Peter Levine – Hiring takes planning and time and the process is often ad hoc or simply non-existent. Don’t make hiring a batting average. Take the time, develop a clear process, and you will see much better results in your overall hit rate.

via What Now? Hiring.

Instigator Blog – How you differentiate from competitors only matters if it matters to customers.

via Competitive Differentiation that Matters.

Inc.com – For the entrepreneur, creative capital can be the catalyst to compel investors to sign on earlier in the start-up process.

via The Creative Capital Advantage.

Inc.com – No matter how great, it won’t sell itself. Use this simple strategy to present your idea to investors, customers & colleagues.

via How to Sell a Great Idea: 5 Steps.

Inc.com – A new report shows that venture capitalists invested much more in 2011 than in 2010 — but that the amount of money going into seed-stage deals plummeted.

via Where VCs Are Investing Now.

Inc.com – Hint: It’s harder than it sounds. Here’s how we make it work, and stay happy while running a successful business.

via Start a Company … & Stay Married.

Inc.com – Private equity’s been getting a bad rap recently. But for some business owners, it’s the best way to get growth capital.

via Is Private Equity Right For Your Business?.

Entrepreneur – A look at the most helpful advice for entrepreneurs from the celebrated billionaire.

via Richard Branson on Strategies for Success.

Inc.com – With the cost and hassle of travel growing each year, many firms are replacing traditional meet-and-greets with online sales events. Unfortunately, web conferences and webinars are only effective when you follow these nine simple rules.

via 9 Rules for a Great Web Presentation.

StartupCFO : Mark MacLeod – The smart folks at CB Insights recently published their review of US VC activity in 2011. 2011 was definitely a good year, especially for really early stage funding. Accelerators continue to launch. Seed rounds continue to happen daily. And with Facebook set to IPO in Q2 maybe the good times are here for a while still. Who knows?

via 2011 in VC.