C HAPTER 9: B UILDING A N ATIONAL A NGEL O RGANIZATION
Furthermore, angels have never had a collective voice with respect to macroeconomic issues, let alone a mechanism to survey, study, analyze and make recommendations on larger policy issues affecting them. The NAO can and will facilitate the study of issues relevant to angel investor success. NAO MEMBER PROFILES The majority of angel investors among the early founders of NAO have invested in five or more angel investments, average 49 years of age and are very much interested in making more angel investments in their lifetime. Their typical deal size would be less than $1 million, with several angels grouping together to each invest $50,000 to $250,000.
NAO organizers recognize that there is a cadre of super angels that has so far been largely unrepresented at the NAO. These individuals often have their own support organizations and may make their investments through agents, junior angel partners or subsidiary corporations. The NAO will seek to engage and include super angels in the Founding 100 as well as in the general membership. The NAO encourages senior as well as beginner angels to become members. Angel groups often enter deals combining active and passive investors. Boards often like to have several generations represented while also having cross-functional expertise. The NAO needs to be inclusive if it is to harvest cross-pollination benefits. There is also a wide range of sophistication of angel groups across Canada. Many angels tend to be private and reclusive. The NAO is firm in its intentions of maintaining the strictest confidentiality policies that will allow the most private of angel investors to engage with others in the angel community.
NAO members - Number of investments made
Size of investment
To be an effective collective national voice for angels, the organization must represent and encourage membership of angels transcending considerations of geography, local clusters, age, investment type, size and angel investment styles. With this in mind, the Angel Summit in 2002 hosted participants from seven provinces, representing themselves or local angel groups. There were budding angels interested in building groups in communities of less than 50,000 as well as angels from the country’s major centers. The challenge for the NAO is to create a value proposition that is appealing to this wide cross-section of potential angel members.
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