A Q&A with Silicon Valley's "Undertaker"

In January of last year, for the San Jose Mercury News, I wrote about 27-year-old Sherwood Partners in Palo Alto, long known to industry insiders as “the undertaker" because its primary role is to efficiently shutter companies. Sherwood made a killing in the aftermath of the Internet bubble, closing down roughly 180 startups. In the years that followed, however, as the tech economy rebounded and startups became more efficient, Sherwood's business slowed considerably. It closed two satellite offices that it had opened and cut down its staff of 60 MBAs and CPAs to less than 30. In fact, as I was writing my piece, it was fair to compare Sherwood to some of the former high-fliers it has wound down -- and I did. What a difference an almost unprecedented economic meltdown makes. When I caught up with Sherwood’s gregarious cofounder Marty Pichinson on Friday afternoon, he was just wrapping up an hour-long conference call, juggling two new calls, and eager to escape the office after a very long week. Before he took off, Pichinson, who has an inimitable flair for drama, told me why startups should keep their PR people, how to negotiate with a landlord, and what most startup employees can expect in the way of a severance package.