ACA members and angel group associations have developed white papers on the best practices - or perhaps "common practices" - of operating in angel groups. More information related to these documents is available at each organization's website. In addition, some angel groups maintain public documents of group and / or regional best practices on their web sites.

ACA members may view additional resources in the Members Only Knowledge Cener

BEST PRACTICES

Angel Capital Association

Guidelines for Entrepreneurial Fees Includes 2008 ACA recommendation to angel groups regarding charging fees and transparency during the deal selection process based on a survey of ACA member groups fee practices, renewed with data in 2013.

Kauffman Foundation

Valuing Pre-Revenue Companies - The Kauffman Foundation's Web site for high growth entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship.com, commissioned a series of articles and tools on valuation of early-stage companies. The articles are mostly written by two nationally-known angel experts: Luis Villalobos (Tech Coast Angels) and Bill Payne (Frontier Angels).

Business Angel Groups Growing in North America - White paper establishing trends, organizational structures and general best practices for operating angel groups.

Angel Investing Group Best Practices - Managing members, Guiding Presentations and Finding the Right Deals - White paper.

National Angel Capital Organization (Canada)

Age of the Angel: Best Practices for Angel Groups - NACO, in collaboration with its partners, has completed the Best Practices for Angel Groups and Investors in Canada. This is the first such document of its kind in Canada and is part of the NACO's mandate to support and cultivate the angel investment sector.

Primer for Angel Investment in Canada - Compilation of articles by angels, academics, business and economic leaders across Canada introducing best practices for creating and sustaining successful angel groups and outlining the importance of angel investing in the future economic prosperity of Canada.

COMMON DOCUMENTS

Angel groups and associations have increasingly worked to develop common documents for group and syndicated investments. The following are several examples:

Angel Capital Association

Model Term Sheet for Angels - With input from angels, attorneys, and venture capitalists and the goal of saving angels' and entrepreneurs' time and money, Dan Rosen, Chair of the Alliance of Angels group in Seattle, recently developed this model term sheet for angels and entrepreneurs.

Kauffman Foundation

"Angel Investment Group, Networks, And Funds: A Guidebook to Developing the Right Angel Organization for Your Community" - by Susan Preston, in association with the Kauffman Foundation. The extensive appendices of this guidebook include a number of standard or recommended documents including angel membership application, education program agenda, financial worksheet, funding application, screening worksheet, due diligence questions and checklist, glossary of terms, and two sample term sheets with explanations. Click on each of the following to access the specific document.

National Angel Capital Organization

Click here to access the NACO best practices document recently released as part of the best practices document. Documents, located in the appendices, include investor declaration, membership application, term sheet, shareholder's agreement, subscription agreement, and voting trust.

European Business Angel Network

UK Business Angel Association

Y Combinator

Click here to view examples of Series AA Equity Financing Documents used by Y Combinator startups.