In the venture capital raising process, entrepreneurs and the VCs spend a lot of time “getting to know one-another.” In a series of conversations/meetings, both sides ask a number of questions and provide plenty of answers. A lot of time is often spent examining and considering these answers, but I believe a useful set of information is potentially often overlooked on both sides – information in the questions themselves.
For the entrepreneur, the questions that a VC asks help reveal what type of partner he (and the team) will be. Does he have a good understanding of the startup’s domain or space? Are the inquiries perceptive, building on a progressively developing understanding of the business? Are the content and the tone of the questions like ones you would want from (a) productive board member(s)? On the VC side, entrepreneurs’ questions signal a lot about their experience-level (which isn’t measured in years), their ability to interact & lead a team of people, and the capacity to search for and uncover insights.
Answers provide necessary context and information for the capital-raising process, but the questions asked reveal more about the people engaged in it.