In Defense of VC Pattern Recognition
For some time now, I’ve enjoyed the back and forth between venture practitioners and entrepreneurs about what constitutes the elements of best practices and cogent thinking in venture decision-making. Codifying a venture process or methodology has stymied many a well-meaning firm over the years. While there are certain processes and approaches that most firms would recognize as well-reasoned, there still exists wide disagreement among venture investors and the firms they helm about what should drive investment decisions, how much rigor and analysis should play into investment decision-making versus old-fashioned gut instinct and momentum-style approaches and what ideal blend of background, experience and temperament makes for a successful venture capitalist. The answers aren’t so obvious.
