The new-generation of Finders or "Connectors" and their role in the high-tech:

“Sorry, I don’t work with Finders.” 

It is in these terms that some VCs have sometimes sharply answered me...

Fortunately, this is a tiny minority of VCs, because in reality most of them are very happy to deal with a trusty Finder, but this is symptomatic of a misinterpretation of the usefulness of a Finder, because it is said, this profession remains an enigma for ordinary people, for lack of communication on the subject, and yet it plays a major role for startups and investors… 

The term Finder, which determines our business, is now obsolete, to say the least… 

This terminology refers only to a single aspect (certainly the most important a priori) of this profession, namely: "finding funds for startups" or (this is the flip side of the same coin) "finding promising startups for potential investors".

Personally, I would say that we are rather today, “connection facilitators”!

If the term “connection facilitators” better reflects the very essence of this profession that has evolved over time, seems a little too long to say, I suggest the word “connector”.

Connectors, therefore, have a rare feature that is very useful in the high-tech world, because like bees, which are the queens of pollination, connectors allow companies to develop new technologies by bringing them through their established networks, what is essential for their development: “investors”

But, and this is the difference, the new-generation of connectors are not content to find simple investors for startups, but they are especially focused on finding them strategic investors!

The word strategic, is of vital importance here, and it takes all its sense, when a Connector worthy of the name finds the money necessary for the development of the startup, while putting in relation its founders with an investor who will also be able to advise them, and easily orient them towards a specific market (predefined) by its connections and knowledge.

At the same time, the Connector allows investors to invest more successfully in promising, carefully pre-selected startups.

Indeed, VCs/Angel or other type of investors, receive startup decks who have already passed a pre-selection according to very specific criteria, and they are all happy to receive this «manna» on a tray.

This saves them a lot of time and energy, because the Connector is there to answer their questions.  

By the way, Investors get inundated with unsolicited executive summaries and pitch decks. Most of the time, those solicitations are ignored unless they are referred from a trustworthy source like 5.0

The first relations between investors and startups are similar to a game of ping-pong, whose ball is in a way the Connector, whose mission is to collect from the founders of the startups the maximum of information crucial to the decision-making of investors (VCs/ business Angel etc.) and to transmit them in the best possible conditions. 

 Another advantage of the Connector... its connections around the world!

An investor wants to invest in a startup provided that it has already started to penetrate the Chinese market and that is not yet the case?

No problem at all!

The Connector will activate its contacts, and connect the startup with a Chinese market specialist who will be able to quickly introduce it to many customers in the land of the sunset!

Here is just one example of the usefulness of a Connector!

A Connector has largely succeeded in its mission when both parties wish to establish deeper relationships, and decide to meet or exchange live. The continuation of operations therefore escapes the hands of the Connector, which remains at the disposal of each party in case of need, most often in order to round the angles during the delicate phase of negotiations and the drafting of a term sheet.

 A Connector likes to travel regularly in various events such as the famous Cybertech of Tel-Aviv (which attracts tens of thousands of people from all over the world) etc… Events where he meets with startup founders and investors, and builds strong relationships.

In these special times, he must be resourceful to develop new business relationships. No choice but to adapt by using for example Zoom meetings instead of a presence on the ground, and by activating its networks.  

But the new generation of Connector has more than one trick in its bag, and knows how to adapt to all situations…

This is a brief explanation of the role of the Connector today, but it goes without saying that this profession contains wonders that are hidden from the general public.  

So, after these explanations I invite you to follow me without restraint into the invisible world of the Connector an exciting world, full of surprises, in future articles, and you will see how the word monotony is not part of the lexicon of the Connector!

David Yossef Sanhedrin

Founder & CEO of 5.0

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