{"id":351,"date":"2024-04-11T17:06:28","date_gmt":"2024-04-11T17:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/small-fish-and-big-fish-the-group-dynamics-of-fundraising\/"},"modified":"2025-02-22T10:13:57","modified_gmt":"2025-02-22T10:13:57","slug":"small-fish-and-big-fish-the-group-dynamics-of-fundraising","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/small-fish-and-big-fish-the-group-dynamics-of-fundraising\/","title":{"rendered":"Small Fish and Big Fish: The Group Dynamics of Fundraising"},"content":{"rendered":"

After struggling to write last week\u2019s article, I promised myself I\u2019d take a lighter approach this time. So, I opened the shared document I have with my allies at Kindanews\u2014La Voce dei Leader Silvia Castrogiovanni and Alessandra Rancati\u2014where we jot down all our ideas and potential topics. One phrase immediately caught my eye: \u201cthe psychological aspect of fundraising.\u201d \u201cThat must be the other Silvia\u2019s note,\u201d I thought. But my mind kept circling back to that phrase, so I decided to dive in. And as I did, metaphors of water and navigation naturally came to mind. The Emotional Side of Fundraising<\/span><\/p>\n

Essentially, you\u2019re asking someone to invest their capital in your vision\u2014you\u2019re institutionalizing an alliance. Essentially, you\u2019re asking someone to invest their capital in your vision\u2014you\u2019re institutionalizing an alliance. I understand, and in a way, regret, that the shared language of fundraising is still accessible to very few in Italy. I\u2019ve often heard incredibly talented teams\u2014just less familiar with venture capital\u2014ask, \u201cSo, do we really need funding? Can\u2019t we just make it on our own?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

In Italy\u2019s VC landscape\u2014a tiny market\u2014there are two main schools of thought. Chi si ispira agli americani e quindi raccoglie grosse somme di denaro e chi spera di crescere ispirandosi ai padri dell\u2019imprenditoria italiana per procedere con le sue gambe. Some follow the American model, raising large sums of capital. Others hope to grow organically, inspired by the pioneers of Italian entrepreneurship, relying on their own resources. I personally lean towards the first approach, but I\u2019d love to find the right balance, challenging the American model and tweaking the formula\u2014changing just a few ingredients to make it even better. <\/span><\/p>\n

Navigating Two Approaches<\/b><\/p>\n

The key difference between these two approaches lies in <\/span>method and speed<\/b>\u2014both in competition and consumer adoption. The world we live in today clearly favors the first approach, but I believe integrating elements of the second <\/span>pays off in the long run<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s why I see both as <\/span>essential mindsets<\/b> to adopt. The real differentiator is growing <\/span>strategically<\/b>, finding ways to <\/span>overtake competitors at the right moment<\/b>\u2014and when necessary, seeking support from <\/span>bigger fish<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>small fish<\/b> swims close to the <\/span>big fish<\/b>, making it faster and more agile\u2014especially when backed by its school of allies. I can\u2019t help but think of <\/span>Finding Nemo<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fundraising as a Strategy for Growth and Change<\/b><\/p>\n

Raising capital comes with certain <\/span>assumptions<\/b>:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. With that capital, you will grow and create value<\/b>\u2014not just for yourself but also for your investors.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. You actually need it<\/b>\u2014otherwise, you wouldn\u2019t be asking for it.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This need often stems from <\/span>cash flow constraints<\/b>\u2014when cash reaches zero, it\u2019s game over (<\/span>ciao, kaput<\/span><\/i>). Everything in fundraising revolves around <\/span>this inherent risk of failure<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    But there\u2019s another, often overlooked reason: <\/span>the need for change and evolution<\/b>. Seeking funding isn\u2019t just about <\/span>money<\/b>\u2014it\u2019s about <\/span>bringing new people into the equation<\/b>. Whether they\u2019re financial investors or strategic partners, someone new takes a seat at the table. And when that happens, something old inevitably shifts.<\/span><\/p>\n

    This means <\/span>the founding team\u2019s leadership will immediately be put to the test<\/b>. If there are hidden cracks, they will surface. The key is to <\/span>spot potential obstacles early, before they cause real damage<\/b>. If you can do that, you won\u2019t get stuck\u2014you\u2019ll set sail.<\/span><\/p>\n

    So, <\/span>bon voyage!<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    After struggling to write last week\u2019s article, I promised myself I\u2019d take a lighter approach this time. So,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":597,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[50],"class_list":{"0":"post-351","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-the-lab-en","8":"tag-fundraising-en"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=351"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":353,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351\/revisions\/353"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=351"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/silviamanduchi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}