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Venture Capital & PE Debates conversation scripts

10 spoken scripts and techniques for Venture Capital & PE Debates conversations, collected on one page. Practice them out loud in Dehurdle.

Amit Kasliwal
Amit KasliwalCEO & Founder, Dehurdle
Published · Updated

Championing Unconventional Founders During Monday Investment Committees

Consensus deals produce average returns; controversial seed investments can create outsized fund returners. How Associates and Principals defend outliers.

The Asymmetric Upside Defense

Recommended script
"I know the team's early ARR is modest ($120k). But if their [core thesis] is correct, this becomes the infrastructure layer for [their market] globally. The downside is $1M; the upside is returning 2.5x our entire Fund IV. We should lead with conviction."

Defending Fund Rights in Hostile Down-Round Recapitalizations

When a new lead investor attempts a cram-down recapitalization that wipes out early seed investors, knowing how to defend pro-rata rights is essential.

The Major Investor Pro-Rata Defense

Recommended script
"Under Section 4 of our Series Seed Investor Rights Agreement, our fund holds contractual major investor pro-rata rights. While we support new capital entering at market terms, we will fully exercise our pro-rata allocation to maintain our 8% ownership and decline any non-standard punitive pay-to-play conversion."

Presenting Portfolio Failures to Investment Committees with Analytical Rigor

Trying to sugarcoat a failing startup burns partner trust. How top venture partners present clean, analytical post-mortems on write-downs.

The Clean Write-Down Recommendation

Recommended script
"We are recommending a 100% impairment write-down of our $1.5M investment in this portfolio company. Despite 3 product iterations, customer acquisition cost remained at $4,200 against an LTV of $1,800. Management has executed an orderly wind-down returning $220k in residual cash to creditors, with zero ongoing fund liability."

Leading Emergency Convertible Note Bridge Rounds for Stalled Portfolio Startups

When a promising Series A company has 60 days of cash left, convincing syndicate co-investors to participate in a bridge note requires clear milestones.

The Milestone-Gated Bridge Pitch

Recommended script
"Our fund is committing $250k of a $750k convertible bridge note with a 20% discount. The company has reduced monthly burn by 50% to $65k, and this bridge provides 11 months of runway to close their 4 enterprise pilots representing $600k in pipeline. We need all syndicate seed investors to participate pro-rata."

Leading Difficult Board Votes to Replace a Startup Founder CEO

Replacing a technical founder who cannot scale into an executive CEO is the most agonizing conversation in venture capital. The dignified transition framework.

The Transition to Chief Product Architect Script

Recommended script
What to say to the founder: "Alex, your technical genius created this product, and that vision is indispensable to our future. But scaling from 50 to 500 people requires enterprise go-to-market execution. We want you to transition to Chief Technology Officer to lead long-term architecture, while we recruit an experienced operational CEO to scale GTM."

Structuring Early Liquidity for Seed Funds in Pre-IPO Secondary Sales

Seed funds often need to sell part of their winning positions in growth rounds to return their fund DPI early. How to negotiate secondary allowances with growth leads.

The Secondary Liquidity Request

Recommended script
"Our seed fund has held common stock for 6 years and we remain long-term believers in the company's IPO trajectory. As part of your $60M growth round, we request the right to sell 20% of our position ($3M) to return initial capital to our Fund I LPs, while retaining 80% of our shares through public listing."

Gaining LP Advisory Committee Approval to Recycle Fund Profits

Management fee recycling allows VCs to invest more than 100% of committed capital. How GPs pitch LPAC boards for formal recycling authorizations.

The LPAC Recycling Authorization Pitch

Recommended script
"By recycling $4M in early realized gains into follow-on investments in our top 3 breakout companies, we deploy 104% of total committed capital into high-conviction winners, increasing projected net fund DPI by 28 bps without calling additional capital from LPs."

Asking Backchannel Reference Questions That Reveal Real Founder Character

Front-door references provided by founders only say positive things. The 3 backchannel spoken questions that uncover how a founder reacts in a crisis.

The 3 High-Signal Backchannel Questions

01
"When the company experienced its worst quarter, how did the founder treat junior staff under pressure?"
02
"If you were founding a new company today, would you invest 50% of your personal net worth in their leadership? Why or why not?"
03
"In what operational areas does this founder need a strong COO to compensate for their blind spots?"

Navigating Dual Fiduciary Conflicts During M&A and Acqui-hire Deals

When a VC board member's fund owns preferred shares while common employees face zero payout in an acqui-hire, fiduciary recusal protocols are mandatory.

The Board Recusal & Fair Market Value Protocol

Recommended script
"Because our fund holds senior liquidation preferences that create a potential structural conflict with common shareholders regarding the management retention pool, I am recusing myself from the compensation committee vote and recommending the Board form an independent committee to evaluate the acqui-hire package."

Guiding Early-Stage Founders Through Painful 30% Headcount Reductions

First-time founders delay layoffs until they run out of money. How seasoned venture partners coach founders to cut once, cut deep, and treat employees with dignity.

The 'Cut Once, Cut Deep' Coaching Script

Recommended script
What to say to the founder: "Doing two 10% layoffs 3 months apart badly damages company morale. If you need to extend runway from 6 to 24 months, make one comprehensive 30% reduction today. Provide generous severance, write LinkedIn recommendations for everyone affected, and give the remaining team total clarity that no more cuts are coming."
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