Comments on: Two Ideas for the NY Startup Scene

By: Andrew Badera

Andrew Badera — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 20:57:52 +0000

I’m not discounting every student — not by any means. I myself was working for IBM at the age of 19. What I _am_ saying is that the investment in time you’re suggesting probably won’t result in a proportionate return. Those students who are worth their salt tend to be so because they’re self-motivated, sharp people. That same kind of person has no difficulty in today’s market in finding a job.

There are plenty of people in NYC schools, and at RPI here in Albany, that also have plenty of job offers by or before graduation. That person you mention who’s hunting clearly lacks something. Perhaps it’s self-motivation. Perhaps it’s skill in their field. Perhaps it’s time management and prioritization skills. Perhaps it’s people skills. Who knows. In the end, worthwhile people always find jobs, and always have their pick.

Not to say there isn’t SOME value to Silicon Alley enhancing its relationship with NYS acadaemia … but they don’t need to be “the most popular kid in school.” That kind of investment just doesn’t return well … and VCs look for 3x-5x minimum return, dontcha know?

By: Patrick

Patrick — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 01:29:52 +0000

Andrew,

First, thanks for the comment! This is the first real bit of dialog I’ve seen on this blog. If I made any money off of this, I’d give you a prize. Alas, I don’t, so on with my reply…

I honestly don’t think anything you’ve said refutes what I’m saying. I think your first point gets exactly to the problem — you’ve already discounted every single student coming out of university. There’s no way every student coming out of NYC schools has zero practical experience or needs the 8-12 months you stated, especially at Columbia. Never mind CS students, I know Mech E and Electrical E students who create websites in their spare time. You don’t want these kids either, the ones who do this for fun?

As for the Silicon Valley comment — I hyperlinked to the Startup Job Fair as just one example. I don’t think I need to be in SV to figure out that it’s better integrated with its universities. No one that I’ve graduated with from Columbia knew that the startup scene existed, and I’m talking about friends of mine that would kill to work for startups and are only finding them now. I’ve heard all about SV, and it’s on the other side of the country, not the other side of Manhattan. That’s a problem.

Finally, I do recognize that the entire startup scene is different from East and West. Again, that’s the point! Let’s start stealing the West’s best traits. The Silicon Alley scene will never be sustainable if it can’t tap the talent several blocks down the road.

Thanks again for the comment.

By: Andrew Badera

Andrew Badera — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:05:51 +0000

Have you seen the quality of most CS/SE/IT graduates recently? Those that are sound of theory tend to have zero practical experience — even those with co-op backgrounds. It takes time to mature these students, and many of them are a lost cause. Add in the trend in tech towards 18 months between job hops, and suddenly the 8-12 months you just spent seasoning a student are out the window after a mere 6 months of returns on your investment.

You say you’ve “read” about how different it is in Silicon Valley … I’d like to hear from someone who actually has the personal experience to validate or refute that.

That said, if you pay attention to any of the NYC vs. Boston vs. Valley VC discussions or arguments, you’ll also recognize that the entire startup and biz scene is different between East and West, not just the relationship that scene has with its local collegiate crowd.