Internet Capital Group has attracted a variety of executives from large corporations as managing directors, including former Baan Co. chairman and chief executive Mary Coleman, former Microsoft Corp. vice president of enterprise sales Sam Jadallah, and General Motors' former Oldsmobile general manager Karen Francis. ICG assembles its 25 managing directors every 90 days and also has regular gatherings of partner-company executives. In-house searches take 60 to 90 days, compared with the three or four months an outside firm would take, says Devine. The company plans to have 50 search people by year-end. Internet Capital may soon add a package of financial services to its system.
Speed often matters more than sage advice, though.
ICG has developed a checklist of 64 key attributes for a potential partner company, including management talent, market opportunity, and the quality of its technology. The company receives 600 business plans each month and makes three investments. That speed saved Scott Crain's firm last year. It just amazes me that they catch it that quickly. That speed is helping Internet Capital lock up acquisitions and industrial commerce turf.