Richard Burnes, Charles River Ventures' founding principal, summed up his firm's philosophy in comments to Forbes: "We're not in this business to make a lot of money; we want to build companies. It just turns out that if you build a good business, you make a lot of money." Since 1970, Charles River Ventures has been doing just that with over 200 investments to date. More than 50 companies funded by Charles River Ventures have gone public. Among its successes, CRV counts Cascade Communications, CIENA, Sybase and Vignette. The firm's latest fund, Charles River Partnership IX, closed with $175 million during 1998.

Investment strategy: not snooty, just good

Typically, Charles River Ventures will initially invest $1-$5 million in an early stage venture. The firm expects to invest a total of $3 to $10 million over the life of the investment and generally hold a 10 to 20 percent stake in a portfolio company prior to an IPO. Each of the firm's partners specializes in a "particular subset." Charles River Ventures isn't modest about the type of investment returns it looks for. Burnes told Upside: "We don't invest in companies that can only be nice little $20 million to $30 million companies." Given CRV's prestige, the firm's desire to act as "lead" investor isn't surprising.

Portfolio: the IT three

CRV's portfolio companies tend to have an information technology focus. The firm breaks down its portfolio into three categories: communications, software, and e-commerce and information services. In communications, the portfolio includes Brix Networks, Gotham Networks, and Sonus Networks. The firm's software portfolio includes edocs Corporation, Oberon Software, and Yantra Corporation. In terms of e-commerce, the firm's portfolio includes Celarix, Indulge.com and Send.com.

Partners: A cheery, and loaded, bunch