Monday 13 July 2009 9:38:03 pm

In the 21st century the issues driving the global business agenda include ethical governance, energy & climate change and instability of the capital markets. These are highlighted in the 2008 Sustainability Report published by Allianz. We think the solutions to these crises exist within value based innovation, making “good entrepreneurship” the primary business driver for positive global change.

14XC.com was inspired by the CNBC Allianz Good Entrepreneur competition. Clearly there are many good entrepreneurs with great ideas that have strategic potential. They come from all walks of life, different ages (we have a team of multiple nationalities aged 24, 34 and 35). Websites such as Linked In provide entrepreneurs an incredible tool to network so they can support their weaknesses and augment their strengths.

But there is no website that provides support to the over stretched Angel Investor sector. Less than 1% of projects are funded putting enormous pressure on Angels to sort ideas. Angel Investors take all the risk in new green businesses, which is unfair considering all of society benefits. The Good Entrepreneurship prize is essentially an Angel Investment and it is an extraordinary competition, but only competitor one can win. This means dozens of great ideas may not get the start they deserve.

Allianz in their knowledge website (helpfully linked by Editor Valdis Wish on the Features page) highlights the importance of microfinance in developing nations. We think this model can be applied to Start-Ups. The online person to person lending model has already been proven with the highly successful UK website ZOPA.

At the seed stage we think it is critical to have not only access to a good network, but also access to solid funding. We do not think that the 50K cash prize from CNBC will be enough to get most of the ideas mentioned off the ground due to the capital outlay required to build most of the projects mentioned. The remainder 200K which is distributed through advertising on CNBC and other methods will only be useful to some projects. Which is why we hope 14XC.com will be in a position to help early 2010.

Also, at the seed stage, it is important to establish the principles of sustainability, environmental integrity, economic growth and social responsibility, which is why we have built these tools into the heart of the concept and made ISO 14,001 central to “seed stock” performance.

One idea might not change the world, but together they might. We’re all in this together is the main message, it’s Rob (our spokespersons) catch phrase. We deliberately wanted to put Rob front and centre in our campaign as he is young and just as establishing sustainability principles at the seed stage is critical in start-ups that have resilience, the principle applies to future leaders. But, you’re never too young or old to build a “good entrepreneur” mindset.

14xc.com is a Seed Capital Exchange for good entrepreneurs.
Learn More Here: www.14xc.com/description.pdf

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Tuesday 14 July 2009 2:04:43 pm

Good afternoon Kathryn, many thanks for your question.


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The Short Answer:
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14XC.com has 4 stages:

1. Online Consultants Assess Start-Ups
2. Online Angels Invest
3. Start-Ups Utilise Quality Tools e.g. performance management and ISO 14,001 Audit Readiness tools (14)
4. Start-Ups Access Seed Capital Exchange (XC)

Consultants (1), the angel investor (2), the market (3) and the public micro investor (4) are involved in picking the winners i.e. helping those that demonstrate strategic potential become successful start-ups and sustainable businesses by providing quality implementation management tools and solid funding.

14XCcom is a scalable Start-Up incubator.


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The Long Answer:
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To elaborate. Similar in principle to www.justanswer.com, online consultants (e.g. Consulting companies, MBA students) are able to review newly registered Start-Ups. Payment for consultancy is based on a pre-paid fee and/or “Seed Stocks”. Consultant success rates will be provided on public profiles.

Start-Ups will be required to go online and answer questions related to strategic potential and measurable triple bottom line goals (Environmental Integrity, Economic Growth, Social Responsibility). Consultants will review the criteria and if necessary assist in the further development of goals.

Standard criteria under development to assess businesses include: assessment of problem solved, market size & attractiveness, resource availability, uniqueness, strength of team. Quarterly goals are made public to potential investors once approved and are used to determine “Seed Stock” performance. This comprises the basis for a rudimentary “online prospectus”. Specific Environmental Integrity goals are derived from ISO 14,001 targets specified in the online ISO 14,001 audit readiness application.

14XC.com bridges the gap between Angel investment and VC / IPO. Currently Angel investors take on all the risk in Green Start-Ups, this is not equitable as mentioned in the original post, considering all of society benefits. Angel investments often provide vital stability and assistance during the early Start-Up stage. Given the 1.7 million Start-Ups in 2004, Angel Investors are under enormous pressure to assess the viability of new ventures.

By augmenting Angel Investment and providing consultant pre-vetted opportunities, 14xc.com supports the existing Angel Investment model and extends it by allowing smaller investors to become Angel Investors. At least 1 angel investor will be required to commit 2,500 euro before companies can raise seed capital with 14xc.com. Start-Ups can then raise up to 10 times the initial investment on the Seed Capital Exchange.
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