Springboard Member Interviews

Joyce Durst

We met Joyce Durst in Dallas at our Southwest Forum in 2002. She had just taken the helm of a company called Infraworks which was in need of leadership and a new course of action. Long story short, Joyce led the company through bankruptcy, change of name (Pinion Software) and subsequent funding round, learning volumes in the process. Her "PhD in Turn Around and Growth Business-ology" led to co-founding Growth Acceleration Partners, a firm that provides full-service management consulting and outsourcing services to clients that want to grow revenues and profits faster. We thought you would be interested in hearing what Joyce had to say about her experience and how that led to what she's up to now.

Springboard: You started GAP recently after leaving the company you led through some pretty tough times. Give us your perspectives on what you learned while CEO of Pinion.

Joyce Durst: The lessons I learned as CEO for 5 1/2 years at Pinion were absolutely invaluable.

  • I learned the correct and incorrect ways to structure and communicate with boards. You want investors and board members that can drive the business forward with prospect and partner contacts, operating advice, legal and financial expertise, and access to additional capital.
  • I learned the many ways to finance a company and the pros and cons of each method. I raised more than $21M during my tenure with almost half coming from angel investors. I learned the ins and outs of attracting the right investors and having them have the right amount of involvement in the company.
  • I learned what it means to have the right people on the bus and how important it is to act quickly when you are not utilizing your resources to the fullest.
  • I learned how to make one dollar last like ten and to focus the majority of the company energy on winning and delighting customers.

SBE: You were able to raise capital while you were taking Pinion through bankruptcy. Quite a feat! How were you able to orchestrate that and what resources and relationships did you rely on during that critical time?

JD: Taking the company into bankruptcy was not something that was taken lightly by my board, my entire team or me. I met with each investor and board member and company employee and presented the reasons for moving the company into bankruptcy. I also met with each of our key creditors and let them know what was going to happen. The strategy made sense for Pinion, to enable the company to finally shed some of the pre-bubble high tech sins that had been committed. We had an incredibly strong reorganization plan, and I felt confident that we would do what no other Austin software company had ever done, which was to go into Chapter 11 and successfully emerge less than a year later. We succeeded. I need to raise at least $1M of operating capital while in Ch. 11. I called on the Texas Angel community. I think reasons the angels investors came to the table were simply these:

  • I was passionate about the compelling problem we solved in the marketplace, and I could pain that picture for the investors - they saw the opportunity to make money
  • We had a great reorganization plan - it was clear that the company would emerge and be clean as a whistle - no debt - no possible skeletons in the closet - all past baggage was removed
  • The equity was reset to zero, so the new investors got the benefit of past investments - they got an "A round" price for a "B round" company

SBE: Like a few of your Springboard colleagues, you've launched a new venture that offers advisory services to early stage companies. What insights can you offer?

JD: I have passion for growing companies. At Growth Acceleration Partners we make it our mission to grow revenues and profits. Good business ideas deserve an opportunity to thrive and I want to help them get there. My team of incredibly talented, experienced start-up professionals have lived through the boom times and overcome the needed obstacles in the difficult times. We are helping build companies by providing:

  • business growth plans that deliver increased revenues and profits
  • financial models that work
  • cost containment plans that don't crush the business
  • web marketing plans that deliver leads to your doorstep
  • web and software development that provide great results at a great price
  • fundraising and investor/board advice that moves the company ahead

I have one last thought...

Springboard is the organization that we have all been waiting for. They were there to help me with the network and resources I needed to get my first company off the ground and moving along a great path. Now, I am happy to be part of the Springboard family helping to accelerate the growth of other women led companies.