| Our focus is on late stage profitable Pacific Northwest companies. We purposely limit the number of companies in our portfolio so that our partners can work together to actively support each management team. We prefer to lead our investment syndicate, but are happy to participate as a syndicate partner when appropriate. In the latter role, we have a strong track record of helping companies build solid syndicates.
We view each of our investments as a partnership with the management team, and are therefore highly selective in our decision-making process. In evaluating companies, we consider a number of factors, including the following:
Management Team
The individuals comprising the management team must have exceptional credentials, integrity, motivation and the passion to succeed. We also expect each team member to have outstanding relevant industry and domain expertise. We look for cohesiveness between team members and a strong sense of partnership between Fluke and the management team. Notably, we expect each portfolio company to have its CEO in place at the time we close the investment, with the remaining management team filled out as appropriate to the company's stage of development.
Market
The company's market must be large and growing rapidly. Its product or service must solve a real problem experienced by its customers, who are seeking solutions. The business model should be defensible and result in fast growth and good profit margins.
Competitive Advantage
The company must have a technology and/or strategic position that will create a sustainable competitive advantage, and thus the opportunity to dominate in its market.
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