E.piphany: Public vs. Private Companies

Course Description

Lectures

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   Lecture 1 - A Girl Among Geeks

   Karen Richardson, CEO of E.piphany, talks briefly about her family background, and the attitude any entrepreneur should adopt.

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   Lecture 2 - What E.piphany Does

   Richardson provides a short description of E.piphany's background and business model.

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   Lecture 3 - The 20th Century Gold Rush

   Richardson describes the mood in Silicon Valley during the 1990's when companies were hurrying to grow and go public.

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   Lecture 4 - To Stay Private or Go Public

   An entrepreneur with a successful venture may be faced with the choice of keeping the company private or moving ahead with an IPO. Richardson talks about the preliminary stage in that particular decision making process.

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   Lecture 5 - What Kind of Person Are You?

   Richardson talks about how asking if you are a private or public person may help in determining the path your company should take. She outlines pros and cons for both options.

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   Lecture 6 - The Cost of Doing Business

   Richardson talks about how a major factor when deciding whether or not to go public is the cost. Sarbanes-Oxley has affected the cost for public companies significantly.

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   Lecture 7 - The Sarbanes-Oxley Act

   Richardson explains the rigorous reporting expectations created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and their effect on a company.

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   Lecture 8 - Public vs. Private Pros and Cons

   Richardson reviews the pros and cons of going public versus staying private. She gives an example of a successful private company, as well as a few well-known public companies.

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   Lecture 9 - Company Ethics

   Richardson talks about how prior to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, unethical behavior in companies was considered standard practice. She explains ways in which to stop those practices and maintain a level of ethics within a company.

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    Lecture 10 - A Member of the CEO Minority

    Richardson discusses what it is like to be one of only a handful of female top execs of large companies in the U.S.

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    Lecture 11 - Lessons from Failure

    At various points in her career, Richardson has been part of companies that have failed. She talks about the lessons she learned from those failures and how they have shaped her career.