If you were to devise a check-list for aspiring entrepreneurs it might go something like this: a great idea, a team with the technical know-how, a manager who can actually execute a business plan, and finance whiz.
One thing that's often missing on the team: Someone who actually has the skills to convince potential investors to pony-up the money.
Sharon Kerrick, the associate director of the Forcht Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Louisville, has seen scores of pitches over the years. Often, the biggest difference between making it and, well, not making it, is the ability to communicate.
In fact, in the past year, Kerrick and a team of researchers has tried to quantify the impact of what she calls "entrepreneurial passion" in the pitch process. Her researchers took 40 aspiring entrepreneurs and basically had them perform before a coup of business professionals experienced in judging business plan competitions.
The participants that did best: those who had the strongest presence, the best communications skills and were able to convince the potential investors that they were actually passionate about their product or service.
"Everyone has different skills - and a scientist or inventor may not be the most polished presenter or communicator," Kerrick says. "The founders that presented, but were not great communicators, were scored lower for the possibility of venture investments due to perceptions of low passion and, or, preparedness."
Don't think it matters in real life? Kerrick's favorite example is a company called TNG Pharmaceuticals, a Louisville - based maker of a veterinary vaccine for cattle to aid in control of the horn fly . The technology was "on the shelf for 17 years," Kerrick says, until the inventors put together a team that included a skilled communicator. Four years ago, it paid off when TMG won the Rice University business plan competition and raked in some $800,000.
Advice? Recognize your strengths and weaknesses," says Kerrick. "Know that you may not be able to 'do it all,' and may need to incorporate others who have strong communication attributes."
