WASHINGTON DC ARCHANGELS
About the Process
Selection and Review
The Washington DC ArchAngels (WDCA) has a detailed selection and review process in working with companies interested in presenting to its member investors. Most importantly, WDCA accepts for consideration only those companies referred by current members.
Entrepreneur Assessment and Guidance Report
The first step for companies that have been referred by a WDCA member is to complete the Entrepreneur Assessment and Guidance Report (EAGR), an online questionnaire. After completion of the form, the applicant then is enabled to download both a Baseline and Advanced Report that provide an initial evaluation of the investment opportunity. The EAGR may be accessed at this link - Click Here.
Peer Review Team
The WDCA does not use a pitch session to introduce a company investment opportunity. Instead, all companies being considered to present must engage in Peer Review Team feedback and evaluations. This includes the company representative creating a video of 7-10 minutes that discusses specific and detailed company information. WDCA then provides the video and company materials, such as a slide deck, executive summary and website to member investors who have company domain experience to a select Peer Review Team. Team members use the EAGR as tool to provide their individual EAGR assessment of a company, including any explanatory comments.
Online Zoom Review Session
After WDCA receives all assessments, they are compiled into an EAGR Review Report and sent to the applicant company. WDCA then schedules a 90-minute online business meeting with the company representative, Peer Review Team members, and all interested WDCA members. With this step, Peer Review Team members have detailed company information prior to the online business meeting. This enables Team members and the company representative at the meeting to move beyond a simple introductory stage to in-depth discussion of the investment opportunity.
The total time required to complete all tasks related to company feedback and evaluation is about three weeks.
Applicant fees: companies are required to pay an administrative fee to manage the Peer Review Team process.
Developing Company and Investor Relationships
Productive Company and Investor Engagement
Ideal Company Presentations
Washington DC ArchAngels highly prefer companies that have a completed product or service that is already generating revenue. (NOTE: biotech and life sciences have a different timeline to revenue).
About WDCA Investors
WDCA investors tend to be active and may require a Board of Directors seat if they make a significant investment. Although WDCA investors are generally industry agnostic, none have interest in real estate deals or franchises.
Most WDCA investors are highly experienced in investing in early stage companies and have invested actively in the past or have themselves been serial entrepreneurs. For more information about WDCA investors - Click Here.
How Investments are Executed
WDCA currently has more than 1200 members and at any given time about 300 or more are active. NOTE: All investments are made from personal funds. This means that each individual investor makes their own decision about any company presenting at a WDCA Online Business Session or related event. No investment is made as a group
or made through a group decision.
Final Note: Check Sizes
Since its launch in 2011, WDCA has seen investors make many investments, ranging from "high six figures" to a rare minimum of about $25,000. But more importantly, there are no promises or guarantees of receipt of any funding for presenting companies. The reason is that all companies are different, and all investors are looking for different things in a company, and that makes it impossible to provide anything like "odds”. Further, providing such numbers are not in accordance with SEC rules.