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The slogan on their site and back of their cards is "The Entrepreneurs Behind Entrepreneurs" - it's true. All the folks I've spoken with have operating experience and one partner, who sits on 5 boards, is actually acting CEO for one of the companies, actively seeking his replacement to help the company grow.

DO NOT make Sequoia your first pitch. Tighten up your story by spending time pitching other venture firms first; *then* go to Sequoia.

Both these guys are used car salesman - garg is worse then goguen. he is a slimey guy with an uneasy demeanor to show that he is smart. his iq is in the dumps and just fortunate he is hanging around these guys. avoid him like q plague. goguen is half decent with some experience but yet i would avoid him.

Pitched several of their team members. It felt like they have seen it all.

Worked with Sequoia (both Israel and US). Sequoia is here to make money for their investors and partners. These are the white sharks of Sand Hill road and whomever doesn't know it should! Swimming with sharks can be both rewarding and dangerous.

If you are looking for someone to help you find a market for your technology, they are probably not it.

If however you:
1. Are an execution maven
-or-
2. Have deep pockets to help you keep a lid on dilution

There is no better partner out there.

Sequoia has yet to really tap into Europe and head office in Menlo sent me over to the Israeli crew - but have resorted to contacting PA's to get through to pull at least a response... which is - it's holiday season, so you might have to wait. So basically trying to get some eyeballs on the pitch still.

Thanks to Sequoia for getting back to me (even when submission was via web). I would have appreciated a call (I guess I like hearing my rejection as opposed to reading it).

I was trying to get a pitch meeting with Sequoia for our Series A round. It took about a month for them to get back to me, given that people were out on vacations. They declined a meeting, saying that they generally don't invest in early stage companies outside the Bay area.

Sequoia Capital has been very willing to help our company before we even agreed on a termsheet - they helped close prospective employees, did legwork to help figure out user growth, and continuously offered product feedback. After closing remained very active/helpful investors, which can be extremely beneficial if you are a young entrepreneur without a lot of experience.

Contrary to a lot of other reports, I found Sequoia to be very humble - attitude throughout the process was "you are our customers, and we are only as good as our next investment."

Getting funding was very painless. We agreed on terms ~48 hours after our pitch and closed everything ~2 weeks later. Deal was expensive but fair.

TIPS ON GETTING FUNDED:

- get angels who are good friends with Sequoia
- build a product and have some users/customers before pitching
- obsessively focus on execution
- they prefer youth and passion to business experience, so come pitch in jeans and tshirt!

Ask any questions in comments below

Sequoia has a deserved reputation for very sharp elbows once they have made an investment. The reality is that they have been very successful and probably know ten people who can do a better job at your role than you.

I contacted the firm and within one hour I was contacted back. At one point I was in contact with 4 different senior people with the firm who all followed up. Mike Moritz wrote me back and told me that they were going to pass. They understood the business and did not waste time. Make sure you do research before you approach them, because if they think there might be a fit, they will respond. Top firm run by top professionals.

I enjoy pitching Sequoia for one simple reason. They are the purest form of greed on Sand Hill Road. If you have something that fits their model, few VC's will do more to help make that a reality, including stepping all over you (which, BTW, they should if you slow it down).

The Sequoia pitch is simple:

1) What it does.
2) Which of the 7 deadly sins does it serve. Yes, this is actually part of their screening. All great investments fundamentally feed one of the 7 deadly sins, which in turn creates an internal need to use it and share it with others. It's not stupid, it's genius. Just a little short on the ethical spectrum.
3) How it grows 1000x per year. Yes, that's the growth rate of their best investments over the last 20 years. Don't think of this as an elitest criterium, think of it as a challenge for you to see the highest growth areas of your business.
4) Data that backs up 2 and 3.

If you have something growing like mad, pitch Sequoia. If you have a hunch and some theories, don't bother unless you can build something that proves it in less than 30 days.

Sequoia doesn't want to be your friend. They want to get rich. You can decide whether or not that's what you want, but they will be that voice for sure.

We pitched 30+ VCs in first meetings for our last round. A real roadshow. Vanishingly few firms (a handful?) had the gumption to take a first meeting, express substantial interest, then never reply to an email again. Sad - and not the way to treat an entrepreneur who will be building companies for a long time.

i've personally seen three deals where sequoia slashed valuations drastically at the last minute, right before closing. pretty hardball folks. however, can't argue with their results or ability to pick winners.

from a successful group. They are quite full of themselves, but if you can get over that......take their money.

Has any one worked with him before"

I heard all of the shark and bully comments about Sequoia, and the source is usually other VC firms. I accept that they may not be founder-friendly. Still, for all their fame, Sequioa was accessible and when partners (Leone and Gandhi) said to stay in touch, they meant it, and indeed we did. Mark Dempster is the way to get in the door and he will offer a sense of the firm's interest, but not presume anything. We were not funded but pitching this firm boosted confidence. Making an impression and connection here means you can do it anywhere so for that reason I would not put Sequoia last in your queue.

I pitched David Spector recently. He has been with Sequoia for about two years so I'm happy to write his first review on TheFunded. Note: It was an impromptu pitch and demo and David had no materials beforehand, so keep that in mind. My takeaways:

- He's a sharp guy. Asked good questions about our product and business model and paid close attention to my words.
- He offered concrete suggestions on what it would take to attract his and Sequoia's interest specific to my company.
- He is open. I asked him all manner of direct questions and he replied with direct answers.

Net: David is smart, direct and has a sense of humor. I felt crystal clear on where things stood and next steps.

I will have a meeting next month with them, so this is more of a question than comment. Warren Hogarth graciously agreed to meet for establishing a connection, even though he was honest upfront that they would not be interested in an early-stage deal that is outside the Bay Area.

Obviously, I know that Sequoia's reputation is fantastic, but do not know enough about them to even begin to contemplate a move. Feedback will be highly appreciated; details in the private section.

Pitched Michael Moritz whom I pitched in 2007 on a different deal. He was quick to review and declined due to a conflict with another investment.

Mike got his backside toasted a bit in the final moments of Kawasaki's Revenue Bootcamp today by a conference attendee. But he rose to the challenge, offering to read and respond to most any pitch emailed to him from the 200+ (predominately baby boomer) audience.

Mike was on the last panel of the conference with Paul Graham of yCombinator moderated by Guy. Early in the hour long discussion, both Mike and Paul admitted that one of the optimal characteristics of entrepreneurs they fund is youth, specifically those under 30 years old. They gave sound justifications, which probably rang hollow with the audience.

The confrontation stemmed from a final question an attendee asked that was blatantly dismissed by Moritz. The question seemed authentic enough. The attendee sought the panel's advice for "older" founders / entrepreneurs when approaching VC's for funding.

Paul didn't get a word in before Mike just flipped his response to a series of off-hand remarks and jokes. Guy tried to pursue, but Mike wasn't interested in dealing directly with the question, and that's when the fun started.

Someone in the audience challenged Mike to answer the question, and asked the audience to raise their hands if any were entrepreneurs over 30. Needless to say, at least 85% of the audience raised their hands. The whole auditorium erupted into applause when Mike was challenged by the provoker to "answer the question!"

To Mike's credit, he said he was willing to take on this challenge, and would consider and respond to any well articulated pitch that was emailed to him, no matter how old the founder was.

I know I'm up for this challenge. How about the rest of you?

Leading up to this final question, Guy had moderated an hour discussion with both Mike and Paul Graham of Ycombinator. Kawasaki was quick to note that both Sequoia and Ycombinator seemed to focus on young entrepreneurs, less than 30 years old. One of from the audience. where a "older founder"

Gents,
Has Sequoia ever done a successful funding in Australia? Many of the US companies we've followed have funding origins in the USA but we're finding it hard to find a serious backer locally.

A small tip. Before you take a meeting with Someone commented that VC's have a play book, they all pretty much ask the same questions. It's very nice to know what to expect before you walk in the door with these guys.

So, what's that "play book" of questions"