
single variable against comps in the US"  Rytis Vitkauskas, YPlan
Localized strategies
Spotify is a great case study in localized pricing strategy. Spotify came up with over 25 different pricing models when 
entering new international markets.
Knowing how vital it was to get pricing right, particularly in markets where paying for music was rare or an outdated 
concept, Spotify spent time and effort understanding the variables that might lead to different pricing sensitivity. 
That's why in the US market they came up with a tiered plan: one for families, one for students and one for 
standalone users. 
Understanding the buying decision process for each of its personas, in each of its geographies, Spotify was able to 
develop a local strategy that was appropriate for each market.
Get feedback from your team
Pricing should include input from your Management and 
Finance teams but also Sales, Marketing and Product 
teams  those functions are close to the customer and 
can help you figure out what customers are willing to 
pay. Additionally, each function uses pricing in different 
ways: Marketing thinks about how pricing reflects the 
brand's overall positioning; Sales uses pricing to close 
sales and convert customers; Product needs to 
understand the value of what they are creating in the 
eyes of the customer. Consider creating a pricing 
committee with a member of each of these teams to 
meet and assess pricing regularly.
Pricing shouldn't be static
The final rule of pricing your product in a new market:  
do not set it and forget it. Even in the off-chance that 
you enter the market with the perfect price point to 
achieve strong market penetration, competitive 
dynamics can quickly shift as can the perceived value of 
your product in the eyes of consumers. In the age of the 
empowered consumer, companies should approach 
pricing with a more flexible and iterative mindset, 
evaluating pricing every 3-6 months.
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4 
Then Do
Who is leading your team?
Who is on your US advisory board?
How do you set up in the US?
How do you protect your IP?
Where will your office be?
Which taxes are you liable for?
How do you build a high performing team?
How do you successfully fundraise in the US?
What are important considerations in fundraising from US Investors?
Who is leading your team?
If the US is your most important market, it merits a key member of the core 
team. Who will you send over from Europe to build up culture?
"Americans love an underdog story, but they want to hear it from the hero's mouth."
The choice of US lead is critical: You need someone trusted by the CEO to build, sell and have complete dedication  
to the effort. We've written before about the various lessons learned by over 50 VC-backed CEOs in the US, and the 
consensus around one particular issue is clear: CEO and/or Founder DNA is a necessary - if not sufficient - condition 
for success in the US. When asked about the #1 insight the CEOs tell 
other entrepreneurs about entering the US, the most cited phrase 
was a variation of "a founder has to move to make it work." 
"  If it is your most important market: send a key member of the core team.  
Don't hedge. Commit."  Rhodri Thomas, Swiftkey 
Irrational "inevitability" & other confessions 
of venture who launched in the US
"  Do it yourself or don't do it at all. And hire local talent in any new market  
that you are going after"  Ryan Gallagher, Iovox 
"  When you're first on the ground there's a lot to do and there often isn't a team 
physically there to support you. The default expectation can be that, being local, 
you're going to do everything. Ask for help from HQ: for example, calling real 
estate brokers, getting referrals for people to interview, introductions to the 
right connections. If you're the first on the ground, you should make sure you're 
spending your time doing the things that actually require you to be there in 
person so that you have maximum impact."   James Allgrove, Stripe 
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It's a point worth emphasizing, given its importance to your success at home and abroad: If you cannot spare a key 
member of the team, the domestic business is likely not ready for the expansion; if you cannot have a key member of 
the team on the ground, the US operation is likely to suffer on a variety of fronts:
US customers will be less likely to trust 
your commitment to this market. 
Market credibility and signaling commitment are 
important given the level of competition in the US.  
All things being equal, Americans are more likely to 
purchase products and services from local companies. 
The absence of key executives on the ground can signal 
that the US is secondary and raises questions about  
the company's commitment to the market long-term. 
Ultimately, " Americans love an underdog story, but  
they want to hear it from the hero's mouth."
The internal culture is likely to diverge -  
and suffer.
Culture is critical for hiring, retention and brand identity 
- and consequently critical for your success as a company. 
The culture of the organization is defined as the collective 
behavior of all its members, and it takes intentional and 
concerted effort to model it and incentivize its healthy 
development.
"  There's no smooth way to set up in the US; there will be mistakes; you just have to 
adapt quickly; the nucleus of the team has to be a completely trusted exec person 
who built it in Europe - they bring the culture, the product knowledge, the value of 
the service or product, the zeal to the operation that you can't replicate with a US 
newcomer"  Tim Brown, Maxymizer
"  You need to figure out where you need to adapt to American culture and  
where its more valuable to keep your European DNA. There's a lot to be said  
for applying the rigorous, disciplined and detailed approach taken by many 
European founders. You can build some really big businesses that way."   
Ed Boyes, US CEO, Hello Fresh 
  
A common mistake is to assume the culture you've built will transition to the new US office seamlessly. Even with a 
leader on the ground there will be challenges, as local practices and the lack of corporate memory of the new office 
influence the behaviors of the new members of the team. 
Effective remote communication and decision-making in transcontinental teams is still a challenge. While collaboration 
tools have improved across the board and video calling and project management software are having their best day 
yet, those tools are most beneficial for well-defined, structured and agreed-upon projects. When it comes to defining, 
structuring and agreeing on projects, remote tools still fall short of the benefits of in-person communication and 
decision-making, particularly in situations of scarce resources and important trade-offs. Company building is about 
prioritization, and prioritizing in the midst of different contexts is much harder. 
What is your plan to mitigate these shortcomings?
Being the US lead is a huge challenge, so rely on support from HQ and give yourself a pat on the 
back from time-to-time.
"  It's really important to have people spend time in other offices and transfer 
their learnings, not just coming together at offsites, but actual tangible  
working time."   Joel Frish, Prodigy Finance
"  You don't end up running a company in a new country by accident. It's worth 
remembering that you asked for the fight and fights don't go all your way all  
the time. If it were easy, everyone would do it. Remembering that helps you  
stay motivated and to come out fighting!"  Will Grogan, VanMoof 
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57
Who is on your US advisory board?
Building a strategic advisory board can be an effective way to speed up your 
sales cycle, gain credibility and be introduced to key stakeholders at your 
prospect customers in the US.
When Yext, a B2B tech company that powers location data in search results, wanted to grow its 
customer reach in the US, its team was intentional about the verticals it wanted to dominate.  
It set out to recruit a 12-person advisory board within those verticals, with equity grants. The 
result? Several key sales conversations and successes at large US corporates. One advisory 
member alone opened doors to three major food accounts for Yext, garnering its needed 
beachhead in that market.
Why?
An advisory board is not the same as a Board of Directors 
 it has no fiduciary duty or authority over the company. Its 
purpose is to fill knowledge and network gaps within your 
company or your own background. 
Most companies don't engage their advisory board in 
meetings as a group; instead they reach out to specific 
advisors as needed and set different frequency for those 
interactions.
How?
Many companies use advisory boards to help with 
product development or sales strategy, or to introduce 
them to valuable clients, suppliers and investors.
Since advisory boards are not engaged with governance, 
you can focus the work and input of those advisors 
much more narrowly to their expertise.
There is more flexibility on the time and level of 
engagement the advisor can offer and you can reach out 
to specific advisors individually as needed. Remuneration 
should reflect the advisor's level of engagement.
Who?
An advisory board can be a bounty when you find the people who are experts at solving a set of problems you have, 
engage them with clear expectations and rewards, and turn to them whenever you have issues related to that 
problem. To find the right people, you have to be clear on what problems you want them to help you solve. 
When it comes to engaging advisors, think of it as the 
same recruiting challenge you have for roles in your 
company: you want expertise and you want results, and 
therefore finding the right advisors is key. Once you've 
identified the clear objective for your advisor, it is easier 
to have targeted conversations, since you can be specific 
in your wish list. For example, if your goal is to grow a 
base of customers in a particular vertical  as was the 
case with Yext  one possible strategy would be to:
  Ask your customers or prospect customers who 
they respect.
  Ask your Board of Directors and industry 
connections for referrals.
  Have a point-of-view related to the industry,  
and build a profile and relationships based on  
your expertise.
?
?
?
Compensate advisory members appropriately
It is a good idea to compensate your advisors, either with cash stipends or stock awards. In addition to aligning 
incentives and recognizing that expert time is valuable, compensation will make you more disciplined about the 
caliber of advice and support you are seeking and getting. 
Equity grants are a very cash-effective way for ventures to gain credibility within the market by enlisting 
decision-makers to support their efforts. In the United States, grants usually range from 0.10% to 1% depending on 
company stage and the level of involvement of the advisors. For example, the Founder Institute suggests in their 
advisor template that compensation be set at:
 
Standard performance level
 
Commitment
Services
Compensation
Attend quarterly meetings to 
provide feedback on Company's 
strategy for at least one hour.
Provide reasonable response to 
email requests by Company.
Promotion: On top of the regular 
advice and insights, Advisor agrees 
to actively promote and make 
introductions on behalf of the 
Company through Advisor's overall 
network of business contacts, 
including forwarding the Company's 
business plan and other materials 
as requested by the Company.
Idea Stage is 0.25%
Startup Stage is 0.20%  
Growth Stage is 0.15%
"  As well as the quality of 'content' of their advice, there is a reputational benefit 
to Advisory Boards. Ours has very credible people, and their credibility reflects 
back onto us."  Rupert Baines, UltraSoc 
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Strategic performance level
 
Expert performance level
If you choose to compensate advisors with stock, consult professional advice to create vesting schedules. For example, 
one common approach is straight-line with 3-month cliff, 2-year vesting with single-trigger full acceleration upon a 
liquidity event. Plan for a proper stock transfer and have an exit plan should your advisors want to sell their shares. 
Seek professional advice on potential conflicts-of-interest that might arise if your advisors work for other companies. 
Have it in writing 
Speak to your lawyer before establishing and engaging an advisory board; by and large, it is wise to have members 
sign non-disclosure agreements, draft a charter outlining advisory board responsibilities and compensation, and 
provide advisory board members with written indemnification. Also consider incorporating an annual review process 
into the agreement, such that there are ongoing occasions to review and discuss whether the relationship is 
productive and should continue.
 
Resources 
 
 How advisory boards power up your venture
Commitment
Services
Compensation
Standard performance plus:
Attend monthly meetings to 
provide feedback on Company's 
strategy for at least one hour.
Attend one additional monthly 
meeting for up to one hour 
with a potential customer, 
investor, strategic partner, 
vendor or employee.
Standard performance plus:
Recruiting: Advisor agrees to assist 
Company in finding additional, 
potential founding team members 
and employees through the Advisor's 
overall network of business contacts.
Idea Stage is 0.50%
Startup Stage is 0.40%  
Growth Stage is 0.30%
Commitment
Services
Compensation
Strategic performance plus:
Twice monthly meetings to provide 
feedback on Company's strategy 
for at least two hours each.
Strategic performance plus:
Contacts: Advisor agrees to make 
introductions to and assist in the 
acquisition of marquee customers, 
strategic partners and key industry 
contacts and attend meetings 
with such potential customers, 
partners and key contacts.
Projects: Advisor agrees to assist 
the Company on at least one 
strategic project as requested 
by the Company during the 
term of this Agreement.
Idea Stage is 1.00%
Startup Stage is 0.80%  
Growth Stage is 0.60%
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61
How do you set up in the US?
When setting up a US legal entity, take advice early and account for 
commercial, legal and tax implications of US incorporation.
How do you establish a US corporate entity?
When and why incorporate a US entity? If a 
non-US company is generating revenue and profit in 
the US it will be required by law to pay the applicable 
Federal, State and City taxes. If you're hiring US 
employees, you should consider establishing a US 
corporate entity.
What is the best legal structure for your 
business? The most common options for high growth 
small businesses are C-Corporation, S-Corporation, or 
a Limited Liability Company. For many startups the 
foreign ownership restrictions will eliminate the option 
of setting up an S-Corp and the desire to have robust 
ownership principles and division into stocks or shares 
will eliminate the option of an LLC. C-Corp is the most 
popular structure.
Source: USA-Corporate.com
?
?
In which state should you incorporate? The vast majority of Fortune 500 companies are incorporated either in 
Delaware or Nevada. Delaware is the most favored within the venture community for a number of reasons:
 Has a well-established set of case law and precedent;
  The new entity can base itself anywhere in the US since advisors US-wide will give Delaware corporate advice;
  Has a dedicated Court of Chancery focusing on resolving corporate disputes;
  Does not tax income earned from intangible assets such as trademarks and leases;
  Offers flexibility in the organization of a corporation and the rights and duties of board members and 
shareholders; and
  Provides greater privacy for director and shareholder identities.
The basic requirements for incorporating in Delaware include:
 Completion of an annual report submitted online;
  Payment of franchise tax: the range is between $175 - $180,000  
and is linked to the number of authorized shares; and
  Maintaining a "registered agent." If a company incorporates in a  
State but does not have permanent operations there (for example  
no employees), it will need to appoint a "registered agent." This is an additional cost, typically under $200 per year. 
Service providers such as NRAI or BizFilings will fulfil this requirement and will forward mail sent to the registered 
address as required.
"  Get expert advice for all legal and admin issues; don't try to find out answers  
on your own - focus your efforts on key hires and goals for your first year."   
Pablo Graiver, Antidote 
?
How to calculate franchise taxes
BizFilings
NRAI
C Corp
S Corp
LLC
Foreign ownership
Can be owned by an 
overseas entity
Non-US citizens cannot 
retain shares in these
Can be owned by an 
overseas entity
Tax
A corporation is considered 
a separate legal entity 
and must submit a tax 
return and pay income 
taxes on its profits. In some 
cases, this can lead to 
"double taxation," where 
the corporation is taxes 
on its profits, then when 
the owners take those 
profits out, they will need 
to report the dividend on 
their personal tax returns.
Can opt for Pass-
through taxation or 
more conventional 
Corporate Taxation
Pass-through taxation 
- This means that the 
business itself doesn't pay 
income taxes on its profits; 
rather any profits or loss 
are passed through to the 
owners (called members) 
and reported on their 
personal tax returns
Meetings
AGMs Required
AGMs required
No requirement 
for an AGM
Owners
Owners are called 
shareholders
Owners are called 
shareholders
Owners are called 
Members
Ownership
Ownership represented 
by shares
Ownership represented 
by shares
Ownership divided by 
members as they see fit, 
no concept of shares
Governance
Governed by Directors
Governed by Directors
Governed by Members
Official documentation
Articles of Association, 
Certificate of Incorporation Articles of Association
Articles of Organization, 
Certificate of Organization
Other
Certain retirement 
plans, stock option and 
employee stock purchase 
plans are only available 
for C corporations
C Corp
S Corp
LLC
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General information
Steps to incorporate
Apply to incorporate in specific state.
Establish a registered agent in that state.
Submit formation documents.
Maintain registered agent.
Maintain state specific taxation and reporting requirements.
Resources
Specialists in the field
What is the right banking solution for you?
While opening a business bank account as an international entity is generally less 
onerous in the US than in Europe, there are several things founders should know 
before starting the process. With a seemingly endless range of options for who  
to bank with, here are a few key points to consider before selecting a provider.
Legal requirements
Regardless of which bank you go with, in order to open a business bank account in the US you will be required to 
provide four pieces of information: the articles of incorporation for your company, an EIN number, government-issued 
photo ID and Know-Your-Customer (KYC) information for whomever is signing. Those requirements are uniform across 
the board regardless of banking institution.
Individual bank requirements
In addition to the legal requirements above, banks will likely require additional information from you that may vary, and 
some will have more requirements than others. Some common items and disclosures required by banks, like First Republic:
  US business address - if you are opening a bank 
account prior to setting up your physical office, you 
will need to choose a bank that does not require a US 
business address.
  Minimum deposit - varies by bank, but generally a 
nominal amount.
  Certificates of good standing - some banks require 
these documents to prove you are authorized to do 
business in a particular state.
  Certificate of incumbency - this document simply 
identifies and verifies the directors and officers at your 
company that are authorized to enter into legally-
binding contracts on behalf of the business.  
  Banking resolution - this document specifies who 
may sign checks, open a bank account or make 
banking decisions on behalf of the company and is 
issued by the Board of Directors.
  Operating agreement / corporate bylaws - these 
are generally not required by most banks but are 
considered "nice-to-haves."
Certain banks may allow your company to bypass some of the non-legal requirements or can expedite the setup 
process if you have a reliable and trustworthy referral source with whom the bank already has a relationship. For 
instance, if you are VC-backed and your VC firm has a well-established reputation, your VC can vouch for your 
company and help reduce some of the information requirements.
Establishing the right corporate  
entity in the US  
Putting the right insurance  
in place for the US 
The differences between an LLC  
and a Corporation
Daniel Glazer -  
Wilson Sonsini 
Victor Boyajian -  
Dentons
Ed Zimmerman -  
Lowenstein Sandler    
Ted Rosen -  
Akerman 
How to incorporate in the US from outside 
the US geographies 
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"  Build a book of business or sufficient demand before building your base  
of operations in the US. Start small and test the market; you don't need  
to invest heavily to assess traction."  Paolo Wyatt, graze.com 
Completed by
Estimated Cost
Local counsel, engaged by the Company
$2,000-5,000
How do you incorporate a company in the US?
The process is set out in five steps below. Although this looks straightforward, it is sensible to ask the company's 
lawyers to handle this process as the cost of a mistake or remedial action may be significant. The typical cost to 
incorporate a C-Corp in Delaware is $2,000-5,000.
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Setting up an account in-person vs. online
Most of the bigger, international banks like First Republic, SVB, HSBC, will allow you to set up your US bank account 
online without being physically present in the US. However, even when that is the case, it is usually recommended to 
have someone present in the US either from your team, your VC or accounting firm. If there are follow up questions 
about your business, banks sometimes prefer to handle that face-to-face rather than online.
In general, banks are more concerned about what your business does and what your intentions are with your move to 
the US They may also have lists of companies, business lines or industries with which they will not work - an example 
currently is crypto-wallets or blockchain companies that may be pursuing an ICO. These types of companies are 
somewhat unregulated and could be considered a risk which a bank may not accept.
Choosing a banking provider: key considerations
Just as banks have a set of criteria from which they choose businesses to work with, you should also have criteria for 
choosing a banking provider. Here are some of the key things to consider when evaluating a bank:
  Do they have a dedicated banking team that you can 
call or email directly? Making sure you have direct access 
to your bank in the case of an emergency is crucial.
  Can all the banking be done seamlessly on mobile 
or through an online portal? One thing to keep in mind 
if you are using the same bank in the US that you use 
in Europe: you will most likely have separate portals 
for each account. Banks rarely have one portal for US 
and European bank accounts which means two sets of 
login credentials and two accounts to manage.
   What fees and charges does the bank have? In 
particular, pay attention to late fees, interest charged 
and withdrawal limits often hidden in the fine print of 
banking agreements.
   Do they have a division that specializes in working with 
startups? Having a bank that works with other startups 
can be important in the long-run. Startups operate 
differently than other small and large businesses and it's 
helpful to have a bank that understands the needs of 
startups and how they operate.
   What can the bank provide other than banking 
services? While a business bank account might be all 
you need right now, it doesn't hurt to think long-term 
about how your banking relationship can benefit your 
startup. Is the bank a potential customer? Will the 
bank be willing to provide introductions to investors, 
attorneys or provide other financial advice?
"  Social Security Number; bank account; phone: the three 
basics. Everything else flows from them in the US and 
without them it's very difficult to move onto the bigger 
things like where to live and getting paid. Get these 
sorted before you arrive. It's even worth considering 
visiting a few weeks before you actually move to do so."  
James Allgrove, Stripe 
4
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How do you choose the right business 
insurance?
Insurance is one of the first things your startup will need after incorporating in 
the States. There are few off-the-shelf insurance products for technology-based 
businesses, so getting specialist advice is essential in understanding your business' 
insurance risk implications.
Some of the risks faced by European entrepreneurs enticed by the promise of the US marketplace can be mitigated 
and controlled with intelligent insurance planning. 
What insurance policies should you consider? 
We break down the insurance world into three categories: Mandatory, Sensible, Additional.
Mandatory: In the US, certain insurance is required by law.
  Workers' compensation is insurance against your liability to employees for injury or illness arising from the work 
they do for you. You should put this in place especially if you have employees working in the US for extended 
periods of time.
  Third party motor insurance is mandatory if you use vehicles on the road in the USA on company business, 
and may be mandatory for personal use (depending on your state).
 Sensible insurance protection: Although these may not be legally mandated, they're of critical importance 
to most organizations in the US. Your clients and suppliers may also require that you have them in place.
  General liability insurance protects your business against allegations of negligence resulting in injury to third 
parties or damage to their property. It also protects you where you're legally responsible for any damage or 
injury caused by a product you have supplied.
  Errors & omissions insurance protects you against allegations that your negligence has led a third party to 
suffer financially. This is particularly relevant if you offer professional services or skills for a fee.
  Directors & officers liability insurance (D&O) - The term "limited liability" can be a misnomer; individual 
directors and managers within an organization may face potentially ruinous personal liability for the decisions 
and actions they make. Protect your key decision-makers with a "D&O" policy.
  Property insurance protects your physical assets including buildings, improvements, office and laboratory 
machinery & equipment, computers & data, stock, documents, lab books, prototypes and R&D materials, 
temperature-sensitive stock and mobile equipment.
  Consequential loss insurance protects your income streams where there's an unexpected interruption to 
business operations. The insurance can protect you against loss of revenue, profit and other unexpected costs.
Additional: other types of insurance you should consider.
  Marine cargo/inland marine - It's much safer to insure your own property in transit. Reliance on your freight 
forwarder's insurance policy for lost or damaged freight could leave you significantly out of pocket.
  Employment Practice Liability (EPL) - The cost of employee-employer disputes through tribunals and court 
actions is a significant threat to profitability. EPL protects against allegations of harassment, discrimination, 
unfair dismissal, and wrongful disciplining.
  Cyber and data liability - In the wake of numerous high-profile cybercrime cases, including network and data 
breaches, businesses can buy insurance that protects against costs, expenses and liability arising from Breach 
of Privacy, Data Breach Notification Costs, Cyber Liability, and costs of restoring or recreating data.
What type of insurance do start-ups need in the US?
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LLC
S Corp
C Corp
General liability insurance + business property insurance
Errors and omissions insurance
Cyber liability insurance
Directors and officers insurance
-
Key man insurance
-
Employment practices liability insurance
-
-
Key questions
  What additional risks need to be considered? 
  Are you with the right insurer? 
   Do your existing policies provide the requisite cover for the US already?  
If not, can they be easily extended? 
  How much is it all likely to cost? 
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Items of note: 
  It's also worth checking your investment agreements, since specific types of insurance are often required by investors.
  If you have employees operating in the US on a short-term or secondment basis, your company's travel insurance 
may not cover them for an extended period of travel. As a result, it is advisable to check this in advance. 
Monthly insurance plans for foreign travelers such as IMG Global are intended to replicate  
the level of health cover that a full-time employee may receive as part of an employment package.
  It can be worth reviewing the terms and conditions that you will give to US clients in order to make sure this 
matches with the level of cover you are comfortable giving. In many instances, restricting the level of "consequential 
loss" is also advisable.
  If you are thinking about launching in the US in the next 1218 months, it is worth considering that you may need  
to change insurers in the near future so do not agree to any long-term arrangements with your underwriter.
  Whenever there are any material changes in the business, such as a change of address or alteration of business 
activity, you are required to update your insurer or broker as this may otherwise invalidate your protection.
  From talking to specialists, having a group policy which covers all the international entities is far more robust than 
having multiple different policies covering specific geographies. Otherwise, there is a risk that otherwise a claim  
that may arise could fall between policies.
Specialists in the field
 
 
 
 
 
How do you protect your IP?
IP related issues deal both with maximizing a company's value and minimizing 
the risk of other players making a legal claim that can damage your business.
Patents
In the US, a single patent covers the whole of the US. A US patent is granted by the federal US Patent 
and Trademark Office (USPTO) but enforced by any district court which considers its use across the 
whole of the US. Since 2013, the US operates on a 'first-to-file' system.
In IP litigation there is little likelihood of a 'loser pays' judgement, so US IP litigation costs can become expensive 
quickly. Do your research up front to understand the patent landscape. Market entrants are unlikely to be targets for 
'patent trolls,' who typically go after larger companies. Instead, competitors may use patents to stop a new entrant 
from gaining a foothold. 
What to put in place
Assessing the level of risk associated with moving to the US is best achieved with a specialist IP advisor.
Whenever filing for IP in Europe you should consider a US filing, at least for the main inventions. 
  Have you completed an IP review for any new  
product launches?
  Have you considered IP insurance, especially if a risk 
audit highlighted IP as a key risk? 
  Have you translated employee IP invention clauses  
into US contracts properly?
 Do you have a dedicated IP champion?
 Do you have a well-documented Trade Secrets policy?
How the US is different from Europe
The main ways in which the US market differs include:
  The US market is half the size of the EU, but a single 
patent covers the whole of the US rather than several 
national patents in Europe;
  A US patent is granted by the federal USPTO  
(uspto.gov), but enforced by any district court  
which considers use across the whole of the US; and
  IP litigants each cover their own costs in the US. There 
is very little likelihood of a 'loser pays' judgment. This is 
a stark contrast to the EU and, with US litigation costs 
being so high, avoiding litigation is a sound strategy.
Elaine Lamb -  
La Playa Insurance 
Ralph Torrez -  
Sweet and Baker Insurance 
Melissa Gato -  
Shoff Darby Insurance Agency    
Octopus Ventures IP blog post 
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The investor's perspective
Not all businesses are created equal when it comes to IP. It is important for founders to be clear about the role  
IP plays within their business, both with themselves and with their prospective investors. For some companies, IP  
will be core to the strategy and a primary reason why the business was founded in the first place: for example, to 
commercialize a unique invention incubated by professors at a world class university. For other companies, it will  
be an asset, but one of many held by the business.
The IP position of your business is very unlikely to be the reason an investor will not invest in your 
business - they may make it a term of the investment to put some of the funding towards progressing 
a patent grant process or engaging suitable attorneys but would rarely walk away altogether.
In discussing the investor's perspective on IP, we discovered the following:
  IP is a valuable asset which, ideally, is fully protectable 
and defensible, creating a barrier to entry for other 
competitors.
  In diligence, there should be no red flags in relation 
to potential infringements of others' IP nor should 
there be a credible risk of infringement claims being 
made by others against the IP of your business.
  Investors understand that generating and securing IP 
(particularly patents) can take a great deal of time 
and money and divert attention from executing on 
business strategy.
  Spending vast amounts of time and money on your  
IP portfolio is unlikely to make sense before a Series  
A fundraise.
  An equity investor is not a bank and is not looking to 
protect its downside by neatly packaging up your IP  
for a sale, should the business start failing.
Specialists in the field
US patent attorneys: 
UK patent attorneys:
 
Resources 
 
Jon Calvert -  
Clearview IP 
David L. Cohen -  
Kidon IP Corporation
Melissa Gato -  
Shoff Darby Insurance Agency    
Chris Tunstall -  
Carpmaels & Ransford
Clare Cornell -  
Finnegan
Ian Armstrong -  
HGF   
Peter Langley -  
Origin   
Get your Intellectual Property story right: Managing IP risks for success 
A summary of the US policies by the World 
Intellectual Property Organisation  
Global patent filing trends
Global comparison of trade  
Secrets protections
Interesting article on the small  
Texan town of Marshall, one of the  
most active courts in IP globally
Good explanation of trade secrets  
from the USPTO
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Where will your office be?
While many European entrepreneurs think Silicon Valley, New York or Boston 
are the hubs where they should be localized, there are a variety of reasons why 
taking a closer look at other cities in the US might be better for your business.
New headquarters or subsidiary?
If you're setting up a new HQ, you'll be sourcing most functions in your business. In that case, you should consider the 
talent pool of geography, as well as the local ecosystem. For example, New York City is central to finance, media and 
fashion, while cutting edge AI technical talent is more prevalent in Silicon Valley. If setting up a subsidiary you should 
think about operational costs as well as talent needs. 
Do you have a firm grasp on the costs and regulatory burden of the new location?
Unlike European geographies where businesses are 
subject to just national regulations, the US gives its 
states autonomy to regulate businesses on a local basis. 
It is key to have experienced local counsel to evaluate 
the different regulatory requirements of across  
different states. 
Many Europeans are unaware of the fact that 
Americans regulate on a federal, estate, county and, in 
many instances, city level: in many places, you need a 
specific address to know exactly what your regulatory 
burden will be, especially in regard to employment law. 
"  We had several ideas to locate satellite offices on both coasts, then realized we 
were just stretching ourselves too much. We chose NYC given our business is 
travel related and hotel clients are based here, as well as being East-side for easy 
travelling to and from our European bases in London and Berlin. In the end, we 
had a co-working space in Oakland on the west coast, but we decided to embrace 
work-from-home culture here and it's allowed us access to talent from across the 
country without the infrastructure requirements of many satellite offices."    
Rob Day, Secret Escapes  
Are you aware of state/government sponsored support for your business in different 
geographies?
While the regulatory complexity is a downside of operating in a decentralized system such as the United States, one of 
its benefits is that states find themselves in competition for investment and have an incentive to attract businesses to 
their geographies. Many states operate incentive plans to support new businesses, including grants for job creation, 
training, and facility improvement.
You should research the jurisdiction's local economic development agency  in the US, every state and major city has one. 
Key factors to consider in location rankings
The table below provides a starting range of possible categories and decision weights in assessing the competitiveness 
of various locations. Use it as a starting point to your evaluation, but adapt it to the needs and priorities of your 
operation, according to your answers to questions such as:
 What are the new location's objectives?
 Which functions will be at the new location?
 I s there a time zone that supports/complements our 
existing work?
 How valuable is proximity to our strategic partners?
  Which infrastructure does the new location need? (i.e. 
proximity to airports, dedicated and secure servers, 
utility load, etc.)
  What is the profile of talent we'll need?
  What are the work-visa requirements for  
secondments / foreign nationals?
  What is the available level of government / state-
sponsored support?
  What are the salary and benefits expectations of 
talent in the proposed location?
  How robust is the local infrastructure for employees? 
(i.e. cost of housing, education, public transport, 
cultural options etc.)
Setting up operations
Hiring talent
Business reporting
Americans regulate on a federal, estate, 
county and, in many instances, city level
Dimension
Category
Metric
Economic 
considerations (60%)
Labor cost
Annual salary cost (fully loaded for selected finance, 
HR, IT and procurement positions) in US$
Cost of office space
Office rent for Class A office space
Other costs
Average cost of telecom charges, 
average flight cost to capital
Workforce  
quality (20%)
Workforce availability
University workforce availability, 
total workforce availability
Workforce quality
Quality of education, labor productivity index
Rigidity of labor law
Index of ability to hire and fire personnel
Language availability 
and quality
Availability and mastery of language skills
Infrastructure 
availability & 
quality (10%)
Availability of office 
infrastructure
Availability of office space
Availability of general 
infrastructure
General infrastructure, electricity 
supply, airport availability
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Source: The Hackett Group
Rental costs in US metro areas20
Do you need capital?
One of the common drivers when considering where to set up a new operation will be your ability to access capital as 
you scale your business. Does that mean you have to head for Silicon Valley or New York to be as close to the capital 
as possible? Do US VCs prefer to work with startups that they can engage with face to face on a regular basis? While 
most venture capital flows to dense and dynamic innovation centers, usually large global cities, an increasing array of 
US metro areas is seeing rising numbers of investments.
If your startup is compelling enough, your office location will not be a deal breaker for investors, and when it comes to 
the West Coast in particular, our default position would be to encourage you to look elsewhere as the Bay Area could 
cripple your budget. 
VC Funds are investing in areas outside of Silicon Valley and New York City 
VCs are investing beyond their back yard
20  Q4 2017 US Office Market Outlook Report, Colliers International 15 March 2018
Dimension
Category
Metric
Risk assessment (5%)
Fraud risk
Corruption perception index (CPI)
Political risk
Political instability index
Data and intellectual 
property (IP) security risk
Intellectual property (IP) protection, 
electronic data protection
Foreign-exchange rate risk
Index of exchange-rate fluctuation (against US$)
Natural disaster risk
Natural disaster risk index
Quality of judicial system
Enforcing contracts index
Quality of business 
environment (5%)
General economic climate
Ease of doing business index, wage rate 
inflation, economic health, tax burden
Politics and quality of life
Freedom index, quality of life index
Location
Avg annual rent  
($/Sq Ft)
San Francisco
84.51
New York - Manhattan
78.3
Washington DC
60.27
Boston
59.63
Austin
50.39
Seattle
46.5
Chicago
44.63
Los Angeles
41.57
21 Crunchbase: Counts of Venture Deals by Investors of Known Location Between Q1 2012 and November 1, 2017
Denver
35.61
Nashville
33.67
Atlanta
30.34
Raleigh-Durham
29.9
Pittsburgh
29.59
Richmond, VA
23.98
Colombus, OH
19.7
Location
Avg annual rent  
($/Sq Ft)
Angel-Seed stage
Company is in the same 
State as investor
Company is out-of-State  
from investor
Lead Investor
61%
39%
Participant
60%
40%
Early Stage-Seed stage
Company is in the same 
state as investor
Company is out-of-State  
from investor
Lead Investor
50%
50%
Participant
56%
44%
Late stage
Company is in the same 
State as investor
Company is out-of-State 
 from investor
Lead Investor
40%
60%
Participant
51%
49%
US venture investors' State-based "local loyalty" by stage & role 21
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VCs are investing all over the US
VC investment activity by metro area 
10-year growth in # of deals
*Data as of 7/26/2018
Metro Area 
2007 2008 2009 2010
2011
2012
2013 2014 2015
2016
2017
Bay Area
1233
1337
1232
1334
1779
2016
2365
2723
2654
2221
2097
New York City
239
304
280
414
605
743
923
1118
1108
940
927
Boston Metro
365
376
336
407
450
491
575
571
632
517
540
Los Angeles Metro
231
262
236
301
368
478
535
655
677
542
586
Seattle Metro
161
166
152
187
210
249
297
279
350
269
308
San Diego Metro
132
141
130
152
161
178
212
246
241
222
227
Austin Metro
98
98
101
134
149
190
233
265
274
216
226
Chicago Metro
61
86
51
119
154
197
213
253
225
244
219
D.C. Metro
100
112
82
129
140
164
197
240
194
198
177
Denver Metro
58
77
67
67
83
116
116
157
174
125
154
Dallas/Fort Worth
65
66
72
76
92
115
170
143
161
138
102
Atlanta Metro
64
73
64
85
103
117
132
155
144
113
116
Philadelphia Metro
64
69
72
82
103
119
112
138
116
122
121
Miami Metro
26
34
39
50
69
91
116
160
132
107
111
Raleigh Metro
59
60
64
67
67
78
83
102
123
98
99
St. Paul Metro
62
52
57
65
83
91
86
102
106
92
76
Boulder Metro
47
51
50
70
81
66
80
92
97
88
101
Portland Metro
34
38
41
46
58
69
85
97
83
95
88
Phoenix Metro
38
44
37
38
50
66
80
106
114
80
78
Salt Lake City Metro
51
36
44
42
53
57
58
91
80
55
62
Santa Barbara Metro
20
24
20
27
20
26
34
36
27
41
28
VC investment activity by metro area (# of deals)
0%
50%
100%
150%
200%
250%
300%
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VC investment activity by metro area ($bn invested)
VC investment activity by metro area (10-year growth in investments)
Metro Area 
2007 2008 2009 2010
2011
2012
2013 2014 2015
2016
2017
Bay Area
$12.2 $13.3 $11.0 
$11.0 $18.2 $15.0 $17.9 $31.8 $35.3 $33.4 $33.0 
New York City
$1.3 
$2.0 
$1.1 
$1.8 
$3.1 
$2.6 
$4.2 
$6.2 
$8.5 
$8.5 
$13.1 
Boston Metro
$3.4 
$3.3 
$2.5 
$3.1 
$3.5 
$4.0 
$4.6 
$4.5 
$7.3 
$6.3 
$8.6 
Los Angeles Metro
$2.2 
$2.0 
$1.3 
$1.7 
$2.2 
$2.8 
$2.4 
$3.8 
$5.0 
$5.3 
$4.8 
Seattle Metro
$1.6 
$1.1 
$0.7 
$0.7 
$0.7 
$1.3 
$1.2 
$2.2 
$2.1 
$1.5 
$1.7 
San Diego Metro
$1.6 
$1.4 
$1.1 
$1.1 
$1.2 
$1.7 
$1.3 
$1.7 
$1.7 
$1.9 
$1.9 
Austin Metro
$0.8 
$0.9 
$0.4 
$0.7 
$0.8 
$0.9 
$0.9 
$1.4 
$1.3 
$0.9 
$1.2 
Chicago Metro
$0.4 
$0.9 
$0.3 
$1.1 
$1.8 
$0.8 
$0.8 
$1.7 
$1.4 
$1.2 
$1.9 
D.C. Metro
$0.7 
$0.8 
$0.5 
$0.9 
$1.4 
$0.6 
$1.1 
$1.0 
$1.2 
$1.1 
$1.5 
Denver Metro
$0.3 
$0.8 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.4 
$0.5 
$0.7 
$0.9 
$0.6 
$0.7 
Dallas/Fort Worth
$0.6 
$0.4 
$0.5 
$0.4 
$1.3 
$0.3 
$1.6 
$0.6 
$0.3 
$0.7 
$0.5 
Atlanta Metro
$0.5 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.5 
$0.3 
$0.5 
$0.7 
$0.6 
$1.1 
$0.6 
$1.1 
Philadelphia Metro
$0.7 
$0.4 
$0.5 
$0.5 
$0.4 
$0.5 
$0.4 
$0.8 
$0.7 
$0.8 
$0.5 
Miami Metro
$0.3 
$0.2 
$0.1 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.4 
$0.6 
$1.3 
$0.5 
$1.3 
$0.6 
Raleigh Metro
$0.5 
$0.5 
$0.3 
$0.6 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.8 
$0.7 
$0.4 
St. Paul Metro
$0.4 
$0.5 
$0.4 
$0.2 
$0.4 
$0.5 
$0.5 
$0.5 
$0.6 
$0.5 
$0.6 
Boulder Metro
$0.3 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.2 
$0.4 
$0.3 
$0.2 
$0.5 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.3 
Portland Metro
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.1 
$0.2 
$0.4 
$0.1 
$0.2 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.4 
Phoenix Metro
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.1 
$0.1 
$0.2 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.2 
Salt Lake City Metro
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.3 
$0.4 
$0.4 
$0.3 
$0.6 
Santa Barbara Metro
$0.2 
$0.2 
$0.1 
$0.2 
$0.1 
$0.4 
$0.3 
$0.3 
$0.4 
$0.3 
$0.2 
*Data as of 7/26/2018
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VC Funds are increasingly setting up outside of Silicon Valley and New York City 
While VCs in the Bay Area and in New York City raised $17.98bn and $2.24bn in 2017 respectively, over 100 VC funds not 
headquartered in either metro area have raised a fund of $100m or more in the last 5 years. 
VC funds set up by metro area (# of funds) 
 
 
VC funds set up by metro area (# of funds  10-year change)
*Data as of 7/26/2018
*Data as of 7/26/2018
Metro Area 
2007 2008 2009 2010
2011
2012
2013 2014 2015
2016
2017
Bay Area
55
72
38
54
57
64
73
111
112
105
100
New York City
24
10
12
23
24
31
22
40
31
43
30
Boston Metro
28
14
17
12
11
13
24
21
27
31
22
Los Angeles Metro
3
6
3
2
4
6
10
16
18
12
21
Chicago Metro
6
8
5
4
8
10
8
5
11
9
7
Seattle Metro
6
7
1
2
0
4
4
4
15
12
4
D.C. Metro
7
4
1
1
2
2
2
5
6
5
6
Philadelphia Metro
4
4
6
1
1
3
4
2
2
4
3
Austin Metro
1
4
2
3
3
0
4
6
2
3
1
Boulder Metro
1
2
1
2
0
4
3
2
6
4
3
Salt Lake City Metro
3
3
2
2
1
2
5
3
2
1
0
Phoenix Metro
0
1
0
0
2
3
4
5
4
4
1
San Diego Metro
1
2
0
1
5
2
3
1
1
1
3
Atlanta Metro
3
3
2
1
1
1
3
2
3
1
2
Dallas/Fort Worth
1
2
3
2
4
2
1
3
3
0
0
Raleigh Metro
2
1
1
0
0
1
2
2
3
4
2
Portland Metro
1
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
4
2
1
St. Paul Metro
3
3
2
1
0
1
2
1
1
0
2
Miami Metro
1
2
1
1
0
1
0
1
1
2
1
Denver Metro
2
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
1
1
Santa Barbara Metro
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
2
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Funds raised by VCs by metro area ($bn) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Funds raised by VCs by metro area (10-year growth)
Metro Area
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
Total 
YTD
Bay Area
$16.57
$14.47
$15.57
$4.68
$10.74 $14.34 $13.32
$9.50
$21.06 $20.02 $24.67
$17.98
$15.22 $198.13
New York City
$3.40
$5.05
$1.35
$0.76
$2.32
$4.33
$4.56
$1.61
$7.08
$5.94
$2.58
$2.24
$2.75
$43.97
Boston Metro
$4.80
$6.91
$3.40
$3.16
$2.55
$4.04
$2.26
$4.92
$3.02
$5.06
$6.12
$5.74
$4.15
$56.13
Los Angeles 
Metro
$0.26
$0.22
$0.31
$0.27
$0.02
$0.05
$0.11
$0.24
$0.68
$0.34
$0.55
$2.13
$0.58
$5.77
Chicago Metro
$0.37
$0.82
$0.86
$0.27
$0.45
$0.71
$0.16
$0.28
$0.50
$0.48
$0.88
$0.33
$0.21
$6.31
Seattle Metro
$0.54
$2.33
$2.90
$0.00
$0.01
$0.00
$0.33
$0.55
$0.19
$0.69
$0.56
$0.43
$0.38
$8.92
D.C. Metro
$0.69
$1.15
$0.64
$0.12
$0.44
$0.11
$0.02
$0.43
$0.13
$0.55
$0.31
$2.32
$0.19
$7.10
Philadelphia 
Metro
$0.64
$0.15
$0.69
$0.59
$0.13
$0.10
$0.22
$0.15
$0.18
$0.24
$0.18
$0.11
$0.00
$3.38
Austin Metro
$0.82
$0.02
$1.07
$0.00
$0.08
$0.13
$0.00
$0.52
$0.29
$0.11
$0.08
$0.00
$0.49
$3.62
Boulder Metro
$0.02
$0.23
$0.11
$0.01
$0.25
$0.00
$0.09
$0.23
$0.06
$0.64
$0.06
$0.01
$0.00
$1.71
Salt Lake 
City Metro
$0.13
$0.35
$0.09
$0.16
$0.07
$0.03
$0.13
$0.57
$0.12
$0.25
$0.25
$0.00
$0.08
$2.22
Phoenix Metro
$0.00
$0.00
$0.02
$0.00
$0.00
$0.04
$0.06
$0.13
$0.16
$0.01
$0.03
$0.01
$0.05
$0.49
San Diego 
Metro
$0.06
$0.01
$0.83
$0.00
$0.03
$0.50
$0.37
$0.02
$0.17
$0.10
$0.20
$0.16
$0.00
$2.46
Atlanta Metro
$0.22
$0.26
$0.14
$0.16
$0.03
$0.00
$0.05
$0.11
$0.04
$0.26
$0.05
$0.11
$0.00
$1.42
Dallas/Fort 
Worth
$0.02
$0.01
$0.10
$0.01
$0.06
$0.33
$0.03
$0.00
$0.03
$0.05
$0.00
$0.00
$0.03
$0.65
Raleigh Metro
$0.34
$0.04
$0.08
$0.10
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.22
$0.04
$0.03
$0.21
$0.28
$0.01
$1.34
Portland Metro
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.02
$0.00
$0.01
$0.01
$0.01
$0.02
$0.06
$0.01
$0.00
$0.14
St. Paul Metro
$0.40
$0.33
$0.48
$0.03
$0.00
$0.00
$0.15
$0.11
$0.07
$0.01
$0.00
$0.04
$0.00
$1.60
Miami Metro
$0.00
$0.02
$0.16
$0.01
$0.00
$0.00
$0.27
$0.00
$0.30
$0.02
$0.05
$0.00
$0.03
$0.85
Denver Metro
$0.00
$0.20
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.13
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.33
Santa Barbara 
Metro
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.03
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.03
*Data as of 7/26/2018
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Texas / New Orleans
Austin and Dallas are the major tech hubs in this region, 
which also boasts smaller clusters in Houston, San 
Antonio and New Orleans. UK tech companies in Austin: 
BrainLabs Digital, BYND, Austin Fraser, Safeguard World, 
GCS Recruitment, Beamery.
Information on the Texas cities
Information on New Orleans
San Diego
San Diego is currently ranked 4th in the nation  
for start-up activity by the US Chamber of Commerce 
(behind Boston, Silicon Valley, and New York) and is 
ranked in the top-ten for venture capital investment. A 
quarter of San Diego's GDP comes from the "innovation 
economy"  knowledge intensive industries that lend 
themselves nicely to start-up activity. Ecosystem includes: 
Qualcomm Ventures, UCSD Office of Commercialization 
& Innovation, JLABS (Johnson & Johnson life science 
incubator), San Diego Airport Innovation Incubator, 
San Diego Venture Group (800 members), TechCoast 
Angels (largest Angel network in the US). Notable 
homegrown companies: Classy, Measurabl, Raken.  
Portland / Wider Oregon
Oregon has an established computer (semiconductor) 
and electronics sector, led by Intel and Mentor Graphics, 
which have significant presences there. Software is 
emerging / established; leading home-grown lights include: 
PuppetLabs, Cloudability, Elemental Technologies, Jama 
Software, Janrain, Jive, Act-On, Simple, Viewpoint, and 
investments from Salesforce, AirBnB, Amazon, McAfee, 
Mozilla. The Portland high-tech industry continues to grow, 
with high-tech employee hiring reaching a 12-year high in 
2018. Software investments have grown almost 50% in the 
past 10 years. The region is very cost competitive with the 
Bay Area and Seattle.  
Tech association of Oregon's Techlandia overview
Greater Portland 
23  A special thank you to the UK Department of International Trade (DIT) (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-international-
trade) for their contributions. Aside from developing, coordinating and delivering new trade policy for the UK, the DIT helps UK businesses export and  
grow into global markets as well as expand in the UK
The Research Triangle 
The region of Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill in North 
Carolina is anchored by three major research 
universities: North Carolina State University, Duke 
University and University of North Carolina at Chapel 
Hill. This "Research Triangle" is a thriving Tech hub, 
home to Red Hat, Inc. and SAS Institute. In 2017, North 
Carolina start-ups raised more than $1 billion in funding. 
Greater Washington DC Area  
The Washington DC, northern Virginia and central 
Maryland area encompasses large clusters in Cyber 
Security, Life Sciences, Big Data, and Analytics. This 
Information, Communication, and Technology (ICT) 
cluster was originally fostered by the founding of 
internet portal pioneer AOL. Maryland's Montgomery 
County gave $100,000 of direct incentives to attract 
cybersecurity startups, and Arlington, VA has enhanced 
its High Tech Zone Incentive Program to provide 
tech firms with a broader range of tax incentives. 
Which other US metro areas are worth exploring?
There are many options for subsidiary operations across the United States. Hubs such as Chicago, Seattle, Austin, 
Denver, San Diego, Portland, Atlanta, Minneapolis or Miami among others offer strong talent and infrastructure.  
A number of Canadian cities also merit a close look, including Toronto and Vancouver, two vibrant technology  
hubs north of the US border.
Some notable areas23
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Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is a booming tech cluster for Artificial 
Intelligence and Robotics, anchored by outposts of 
Google, Uber (autonomous vehicle test bed), Apple, 
Facebook, Philips, and the National Robotics Engineering 
Center. Notable home-grown companies include Duolingo, 
Argo AI ($1bil investment by Ford), and Petuum Inc. ($93mil 
Series B). Growth is supported by Carnegie Mellon 
University, University of Pittsburgh, InnovatePGH, and the 
Pittsburgh Technology Council. Alphalab is a software 
accelerator providing access to funds and an immersive 
4-month training program.
More here
Philadelphia 
Philadelphia is strong in biotech, digital health, 
edtech, & SaaS. Its ecosystem is supported by 
StartupPHL, Philly Startup Leaders, Ben Franklin 
Technology Partners, PACT, University of Pennsylvania, 
Temple, & Drexel University. Healthcare investments 
represented nearly 80 percent of the $529.6 million in 
deal value that Philadelphia saw in 2017. The largest raise 
in 2017 was that of biotech company Complexa, Inc 
($63mil series C).
More information on notable startups
"  Location is a challenging one - Boston, Austin, New York 
and San Francisco are so competitive that availability 
comes at a price; you should look at whether the state is 
helping with resources, and if you are not familiar with 
the market, go get people who are."   
Paul Roscoe, Docent Health 
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Minneapolis, MN 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $88k 
Metro Population: 3,555,500   
Major Industries: Financial Services, 
Technology, Biomedical, Retail  
Gross Metro Product: $233.9bn   
Median Household Income: $72,629  
Cost of Living: 1% above nat'l avg   
College Attainment: 40.5% 
Chicago, IL 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $113k 
Metro Population: 2,716,450 
Major Industries: Aerospace, 
Telecoms, Technology 
Gross Metro Product: $178.2bn    
Median Household Income: $69,908  
Cost of Living: 7.8% above nat'l avg    
College Attainment: 41.8%  
Atlanta, GA 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $90k 
Metro Population: 5,802,100    
Major Industries: Financial 
Services, Technology, Telecoms   
Gross Metro Product: $334.8bn 
Median Household Income: $62,437
Cost of Living: 2% above nat'l avg    
College Attainment: 37.7%  
Miami, FL 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $88k 
Metro Population: 2,718,800     
Major Industries: Financial 
Services, Tourism, Trade, Media    
Gross Metro Product: $134.3bn  
Median Household Income: $45,214 
Cost of Living: 13% above nat'l avg     
College Attainment: 27.9% 
Austin, TX 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $118k  
Metro Population: 2,063,500      
Major Industries: Technology, 
Pharma, Biotechnology     
Gross Metro Product: $124.4bn   
Median Household Income: $68,034 
Cost of Living: 13% above nat'l avg     
College Attainment: 42.8% 
Tucson, AZ
Metro Population: 1,018,400 
Major Industries: Technology, 
Education     
Gross Metro Product: $41.8bn   
Median Household Income: $49,116  
Cost of Living: 3% below nat'l avg      
College Attainment: 31.9%  
Los Angeles, CA 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $129k
Metro Population: 10,140,200       
Major Industries: Entertainment, 
Aerospace, Tourism, Technology 
Gross Metro Product: $721.6bn    
Median Household Income: $61,931   
Cost of Living: 26% above nat'l avg      
College Attainment: 31.5% 
San Diego, CA 
Avg. Software Engineer 
Salary: $108k
Metro Population: 3,320,600        
Major Industries: Defense, 
Tourism, Technology  
Gross Metro Product: $232.4bn     
Median Household Income: $70,141    
Cost of Living: 28% above nat'l avg   
College Attainment: 37.4% 
Salt Lake City, UT 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $91k 
Metro Population: 1,135,649        
Major Industries: Tourism, 
Healthcare, Transportation 
Gross Metro Product: $89.5bn     
Median Household Income: $68,196   
Cost of Living: 8% above nat'l avg       
College Attainment: 32.7% 
Portland, OR 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $98k 
Metro Population: 2,432,600        
Major Industries: Real Estate 
& Construction, Technology  
Gross Metro Product: $157bn     
Median Household Income: $66,971   
Cost of Living: 10% above nat'l avg       
College Attainment: 38.9% 
Which other US metro areas are worth exploring?
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24 Forbes, Software Engineering Salary from Hired (https://hired.com/state-of-salaries-2018) & Glassdoor
MT
ND
WI 
MI
OR
ID
WY
SD
IA 
IL
IN
OH
PA
NY
VT
ME
CA
NV
UT
KS 
NE 
MO
KY
WV
AZ
NM
OK
AR
TN
NC
VA
TX
FL
LA
MS
AL
SC
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8
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GA
WA
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MN
CO
Seattle, WA
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $132K 
Metro Population: 2,944,900 
Major Industries: Clean Energy, 
Aerospace & Defense 
Gross Metro Product: $265bn 
Median Household Income: $84,288 
Cost of Living: 27% above nat'l avg 
College Attainment: 46.2% 
Denver, CO 
Avg. Software Engineer Salary: $112k 
Metro Population: 2,857,700  
Major Industries: Aerospace, 
Telecoms, Technology  
Gross Metro Product: $183.6.2bn  
Median Household Income: $73,250  
Cost of Living: 10% above nat'l avg  
College Attainment: 42.5% 
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Which taxes are you liable for? 
As soon as you land in the US you will be subject to taxation, and tax-
related questions will increasingly become a consideration in many of your 
commercial decisions.
Corporation Tax
Corporation Tax is collected at Federal, State and 
sometimes District level.
It is applied at graduate rates to the net profits (not  
until you're profitable). In 2018 the Federal level of the US 
corporation tax rate is a flat 21% due to the passage of 
the "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act" on December 20, 2017. 
Additional State tax varies from 0-12%.
Social Security & Medicare
These two separate taxes are often referred to as payroll 
taxes and are typically deducted from payroll on an 
ongoing basis. They are processed by a PEO or payroll 
provider. Social security is currently charged as 12.4% on 
an employee's salary up to a maximum cap of $128k25.
Medicare contributions account for an additional 1.45%26 
tax on an employee's salary.
Federal
Corporation Tax
Social Security
Medicare
Unemployment Tax
State
Corporation Tax
Sales Tax
Franchise Tax
Unemployment Tax
Corporation Tax
District
Corporation Tax
Sales Tax
Sales Tax
Sales Tax is a pass-through tax similar to VAT in the UK 
that a merchant must collect from customers.
Sales Tax is payable in all but 5 States and varies from 
0% to 15%29.
Most businesses offering 'services' do not pay sales tax 
but where tangible goods or software are involved you 
should definitely factor the sales tax into your pricing.
You should check whether you are liable for Sales Tax in 
each State.
Sales Tax on e-commerce
As of June 2018, the US Supreme Court decided that States 
can require e-commerce companies to collect sales tax, 
overturning a 1992 decision in Quill Corporation vs. North 
Dakota which did not let States ask companies without a 
physical location in the State to collect sales tax. 
Franchise Tax
Franchise Tax is paid to the State and reflects the 
privilege to operate in a given geography.
In addition, your State of incorporation will typically 
expect franchise tax.
Franchise Tax varies significantly between States - e.g. in 
Delaware it is linked to the total number of authorized 
shares up to a cap of $180k, whereas in Alabama it is a 
graduated tax of 0.175% on income over $2.5m up to a 
cap of $15k.
Property Tax
A State level tax is paid on all tangible property and 
some States also include a tax on intangible property. 
This tax has increasingly shifted from being a State level 
tax to a district or city level tax.
Unemployment Tax
An employer must contribute at State and Federal level for Unemployment Tax. In 2017 this was charged at 6% of an 
employee's salary, but with 5.4% of this refundable if an employer paid unemployment tax at a State level.27 
The maximum amount is capped at $450 per employee.28
Federal
Corporation Tax
Social Security
Medicare
Unemployment Tax
State
Corporation Tax
Sales Tax
Franchise Tax
Unemployment Tax
Property Tax
District
Corporation Tax
Sales Tax
25 https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/factsheets/HowAreSocialSecurity.htm
26 https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/quickfacts/prog_highlights/RatesLimits2018.html
27 https://taxmap.irs.gov/taxmap/pubs/p15-013.htm 
28 https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/collecting-unemployment-benefits-california-32504-2.html
29 https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-states-to-be-a-taxpayer/2416/ 
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Specialists in the field
Given the specialist and technical nature of these topics, speaking to accountants and advisors 
such as those below is strongly advised:
More resources
How do you build a high performing team?
For rapidly growing companies, hiring is a critical, resource-intensive 
responsibility. Whether you are a company of founders looking to build your 
team out, or a 400-strong entity seeking to hire specialty roles, your recruiting 
process can make or break the livelihood of your company. 
Know thyself
Recruitment demands that you know your own business 
to the core. Your recruitment briefs should be blueprints 
of your corporate DNA. Know yourself  your values, your 
mission, your objectives  inside out and you'll know 
exactly what to look for in your next hire.
By your actions
How you hire is almost as important as who you hire. 
Every stage of the recruiting process communicates 
something about your business to the outside world. 
Building the right team is the goal, but how you go about 
it speaks volumes as to who you are as a company.
 
Some golden rules
You never outgrow the use of both external and internal recruiters, no matter your size. You should be 
clear of your reasons (explained below) of using one over the other.
Just as you evaluate recruiters, recruiters evaluate your company. They produce the best results for the 
clients who provide an intriguing value proposition for the prospective employee. For example, when a Seed stage 
company reaches out to a recruiter for an executive role, she may ask herself, "why can't this company attract 
good talent at such an early stage?"
Developing great internal recruiting resources is crucial, at any stage. When working with external providers, 
committing the time, money, and effort towards defining the position you want and how it fits strategically in 
your company's plans is essential to getting good results.
"  Make sure the company has the right advice and the team has support on state 
tax; for example, each state has a different set of interpretations on whether 
SaaS companies need to pay state tax"  Tim Brown, Maxymizer
Eric Collins -  
Frank Hirth
Don Dismuke -  
Dixon Hughes Goodman
Understanding US Corporate  
and Federal Tax   
Understanding US Sales, franchise  
and Property Tax 
Products subject to Sales Tax 
Sales Tax agencies in each US State 
Bradley Smallberg -  
Schissel Smallberg
Michael Hamilton -  
KPMG
Alexander Wang -  
Marks, Paneth & Shron
Corporation Tax by State 
Payroll Tax by State  
"  Every interviewer will bring certain variables and biases, so there have to  
be a core set of principles and values that the company believes that must  
be brought into the interview process"  Bec Sankauskas, Bexouce
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Matthew Foreman -  
Foreman Tax Law
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When should you keep it internal?
The general rule of thumb seems to be: use internal recruiting as much as you possibly can, at every step of the 
recruiting value chain.
Here's why:
  Soliciting interviews and designing the recruiting 
process: Internal recruiters understand your 
company's people needs as well as its broader 
strategic goals. They are committed to these goals 
every work day, more than any external recruiter can 
claim. As such, they are best positioned to design an 
interview process that truly reflects your company's 
values and strategy. Equally, they can best assess 
whether the choice to interview or the language 
used to describe advertised positions aligns with your 
company's values.
  Conducting the interviews and communicating 
with candidates: Just as crucial is the task of 
communicating your company's identity and value 
to a prospective employee. As Shelly Duong from 
Mochi HR Consulting said, "internal recruiters best 
represent the company and the culture [to prospective 
employees]." A candidate is interviewing your 
company just as you are interviewing the candidate: 
using your people, who can best communicate and 
embody the company's ethos, can be key. 
  Negotiating with potential employees: There is value 
in having a third-party objectively present to negotiate 
an offer package. But this value rarely supersedes 
that of a team member articulating why a candidate 
should join your team. By removing one link in the 
negotiation chain, it allows the candidate and the 
negotiator to flexibly (and inexpensively) respond to 
counters or adjust the offer package as necessary.
 
Why else might you choose to use internal capacity?
When internal capacity is not exhausted:
  Rule of Thumb #1: The maximum capacity an internal recruiter can handle is about 10-15 active job descriptions  
per recruiter (managing recruiting responsibilities full-time). Anything beyond this number typically becomes 
unwieldy and should therefore be outsourced to external recruiting firms. Failing to do this might risk a drop off  
in quality of recruiting.
When recruiting for non-senior roles:
  For recruiting senior roles, the demands are such that the process might need to be confidential, technical or 
demanding beyond the internal team's competency, or might require access to niche networks of executive 
candidates. In such cases, relying on external search firms is likely a better course of action.
  Given this point, prioritize using internal capacity to conduct searches for positions other than director or senior 
executive roles.
In times of slow employee growth (short to medium-term):
  Rule of Thumb #2: Use an internal capacity if you have conservative growth plans in the short to medium term. 
If your company wishes to increase by greater than 50 employees in a 12 to 18-month period, you would need at 
least one internal employee dedicated full-time to recruiting, perhaps more.
How should you utilize your internal recruiting team most effectively?
Ideally, everyone in your company should be involved in the recruiting effort in some way:
  Recruiting the best talent is of direct strategic value  
to any company, especially smaller growing companies. 
Some teammates can participate directly, others 
indirectly, such as by recommending candidates, 
preparing recruiting material, or creating a welcoming 
interviewing environment.
  The founders/CEO should participate directly on the 
recruiting effort. At least 10-20% of every founder's 
time should be spent on recruiting.
Do not spend too much time burning internal 
resources before moving to an external recruiter:
  Limit the amount of time you give your team to 
determine whether it can conduct a successful search 
internally. Give your staff about 2-3 weeks to search 
in the market, after which they should determine if 
they'd need external help.
  If internal capacity is limited, you can pursue a number 
of hybrid internal-external arrangements:
Alternative 1: Pairing limited internal capacity 
with the work of research firms that map the 
market and find a list of candidates based on 
your criteria. These can be valuable support for a 
fraction of the price of a recruiter. Some foreign 
research firms can cost as little as $20/hour.
Alternative 2: Employing a part-time recruiter  
  many can be hired via agencies  can alleviate  
the burden.
"  If your employees aren't inviting their friends and personal networks to apply 
for open positions, that might be a reflection of their generally negative feelings 
about your company."  Sebastyan Zaborowski, Semmle  
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"  No matter what your stage, about 80% of the roles in your company should  
be filled by internal capacity doing something so key or strategic to your 
company should not be done by someone that doesn't care about the outcome  
as much as you would."  Will Champagne, Ivy Scale 
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When should you look for external recruiters?
Look to external search firms when recruiting roles of special quality, which fall outside of your internal capabilities. 
Examples of special qualities might be a role that is senior, technical, difficult to identify candidates for, or that 
requires a confidential search.
These aren't always senior roles. For example, Executive Assistant roles can result in an overwhelming amount of 
resumes, so finding the right candidate might justify using an external recruiter over limited internal capacity.
Who should you choose as an external recruiter?
Choose the recruiter best connected to the type of person you want to recruit. Always ask: Who has the relationships 
with people you would like to hire? Those people would pick up the phone when the recruiter calls them.
Specialist, region-specific, or industry-specific recruiters are most effective for targeted searches, as they understand 
the market and the role you are sourcing for. Rely far less on generalist recruiters, most of whom are best at sourcing 
"generalist" candidates.
3 types of recruiter engagement
Retainer: This involves a fixed fee, time-constrained 
relationship, wherein the company pays the search 
firm over three periods of time: at the start of the 
engagement, after a few candidates have been 
interviewed, and once a candidate signs an offer letter.
These are best for senior or executive-positions, 
where there is no sparing expense or, in some cases, 
little time to get the best candidate.
Contingency: Only one payment is made to the 
search firm, on the date the candidate sourced by 
the firm begins her role. These are best for filling 
junior positions in a company.
Container: A hybrid between a retainer and a 
contingency engagement. This involves just two 
payment instalments: a deposit to initiate the 
search and a payment once a candidate signs an 
offer letter.
This form of engagement is best used with critical 
mid to senior-level hiring needs that must be 
completed urgently (in say, 6-8 weeks).
 
#protip: The best recruiters tend to gravitate towards working at retainer firms, so the choice of 
type of firm might affect the quality of outcomes you get from your recruiter.
How do you choose the ideal firm for your search?
References: Seek references on recruiting firms from 
partners, investors, and other companiesmaybe even 
competitors! Don't rely on reviews alone.
Individual recruiters: Seek out and develop 
relationships with individual recruiters within a firm, 
instead of focusing on reviews of the firm alone. 
Long-term understanding: Look for recruiters who 
understand your company, team, and the role defined, 
and with whom you can develop a long-term relationship. 
In many cases, recruiting firms that you have worked with 
in the past will be best at filling this role, but this may not 
always be the case. 
A full service, executive and non-executive recruiter firm 
provides the potential for a longer-term relationship 
across all roles. That said, some exec-only firms also have 
close relationships with non-exec firms, so developing a 
relationship with an exec-only firm does not foreclose the 
possibility of easily connecting with non-exec recruiters.
 
"National" searches: Understand whether the recruiter 
you paid for is actually taking the lead on a search in a 
certain location/region, or whether they are outsourcing 
the work to another vendor in your target location.
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"  As great as hiring a ton of MBAs may sound, we have taken the approach  
of hiring folks who know the local market really well. This is such a  
valuable asset."  Joel Frisch, Prodigy Finance 
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Vertical specific recruiters
Executive search
 East Coast 
 West Coast
Non-exec
Engineering
Sales
Human Resources
Industry specific recruiters
Healthcare
Enterprise
Diane McIntyre -  
Calibre One (retained)
Simon Bromwell -  
Robert Walters (contained)
Rick Bank -  
True Ventures (retained)
Mark Lonergan -  
Lonergan Partners (retained)
Jamie Sanger -  
Daversa (retained)
Joe Griesedieck -  
Korn Ferry International (retained)
Ben Christian -  
Carbon Partners (retained)
Spencer Tashima -  
Essential Solutions (retained)
Julia Horiuchi -  
Robert Walters (contained)
Tony Zammikiel -  
Equity Search Partners (contingency)
Chris Johnson -  
Artisanal Talent (retained)
Dirk Cleveland -  
Riviera Partners (retained)
Cathy Cairns -  
Elite Technology Sales Recruiters (contingency)
Katie Pouch -  
RJR Partners (retained / contingency)
Bill McHargue -  
Talent House (contingency)
Cathy Cairns -  
Elite Technology Sales Recruiters (contingency)
Katie Pouch -  
RJR Partners (retained / contingency)
Bill McHargue -  
Talent House (contingency)
Jennifer Carlo -  
Betts Recruiting (contingency)
Robin Toft -  
Toft Group (retained)
Mia Jung -  
Oxeon Group (retained)
Sean Walker -  
Bowdoin Group (retained)
Joel May -  
BridgeGate (retained)
Douglas Madden -  
Fortra Search (retained)
Sean Lucq -  
SPMB (retained)
Greg Button -  
Korn Ferry International (retained)
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A Benchmark for "good": conducting a foolproof interview process
Get the interview right and the right candidates will become the right employees. This page provides a basic  
how-to guide for successfully setting up and executing an interview process for US candidates. 
Building the interview process
 
  Define your company's core values before your interview process. These will directly what interview 
questions you ask and what kind of answers you seek.
 
 Map the interview process and timeline of each step before beginning the process.
 
  Your HR team should work alongside your relevant functional team to develop the interview process  
for candidates.
 
  Standardize processes, especially one for sharing feedback/evaluations amongst interviewers after  
the interviewees.
 Setting your team members' responsibilities in the interview process
First, determine who will be conducting interviews of candidates. Strongly recommended participants include:
 
 Your employee to whom the candidate would be reporting (to test skills)
 
 The HR rep who would be responsible for the person/team (to test culture)
 
 A senior executive of the company (to test fit to company and strategy objectives)
Other participants could include an employee with whom the person would be working, and someone 
influential to the culture of the team.
Then, consider how to indirectly engage other members of your company:
 
 Encourage people to introduce themselves to interviewees when in the office
 
 Seek out indirect feedback on interactions with candidates
 
 Ask for help to cover interviewers' business-as-usual responsibilities during interview season.
Designing interview questions
Seek to evaluate three aspects of a candidate: Relevant skills, subject experience and cultural fit.
   Standardize interview questions beforehand: Create standard sets of questions, aligned with the skills 
sought. During the interview, an interviewer can then choose which questions within the set are applicable.
   Align behavioral questions to your company values: These types of questions are most effective for 
testing cultural fit, so align them to the values that define your company's culture. 
   Ask simpler questions to candidates, especially in US interviews: Interviewees tend to expatiate and 
will be more revealing when simpler questions are asked.
   Consider including a case study in the interview process: Americans are hardwired to sell themselves 
well, so use a live case study as a means of truly testing skills and experience in action.
Diversity and inclusion
Consciousness in this area is now standard, but how it lives in your process will be determined by your company's 
unique culture. Design a hiring process that accounts for diversity and inclusion in the following ways:
  Encouraging diverse applications before the interview
Distribute job application to multiple channels, and, if possible, target channels accessible to diverse 
applicants. If working with external recruiters: mandate they provide diverse candidates
  Creating inclusive interviews with control for unconscious biases
Conduct a blind evaluation process of candidates' written material (e.g. remove names or gender/other 
status identifications from interviewers' answers). Make no concessions on critical skills but be more flexible 
with nice-to-have skills that can be taught or are not essential in the position. This may help account for 
disparate access to previous skill development opportunities.
Commit your executive leadership to prioritize diversity and inclusion throughout the company. If these are 
true priorities, these efforts will succeed.
Informal references
Put weight on informal references: informal references are better positioned to give unbiased views. US 
applicants, perhaps better than others, likely select primed referees who have positive things to say about 
them. Therefore, identify informal references through conversations with the candidates, LinkedIn 
connections and connections from other social media platforms.
Extending an offer and negotiating with candidates
Consult with others directly involved in the interviewing process before extending an offer to someone (this 
could set a new hire up for failure and/or fray team collaboration). Once done, set out a strict timeline for 
making offers and responding to candidates. 
Benchmarking against competing offers
Discourage benchmarking your offer to those from competitors or other companies (besides understanding 
what the general market package tends to be for the position). Instead, focus your pitch to the candidate 
on the opportunity to work with an amazing team building a meaningful product. American candidates are 
significantly influenced by a sense of purpose and mission in their work. Broadly: ask "what would make this 
person come here?" and provide, to the best of your ability, a pre-emptive answer to the candidate.
"  US candidates interview well and are often very effusive and great at the larger 
vision of the business. Pre-warn candidates you are going to drill into detail.  
This is more insightful."  Ed Boyes, US CEO, Hello Fresh 
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"  US folks are hard wired to sell themselves. At the final stage, get them to come in 
and present a case study. People are always presenting themselves internally or 
externally to various stakeholders and it's a great way to see if they have taken the 
time to understand the business and come prepared. It really weeds out some 
people who on paper, or after an initial chat, you thought were great."    
Joel Frish, Prodigy Finance
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How do you hire for a remote role?
The life adjustments, unique work dynamics, and tactical outcomes typically 
expected of a remote role require someone experienced at working remotely. 
Prioritize candidates with a history of demonstrated success in remote roles.
Hiring process best practices for a remote office/position
Do more cultural interviews for a remote position than for an in-person position. The cultural connection is even more 
essential remotely than in-person, where proximity helps foster collaboration and create accountability.
Replicate the work environment as much as possible in the interview process. Video calls and phone screenings evaluate 
the candidate's communication style and ability to complete and convey work remotely. A good rule of thumb for 
gauging effective phone and video screenings is the following: did you feel like you were sitting in the same room with  
the candidate?
Structuring effective flex (or part-time) arrangements
It is important to note that not every position in your company would work as a flex or part-time arrangement. 
The ideal flex or part-time position is
  primarily a tactical role, without many strategic functions.
  independent, in some cases project-based work distributed piecemeal across the team.
When flex roles take on strategic responsibilities, the work process could grind to a halt: "Let's table the 
conversation until Jenny comes back and approves."
That said, there is significant value that flex roles can provide in encouraging diversity in your company:
  providing flex opportunities allows a company to easily accommodate good employees with a diversity of life 
experiences and identities.
  providing a flex opportunity can create positive incentives for employees: e.g. a new mother provided the choice 
of a flex role can self-determine, upon returning to work, when in the day she would be most productive.
Beware: The expectations of a flex role, if not handled correctly, can turn it into a de facto full-time role.  
In one example, a two-day a week HR worker actually ended up working 35 - 45 hours a week because  
the company consistently sent her assignments outside of work hours.
"  Avoid hiring junior people as remote workers  if they are inexperienced 
workers, they might not know what this [type of work arrangement]  
entails/requires"  Bec Sankauskas, Bexouce
"  Hire people with whom you can have a good rapport 
over a call. If you can't be excited connecting with them 
over the phone or a video call, you're probably not going 
to call them and rely on email instead, which can make 
the work process take forever." 
Joseph Dierking, Bexouce
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What is your remuneration strategy?
There is intense hiring competition from American companies. The job market 
is very liquid, driving up prices and lowering retention.
Remuneration considerations
The US job market is normally cited as setting salary levels above those for similar roles in different geographies. 
However, it is hard to generalize as there are significant variances within the US depending on the city, role and level of 
seniority. For example, the average salary for a developer in Palo Alto is $124k compared to $92k in Texas.
As you would at home, it is worth investing time to set out the principles around which remuneration will be governed. 
Specifically addressing what level of salaries you wish to pay (i.e. 60th percentile), how and when options will be 
granted, and whether or not there is a variable pay element will help you implement a consistent strategy. 
The salary formula used by Buffer is a useful example of key salary considerations and the 
weighting assigned between general factors - i.e. location, cost of living, "role value adjustment"  
 - and experience. 
When using benchmarking tools such as salary databases, it's useful to compare your offered salary range to those of 
the companies you are competing with for talent. This may involve more established businesses than your own.
A compensation philosophy that is fair, competitive, simple and rewards performance will set your company up for success. 
Key questions 
  What state regulations and requirements apply to  
your business?
  Does your business have a consistent policy and 
formula for how to determine salary levels?
  What will be your Paid Time Off policy? 
  Are you aware of the legal implications of Holiday Debt?
  Once you've set the strategic principles guiding your 
company's compensation policy, it's worth getting 
professional support to execute it. Mistakes are costly 
and easily avoidable with proper counsel. 
New joiners
In the US, the official process of hiring new employees includes filing the following documents:
 Form I9, employee eligibility form.
 Form W4, employee tax withholding calculation (requirements vary by State).
  Specific State reporting requirements will involve information being provided to the Department of Health 
and Human Services.
  Under federal law, reports must be submitted to the appropriate State agency within 20 calendar days  
of the date of hire, although some States may require shorter reporting windows.
 Each year, Form W2, completed with any new employee SSN and identity details.
As this process is subject to change and updates, it is prudent to check with the IRS, city and State regulations. It is 
worth noting that many payroll providers or PEOs will manage this process and advise on specific filing requirements.
Another important policy to note is Workers' Compensation Insurance. Employers pay for this insurance and 
cannot require the employee to contribute to its cost. Workers' Compensation Insurance covers cash benefits 
and/or medical care for workers who are injured or become ill as a direct result of their job. 
Specialists in the field
Resources
Stuart Bagshaw -  
BAB Leap
Greg Capitolo -  
Attivo
David Ehrenburg -  
Early Growth Financial Services
Free cost of living data  
from Numbeo 
IRS requirement for new employees 
Tax withholding regulations  
shown State by State 
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How do you determine stock options 
for your US employees?
Before making any local US hires, it is important to have fully thought through 
proposed compensation packages, which may include stock options.
Retain advisers: Above all else, tax and legal advisers should be engaged early on to help you think this through 
and to understand how to establish and maintain a stock option plan for your US employees.  
Employee expectation: US employees who are working for a start-up (even a 'mature' one), will typically expect 
some form of their compensation to be in equity (whether this is a direct issuance of shares or, more commonly, 
stock options).
Keep it simple: However, given the ease with which US employees can leave employment and the 
administrational burden of managing a large option plan at the outset, we would suggest that with your first US 
hires, you only offer equity for your senior or key roles.
Use your existing incentivization framework: You should have an existing framework which sets out how you, 
as a company, think about granting options to employees. There is no 'right' way to do this (and much has been 
written and continues to be written on this topic). Once you have an objective calculation methodology, we 
suggest that you use the same principles to build a US-focused option framework.
Have a separate option plan for your US employees: You will likely need a separate option plan for your US 
employees and, while it should take account of your company's overall remuneration philosophy, it may also 
include nuances for the local market (eg. what equity stake do other US country heads get offered in similar size/
stage companies; how are leavers treated; what does a vesting schedule look like). Inequalities may creep in from 
location to location, and yet this flexibility is something you will need to be comfortable with in order to hire the 
best talent. 
409A Valuation: In the US, it is an absolute prerequisite for the company to have a 409A Valuation at the time of 
each option grant. A 409A Valuation is simply a fair-market appraisal of the stock of your parent company. We 
recommend you do this externally and pay the $2-$5k for the valuation. This will ensure that any challenges to it 
from the IRS, require the IRS to do the leg-work to disprove the methodology applied by the external valuation firm.
Top tips:
a.   Synchronize valuations (conducted in the US and the other jurisdictions) at the outset to avoid complicated 
retrospective synchronizations of separate plans.
b.   UK and US tax authorities, in particular, don't have a similar approach to assessing what the exercise price of 
the options should be. You will need to understand how you can make pricing 'equal'  are you going to have 
different exercise prices in simultaneous grants of your options to your UK and US employees and if so, does this 
impact the number of options you are willing to grant an employee?
c.   Have excellent communication with your employees. Explain how the grant and exercise process works, what 
happens if they leave and what happens if there is an exit. Be mindful that options are only truly valuable if 
employees understand how they work.
  How EMI Works in the UK
Under the EMI scheme, a company can "self-assess" to set up the plan and HMRC should be notified whenever 
options are granted. There are annual limits for participants and a restriction on the total value of options in the 
pool. The exercise price must be agreed with HMRC in advance to ensure that the tax breaks are achieved. The 
exercise price for ordinary shares (typically the share class for options) can be at a discount to the share price for 
preferred shares and this discount can be up to 70% or more. The valuation methodology and calculations are 
normally sent to HMRC as part of a short one to two-page letter. HMRC valuations are typically refreshed after 
a funding round or if company performance materially changes. HMRC valuations can only be agreed when new 
options are to be issued  HMRC will not do "speculative" exercises to try and gauge a likely price.
 How "Stock Options" work in the US
There are two main categories for option plans in the US; ISO (Incentive Stock Options) and NSOs (Non-qualified 
Stock Options). The ISO is the closest equivalent to the UK EMI scheme. The differences in both US structures are 
laid out below:
"  Europeans might be averse to giving options, while in the US, employees expect 
a piece of the action and they know how to calculate the value of options. It's a 
major factor for the people you are hiring in the USand if it's a not a major 
factor, you might be hiring the wrong people here!"  Ari Salonen, Midaxo 
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ISO
NSO
Summary
Only for employees, more 
favourable tax treatment if held / 
exercised within specific  
time frames
Available for anyone, no maximum 
cap, less limits but less favourable 
tax treatment
Recipient
Only employees, directors & 
consultants
Anyone
Maximum exercisable value 
per year
$100k
No maximum. Typically, the first 
$100k is structured as a ISO then 
the rest via NSO
Options must be granted 
within [X] years of plan 
adoption
10 years
no limit
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For reference, in 2017:
 
  Capital gains tax was up to 23.8 per cent;
  Long term capital gains was up to 15 per cent; and
  Ordinary income tax rate was between 103y per cent.
For companies that already qualify for the UK EMI scheme, many will also qualify for treatment as an ISO in the 
US. This is however worth checking with your US lawyers.
Where to go next
Specialists in the field
Setting up and maintaining an option plan typically involves input from lawyers, accountants and valuation experts. 
ISO
NSO
Summary
Only for employees,  
more favourable tax treatment  
if held / exercised within specific  
time frames
Available for anyone, no  
maximum cap, less limits but  
less favourable tax treatment
Incentive stock options
New tax law: here's what to know
Great Article on ISO and tax from  
the Y Combinator forum 
Very simple infographic  
on 409a valuations 
Difference between  
ISO and NSO 
Fred Wilson blog  
on strike price 
How Pinterest lets employees keep options 
earned up to 7 years after leaving
Some great principles from Andy Rachleff 
on the Wealthfront equity plan 
The Wealthfront Equity  
plan presentation 
Guidance on equity to give advisors and 
template engagement documents
Eric Collins -  
Frank Hirth
Don Dismuke -  
Dixon Hughes Goodman
Tony Hindley -  
Valuation Solutions Ltd
Alexander Ardente -  
Silicon Valley Bank
Greg Capitolo -  
Attivo
Exercised within [Y] months 
of termination
Three months
Unlimited
Taxation (grant)
No taxable event
No taxable event
Taxation (exercise)
The spread (difference between 
strike price and fair market value) 
is included in your calculation of 
Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)  
if held for more than one year
Spread taxed on Ordinary tax level
Option sales  
(qualifying disposition)
Proceeds attract Long-term 
capital gains tax (if held more 
than one year post exercise and 
two years post grant
Proceeds attract long-term capital 
gains tax (if held more than one 
year post exercise and two years 
post grant)
Option sales  
(disqualifying disposition)
Proceeds attract Ordinary income 
tax rate (if sold within one year of 
exercise and two years of grant)
Proceeds attract Ordinary income 
tax rate (if sold within one year of 
exercise and two years of grant)
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What benefits do you offer your team?
Your company may offer a compelling set of benefits to attract and retain 
talent in Europe, but the key elements of a benefits package can differ 
significantly in the US.
Beyond the basic benefits any US company would provide, there are many and varied ways to attract and maintain 
the best employees. The diplomacy of reward-giving is an art in itself and the benefits on offer can be imaginative as 
well as practical. 
After salary and bonus, a critical component of any offer to a candidate will be the type and level of health insurance 
offered (often referred to as just "Healthcare"). Data suggests that this often ranks in the top five considerations for 
employees looking at a job offer and often higher for a candidate with a family.
Minimum benefits packages
Benchmark benefits categories in the US (based on number of employees)  
How does a company get a healthcare plan in the US?
There are two main ways to arrange healthcare in the 
US. The Company can instruct an insurance broker who 
will tailor the appropriate package through a specific 
healthcare provider (i.e. Blue Shield) or the Company 
can use a Professional Employer Organization (a PEO) to 
offer a range of policies to the employees, often 
delivered on an online platform.
When first setting your company up in the US, you can 
opt for a temporary alternative to providing new health 
coverage to your first employees by paying for their 
COBRA coverage (continued healthcare coverage from 
their last employer, paid for by the employee), if they 
were eligible for it. 
What are the key components of US healthcare?
When you are creating a healthcare scheme for your US full-time employees, your company will have to decide 
on several key components, and your starting point should be understanding the basic terminology.
An individual enrolled in a health insurance plan or policy is known as a beneficiary or member. The person 
who purchases the insurance is the subscriber and any other people on the policy (spouse or children) are 
dependents. The insurance company charges the subscriber a monthly fee called the premium. When a 
beneficiary receives health care services, the insurance company will pay the healthcare provider, clinic or 
hospital on behalf of the beneficiary. However, the beneficiary is still required to pay for some of the cost he 
or she incurs  this is known as cost sharing. Common terminology related to cost sharing includes:
The deductible is a fixed-dollar annual amount of healthcare costs that the beneficiary must pay entirely 
out of pocket. For example, if the deductible is $500, the first $500 in medical costs incurred each year is 
paid by the beneficiary; for costs beyond $500 the insurance company may pay completely or require a 
co-payment or co-insurance;
A co-payment (or "co-pay") is a fixed dollar amount that the beneficiary must pay for certain services. For 
example, the policy might say that the beneficiary pays $15 out of pocket for each primary care visit and $25 
for each specialist visit, while the insurance company pays the rest of the bill;
Co-insurance is similar to co-payment but it's a percentage of the bill rather than a fixed amount. For 
example, the beneficiary might pay 20 percent of the cost of a primary care visit and 25 percent of the cost 
of a specialist visit, and the insurance company will pay the remainder;
The out-of-pocket max is the total amount that the beneficiary must pay in a given year. This includes 
what the beneficiary pays towards to the deductible, any co-pays, or co-insurance. After this amount has 
been reached, the insurer pays 100 percent of the costs for all covered services.
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Benefit 
category
< 10 employees
11 - 50
50 - 200
> 200
Medical
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Dental
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Vision
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Holidays
~ 20 days
~ 20 days
~ 20 days
~ 20 days
401K
No
Yes
Yes,  
w/matching
Yes,  
w/matching
Equity
Yes
Yes
Early and select 
employees 
Early and select 
employees 
Other perks
Context-
dependent
Context-
dependent
Context-
dependent
Context-
dependent
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How best to create a budget for US healthcare costs?
When it comes to forecasting healthcare costs, the simplest way to start is to budget a monthly contribution  
of $600-$800 per employee for Healthcare, $50 per employee per month for Dental, and $15 per employee per 
month for Vision. Sequoia's research shows that over 95 percent of companies offer Vision and Dental care 
to employees if they offer a healthcare plan. The table below sets out the range of employer contributions for 
employee health insurance by size of company and also distinguishing between employees and dependents.
For employees:
For dependents:
 
 
Key questions about healthcare
  What is the right level of coverage to offer to your 
team and their dependents?
  Do you want to include dental and vision plans as part 
of the package?
  What are the total employer contributions likely to be, 
given the forecasted team size?
  How much control should the company have on policy 
selection as an employer or are the policies provided 
by the PEOs sufficient?
  When assigning European employees to the US for a 
secondment, what level of healthcare insurance will 
enable you to replicate the same experience they have 
in Europe?
The value of PEOs
Professional Employment Organizations, known in the 
US as "PEOs", enable businesses to purchase healthcare 
for their employees quickly and easily. They also offer a 
Company a range of other useful services such as 
payroll and payroll tax administration, compliance with 
Federal and State employee filings, Workers' 
Compensation, and the provision of various other 
additional benefits such as Employee Handbooks, 
pension plans, and supplementary healthcare, including 
dental and vision insurance. The process of setting a 
healthcare scheme can take up to four weeks, from the 
point of the first call.
 
 
100% 
covered
95% 
covered
90% 
covered
85% 
covered
80% 
covered
Other
Average
<50  
employees
45%
18%
27%
9%
0%
0%
95%
50-99 
employees
59%
6%
29%
0%
6%
0%
96%
100-499 
employees
65%
4%
22%
9%
0%
0%
96%
500-999 
employees
54%
15%
23%
8%
0%
0%
96%
1000+ 
employees
100%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
100%
100% 
covered
90% 
covered
80% 
covered
70% 
covered
60% 
covered
50% 
covered
0% 
covered Other
Average
<50  
employees
0%
0%
30%
0%
10%
20%
20%
20%
57%
50-99 
employees
6%
6%
12%
18%
12%
24%
0%
24%
69%
100-499 
employees
17%
13%
4%
30%
0%
17%
0%
17%
76%
500-999 
employees
8%
8%
8%
39%
8%
0%
0%
31%
76%
1000+ 
employees
25%
0%
0%
25%
25%
0%
0%
25%
76%
TechTech
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Commercial
Minimum 
team size
Cost per 
employee 
per month
401(k) notes
Set up fee
States
Other
5
$175-200
Multiple offerings
6% first  
month's  
payroll
all
70 offices, listed 
company, good 
basic HR advice
1
$39-$99, Max $8k
Provider is 
Slavic 401k
0
all
Tech first, strong UX, 
OneMedical integration, 
Health Advocate
1
$107 per 
employee per 
head, minimum 
$2k per month
Multiple offerings
$2,750 
all
OneMedical integration, 
comprehensive perks 
and benefits program
1
$140 minimum
Multiple offerings
Variable
all
Good HR advice and 
guidance, various health 
coverage programs
1
$39 + $6 
minimum
401k through a 
broker Guideline
0
Payroll in all 
states; medical 
benefits in 
22 states
3 month free trial; 
Free migration service 
for companies with 
10+ W2 employees
20+
$10-30
Can work with 
any 401k provider; 
Vestwell is 
preferred partner
Circa 20% of 
annual fee
all
Namely focuses on 
serving mid-sized+ 
companies
1
$40 + $5 
minimum
401k through a 
partner network
Variable
all
Integrates with 
popular business 
apps, i.e. expensify
Product
Provider
Payroll
Healthcare
401 (K)
Integrations
PEO
Insperity
Y
Y
Y
1 month
PEO
JustWorks
Y
Y
Y
<1 month
PEO
Sequoia One
Y
Y
Y
1-2 months
PEO
TriNet
Y
Y
Y
1-2 months
Bundled
Gusto
Y
Y
Y
<1 month
Bundled
Namely
Y
Y
Y
1-2 months
Bundled
Zenefits
Y
Y
Y
3-6 weeks
The value of PEOs
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Key questions about PEOs
 How do the PEO's fees scale as your US team grows? 
 What other fees may you incur? 
  Can your employees update their information on their 
own, electronically? 
  Is the PEO licensed in the State(s) where your 
employees will be? If you plan to have remote 
employees, make sure these locations are covered.
  What is the minimum number of employees in your 
team the PEO will service?
  What happens if you wish to change vendor or wish to 
change vendor for a subset of the service (e.g. pension 
plans / 401(k))?
  Where does the liability lie for non-compliance? 
Understand how liability is split between the PEO and 
your company.
Other benefits
Holidays / Paid Time Off (PTO)
In the US, the standard for young companies is two to 
three weeks of vacation, not including about 10 public 
holidays per year. Some companies opt to provide 
flexible holiday policies and some provide suggested 
total holiday days (typically ~20 days).
Key Questions about Paid Time Off (PTO)
  What state regulations and requirements apply to  
your business?
 How do you plan to monitor PTO being recorded?
  Are you aware of the legal implications of Holiday Debt?
  What plans have you made for maternity/paternity 
cover?
Retirement 401(k)
A 401(k) is a program that allows employees to contribute pre-tax dollars into a retirement savings fund that 
also grows tax-free. It is not typically provided for small and relatively young companies with limited funding. Once 
the company is established and well-funded, employees begin to expect the employer to provide a 401(k)plan, as  
such a program can be set up at minimal cost to the company. 
However, even if a young company has set up a 401(k), it usually does not provide the option of matching 
contributions to the fund made by the employees until it is secure in its funding.
Other optional benefits and perks
It's important for your employees to draw a clear 
distinction between benefits and perks. 
Phone and internet costs covered; meals; transportation 
costs; gym membership and remote or flexible working 
arrangement are commonly perceived as perks  "nice-
to-have" but not essential or mandated by regulation.
That said, pay attention to perks that are standard in a 
particular local context: for example, free meals 
provided by companies in Silicon Valley. Providing these 
might be important to your competitiveness in the eyes 
of candidates in these contexts.
Key questions about perks
  How well does your standalone benefits package 
communicate your company culture?
  Are there additional benefits which can deal with 
specific challenges your business may have?
Should you standardize benefits for employees across your offices?
It's best to provide one standard set of benefits for employees across all global and local offices. Exceptions can 
be made for special positions (e.g. sales people getting car allowances or transportation reimbursements).
That said, benefits packages will necessarily differ in situations where social services provided in one country differ 
significantly from those in another. This is especially the case with medical/dental/vision coverage (e.g. public health 
insurance in the UK vs. the US) and retirement savings. 
In the US, the level of benefits, HR compliance rules, taxes, and payroll requirements can vary depending on the state. 
Therefore, before determining the package for employees in your US office, evaluate what would make for a 
competitive package in the specific market.
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How do you determine what level of benefits to provide in each category?
  Consult an HR consultant with knowledge of benefits in the local context. A part-time HR consultant  
in the US can recommend location-specific benefits packages.
Getting help from relevant consultants
  Word-of-mouth recommendations on a relevant consultant work well. Get these from your  
locally-based country manager, HR groups/Listserv, and others.
  Consult an accountant (in-house or external) for relevant tax and regulatory considerations
  Seek out up-to-date salary and benefits information from local recruiters and search firms.
How are you managing your culture? 
Keeping the team as one across Europe and the US requires considered behaviors 
and processes: CEOs found the outcomes are well worth the investment. 
Building up and supporting a high functioning team is 
hard, even when people are working in the same space 
and come from similar cultures. When they are located 
thousands of miles away and have different ways of 
working, miscommunications can ensue, and cooperation 
and engagement can deteriorate.
People rely on body language, and on all the other signals 
and conversations that happen in between meetings 
(what you see and hear being together in the office) to 
validate the meaning of messages they receive. Without 
those confirmations, trust and cooperation can erode. 
Clear processes and norms, a strong corporate culture, 
and opportunities for real time collaboration increase 
collegiality, build trust, and help avoid the rise of "us vs. 
them" perceptions.
To overcome the challenges  
of distance, Big Health 
encouraged all processes and 
decisions to be clearly 
documented, and put in place  
a variety of initiatives:
  In person summits every 6 months; quarter  
summits otherwise
 Two-day hackathons and fun days
  Weekly global team meetings, including a rotating 
spotlight on one team
  Bi-weekly "office hours," open time to ask the  
CEO questions.
"  Keeping the culture of the team as one across the US and UK blindsided  
me; we spent a lot of time on the mechanics of being apart."   
Peter Hames, Big Health 
"  If you have to develop core values, source them from the people in the 
organization, not just the CEO or the senior leadership. If nobody knows  
these values, nobody lives these values."  Colleen McGarity, Apto  
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Use technology
Generally, invest heavily in communications technology. How effectively the team connects with others can 
single-handedly make or break a new office.
Be aware of what you want out of a communication/collaboration tool and use it for its discrete function only. 
Choose software that aligns well with your use case and culture.
The basics
 Use live, collaborative tools wherever possible
  Make sure work processes, individual and collective, 
are visible and available to all necessary stakeholders
  Address tactical, task-heavy communication through 
collaborative software. Save check-in meetings, 
one-on-ones, project reviews and other meetings for 
addressing broader, strategic issues.
Time zone differences can be your advantage
Staggering work done by teams split across time zones 
allows you to minimize dead times and maximize 
collaborative efficiency. Employees shouldn't feel obliged 
to work after-hours just because another time zone is 
doing so. This should be part of your company's culture.
Develop an anchor leader within the  
remote office 
Whether you choose one or not, a leader will emerge. So,  
it is prudent that the company choose, or risk the wrong 
person taking the role.
The anchor leader need not be a project manager, a 
formal lead, or even a more-experienced hire. This person 
must just be able to execute tasks effectively and 
challenge others to do the same.
Commit executive leadership's time and 
efforts to the remote office
Commitment involves a mix of physical visits, prioritization 
in the executives' schedules, and continued opportunities 
for the remote office to influence executive and company 
priorities.
Create social opportunities
Transferable social activities develop a singular team 
identity and foster the remote office's sense of belonging. 
Also, companies can use technology to bridge the physical 
gap socially. Some companies have installed a virtual 
"water cooler" camera (on Zoom) in each office that allows 
employees to have organic, remote conversations. The 
general principle is that you should create virtual spaces for 
employees to congregate and chat without an agenda.
"  You have to hire a good country leader because the leader makes all the 
difference. That leader will know how to hire, when to communicate, when to 
travel to visit employees, how to engage employees. In other words, that leader 
will know what they are supposed to do."  Shelly Duong, Mochi HR Consulting 
"  A remote team MUST have executive buy-in and participation or it cannot  
be a success."   Joseph, Bexouce
Resource: 
Global teams that work
*  For a company moving to Silicon Valley, adopting the G-suite could be seen as best practice, since so many other companies and partners there  
use this software.
Category
Software
Social communication  
tools
Project management/ 
cross-team collaboration
Marketing/external 
communication
Applicant tracking  
system
CRM software
All-in-all solutions
(video)
(chat + video)
(video)
(video)
Business*
(whiteboarding) 
(subscription 
businesses)
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US Investors are increasingly investing in European companies
Nonetheless, US VC activity in Europe is increasing. In 2016, 12.8% of all VC deals involved a US investor, and this 
increased to 17.3%  in 2017. The amount invested into UK companies by West Coast investors surpassed 1 billion in 
2017 for the first time, increasing 252% since 2011.  East Coast investors also strongly invested in UK companies, 
contributing 1.3 billion in 2017 .
Below are those funds who have actively invested in European startups in the last 3 years (without having a local 
office there).
How do you successfully fundraise  
in the US?
Do you need a US Investor? If capital is what you are after, don't be fooled into 
thinking that there's only capital in the US or that only US investors are able to 
scale a company to unicorn status and a healthy exit. Both sides of the pond 
have plenty to offer, so keep an open mind.
Various European companies have become successful while having only a European investor base
Fund
European startups backed  
in last 3 years
Rounds in which these funds 
participated
Benchmark Capital
ResearchGate (Nov 2015)
Series D - $53m
Citymapper (Jan 2016)
Series B - $40m 
Zenly (Sept 2016)
Series B - $22.5m
Contentful (Dec 2017)
Series B - $13m (and Series C - $28m)
Bessemer Venture  
Partners
NewVoiceMedia (Jan 2016)
Series F - $30m
ZenMate (Jan 2016)
Series A+
Hibob (Jan 2017)
Series A - $17.6m
Wandera (May 2017)
Series C - $27m
Crowdjustice (May 2017)
Seed - $2m
Zopa (June 2017)
Series F+ - 32m
Kandou Bus (June 2018)
Series B - $15m
Codex (June 2018)
Series A - $5.7m
General Catalyst
Deliveroo (Aug 2016; Nov 2017)
Series E - 210m Series F - 371m
Brainly (Oct 2017)
Series B - $14m
Shift Technology (Oct 2017)
Series B - $28m
Contentful (Dec 2017)
Series C - $28m
RosieReality (Dec 2017)
Seed - $700k
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Kleiner Perkins Caufield 
and Byers
GoEuro (Oct 2016)
Series C - $70m
Relayr (Feb 2018)
Series C - 30m
UiPath (March 2018)
Series B - $153m
Bump (April 2018)
Seed - undisclosed 
Prisma (May 2018)
Seed - $4.5m
Spotahome (June 2018)
Series B - $40m
New Enterprise Associates
CCP (Nov 2015)
Growth - $30m
Global Savings Group (Dec 2015)
Series B - 10m
GoEuro (Oct 2016)
Series C - $70m
WayRay (March 2017)
Series B - $18m
Peanut (Nov 2017)
Seed
Fire1 (Jan 2018)
Series C - 40m
Konux (April 2018)
Series A - $7.5m
NordSense (June 2018)
Seed - $2.2m
Sequoia Capital
Cambridge Epigenetix (March 2016)
Series B - 14m
WayRay (March 2017)
Series B - $18m
Graphcore (Nov 2017)
Series C - $50m
Mapillary (March 2018)
Series B - $15m
JollyChic (May 2018)
Series C
PatSnap (June 2018)
Series D - $38m
Fund
European startups backed  
in last 3 years
Rounds in which these funds 
participated
Fund
European startups backed  
in last 3 years
Rounds in which these funds 
participated
Greycroft
Farfetch (March 2015)
Series E - $86m
Blinkist (Jan 2017)
Series B
Wonderbly (July 2017)
Series B - $8.5m
Deposit Solutions (Nov 2017)
Series A+ - 15m
Peanut (Nov 2017)
Seed
Azimo (May 2018)
Series C - $20m
Blinkist (June 2018)
Series C - $18.8m
Insight Venture Partners
Hellofresh (Feb 2015)
Series E - $128m
Chrono24 (July 2015)
Series A - $23m
Zenly (Sep 2016)
Series B - $22.5m
SonarSource (Nov 2016)
Growth - $45m
Darktrace (July 2017)
Series D - $75m
Receipt Bank (July 2017)
Series B - $50m
HomeToGo (Oct 2017)
Series B - $20m (and Series C)
Duco (Jan 2018)
Series C - $28m
Showpad (Jan 2018)
Series C - $25m
Templafy (Feb 2018)
Series B - $17m
Detectify (March 2018)
Series A+ 5m
AMCS Group (April 2018)
Growth
Blinkist (June 2018)
Series C - $18.8m
Tractable (June 2018)
Series B - $25m
YOOBIC (June 2018)
Series B - 21m
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Fund
European startups backed  
in last 3 years
Rounds in which these funds 
participated
Spark Capital
eToro (April 2015)
Follow on Growth - $39m
GetYourGuide (Nov 2017)
Series D - $75m
Badi (Feb 2018)
Series A - $10m
Tourlane (March 2018)
Series A - $9m
TravelPerk (April 2018)
Series B - $21m
Careship (April 2018)
Series A - 6m
Union Square Ventures
La Ruche Qui Dit Oui (June 2015)
Series B - $9m
Simscale (Dec 2015)
Series A
Auxmoney (Feb 2016)
Series D - 10m
Clue (Nov 2016)
Series B - $20m
Jobbatical (Sept 2017)
Series A - $3m
Valar Ventures
N26 (April 2015)
Series A - $10m
Kreditech (March 2016)
Series C - $103m
Brolly (July 2017)
Seed - 1m
Coya (August 2017)
Seed - $10m
Deposit Solutions (Nov 2017)
Series A+ - 15m
What are important considerations in fundraising from US investors?
The US VC perspective
With thanks to Bessemer, Insight, Bain Capital and others for their insights. 
  Do you have a good reason to be raising funds from US-based investors?
  If you are a Seed or Series A company and you are not based in the US, it's unlikely (though not unheard of) 
that your seed or A round will be led by a US investor. Geographical nexus is important for early stage deals. 
Since there is significant capital in Europe, looking for a US institutional investor to lead this early-stage round 
may raise a red flag without a good explanation as to why local investors are not committed to the deal.
  If you are a company with at least $3m ARR and on a strong growth trajectory, US investors will be happy to 
look more closely at you. Pure growth equity investors are more likely to get excited at closer to $10m ARR.
  Silicon Valley A rounds look like European B rounds. You may think this will mean you'll get a higher valuation 
than in Europe, but the US investors may be looking at a European investment as a chance to get better 
pricing. Higher valuations are also a product of larger market opportunity  and in early stages, it is not a given 
that your product or positioning will be a fit to the US. Make sure you search out European growth funds as well.
  Do your homework and create a shortlist
  Given the sheer volume of VC funds operating in the US, it's more important than ever that you have 
identified sensible, value-add partners who fit your business stage and plans for the future.
  Understanding and thinking through how your proposed fundraise aligns with your intended investor's fund 
profile, required return, and exit requirements is the first part of this process. A $300m exit to a founder 
may sound exciting (and make them rich) but for a $5bn fund that has invested  this just won't make 
sense. This doesn't just mean looking at the investor's website. Funds' strategies often change, so you will 
still want to glean information from folks close to them.
  Reference these funds within your network, including your current investors. It's always good to know what 
value the investor brings to the table, as well as any egregious terms they may try to get included in the deal.
  Think about relationship building early, but not too early
  You can lose the interest of a VC very quickly, so make sure you are introduced when the timing is right. If  
you are growing very rapidly and about 6 months out from fundraising, this is probably the most efficient 
time to connect.
  Similarly, coming onto their radar very late may leave a poor impression. While there may be a hot race to 
fund you, VCs far prefer being able to spend at least a week making their decision and feeling rushed or 
pressured can end up in you having less offers on the table or missing out on the right partner.
  Start with your "tier 2" VCs
  Do your first pitches and meetings with VCs you are less attached to. If you start with your perfect partner, 
the likelihood is it won't be your best pitch and you'll miss the chance to make a strong impression.
  Simplify your cap table and board structure 
  Growth funds do not want to deal with a long-tail, messy cap table with multiple angels, or a large,  
unwieldy board.
  If you haven't done this before the round, quickly identify how to clean up the cap table as part of the  
round and include this in your pitch appendix.
  Don't be too candid in your pitch
1
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  European founders can often sell themselves short. Americans are (generally) hustlers and salesmen by 
culture. They have grown up as part of a very large market and feel comfortable explaining how they will 
easily become a billion-dollar company.
  European founders, by contrast, can deliver their pitches far too honestly and self-critically. Suggested market 
sizes may end up being the sort that the investor would expect to come up with themselves after some diligence 
and the approach from start to finish can often be far too conservative. Make sure the vision is big and visionary.  
  You've got to get that second meeting; don't give a VC an easy excuse not to take it.
  Demonstrate that you are a dynamic and inspirational leader
  VCs are looking to you to scale a successful team.
  The biggest challenge the CEO will often have ahead of her is building and retaining a successful, high 
performance team able to execute strongly against the business plan.
  The investor wants to feel inspired by you, and to gain an insight into what your future employees are going 
to see  and they will be analyzing this throughout your pitch.  
  If an investor doesn't think you appear coachable, or if you miss out small talk and are straight down to 
business, they may not want to back you. You'll hear time and again that the average VC-founder 
relationship lasts longer than the average marriage, so they must be able to foresee a strong working 
relationship blossoming.
  Let everyone in the room talk
  If you bring your CTO, CMO or any other team member, make sure they speak, particularly when there are 
questions relevant to their area of expertise. If someone attends the meeting and doesn't speak, this can 
appear odd and be a red flag.
  Don't forget a VC will be looking at how you communicate between yourselves, and they do not expect the 
CEO to be the only responder. Team chemistry, especially at the senior leadership level, is scrutinized closely.
 Metrics, metrics, metrics
  There should be one solid slide of key metrics in your deck and you should be able to talk to these very easily. 
At growth stage in particular, the data is incredibly important. Have it at your fingertips  and have it be 
more than topline revenue growth.
 Give a clear, rational explanation for the size of your fundraise
  Don't double the size of the round simply because you are in the US. Yes, there is more capital available across 
the Atlantic and a number of deep-pocketed funds, but they won't write a bigger check just because you say 
$20m when you need $10m. 
  Articulate very clearly what the funds will go towards and what effect you expect this to have on the key 
metrics of the business.
 Know your competition
  No VC wants to feel like they know the competition better than you do.
  This goes for direct and indirect companies, younger and more mature companies and all that is in between. 
You should know the competition inside out: you've used their product, may know some of their key team 
members, have spoken to their customers and generally, have done your homework.
  Explain why you're different and how you think you can protect that difference.  
  Don't miss out anyone obvious or be dismissive of any competitors. It is far better to discuss it head on.
  Don't forget, competition is often good validation, so don't be afraid of discussing it openly.
Guidance on baseline metrics
What are some of the metrics that you should meet before a US investor will take 
a closer look? As always, there will be outliers and edge cases that do not meet 
any of these requirements who have been funded. Those are the exceptions, not 
the rule.
Software
 
            
 
Marketplaces
 
 
 
Category
Good  
Best 
ARR
$5-12m
$13-20m
MRR growth
100%
++
Repaying customer acquisition  
cost timeline
18-24 months
8-17 months
Gross retention
85%+
90%+
Gross margin
70%+
85%+
Net churn
100%+
140%+
Category
Good  
TAM core vertical
$5bn+
GMV organic growth MoM
10%+
6-month retention (both sides)
10%+
Payback timeline for cost of 
acquiring both sides
24 months or less
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What are important considerations in fundraising from US investors?
The founders' perspective
With thanks to Hello Fresh, WeFarm, Behaviosec and others for their insights.
  Hot intros are better than warm ones
  It will be much harder to get in front of a VC in the US than in Europe. A relationship you thought was warm 6 
months ago may now be dead and your emails will go unanswered.
  Intros are most successful from other VCs or CEOs, but these need to be very trusted, long-time, close allies and 
friends of the VC you are approaching.  
  Your investor(s) should really come into their own during this process. Hopefully, they have some US funds who 
they have done other successful deals with. For example, Insight Venture Partners had successfully invested in 
Delivery Hero prior to partnering with Rocket Internet again with Hello Fresh.
  By talking regularly with investors when you aren't fundraising, you can outline in one meeting how you see the 
market and your strategy, and at the next meeting you should be able to demonstrate how you executed against 
that strategy. These informal catch-ups can lead to invitations to pitch and even requests to do a deal which is not 
taken to the wider market (a real win when you think of the time and effort that goes into fundraising).
  Prepare for a quick decision and a quick process
  A yes or no is reached and delivered extremely quickly.
  Often, diligence is being conducted in the background, so expect to be soft referenced.
  On one extreme, a company had its first meeting with a US VC, had a verbal yes two days later, then an 
in-person diligence and term sheet negotiation two days after that. From the first meeting to signing a term 
sheet took no longer than a week.
  After the term sheet, everything was sent across to the lawyers, and the investment team didn't come back 
on the scene until they were about to sign the deal.
  Terms may be different than you expect
  A US investor may look at your financial plan, agree with its fundamentals, but significantly increase your 
numbers, suggesting you raise a far bigger round than you originally set out to raise.
  They may propose harsher terms but with a focus on the long-term value your partnership will create.
  Conversations feel different
  From investors to executives to customers, conversations have a different feel to those in Europe. The US can feel 
more strategic and "blue sky" compared to the more pragmatic and granular European culture.
  Nevertheless, certain US investors are extremely hands-on. They typically come from an operating background 
and like to be involved with every decision made by the business, from hiring to press releases. Look out for this 
when diligencing the background of your future board director and try to set the parameters of their ongoing 
engagement from the outset so you don't feel suffocated.
 Diligence centers around customer and co-investor reference calls
  US investors already know whether they like the market you are operating in or not. They want to understand 
what your existing and prospective customers make of the team and the product offering. References are 
taken from other team members, employers and existing investors. US VCs can accomplish this quickly due 
to extensive and willing networks. The result is a quicker diligence process.
2
Consumer
 
 
Fintech
 
 
Category
Good
Best
LTV
$50
$200+ (repeat spending)
Market size
$5bn
$100bn+ (growing market)
Revenue growth
100%+
300%+ (organic growth)
Category
Good
Fundamental question
Growth and user acquisition -  
how can you scale this business?
User growth
10-15% MoM
ARR
$5m+ by time of investment
Upsell/cross-sell
10-20% expansion
Payback of cost of acquiring 
customer
24 months or less
Churn
Less than 20%
CAC
Show that organic growth  
is very strong
Category
Good
Product
Better; faster; cheaper; more fun
Revenue
At least $5m annual    
Minimal awareness
Less than 0.1% penetration
Customer base
Diverse demographically and 
geographically    
Gross margin
70%+
Net churn
100%+
4. Then Do
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1 3
  Data is a focus at Series B+ rounds but before that, while European VCs appear to care far more about slicing 
and dicing the data at every stage, a US VC cares more about your vision and the strategy which will make 
that vision a reality.
  If you are lucky enough to be a successful entrepreneur who has built and sold a business previously, the 
diligence is likely to be based on the key founding team members. This will be a test of chemistry (on both 
sides) and developing a trust-based relationship. The investor will be making a bet on you but will seek to 
understand if you know what you want to achieve and how you are planning to get there.
 Get them bought into your mission and your vision - and make sure that it's a big and bold one
  US investors are more excited by the big vision that is presented to them. European investors tend to be more 
skeptical and cynical.
  It's vital to get the US investors bought into your mission early in the pitch process. You can often determine 
how the meeting is going to go within the first 15 minutes.
 You don't necessarily need to be expanding to the US 
  It is not a prerequisite to be expanding to the US or to have existing customers and traction there in order  
to get funding from a US investor.
  However, founders and investors alike make the same point: know why you think this investor is a good fit  
for you, wherever they are based, and be able to explain this with conviction.  
  If they have a history of successfully investing in consumer businesses coming to the US from Europe, that's  
a pretty good reason for a consumer startup following the same pattern to look closely at them.
  If you do have traction in the US but don't yet have a senior presence out there, don't be surprised if a US 
investor expects a senior team member to permanently move to the US. They may also insist that the 
company they invest into is a US entity. This will make for extra fun in the fundraise (watch those legal fees 
and use lawyers who have done this many times before) but, if you ultimately think 60%+ of your revenue  
will be from the US, it can be a sensible move.
 Top tip - get an early agreement on the exchange rate
  If you are getting an investment in dollars but issuing your shares with a GBP or EUR share price, don't forget 
to get the agreed exchange rate locked in early on, and preferably in the term sheet. This may work for or 
against you when it comes to funding, but at least everyone knows what has been agreed and the number 
of shares being issued and at what agreed share price.
 Expect other offers to come in if a Silicon Valley fund issues a term sheet
  It is likely that you'll have received various rejections and reasons why you were not getting funding.
  As soon as you receive a term sheet from a US investor, expect to be the hottest ticket in town, and don't be 
surprised if investors who turned you down originally, come back to ask to be a part of the round. It's simply 
the herd mentality in play.
 Be more bullish
  Immediate addressable markets are, on the whole, smaller in Europe than in the USA, and it can therefore appear 
harder to build a very large business in Europe alone. The level of sophistication and quality of execution in Europe 
can, however, often be much higher because it simply has to be in order to build a successful European business. 
In the US, you have the good fortune of simply having a really big market in front of you which can lead to 
apparent success. European founders should have more confidence when thinking about tackling the US market 
and remember that their ingrained discipline may well be the first stepping stone to success.
"  In the US, if you cannot pitch a vision / purpose / huge 
problem, then people won't listen. Investors care  
about what you are trying to solve; the product is  
the consequence of that problem". 
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5. Wrapping Up
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 5 
Wrapping Up
"Could the land of the free cost you the Earth?"
Where to go next
About Octopus Ventures
 
" Could the land of the free  
cost you the Earth?"
The US will demand all your tenacity, focus and hustle. If you're ready to take 
the challenge head on, the rewards can be tremendous.
Is your company ready to manage the complexity of a multinational operation? While the US' large market holds 
great promise for scale, even the most successful CEOs had to contend with many unexpected challenges. 
A US entry is expensive and not always strategic. If the business is not yet successful and resilient in the home 
market, the expansion adds strain to a vulnerable position. There's consensus that CEO and/or founder DNA is a 
necessary (though not sufficient) condition to effective US entry, and splitting attention between the two continents 
can diminish the probability of high success in both markets.
Every CEO interviewed spoke of the difficulties of maintaining culture across continents, of underestimating the 
impact of miscommunication and of the toll of constant travel on focus and energy.
Additionally, US revenues can take longer to ramp up and costs are substantially higher than European markets, up to 
the point where they can undermine the viability of a company's business plan. 
Extensive pre-marketing, market assessment and network building  all activities that can de-risk the US entry  are 
almost always overlooked. It is important to distinguish between being operational in the US and having people on the 
ground here. US entry requires dedicated focus from a company executive, and hiring strong local talent can be difficult. 
How will you address these common challenges?
Asking questions doesn't mean dampening your ambitions; instead, it signals deliberate action with 
measured risks. The opportunity is massive if you're prepared for it. What other questions will you ask?
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5. Wrapping Up
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137
Where to go next
Are you a US-based executive of a European VC-backed business? Join a group of CEOs  
and senior executives who are willing to share their insights and experience to help the  
next generation of European companies make it in America. 
About Octopus Ventures
We are a team that backs entrepreneurs. We like to be in early and follow through 
from one defining moment to the next. We aim to be helpful and straightforward  
and we value boldness - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and partners. Our 
average investment is 4.5m and in recent years it has ranged from 350k to 25m.
We support, we don't micro-manage. We're able to expose entrepreneurs to the 
people, the organizations and the networks which will illuminate their ambition and 
broaden their horizon. Direct access to powerful resources of influence and hard-won 
know-how have fueled each of our portfolio's successes.
We are part of Octopus Group, managing over 7 billion on behalf of more than 
50,000 investors, spanning investments, healthcare, energy and property.
We are one of Europe's largest Venture Capital teams.
Head-quartered in London and New York, with Venture Partners in San Francisco, 
Singapore and China, we help entrepreneurs scale globally.
Octopus Ventures US Team
European founders USA application
Octopus Ventures website
The opinions shared in this document are provided for information purposes only, are subject to 
change, and should not be seen as advice or any recommendation. Octopus does not offer investment, 
legal or tax advice, and we always recommend that our investors and entrepreneurs seek professional 
advice before making any related decisions. Issued by Octopus Investments Limited, which is 
authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: 33 Holborn, London 
EC1N 2HT. Registered in England and Wales No. 03942880. Issued: October 2018.
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6. Toolkit
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6 
 Toolkit
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Guiding questions
First ask the fundamental 
questions
Should you expand abroad?
 What is the potential in the home market?
 What are the limitations in the home market?
 Do customers demand global services?
Should you enter the US?
 Do you have inbound leads from the US?
  Do you have a deep understanding of product- 
market fit in the US?
  Will investment in the US hurt the domestic  
business?
 What does the competitive landscape look like?
Is the timing right?
 Is the US your primary market?
  Are you focused on a market where the US is 
substantially larger than Europe? 
 Have you saturated your home market?
  Is the team at home strong enough to grow the 
business in the absence of a founder?
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What milestones and timeliness must  
you meet?
  Which measured tests can you deploy from your  
home market?
 Are pricing assumptions still valid in the US?
 What market share targets are realistic?
What are the industry dynamics in the US?
 What does the value chain in the US look like?
  Do US players control any resources that are crucial  
to your expansion?
Who is your competition?
 What are your key differentiators?
 What moats can you build around your offer?
How do you know you have product- 
market fit?
 Do you have product-market fit at home?
  Do you have significant inbound requests from  
US customers? 
What is your US ideal customer profile?
  What specific business pain are you trying to solve  
for your ideal customer?
  What results would they like to achieve, on an 
individual, department and company level?
What is your regulatory burden in the US?
 Is your business operating in a regulated sector? 
 Are you subject to both federal and state regulation? 
What legal considerations are key? 
 Have you found experienced local counsel? 
 Are you prepared to deal with a more litigious culture? 
Which visa do you need?
 Would an E-1, L-1 or O-1 visa be suitable? 
 Do you need to apply for a H-1B Visa?
What is your budget?
  How much sensitivity have you modelled in  
your projections?
 Do you have the support of your investors?
And think about the critical details
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Test the market
How much do you like flying?
 Are you invested in testing the market on the ground?
  Have you planned an entry phase of at least  
six months?
Have you built a local network?
  Do you have a soft network to help refine  
your strategy?
  Have you looked into US incubators or accelerators  
for your sector?
Can the industry name your brand?
  Do you understand how reputations are built  
in your industry?
  Have you mapped out relevant conferences  
for your sector?
Can you sell like an American?
 Do you have a replicable sales strategy?
  Are you prepared to sell more aggressively and have 
more direct conversations?
How will you price your products?
 Have you established your US-specific pricing model?
 Are you willing to adapt your pricing when necessary?
Then do
Who is leading your team?
  Can you spare a key member of the domestic team  
to lead the charge in the US?
  What is your plan for remote communication  
and decision-making?
Who is on your US advisory board?
 What specific expertise do you need to bring in?
 What objectives can you set for advisors?
How do you set up in the US?
 What is the best legal structure for your business?
 In which state should you incorporate?
 What banking and insurance choices must you make?
How do you protect your IP?
  What is the level of risk associated with your IP  
in the US?
  What are investors' expectations about IP protection 
for your product?
Where will your office be?
  What are the costs and regulatory burdens associated 
with ideal locations?
  Does your location align with your key considerations 
as a company?
  Should you locate in the usual startup hubs, or several 
other US metro areas?
Which taxes are you liable for?
 What federal taxes will you need to pay?
 What state and local level taxes will you need to pay?
How will you build a talented team in the US?
 How will you manage working in distributed teams?
  What state regulations and requirements apply  
to your business?
 What is your remuneration strategy in the US?
  How will you determine stock options for  
your employees?
  What benefits will you offer your team and how  
does this relate to your size and location?
 How will you manage your team culture?
How can you successfully fundraise in the US?
  Do you need a US investor, and can you get  
European funding?
 What are the expectations of US VCs?
  What experiences have European founders had  
in fundraising in the US?
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Irrational "inevitability" and other 
confessions of venture backed European 
CEOs who launched in the US
Launching and scaling in the US market is hard. We spoke to over 100 VC-backed European CEOs who are on this journey, 
some with incredible success. While the potential of the US market is undeniable, winning here is far from certain.
Succeeding in the US means overcoming substantial risks as attested by the trail of talented and well-funded  
teams who retreated back to Europe. In our conversations, even the most successful CEOs had to contend with  
many unexpected challenges  we hope their cautionary tales will help you think through various risks and plan  
your own US entry appropriately.
" On reflection, the decision to enter into the US felt irrationally 'inevitable'."
In their eagerness to seize the US market opportunity, many did not stop to ask whether expanding overseas 
was in their company's best interests. For most, there was no limitation on the growth in their home market. 
The option for continued rapid growth was there to be taken, with no risk of the company reaching a saturation 
point in their home market in the near future.
"We may have chosen to expand internationally for the wrong reasons."
Worse, some decided to expand internationally to compensate for a lack of growth in their home market, even if their 
share of the home market remained very small  suggesting that the company had yet to find product-market fit or 
a repeatable, scalable, measurable sales process in their home market.
"Wow, this feels like therapy."
Yes  this was the reaction from several of the CEOs we spoke to  and it underlined to us how isolated many of 
the founders felt in making the bridge to the US. The decision to expand internationally was often made quickly 
by the Board and then left to the CEO to execute with limited further guidance or support.
" The US market is massive, but we underestimated or were unaware of  
the competitors."
While this observation is made time and again, most companies underestimate the breadth and depth of the 
US market, its regional differences, and the fullness of the competitive landscape. The fear of missing out is 
often anchored to a headline market sizing, without an appreciation for the number, diversity and accessibility 
(or not) of markets that make up the total number.
"Setting up in the US was incredibly expensive."
Again, this is a well-known fact, but all the CEOs spoken to underestimated the cost of entering the US market. 
The hidden costs included the extent and degree the senior management team focused on US market entry, 
the time and cost of hiring (and then firing and starting again), and the time and cost of pursuing the wrong 
strategy and not acting swiftly enough to correct course (as well as all the basic costs of setting up in the US).
" I was not sure whether to move to the US or when to do so. Who would run  
the business day to day at home?"
If a business is not yet successful and sufficiently resilient in the home market, the expansion adds strain to a 
vulnerable position. There's consensus that CEO and/or founder DNA is a necessary (though not sufficient) 
condition to effective US entry, and splitting attention between the two continents can diminish the probability 
of high success in both markets.
"We made the wrong first hire and this cost us 12 months."
Hiring strong local talent can be a challenge, as there is intense competition from American companies. The job 
market is very liquid, driving up prices and lowering retention. Meanwhile, customers expect a local presence and 
local services. Strong local partners  experts, service providers, strategic partners  are impactful for success.
Knowing which role / level to hire is also not obvious. A B2B business may choose to hire a junior salesperson to surface 
leads for the CEO to close, as there's a very limited prospect of hiring an A1 Sales leader to join a European startup 
with a limited presence in the US. Conversely, a B2C business may opt to hire a senior GM given that there may be 
data to support US market readiness. The advantage of this later strategy is that US GM can build a quality team 
around them.
"We could have done so much more before we hired people here."
Extensive pre-marketing, market assessment and network building are almost always overlooked. The variety of 
activities that a European business can do before entering the US to de-risk the market entry is often overlooked. 
Distinguishing between being operational in the US and having people on the ground there full-time is critical.
"We struggled to maintain our culture across the two offices."
Every CEO interviewed spoke of the difficulties of maintaining culture across continents, of underestimating  
the impact of miscommunication and of the toll of constant travel on focus and energy.
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Coming to America: relocation tips  
from the (street) wise
Generally
  Get global entry. This gives you priority through 
immigration on the way into the US and also gives TSA 
pre-approval which is priority access through security. 
Costs $100 + 42 and takes a simple interview at a US 
embassy. Well worth it. 
  Bank account; phone; Social Security Number. This 
Golden Trio will get you access to living and getting paid!
 Seamless. It's the JustEat equivalent for takeaways. 
Essential.
  Venmo app for instant cash transfers. 
  Set up in a co-working space  WeWork; Spacious; 
The Wing; Knotel; the Neue Collective; AG collective. 
  Downsize everything other than your budget  
which needs to be upsized!
"  I literally got laughed at for getting 
cash out. "What are you going to use  
it for?" was the incredulous question." 
Peter Hames, Big Health
"  They put on events all the time. You'll 
meet people in the same boat as you." 
Julie Paolucci, Workwell.io
"  If getting a bad haircut from a new 
barber or not having your favorite 
cheese in the supermarket is going 
to bother you, it's going to be a 
struggle. You obviously get more in 
to a routine as the months go by, but 
part of the excitement is knowing 
there's always something different 
around the corner."   
Danny Hakimian, Onfido 
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New York
 StreetEasy app  great for initial apartment hunting.
  For transportation, use Via; Uber; Juno; Lyft AND  
a MetroCard for longer journeys.
  Ear-covering hat and solid winter coat, plus snow-
proof boots, are essential for New York winters.
  A friend with a house in the Hamptons, Fire Island, 
Montauk for summer weekends!
  Comfortable walking shoes and the courage to jaywalk.
  Adopt the lingo - HOUSE-ton; 'The City' 'The Bridge' 
'Downtown' 'Uptown' 'The 4' 'The L' (train/subway not 
tube or metro); waiting 'ON' line.
San Francisco / Bay Area
  Craigslist is not just for apartments but also 
furniture (given how transient the population is you 
can always pick up brand new CB2/Crate & Barrel for 
half price, pay with Venmo then use Lugg to go get  
it for you).
  Clipper card in SF for BART and Muni (the much-
underused tram/tube system)...it's even good on ferries 
to Sausalito. Use the Caltrain to travel down the bay.
  Never leave the house without a jacket. Weather 
changes frequently from sunshine to fog, and there  
can be a 10-degree spread between neighborhoods. 
East Bay (Oakland) is reliably warmer than SF. 
  Adopt the lingo: San Francisco = The City, SF, San 
Fran...never Frisco. SV = South Bay, the peninsula, the 
valley. Although the valley can also mean the central 
valley and the south bay is known just as "the bay".
  On the weekend, get out of the city. Everyone's 
squeezed into the 7x7, and escapes on the weekend to 
get fresh air, particularly north to Marin. Outdoor stuff 
is a major social activity - it's pretty normal to "go on 
a hike" (i.e. a walk) with someone you barely know. 
Bolinas or Pacifica for surfing, Mount Tam for hiking, 
camping or cycling.
  Get ready to spend more on everything than you 
thought possible. If you want a laugh, go to Bi-Rite 
and take a look at some of their price tags.
 
 
 
 "  I've lived in four cities on three 
continents and New York's real 
estate scene is unlike anything I've 
seen. If you're on a tight budget and 
want to live in Manhattan, you're going 
to have to accept some very small 
spaces. New York does have a great 
public transport system, so if you're 
okay with a commute there are plenty 
of outer boroughs with a ton of 
character and good access to the city. 
The StreetEasy app is your best 
friend."  Danny Hakimian, Onfido
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Specialists in the field
Below is a list of specialists we have worked with in the past or we know offer these types of services.  
Octopus recommends that you undertake your own research and due diligence as other suppliers are available  
and you want to be sure that you use the right people for your company and your specific circumstances.
Tax
Regulatory
IP
Immigration specialists
Eric Collins -  
Frank Hirth
Don Dismuke -  
Dixon Hughes Goodman
Bradley Smallberg -  
Schissel Smallberg
Michael Hamilton -  
KPMG
Cheryl Young - Securities Compliance 
Advisors (SCA), focus on fintech
Ingrid Brydolf - Davis Wright Tremain, 
focus on healthcare
Heidi Lawson & Greg Hoffnagle -  
Cooley LLP, focus on insurtech
Ashford Tucker - Fross Zelnick  
Lehrman & Zissu, focus on healthcare   
Jon Calvert -  
Clearview IP 
David L. Cohen -  
Kidon IP Corporation
Karen Lee -  
Edwin Coe, LLP    
Paul Samartin -  
Ganguin Samartin 
Daniella McGuigan -  
Ogetree Deakins
Gloria Lin -  
Immigration Law Group   
Dana DiRaimondo -  
D&S Boutique Business Immigration
Attorneys
Accountants
HR consultants
Insurance
Daniel Glazer -  
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati 
Victor Boyajian -  
Dentons
Ed Zimmerman -  
Lowenstein Sandler    
Ted Rosen -  
Akerman
Stuart Bagshaw -  
BAB Leap
Greg Capitolo -  
Kranz Associates
David Ehrenburg -  
Early Growth Financial Services
Bec Sankauskas -  
Bexouce International
Shelly Duong -  
Mochi HR Consulting
Kim Fields -  
Insperity
Elaine Lamb -  
La Playa Insurance 
Ralph Torres -  
Sweet and Baker Insurance 
Melissa Gato -  
Shoff Darby Insurance Agency    
Mark Berkowitz -  
Sequoia One
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Sample market entry timeline
5%
US opportunity analysis
Initial product analysis 
Initial market analysis 
Initial budget analysis 
Product-market fit
Legal/Financial Considerations
Visas, legals, tax 
Budget proposal
US Leadership
Set US team leader
Regular travel to US
Brand Building
Conferences  
Build advisory board
Office Set Up
Office location 
 
Office location 
Administrative preparation
 
Administrative preparation 
Incorporate in the US 
Talent 
US employees 
Remuneration / options  
Benefits
Culture and communication
 
Regular travel to US
 
Regular travel to US
 
Regular travel to US
 
Regular travel to US
Ideal US Customer Profile
 
Initial product analysis 
 
Product-market Fit
Home business analysis
1. You're ready to consider whether or not the time is right for expansion to the US
2. On balance, it is clear that your business has more to gain than to lose by exploring further
3. You have referenceable US customers and a growing pull from the US market
24-21 months ahead
12-9 months ahead
21-18 months ahead
9-6 months ahead
18-15 months ahead
6-3 months ahead
15-12 months ahead
3 months - D-Day
Planning phase
Implementation phase
Timing of Entry
Set entry milestones
Support Resources 
Banking 
Insurance 
Relevant service providers
 
Banking 
Insurance 
Relevant service providers
 
 
Relevant service providers
 
 
Relevant service providers
 
US employees 
Remuneration / options  
Benefits
Culture and communication
 
US employees 
Remuneration / options  
Benefits
Culture and communication
 
US employees 
Culture and communication
Conferences  
Build advisory board
Conferences  
Build advisory board
Conferences  
Build advisory board
 
Regular travel to US
US Opportunity Analysis
Visas, Legals, Tax,  
Budget Deep Dive
Visas, legals, tax 
Set entry milestones
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The 4Ws of product-market fit
The Who
Customer preferences
How do US customer preferences vary from those at home? Is 
my customer's behavior in alignment with her preferences?
Customer acquisition
What is the CAC in the target market? What is my predicted ROI?
Competition
How saturated is the market? Who are the domestic and foreign 
alternatives? What is my competitive advantage?
Support stakeholders
What other stakeholders are essential to the delivery of the product's value 
to the customer? (vendors, distributors, partner organizations, funders, 
etc.)? What will developing these necessary relationships entail?
The Where
Regional market opportunity Which regional markets in the US best optimize ease of access, 
speed of product adoption, profitability, and sustainability?
Location restrictions
What US restrictions (legal and regulatory) for producing, marketing, 
distributing, and selling my product exist? How can I surmount them?
Distribution outlets
Through what media could I develop customer interest in my product? 
Where could I best sell my product to my target customer?
The What
Inherent value
What element of my product has been essential to success in my 
home market, and what value does the customer extract from the 
product? Would this value address the customer's need in the US?
Product features
What features worked in my home market? What features are 
context-specific and would need to be revised for the US?
Unit economics
What are my projected costs, revenues, and breakeven point in the 
US? What new revenue-generating opportunities exist in the US?
The When
Developing demand
How long does my target US customer need to be educated about my product? 
How long do customers take to adopt novel offerings in the target market?
Timing the market
At what stage is the US market for my product? Expansion, contraction or 
stagnancy? In what development stage is necessary partner technology/
infrastructure?
Building necessary 
partnerships
How long would it take to build essential partnerships? When do these 
relationships need to be developed relative to my market entry?
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Building your US ideal customer profile
First, define the ideal customer profile
Then, validate your information on the customer
Determine customer's needs
What business pain are they trying to solve? 
How does that pain impact their business? 
How do they measure that impact ($)?
What results would they like to achieve, on an 
individual, department and company-basis? 
What are the potential outcomes of those results?
Define ideal sales target within customer profile
Who are the executives that own the pain 
point and are empowered to act? (B2B)
What other roles within the target company 
(between one and three) would be productive 
entry points for outreach? (B2B)  
What results would they like to achieve, on an 
individual, department and company-basis? 
What are the potential outcomes of those results?
Identify how competitors service the customer
Are they considering other vendors 
or using an in-house solution? 
On which criteria are you being evaluated?
Define best process for connecting to customer
What is their typical buying process 
for a product such as yours?
Can you realistically engage your ideal 
customer directly or do you need the help of 
a partner with pre-existing relationships?
Where is a critical mass of your ideal 
customers concentrated? 
Does the customer have to be sought 
out, or would they go to the service?
Understand customer's ideal timeline
How long does their typical buying process take? 
How satisfactory is this to the customer?
What can complicate/extend their buying 
timeline? When do they plan to buy?
 
 
your product on the  
new customer
How do these leads initially respond  
to your solution? 
What objections do they raise?
What characteristics of those who  
respond validate your ideal profile? 
What lessons can you learn from  
those who reject your  
sales outreach?
 
 
your new customer profile  
based on the feedback
Does access to leads and  
conversion rates increase after  
you make changes to your  
ideal customer profile?
 
 
 
your new customer profile to  
your existing customers
Did you discover significant differences  
between the US leads and your  
existing successful customers? 
How should these differences affect  
your sales process?
Is the competitor group you are up  
against the same as that of your home  
market, or are there significant  
local players you haven't  
yet faced?
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Relevant visas
Budget
E-2 visa
E-1 visa
H-1B visa
L-1 visa
O-1 visa
You are planning  
to start a company 
in the US
Your company is 
actively involved 
in substantial 
trade with the 
US (at least 50% 
of volume)
You are an 
employee
You have been 
employed by your 
company for at least 
one year out of the 
last three years
You are an 
individual or 
entrepreneur who 
can demonstrate 
extraordinary 
abilities
You are planning to 
invest a significant 
amount of money 
in the US
You are a citizen of 
a "treaty country"
The US based 
position requires 
a bachelor's 
degree or a foreign 
equivalent
You are in an 
executive, manager, 
or "specialized 
knowledge" capacity
-
You are a citizen of 
a treaty country
Your company is at 
least 50% owned 
by citizens of a 
treaty country
Your employer is 
willing to fill out a 
Labor Condition 
Application
The foreign company 
will remain open and 
operational during 
the period of your 
L-1 employment 
in the US
-
2018 average  
salary ranges32 
*Exchange rate of 0.77 = $1
** OTE refers to On Target Earnings
***  VP of Sales data gathered from clients with $0-20M in revenue that are pre-series A to series. 
San Francisco, CA
New York, NY
Austin, TX
London, UK*
Sales
base
| OTE**
base
| OTE**
base
| OTE**
base
| OTE**
Sales Development Rep.
$45-60K | $65-85K
$45-60K | $65-85K
$40-50K | $60-70K
$33-47K | $47-67K
Account Executive
$70-90K | $140-180K
$70-100K | $140-200K
$50-70K | $100-140K
$53-80K | $106-160K
Sr. Account Executive
$90-120K | $180-240K
$90-120K | $180-240K
$60-90K | $120-180K
$67-93K | $133-186K
Enterprise Sales
$120-160K | $240-320K $120-160K | $240-320K $120-150K | $240-300K
$80-120K | $160-239K
Sales Operations
$80-100K | (+5-20%)
$80-100K | (+5-20%)
$60-80K | (+5-20%)
$53-80K | (+5-20%)
Sales Engineer
$80-120K | $150-160K
$80-120K | $150-160K
$70-110K | $95-145K
$53-120K | $73-160K
Customer Success Mgr.
$55-90K | $75-120K
$55-90K | $75-120K
$55-80K | $75-105K
$53-73K | $67-100K
Sr. Customer Success Mgr.
$80-125K | $105-165K
$80-125K | $105-165K
$70-110K | $95-145K
$73-106K | $100-140K
Account Manager
$75-95K | $105-135K
$75-95K | $105-135K
$55-75K | $80-105K
$71-106K | $106-113K
Sr. Account Manager
$90-120K | $130-170K
$90-110K | $130-155K
$70-90K | $100-130K
$80-106K | $113-153K
Marketing
Marketing Coordinator
$50-80K | (+5-10%)
$50-80K | (+5-10%)
$45-70K | (+5-10%)
$27-40K | (+5-10%)
Demand Generation Mktr.
$115-135K | (+10-20%)
$110-130K | (+10-20%)
$75-95K | (+10-20%)
$60-80K | (+10-20%)
Product Marketer
$140-160K | (+5-10%)
$140-160K | (+5-10%)
$100-120K | (+5-100%)
$53-67K | (+5-10%)
Content Marketer
$90-$110K | (+5-10%)
$90-110K | (+5-10%)
$50-85K | (+5-10%)
$27-40K | (+5-10%)
Sales leadership
SDR Manager
$90-130K | $120-170K
$90-120K | $120-160K
$80-90K | $115-120K
$73-87K |  $100-113K
Inside Sales Manager
$120-140K | $240-280K $130-150K | $260-300K $100-130K | $200-260K
$106-120K |  $212-239K
Head / Director of Sales
$125-150K | $250-300K $110-140K | $220-280K
$100-120K | $200-240K
$120-133K |  $240-266K
VP of Sales***
$170-220K | $340-440K $200-230K
| $400-460K $150-170K | $300-340K
$133-166K | $266-333K
32 Betts Salary Recruiting Data
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Sample budget for new ventures   
Sample budget 
for new ventures
 
Silicon Valley
New York
 London 
Activity
Rate
$ Range
$ Range
$ Range
Corporate setup
 
 
 
 
Incorporation 
legal fees
Annual
$1,000-10,000 
$1,000-10,000 
$500-2,000
Legal fees 
(per hour)
/hr
$300-900
$500-1,000
$175-715
Facilities
 
 
 
 
Hardware essentials
/employee/year
$24,000-72,000
$24,000-72,000
$24,000-72,000
Plus furniture (not 
at co-working)
/employee/year
$12,000-120,000
$24,000-72,000
$24,000-72,000
Office space
 
 
 
 
Lease in SF Bay Area
/SF/year
$60-200
$42-100
$53- 112
Co-work space
/desk/year
$400-600 
$500-1,000
$405-400
Employee cost 
 
 
 
Salary ranges
 
 
 
 
VP level
Annual
$200,000-400,000
$200,000-400,000
$120,000-200,000
Director marketing
Annual
$120,000-220,000 
$100,000-210,000 
$90,000-190,000
Marketing staff 
experienced
Annual
$70,000-140,000
$75,000-100,000
$45,000-100,000
Marketing staff 
entry level
Annual
$50,000-80,000
$50,000-75,000
$20,000-26,000
Admin
 
 
 
 
Director (Acct. HR)
Annual
$140,000-180,000
$150,000-200,000
$70,000-140,000
Staff experienced
Annual
$75,000-140,000
$90,000-120,000
$30,000-50,000
Staff entry-level
Annual
$50,000-85,000
$50,000-75,000
$20,000-26,000
Sample budget 
for new ventures
 
Silicon Valley
New York
London 
Activity
Rate
$ Range
$ Range
$ Range
Employee cost (continued) 
 
 
Outsourced accounting/HR 
 
 
 
CFO
/hr
$200-350
$200-300
$285-500
Controller / 
HR. Director
/hr
$120-190
$125-175
$110-275
Senior accountant/ 
bookkeeper
/hr
$85-150
$85-125
$45-100
Benefits and payroll 
Payroll taxes and 
workers comp
of payroll
15%-30%
15%-30%
13.8%-14%
Health insurance
/employee/year
$350-1500
$400-600
$115-205
Vacation
of salary
0-4 weeks 
0-4 weeks 
0-4 weeks 
Payroll service  
(5 - 10 employees)
/year
$500-12,500
$500-12,500
$625-11,000
Recruiting
of annual salary
20%-35%
15%-25%
18%-35%
Employee morale
/emp/year
$1,200-7,200
$1,200-3,600
$960-8,700
Other
 
 
 
 
Marketing
Annual
$12,000-120,000
$12,000-120,000
$8,000-90,000
Insurance
Annual
$3,000-5,000
$10,000-25,000
$1,000-1,850
H1B visa cost
/employee
$3,000-4,000
$3,000-5,000
$2,220-8,880
Travel
/employee/flight
$1,000-3,000
$1,000-3,000
$1,000-5,000
Bank fees
Annual
$0-1,000
$100-250
$50-500
 
$1,115,431 - 
3,235,450
$1,128,395 - 
2,894,888
$729,450 - 
2,121,330
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163
Conferences
Industry
Conference / City
City
Link
Agriculture
SV AgTech 
Conference
Silicon Valley
Blockchain
The Blockchain 
Conference
Austin
Consensys
New York
Cloud
Dockercon
San Francisco
Google Cloud Next
San Francisco
KubeCon / 
CloudnativeCon 
Seattle
Microsoft Build
Seattle
Reinvent
Las Vegas
QCon
New York
Consumer
Consumer Electronics 
Show (CES) 
Las Vegas
Grocery Shop
Las Vegas
Internet Retailer 
Conference 
Exhibition (IRCE) 
Chicago
eTail
Boston
Shop.org
Las Vegas
ShopTalk
Las Vegas
Education
ISTE
Chicago
NY EdTech Week
New York
SXSW Edu
Austin
LearnLaunch
Boston
GSV
San Diego
www.svagtech.org/wp/
www.theblockchainconference.com/
www.coindesk.com/events/consensus-2018/
2018.dockercon.com/
cloud.withgoogle.com/next18/sf/
microsoft.com/en-us/build
events.linuxfoundation.org/events/kubecon-
cloudnativecon-north-america-2018/
reinvent.awsevents.com/
qconnewyork.com/
ces.tech/
groceryshop.com/ 
irce.com/
etaileast.wbresearch.com/
shop.org/
shoptalk.com/
conference.iste.org/2018/
nyedtechweek.com/
sxswedu.com/
learnlaunch.com/
asugsvsummit.com/
Industry
Conference / City
City
Link
Energy
WEEC 
Charlotte
EIA Energy 
Conference
D.C.
Fintech
Money 20/20
Las Vegas
Finovate
Multiple Cities
Future of Money
San Francisco
Empire Startups 
FinTech Conference
New York/San 
Francisco
Food
Future Food 
Tech NYC
New York
Gaming
Game Developers 
Conference
San Francisco
E3
Los Angeles
PAX
Multiple Cities
Healthcare
Digital Health 
Summit
Las Vegas
HLTH
Las Vegas
HIMSS 
Las Vegas
Rock Health Summit
San Francisco
JP Morgan 
Healthcare Summit
San Francisco
Hospitality
The Hotel Experience New York
Insurance
InsureTech Connect
Las Vegas
DigIn
Austin
www.energycongress.com/
eia.gov/conference/2017/
money2020.com/
finovate.com/
futureofmoney.com/
empirefintechconference.com/pages/ny2019
futurefoodtechnyc.com/
gdconf.com/
e3expo.com/
paxsite.com/
digitalhealthsummit.com/
hlth.co/
www.himssconference.org/
rockhealthsummit.com/
jpmorgan.com/ 
global/healthcareconference
thehotelexperience.com/
HX2017/Public/Enter.aspx
insuretechconnect.com/
dig-in.com/conference/
digitalinsurance-2018
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165
Advisor compensation 
Industry
Conference / City
City
Link
Manufacturing
QCon San Francisco
San Francisco
Media
New York Media 
Festival
New York
Real Estate
National Association 
of Realtors 
Conference
Boston
Robotics
TC Sessions: Robotics Berkeley
SaaS
SaaStr Annual
San Francisco
Telecoms
Telecom 
Exchange NYC
New York
Content Delivery 
Summit
New York
Travel
Travel & Adventure 
Show
Chicago
   
qconsf.com/
mefest.com/
nar.realtor/convention.nsf/
techcrunch.com/events/tc-
sessions-robotics-2018/
saastrannual.com/
thetelecomexchange.com/nyc/
contentdeliverysummit.com/2018/
travelshows.com/
Commitment
Services
Compensation
Attend quarterly meetings to 
provide feedback on Company's 
strategy for at least one hour.
Provide reasonable response to 
email requests by Company.
Promotion: On top of the regular 
advice and insights, Advisor agrees 
to actively promote and make 
introductions on behalf of the 
Company through Advisor's overall 
network of business contacts, 
including forwarding the Company's 
business plan and other materials 
as requested by the Company.
Idea Stage is 0.25%
Startup Stage is 0.20%  
Growth Stage is 0.15%
Conferences
Commitment
Services
Compensation
Standard Performance plus:
Attend monthly meetings to 
provide feedback on Company's 
strategy for at least one hour.
Attend one additional monthly 
meeting for up to one hour 
with a potential customer, 
investor, strategic partner, 
vendor or employee.
Standard Performance plus:
Recruiting: Advisor agrees to assist 
Company in finding additional, 
potential founding team members 
and employees through the Advisor's 
overall network of business contacts.
Idea Stage is 0.50%
Startup Stage is 0.40%  
Growth Stage is 0.30%
Commitment
Services
Compensation
Strategic Performance plus:
Twice monthly meetings to provide 
feedback on Company's strategy 
for at least two hours each.
Strategic Performance plus:
Contacts: Advisor agrees to make 
introductions to and assist in the 
acquisition of marquee customers, 
strategic partners and key industry 
contacts and attend meetings 
with such potential customers, 
partners and key contacts.
Projects: Advisor agrees to assist 
the Company on at least one 
strategic project as requested 
by the Company during the 
term of this Agreement.
Idea Stage is 1.00%
Startup Stage is 0.80%  
Growth Stage is 0.60%
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Incorporating a US entity
General information
Steps to incorporate
Apply to incorporate in specific state.
Establish a registered agent in that state.
Submit formation documents.
Maintain registered agent.
Maintain state specific taxation and reporting requirements.
Insurance
Completed by
Estimated cost
Local counsel, engaged by the Company
$2,000-5,000
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5
Taxes
Benefits for employees
 
Federal
Corporation Tax
Social security
Medicare
Unemployment Tax
State
Corporation Tax
Sales Tax
Franchise Tax
Unemployment Tax
Property Tax
District
Corporation Tax
Sales Tax
Benefit 
category
< 10 employees
11 - 50
50 - 200
> 200
Medical
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Dental
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Vision
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Holidays
~ 20 days
~ 20 days
~ 20 days
~ 20 days
401K
No
Yes
Yes,  
w/matching
Yes,  
w/matching
Equity
Yes
Yes
Early and select 
employees 
Early and select 
employees 
Other perks
Context-
dependent
Context-
dependent
Context-
dependent
Context-
dependent
LLC
S Corp
C Corp
General liability insurance + business property insurance
Errors and omissions insurance
Cyber liability insurance
Directors and officers insurance
-
Key man insurance
-
Employment practices liability insurance
-
-
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169
Recruiters in the US
Industry specific recruiters
Executive search
East Coast 
West Coast
Non-executive
Engineering
Sales
Human Resources
Industry specific recruiters
Healthcare
Enterprise
Diane McIntyre -  
Calibre One (retained)
Simon Bromwell -  
Robert Walters (contained)
Rick Bank -  
True Ventures (retained)
Mark Lonergan -  
Lonergan Partners (retained)
Jamie Sanger -  
Daversa (retained)
Joe Griesedieck -  
Korn Ferry International (retained)
Ben Christian -  
Carbon Partners (retained)
Spencer Tashima -  
Essential Solutions (retained)
Julia Horiuchi -  
Robert Walters (contained)
Tony Zammikiel -  
Equity Search Partners (contingency)
Chris Johnson -  
Artisanal Talent (retained)
Dirk Cleveland -  
Riviera Partners (retained)
Cathy Cairns -  
Elite Technology Sales Recruiters (contingency)
Katie Pouch -  
RJR Partners (retained / contingency)
Bill McHargue -  
Talent House (contingency)
Cathy Cairns -  
Elite Technology Sales Recruiters (contingency)
Katie Pouch -  
RJR Partners (retained / contingency)
Bill McHargue -  
Talent House (contingency)
Jennifer Carlo -  
Betts Recruiting (contingency)
Robin Toft -  
Toft Group (retained)
Mia Jung -  
Oxeon Group (retained)
Sean Walker -  
Bowdoin Group (retained)
Douglas Madden -  
Fortra Search (retained)
Sean Lucq -  
SPMB (retained)
Greg Button -  
Korn Ferry International (retained)
Joel May -  
BridgeGate (retained)
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Metrics for fundraising
Software
 
            
 
Marketplaces
Metrics for Fundraising 
 
Category
Good  
Best 
ARR
$5-12m
$13-20m
MRR growth
100%
++
Repaying customer acquisition  
cost timeline
18-24 months
8-17 months
Gross retention
85%+
90%+
Gross margin
70%+
85%+
Net churn
100%+
140%+
Category
Good  
TAM core vertical
$5bn+
GMV organic growth MoM
10%+
6-month retention (both sides)
10%+
Payback timeline for cost of 
acquiring both sides
24 months or less
Category
Good
Product
Better; faster; cheaper; more fun
Revenue
At least $5m annual    
Minimal awareness
Less than 0.1% penetration
Customer base
Diverse demographically and 
geographically    
Gross margin
70%+
Net churn
100%+
Category
Good
Fundamental question
Growth and user acquisition -  
how can you scale this business?
User growth
10-15% MoM
ARR
$5m+ by time of investment
Upsell/cross-sell
10-20% expansion
Payback of cost of acquiring 
customer
24 months or less
Churn
Less than 20%
CAC
Show that organic growth  
is very strong
Category
Good
Best
LTV
$50
$200+ (repeat spending)
Market size
$5bn
$100bn+ (growing market)
Revenue growth
100%+
300%+ (organic growth)
Consumer
Fintech
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Software tools for people/ 
talent functions
Category
Software
Social communication  
tools
Project management/ 
cross-team collaboration
Marketing/external 
communication
Applicant tracking  
system
CRM software
All-in-all solutions
(video)
(chat + video)
(video)
(video)
Business*
(whiteboarding) 
(subscription 
businesses)
*  For a company moving to Silicon Valley, adopting the G-suite could be seen as best practice, since so many other companies and partners there  
use this software.