Startup Portfolio

Here's a select list of startups that I either co-founded or advised on.

Commission Pitch Overview: A web platform enabling real estate agents to compete for the business of home buyers and sellers.
My Role: Co-founder.
Status: Just out of stealth mode with our new website and first press release.
Lessons Learned: Plenty, but it's still too soon to fill this section out!

FusePayOverview: A subscription management web application / service tailored to high-growth startups.
My Role: Technology Lead.
Status: Fusenet, the sole investor, decided to cut funding due to a change in corporate strategy.
Lessons Learned: The need for a market position that is clearly defined and realistic. How to balance simplicity, modularity, and scalability in application architecture design.

Loans for LessOverview: An ATM-type kiosk offering self-serve financial services such as loan issuing and repayment.
My Role: Technology Advisor.
Status: Pilot location deployed in downtown Toronto.
Lessons Learned: The 80 / 20 rule as it applies to a production-ready application that implements a unique business process (i.e. 80% of resources will be spent on the last 20% of required business value).

GraboidOverview: A video streaming and downloading application that sources content from public networks.
My Role: Co-founder and Head of Web Development.
Status: Profitable and self-funded with year over year revenue growth.
Lessons Learned: The importance of accurate analytics on subscription activity (e.g. customer lifetime value, cost of acquisition, churn rate, and split testing). How to build a scalable web application.

Darwin POS SolutionsOverview: A self-service ordering and payment system targeted towards the Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) industry.
My Role: Co-founder and Lead Product / Software Developer.
Status: Dissolved due to a lack of a growth / funding plan.
Lessons Learned: The need to set client expectations by under-promising and over-delivering, while avoiding the natural tendency towards the opposite. The challenges of an effective QA cycle with a bootstrapped startup delivering a mission-critical B2B application.


So there you have it -- my startup portfolio in a nutshell. If you have questions, feel free to post a comment below and I will gladly share my experiences in more detail.