Jerry Colonna: Current start-up generation has learned from old mistakes (video)

12 Nov 2014

Jerry Colonna, CEO and executive coach at Reboot.io

Jerry Colonna, CEO and executive coach at Reboot.io, spoke to us about the start-up culture around the world, what entrepreneurs are finding most difficult, and how telling stories can shape careers.

At an event led by Niamh Bushnell, Dublin’s new start-up commissioner, Colonna spoke to a number of Dublin’s most ambitious start-ups on the topic of ‘the fear of failure’, which is possibly one of the most common for any fledgling business, regardless of sector.

Having been one of the leading venture capitalists for tech companies in ‘Silicon Alley’ in New York in the 1990s as part of Flatiron Partners, Colonna has since moved away from the venture-capital scene. He has now focused his attention on developing the mindset and business plans of budding entrepreneurs.

As CEO and executive coach at Reboot.io, an online entrepreneur coaching website, Colonna has even used his background as a journalist to expand the reach of the coaching to a wider audience through podcasts and blogs.

Speaking to Siliconrepublic.com after the event, when asked about what this generation of entrepreneurs and start-up companies have that those in the era referred to as the ‘Dot-com bubble’ didn’t, he said, “There’s a far greater emphasis on true business sustainability than there was then. You very rarely see a company going public without profits or revenue … There’s more expectation now of true business expertise.”

Watch our interview with Jerry Colonna here:

Current start-up generation has learned from previous mistakes, says Jerry Colonna

Colm Gorey was a senior journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com