The VentureFizz Podcast: Recent Episodes
VentureFizz
The VentureFizz Podcast is the flagship podcast of VentureFizz.com, the leading authority for jobs & careers in tech. In this podcast, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline interviews the top founders and investors in the tech industry.
Voice44:09 Ben's LinkedIn Strategy44:45 Building in Boston vs. San Francisco47:42 Favorite Apps and Recommendations48:32 Book / Podcast Recommendations50:26 Hobbies Outside of Work
Attending Colby15:36 Getting his career started20:06 Early Experiences, including Tesla and Palantir26:48 Founding Prysm and Its Mission33:42 Details on the Prysm Platform36:50 Growth and Scaling of Prysm40:47 Raising funding from Andreessen Horowitz45:23 The Importance of Storytelling in Entrepreneurship46:54 Future Growth and Hiring Plans47:50 3 Essential Apps50:25 Book / Podcast Recommendations for Entrepreneurs52:28 Nick's Hobbies Outside of WorkPodcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 436 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Shilpi Gupta, Founder of Qyn Labs.Lived the problem and driven to solve it.If I were a venture capitalist, that would be the most critical pillar of my investment thesis. It’s not impossible to succeed otherwise, but entrepreneurs who have personally experienced the friction they’re solving, I believe, will always have a massive edge.Shilpi fits the mold here. It was her own personal health experience that led her to a stark realization that hormonal health data is currently reactive, fragmented, and sparse. She knew there had to be a better way, so she founded Qyn Labs to solve this problem and as you’ll learn, she is uniquely qualified to build this company.For context, our brain communicates in two ways: electrical and chemical. Hormones are the primary chemical signals in our body, yet we have almost no real-time visibility into them. Qyn is changing that with a data-driven platform designed to bring clarity, precision, and understanding to hormone health through simple, at-home testing.Before Qyn, Shilpi spent her career scaling complex robotics and consumer hardware products. She was part of the Roomba team at iRobot, then she played a key role in making Prime One-Day delivery happen through her work at Amazon Robotics, and then she learned about healthtech while leading product at Pison.Chapters00:05 Introducing Shilpi Gupta, Founder at Qyn Labs03:40 Advice for Entrepreneurs Building in the HealthTech Industry06:25 Shilpi's Childhood and Early Influences10:29 Career Beginnings and Transition to Product Management14:11 Experience at iRobot and Lessons Learned18:18 Amazon Robotics: Scaling Consumer Experience22:10 Joining Pison and Getting her Start in HealthTech26:59 What led Shilpi down the path of starting Qyn30:55 The Details about Qyn and How it Works37:31 The Flow of Data to the Consumer40:36 Advice on Building Hardware and Figuring out Manufacturing Partners42:05 Raising Capital as a First Time Founder44:34 Qyn's Business Model45:28 How Shilbi Leverages AI46:54 Three Apps Shilpi can't live without
Personal Interests Podcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
What's Next30:23 Their fundraising process33:53 Leveraging AI in his personal life36:32 Hobbies outside of work
- Experience building hardware in the sports space24:12 PlayerData today - Details on the Company and how it works27:22 Collecting data in practice and real game situations28:48 The platform's ease of use and portable nature31:29 Details on the cloud-first tech behind the data34:24 Leveraging AI for Enhanced Coaching35:39 Strategic Expansion into the US Market36:54 Why Roy chose Boston for their US Headquarters37:48 Scaling Operations and Team Growth38:57 Go-to-Market Strategies for Broad Accessibility41:00 What's next for PlayerData41:48 Advice for Founders in the Sports Tech Industry43:03 Integrating AI into Daily Operations44:17 3 Apps Roy Can't Live Without45:29 Book / Podcast Recommendations46:00 What He Does for Fun Outside of Work
Co-Founder of Diffraqtion. I’m incredibly lucky to host this show because the guests I interview are truly out to rewrite the rules of what's possible. Johannes is a perfect example. He brings over 15 years of deep expertise across AI, quantum tech, and operations across a career that includes lots of deep research in academia to executing massive, corporate AI initiatives at global giants like Novartis.So, what does someone with that background do to push the absolute limits of technology?How about building a space company that is creating the world’s first quantum camera to help satellites and machines see further and think faster?By blending quantum photonics with cutting-edge AI edge-computing, Diffraqtion’s technology enables satellites and telescopes to bypass traditional lens constraints entirely—delivering 20 times higher resolution and 1,000 times faster processing speed, all at a fraction of the cost.As you’ll hear from this interview, there are a countless number of use cases and industries that are perfect for Diffraqtion’s technology, which puts them in an ideal spot to build a massive anchor tech company in the Boston startup scene.Chapters:0:00 Intro02:37 What is Quantum Computing?11:40 Johannes' Childhood in Greece and Early Interests14:52 Transition from Academia to Industry20:46 Introduction to Diffraction and the Quantum Camera25:03 Quantum Camera Applications in Space Domain Awareness and Earth Imaging27:26 Commercializing the technology28:48 Manufacturing Challenges and Building the Quantum Camera33:56 Building in Public and Strategic Networking39:38 Their Innovative Rolling Funding Strategy and Capital Efficiency45:50 Perfecting their Investor Pitch49:08 Why Boston for Space Tech Innovation?53:26 Excitement About Space Industry and Artemis Missions55:43 Closing Remarks
enhancements to create a delightful experience. Oh, and its units are directly installed into your office, gym, hotel, or elsewhere. On top of their success, Bevi is also helping out our planet. The company recently hit a historic milestone, officially surpassing 1 billion single-use bottles and cans saved from ending up in landfills.Cathy stepped in as Bevi’s CEO almost two years ago to lead the company’s next phase of growth. As you’ll hear, she is uniquely qualified to scale this business. She spent years driving digital transformation and healthy convenience initiatives at CVS Health, before serving as Chief Operating Officer and then CEO at Drizly, where she helped lead this hypergrowth company to a $1.1B acquisition by Uber.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Cathy’s advice on joining a founder-led company as CEO. Her background growing up in upstate New York and her competitive experience rowing crew at Princeton. Her impactful tenure at CVS Health, where she ran the food and beverage business, led the shift toward healthy convenience retail, and helped play a key role in the decision to exit the tobacco category. Why she joined Drizly and the dramatic “COVID moment” that triggered rocketship growth for alcohol delivery, leading all the way up to the Uber acquisition. All the details about Bevi, what’s next, and the company’s culture. The burning question: Is a residential Bevi machine coming to our homes anytime soon? Cathy’s advice to the next generation of women aspiring to step into the CEO seat. And, so much more!Podcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
platform.The distinct operational differences between building a traditional software business versus building a native AI company.7AI’s aggressive growth plans ahead, a look inside their company culture, and what it takes to build a trusted brand in security.The most important skills someone needs to be a successful CEO.And more!This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
that makes their technology uniquely defensible in the age of generic LLMs.Mike's advice for first-time founders on raising capital and building a high-performance culture.Plus, so much more!This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
T Exit31:59 Why Culture Matters!34:08 Angel Investing and the Beginnings of TBD Angels38:41 How EnFi got Started46:25 The Details of EnFi: AI in Lending50:28 Cultivating Culture at EnFi52:40 The Hardest Positions to Hire for Right Now53:58 Why Boston is a Great Place to Build a Startup55:26 3 Essential Apps57:55 Podcast / Book Recommendations for Entrepreneurs
Details of the Platform50:31 Customer Use Cases57:11 Tulip's Growth and Future Direction01:04:30 Why Now Is a Good Time to Join Tulip01:07:28 Boston is an Epicenter of Advanced TechnologyThis podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
His Role at First Round Capital43:42 Sourcing GroupMe49:00 The story of Backupify52:16 Launching Brooklyn Bridge Ventures54:35 Becoming a VC Coach55:27 Founder Unfriendly – Book Details58:55 Is Your Company a Fit for Venture Capital?01:05:22 How Your Investors Might Affect Your Exit01:12:59 More Details About Founder Unfriendly
How He Creates Content05:23 The Evolution of His Content Creation Process07:20 Biggest Lessons Learned as a YouTube Creator09:28 KJ’s background: His Childhood and Path to MIT15:12 How Sports Influenced Him15:47 KJ’s Experience at MIT20:21 Navigating a Major Health Issue27:07 His Role at Posh30:14 From Startups to Venture Capital at Link Ventures34:13 Details on Talvy, the Video First Networking Platform34:54 The End of Resumes in the AI Era35:59 How Does Talvy Work?39:32 Business Model for Talvy42:13 How Talvy Handles Biases and Restrictions45:35 The Current “Video First” Culture48:03 Talvy – $2M in Funding + Launch49:47 How Being a VC Made KJ a Better Founder52:50 Navigating Leadership and Team Dynamics54:16 KJ’s 3 Essential Apps55:22 Podcast / Book recommendations for Founders56:32 Hobbies Outside of Work
Thesis45:14 Thoughts on OpenClaw and AI49:19 EquipmentShare IPO and the Overall Market51:00 Angel Investing53:14 How to Get Started as an Angel Investor?56:06 Balancing Work and Having Fun Traveling01:01:01 Resources for travel deals and incentivesThis podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
cruise business in the U.S.The story of how a donation to Children’s Hospital led him to compete in the Ironman triathlon with just 90 days to train.How General Catalyst got started during the 2001 VC winter after dot-com bubble burst.The firm’s myopic focus on founders and their approach to building a firm with long term, intergenerational value.Investing in pillar Boston companies like HubSpot, Circle, ITA Software, KAYAK, and others… and their thought process around expanding the firm to the West Coast.The importance of surrounding yourself with people who know more than you do.And so much more!Podcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 421 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Harris Stolzenberg, Partner at Pear VC.I spend a lot of time on LinkedIn and in my travels, I love discovering individuals who are local to the Boston area but are perhaps working for a meaningful company that is headquartered elsewhere.This is what happened when I stumbled on Harris’ profile - I stopped and thought to myself… wait, Pear has an investor in Boston who is leading the firm’s expansion to the East Coast? No way - game on and off I went to connect with Harris and ultimately bring you this interview!Pear is a west coast pre-seed / seed stage VC firm which has invested in over 200 companies like Doordash, Gusto, Vanta, Dropbox, and many more. The firm also offers an exclusive, small batch accelerator program for pre-seed companies called PearX.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Harris’s best networking advice plus tactical tips. His background playing lacrosse at MIT, and the incredible story of how he raised money for the Boston Marathon bombing victims which even led to a personal donation from Oprah. Getting his start in investment banking before moving into the startup world at Pando and eventually landing his first role at Pear. The story of Flock, the company retreat platform he co-founded, its eventual acquisition, and the hard-won lessons he took from that experience. His transition back to the East Coast and his time serving as Chief of Staff at Pillar VC. His current role at Pear as a Partner, the firm’s approach to investing, and all the details on how the PearX program works. Harris’ thoughts on the Boston tech ecosystem. Plus, so much more!
Co-Founder of Rithmm.The betting industry has exploded over recent years. Apps like Kalshi now make it possible to bet on pretty much anything, like what companies will go public this year or where the Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wedding will take place… but, let’s face it… this industry is driven by sports betting.Last year, per ESPN, the sports betting industry hit a record $16.96B in revenue… yowza. And according to the American Gaming Association, Americans are expected to legally wager over $3B on March Madness alone!Professional sports betters have a team of quants running models all day long which is their competitive advantage. So, what if there was an app that gave you, the every day consumer, the same competitive advantage?Meet Rithmm…the AI-powered sports betting platform that surfaces the top betting opportunities backed by predictive models and explained by data. It’s not just what to bet, but why. It’s like having your own data science team in your pocket. The company has raised $8.75M in funding.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The state of the industry of sports betting and why parlays are your worst enemy. Megan’s background growing up in Illinois and playing basketball in college and then coaching D1 for a decade. Joining a life sciences staffing company at the ground level, scaling to an acquisition and moving into a CEO role. The decision to head to MIT Sloan for her MBA and how it inspired her current startup. All the details on Rithmm and a demo of the app. Acquisition strategies for attracting users. Entrepreneurial advice for women founders. What success looks like for Rithmm.* And so much more!
Patterns he has seen09:48 Decades of blogging experience and how they stayed ahead of the curve11:23 Chip's background12:49 Stanford and Athletics14:00 How Chip got his career started15:29 Discovering Venture Capital and Landing at Greylock19:27 A Walk Through His Investments at Greylock24:50 Starting Flybridge28:18 The Details about Flybridge29:46 What gets you to the point of saying YES to entrepreneurs32:20 Company storytelling at the seed stage34:11 Investing in MongoDB36:46 Key Decisions for MongoDB42:38 Investing in Nasuni43:41 Other company investments46:05 Why They Invested in VoiceRun48:38 Details on xfactor ventures51:12 Advice for Entrepreneurs on Conducting Due Diligence on Investors53:01 How VCs Handle an Investment Post-IPO55:12 Three apps Chip can't live without57:08 Podcast RecommendationsPodcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
Early Career15:15 Learning How to Sell23:27 Early Career28:30 Building Zooba to an Exit39:49 m-Qube and the early days of mobile44:33 Powering the Voting System in American Idol and Deal or No Deal47:15 VeriSign's Acquisition of m-Qube50:41 The amazing alumni of m-Qube54:27 Joining Bain Capital Ventures58:30 Joining Skyhook Wireless as CEO01:01:15 The Early Beginnings of Hometap: A New Approach to Home Equity01:06:28 Building Hometap: Raising Capital and Growing Initial Customer Base01:12:43 The Scale of Hometap01:16:08 How Hometap Works01:20:17 What's Next for Hometap?01:22:09 Jeff's Interests Outside of Work
did you know - fun fact” for you. Studies show that 90 minutes of strength training a week adds four years to your lifespan! Who knew??? At least I didn’t, until I was doing research for this podcast.I have to admit, I have a pretty good workout routine while I’m home between cardio and lifting dumbbells, but when I’m traveling… forget about it. For whatever reason, I just have a mental block where I’m just not motivated to work out.This is just one of the many great use cases for how Ray helps. It is an AI native fitness app that behaves more like a personal trainer as it changes and adapts based on what the consumer needs by continuously learning from your feedback, preferences, and performance.Ray’s co-founders are Colin and Rich Miner, who is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and co-founder of the Android operating system. The company is backed by Founder Collective, True Ventures, and other angel investors.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Colin’s background story growing up in Texas and how he got his career started in software engineering and then product management. Going back to business school at Carnegie Mellon and how he fell in love with design. How he landed at IDEO and later ran the firm’s Cambridge studio. Joining Formlabs as CMO in the early days of the company and the story of the launch of the Form 2 printer. Meeting TJ Parker and Elliot Cohen, the founders of PillPack and later joining as the company’s CMO… plus the full story to their acquisition by Amazon for a reported $1B. All the details about Ray and a demo of the product. His thoughts around branding and consumer marketing in the era of AI. And so much more!
- His current investment focus and the details behind his investment in OpenHands, alongside Menlo Ventures. What he expects out of a first meeting and his best advice for a successful pitch. The biggest lesson he’s learned so far in the world of venture capital.* And so much more!Podcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 414 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Lou Shipley, CEO, board director, lecturer, investor, and now author.Every company has an entrepreneur behind it. It sounds obvious, but we often fall into the trap of thinking those founders are all 20-somethings building tech startups. The data says otherwise. Research from MIT Sloan found that the average age of a successful, high-growth founder is actually 45 years old. For most, it takes decades of “real-world” reps to build the grit and experience necessary to take that leap of faith.That’s why Unlikely Entrepreneurs, the new book that Lou co-authored with Patricia Favreau is such an essential read. It includes local entrepreneurs like Bill Warner of Avid or the founders of Spoiler Alert, alongside truly unexpected success stories, ranging from a sustainable sausage brand and an online casket company to Katie Couric Media.In this episode, we cover: What led Lou and Patricia down the path of writing Unlikely Entrepreneurs. Lou’s background story and what athletics taught him about being a CEO. How a cold call to Bill Warner, the founder of Avid, changed his career trajectory. His journey through various leadership roles at startups like WebLine, Reflectent, and Turbonomic. How he helped build Black Duck Software into a market leader by repositioning the product and the company’s culture. The importance of teaching sales and his advice around building out your GTM function. Why relationships are the ultimate form of currency for your success. And so much more!Purchase Unlikely Entrepreneurs on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Unlikely-Entrepreneurs-Lou-Shipley/dp/1394345895/ref=sr_1_1Podcast Sponsor:This podcast is brought to you by one of the strongest longtime supporters of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors and $44B in loans as of Q4 2025 – SVB delivers expert guidance, specialized products and a team that knows the innovation economy inside and out. Learn more at SVB.com.
former CEO of Shoebuy.com which is now known as Shoes.com.In my opinion, Boston doesn’t give itself enough credit, especially when it comes to consumer brands. It’s the home to consumer icons like Bose, SharkNinja, Dunkin, TJX, and many more. But if you look at the footwear category, it is a powerhouse with leading brands like New Balance, Converse, Sperry, Keds, Rockport and next generation companies like NoBull, Oofos, and BRUNT.So, maybe it comes as no surprise that one of the first companies to sell footwear online was headquartered in Boston and yes, that is Shoebuy. This was back in 1999, when buying shoes online wasn’t a thing and even Zappos was just getting started.Thus, I was excited to break down this major eCommerce success story that completely disrupted an industry on so many different levels. Today, Scott is a Venture Capitalist and his firm, Data Point Capital, invests in revenue-stage technology companies across both B2B and B2C categories. The firm’s portfolio includes DraftKings, Rent The Runway, Resident, Black Kite, Jebbit, and others.In this interview, we cover: Scott’s background story and early professional experience in the mortgage and banking industry. What it was like building a company in the early days of eCommerce and ignoring the naysayers. How Shoebuy won over the brands and the details about their - at the time - innovative virtual inventory model. Strategies around customer acquisition combined with a focus on capital efficiency to scale the business. The story of the acquisition to IAC. What led Scott down the path of starting Data Point Capital and what they are targeting for investments.* And more
in the company name or branding. What truly makes a great Product Manager And so much more!
Encouragement for Female Founders34:54 Involvement in Charitable Organizations37:24 Personal Interests and Hobbies
became a buzzword, and how they landed those crucial early adopters. How OnRamp stays disciplined with their product roadmap while integrating AI to solve real-world customer pain points. How they’ve successfully moved upmarket to land some of the world's largest companies and their philosophy on hiring the first sales leader.* And so much more!
Plated and scaling to millions of meals a week. The story of the IPO in 2017 and the unique challenges of running a publicly traded company All the details about Band and why Ilia chose this underserved industry, plus how his approach to building a company is different this time around.* And so much more!
Episode 408 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Matt Fates, Partner at Innospark Ventures.Did you know that the first modern venture capital firm was started right here in the Boston area? It’s true. Back in 1946, Georges Doriot founded the American Research and Development Corporation (ARDC), marking the birth of an industry that has fueled the entrepreneurial dream for nearly 80 years.Matt Fates entered the industry during the “Internet 1.0” era, a time when VC firms were just beginning to gain major visibility. Over the course of his career, he has invested in over 100 companies. Through those investments, he has developed a deep expertise in data-driven enterprise and infrastructure startups—experience that has perfectly positioned him for the current massive shift toward AI.Innospark Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in AI-native companies solving previously intractable problems across healthcare, life sciences, and the enterprise.In this episode of our podcast, we cover:00:00 Intro02:22 VentureFizz OG03:42 How to Land a Job in Venture Capital07:49 Matt's Background13:05 Getting into Investment Banking in the Tech Industry16:22 Transition to Venture Capital21:07 Dartmouth MBA24:05 Experience at Ascent Venture Partners28:59 Details of Innospark30:39 Foundational Knowledge in AI and Machine Learning32:41 Area of Focus for Investments at Innospark37:04 Recent Investments for Innospark43:36 The State of the Boston Startup Scene46:51 The Anti-Portfolio - Missed Investments49:04 Rapid Fire Questions50:09 Personal InterestsEpisode Sponsor: As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
GEO49:20 Seth's Other Initiatives in the Gem Industry50:46 Seth's Role as a Venture Partner at WTI
Experience at The Trade Desk37:13 The Details of Orbit.me43:07 The Team Behind Orbit.me48:58 The Evolving Role of Software Engineers in the AI Era52:01 Lightening Round Questions
Executive Roles in Tech15:26 Experience at PTC18:04 First CEO Role21:55 Time at ADP24:44 Experience at Veracode28:22 Lessons Learned as CMO30:13 COO Role at Mimecast35:55 Details About Quickbase36:56 Narrowing the Focus and ICP at Quickbase39:09 The Culture at Quickbase41:00 Hiring at Quickbase42:44 Quickbase's Customer Community44:23 Advice for Building a Career Path to CEO46:56 Advice on Hiring Executives49:51 Lightning Round Questions
was a brand new category in hiring, and they faced plenty of doubters. But fast-forward to today, and much like the success of companies like Gong for sales teams, BrightHire's value is now obvious. But isn't that the case for all great companies in hindsight?BrightHire's investors include Flybridge, Index Ventures, 01 Advisors, Zoom Apps Fund, and others.Chapters00:00 Intro02:48 State of Hiring in the AI Era06:51 Ben's Background Story19:40 Getting Started in the Tech Industry25:26 Origin Story of BrightHire33:06 Creating a New Category35:31 The Value of Video in the Hiring Process41:17 BrightHire Screen - New AI Screening Platform45:51 Experience of Raising Capital48:36 Biggest Lessons Learned50:22 Common Mistakes Companies Make When Hiring51:57 Lightening Round QuestionsEpisode Sponsor: As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
they experienced, and the strategic pivot. Their time at Y Combinator and how early access to GPT opened their eyes to the potential of AI. The value that Topline Pro is providing customers and the exciting opportunities ahead following their Series B. Growth plans, hiring goals, and the culture they're building at Topline Pro. Advice for non-AI native companies that are starting to build out their own AI strategy.* And so much more!Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Co-Founder of Le Walk.Most apps are trying to get you to stare at your phone and create a stickiness factor for doomscrolling. Yet, Le Walk wants you to look up and take in the world. If you have ever experienced a group tour for a museum or some other historical location, it can be a crap shoot and for me, even with the best tour guide, I have a hard time focusing and taking it all in.This is where Le Walk comes to the rescue. It is your personal tour guide, right in your headphones. The company uses AI to enhance, not replace, human creativity. Every tour still relies on real guides, editors, and storytellers — AI just helps amplify their reach.Le Walk recently announced a $4.1M seed co-led by Adverb Ventures and Lerer Hippeau, with participation from Origins Fund and Point72 Ventures. In beta, Le Walk has reached 110k downloads, 160k+ social followers, and 20k+ tours taken. In this interview, we cover: Aaron’s experience growing up in Hong Kong and how he landed at Stanford to study Symbolic Systems. Getting his career started in Product Management while at Uber. His experience at TikTok and what he learned there. All the details about Le Walk and the plans ahead. Their content playbook for customer acquisition and why content is king when it comes to building traction for a startup and their strategy around content. And so much more.
Episode 401 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Nicole Phillips-Bastian of Qatch.This episode was recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University which is the third year that I’ve hosted it onsite. Thank you to Stephanie Roulic for the invitation, as it’s a lot of fun and great to be involved in such a meaningful conference. And, since it was hosted live, this episode is audio only and my apologies for the background noise.Personalization isn’t a new term in the world of tech but as a consumer, it often fails. It could be a failure around the data, the actual tech powering the experience, or executional challenges.For Qatch (which stands for Quick Match), they have been able to overcome these challenges by establishing trust with consumers in one of the most coveted spots for obtaining first party data… no, it’s definitely not email, but through text messaging. Qatch is a personalized shopping platform that allows user preferences to dictate what products they see next. Their platform enables the company to capture user engagement to a degree other brands are not, which gives them incredibly valuable insight into what products a specific shopper would buy, so they can recommend it to them in real-time.It all falls under that trust factor which is so important, because if Qatch is not delivering value, it’s easy to block that text message and it is this level of trust that has been so key to their success.Two interesting points to note:1. Nicole’s co-founder for Qatch is her sister Raquel.2. They have built a very capital efficient company, as they have raised just under $2M in funding.In this interview, we cover: The importance of founder-led sales. Nicole’s background story and her journey into law as a retail attorney with a focus on fashion law and regulations. All the details about Qatch and why they decided on text messaging as their primary method of communication. How the platform works and their use of AI. Sales and getting brands to join their platform, plus how they evolved their pricing strategy. The competition and how they differ from companies like Stitch Fix. Her experience raising capital as a female founder and why sales is the best form of funding. And so much more.
investors in Boston and NYC. I want to send out shout-out to all the people who have taken the time to share their stories with me and the VentureFizz audience. It has been a pleasure to interview all of you.For Episode 400, I wanted to interview someone who not only has had extraordinary background but someone who is also still building. Interviewing Rylan for this milestone episode was a no-brainer.Rylan’s professional career has been one of exploration and not just one linear path. From graduating from Harvard to enlisting in the Navy as an Engineering Officer for surface warfair, to Harvard Business School, to being the first employee at RunMyErrand which later became TaskRabbit, to learning warehouse robotics at Kiva Systems which ended up being the 2nd largest acquisition by Amazon at the time, to starting his own warehouse robotics company called 6 River Systems which was acquired by Shopify for $450M… to now… working on his latest startup, which no doubt is his biggest swing which is Blue Water Automony… a startup building autonomous ships for the open ocean.The company recently announced a $50M Series A round of funding led GV. This is shortly after announcing a $14M seed round of funding earlier this year back in April.In this interview, we cover how Rylan’s service in the armed forces helped shape his career, his full background story, plus all the chapters along the way, to all the details about Blue Water Authonomy and how this company is disrupting and re-energizing the ship industry in the United States, and so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 399 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Luisa Herrmann, Founder & CEO of AINovva.This episode was recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University which is the third year that I’ve hosted it onsite. Thank you to Stephanie Roulic for the invitation as it’s a lot of fun and great to be involved in such a meaningful conference. And, since it was hosted live, this episode is audio only and my apologies for the background noise.Entrepreneurs take different paths when it comes to finding ideas to start a business and how they go about funding it. Her company, AINovva was born out of her own need. After working in AI for several years and learning how to code, she built the product to solve her own content-switching exhaustion called AIFred. It handles email prioritization, meeting prep, and relationship management so busy professionals can focus on what matters.And to fund the company, she has bootstrapped it through consulting revenue. Not every company needs an outside investment and if it does, the longer an entrepreneur can hold out… the better situation they will be in when it comes to negotiating the terms.In this interview, we cover: Advice on attending networking events. Luisa’s background story in terms of how she got involved in the tech industry and her journey into product management. Her experience in product roles at ZoomInfo, Validity, and other startups. All the details about AINOvva. Advice for hiring your first Product Manager. And so much more.
Episode 398 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Izzat Jarudi, Co-Founder & CEO at Edifii.This episode was recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University which is the third year that I’ve hosted it onsite. Thank you to Stephanie Roulic for the invitation, as it's a lot of fun and great to be involved in such a meaningful conference. And, since it was hosted live, this episode is audio only.In this interview, we start out discussing a topic that Izzat is uniquely qualified to cover that being the potential impact of AI on our cognitive brain function. AI is very powerful and it has so many amazing use cases, but what are the risks in terms of how it is being adopted for the human element? Will things like our desire to solve problems or leverage our creative abilities decline over time? Izzat has a background in brain and behavioral science from MIT and Yale, plus his company, Edifii, is an AI and Neuroscience-based mentor for students, counselors, and parents. It’s definitely something to think about and I was excited to hear Izzat’s point of view.In this interview, we also cover: Izzat’s background story and how he got his career starting in management consulting. How he landed in Product management and his rise to a VP of Product Management role at Cambridge Mobile Telematics. How he made the leap to entrepreneurship. All the details about Ediffi and the impact its platform is making. What makes a great Product Manager. And so much more.
Episode 397 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Liz Graham, CEO, Operator, Board Member, and Startup Advisor.This episode was recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University which is the third year that I’ve hosted it onsite. Thank you to Stephanie Roulic for the invitation as it's a lot of fun and great to be involved in such a meaningful conference. And, since it was hosted live, this episode is audio only.Ok - this is so cool and a first… well, technically two firsts. It’s the first time I’ve had a sibling of a previous guest and to top it off… they are twins. Liz’s sister is Sue Graham Johnston, another successful executive in the tech industry. She was one of my original guests as she appeared on Episode 24 when she was President of 128 Technology which was acquired by Juniper Networks. It was amazing to have the opportunity to interview Liz for a similar conversation.Liz’s career started out in law and then expanded into operating roles at high growth companies like HubSpot, Wayfair, Notarize (now called Proof) and her most recent position was leading an early stage startup called Ada IQ, a consumer product development platform.In addition to Liz’s professional career, she also shares some great advice around growing your career into executive leadership roles, how to be in the conversation for board seats, and more.As you will also learn is that Liz is involved in lots of ecosystem initiatives like being a board member at MassChallenge. She is currently involved in the launch of Women Applying AI or WAAI, a nonprofit organization that offers women a collaborative environment to learn AI, expand networks, and be ready for an AI future with hands-on, practical, and supportive in-person and online programming. WAAI is officially launching on September 26th in Cambridge.
Episode 396 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Alasdair McLean-Foreman, CEO & Founder of Teikametrics.It’s another repeat guest! I think I’m up to 5 repeat guests on The VentureFizz Podcast and just like the 5-times club on Saturday Night Live, I might have to start thinking about getting some custom jackets made up for our repeat guests because they must be on to something special!Take Alasdair, who… five years ago, back on Episode 153, shared some predictions around eCommerce that were mostly spot on. So, I was eager to get his point of view on what’s next especially in this radically evolving world of AI which we discuss at the beginning of our interview.He has an interesting perspective as he was one of the first third-party sellers on Amazon and his company, Teikametrics, has a front row seat as the AI marketplace optimization platform for leading brands.There’s a lot that we had to catch up on like their new patented GenAI technology that has the opportunity to shake up how brands scale on platforms like Amazon, Walmart, TikTok Shop, and Shopify.He also recently brought on Sandie Hawkins, the former Head of TikTok Shop as the company’s President to help scale to the next level.We cover all of these topics and more!
Episode 394 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Brian Stempeck, CEO & Co-Founder of Evertune.Think about how people search for things on the web now and GenAI’s massive impact. A lot of people just go straight to different platforms like ChatGPT with the goal of just getting the answer to what they are searching for versus having to go to a website to find the details. This evolution matters and it matters a lot, especially if you are a brand or publisher. In the past, you had to worry about SEO to hopefully rank high in the Google search results. Now, the rules have changed and companies are trying to figure out what to do. Is your brand being mentioned in the LLMs? If so, what is being said? And if you ask multiple times, how does the response vary from the LLMs versus the consistency of the search results that you would get from Google.It’s a wild wild west and this was the void that Brian recognized and led him down the path of starting Evertune, which helps companies build its brand presence for visibility in AI search. It’s a category called GEO that being Generative Engine Optimization. The company recently announced a $15M Series A funding, led by Felicis Ventures, including returning investors Eniac Ventures, NextView Ventures, Roger Ehrenberg and others. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A discussion around the shift in consumer behavior and how they are looking for information in the world of GenAI. Brian’s background and getting his career started as a journalist and then working in consulting at Bain after business school. How he got involved in The Trade Desk as employee #8 even without adtech or sales experience. The full lifecycle story of The Trade Desk to an IPO in 2016 and how they differentiated from the competition. How Brian’s role evolved through the years at the company and how he gained a board seat. His biggest lessons learned from his experience at The Trade Desk. The background story of Evertune and what led him and his co-founders down the path of starting the company. All the details of Evertune and how they are helping brands and agencies. Advice for building out your GTM strategy and a key piece of advice for hiring salespeople. And so much more!
Episode 393 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Daniel Demetri, Founder & CEO of Trellis.Through the advancements of technology like cloud computing and AI, you no longer need to have a huge team to support a company that is hitting major levels of revenue. And, it’s not just the ones you read about like Lovable, Cursor, Wiz, etc., as there are other companies that are able to achieve impressive feats with a relatively lean team.Trellis falls under this category. Conserving cash is an obvious benefit, but as Daniel explains, another advantage is speed. It removes the layers of an organization which in return allows employees to process information and make decisions faster.Trellis is an insurtech start-up with a mission to simplify and automate shopping for home and auto insurance by powering intelligent insurance experiences using machine learning, real-time bidding, and conversational AI, backed by a team of nationally licensed insurance advisors. The company is funded by top investors, including QED, General Catalyst, Nyca, and Amex Ventures.In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like: Daniel’s background, including being a webmaster pre-college and some stories of the inner workings of Harvard. His progression as a Product Manager at Google (including his interviews with Marisa Mayer) and how he got involved in startups. Co-Founding a company that disrupted the title insurance industry called Doma which eventually went public and is now private, plus how this experience prepped him to be a CEO. What led him down the path of starting Trellis and how the company is applying modern technology to the traditional model of insurance sales. Lots of details about Trellis in terms of the team structure, hiring plans, and what’s next for the company. His thoughts on what makes a great product manager.* And so much more!
Episode 392 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Damien Lewke, Founder & CEO of Nebulock.Damien is purpose built for this company, which is a statement he’s heard from one of his investors that being Will Lehman. When you hear about Damien’s background story, it’s hard to argue.Damien’s path to where he is today has been very thoughtful, methodical, and intentional. It’s a path that allowed him to learn and understand as much as possible about cybersecurity. In addition, he has worn several different hats throughout his career (I’m talking Solutions Architecture… Product Marketing… Product Management… and other roles) that have all put him in a strong position to lead a venture backed startup.Nebulock is an autonomous threat hunting platform designed from scratch for behavior-based detection. By connecting directly to identity, endpoint, and cloud telemetry, Nebulock continuously hunts threats, surfaces hidden anomalies, and automatically increases your detection coverage. The company announced $8.5M in funding, including their seed round led by Bain Capital Ventures alongside Decibel VC, Zetta Venture Partners, In-Q-Tel, and several angel investors.Chapters:00:00 Intro02:57 Being a Solo Founder05:03 Damien's Background & Playing Soccer in Germany07:35 The Impact of Sports on Entrepreneurship09:50 Career Beginnings12:08 Transition to CrowdStrike17:11 Joining Palo Alto Networks19:08 Pursuing Further Education at MIT21:38 Product Management at Arctic Wolf23:45 Founding Nebulock27:22 What is Threat Hunting?29:57 Details about Nebulock32:17 State of the State at Nebulock & Looking Ahead40:46 3 Lessons Learned Since Founding a Company43:34 Personal Insights and RecommendationsEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 391 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Joseph Krause, Co-Founder & CEO of Radical AI.There are many benefits with the platform shift to AI, but one of the clear benefits that I’m seeing is how some of the most brilliant minds are working on incredibly meaningful and challenging problems. While yes, there is a need for lots of applications, even another photo sharing app, I’ve always strongly believed that the best entrepreneurs should leverage their intellect to work on something that could actually change the world.Meet Joseph, an entrepreneur who has built his career for this moment. He has a bias for action and a go-big or go home approach with a startup that is looking to completely reconstruct the scientific process and if successful, it will replace multi-national corporations like Dow Chemical.Radical AI is building a self-driving lab which will accelerate materials R&D to tackle the world’s most pressing problems. Through the integration of artificial intelligence, engineering, materials science, and applied research, Radical AI is changing the way materials are designed, developed, and discovered. The company announced a $55M Series Seed+ led by RTX Ventures, joined by NVentures (NVIDIA’s VC arm), noa, Infinite Capital, Eni Next (Eni’s VC arm), AlleyCorp and many others. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The details of Radical AI recommendations with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) for the 2025 National AI Research and Development Strategy Plan. Joseph’s background story and experience in academia, DEVCOM Army research lab, & the National Guard. How a cold email landed him a position in venture capital and his time at AlleyCorp. The full story of Radical AI and how they are addressing material science challenges with an innovative approach. The Self-Driving Lab concept and why Radical AI is a generation-defining opportunity. Building a culture of action and hiring plans.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 390 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Maya R. Said, Sc.D., Founder & CEO of Outcomes4Me.Maya believes that in our lifetime, we will get to a point where we can either cure or control cancer. That is a bold statement and one of major importance. As we kick off our interview, she shares the reasons why it could happen.In order to get there, however, it is certainly going to take a lot of brilliant founders and innovative companies, but when you have founders like Maya who are building companies like Outcomes4Me, you can see why there is hope.For this podcast, I am blessed to speak with so many amazing people, who are all very intelligent, driven, and optimistic… but Maya is in a league of her own.Her academic credentials are beyond next level and what she accomplished within the healthcare industry makes her uniquely qualified to build a company that is contributing to this mission of either curing or controlling cancer.Outcomes4Me is the first and only end-to-end, AI-driven patient empowerment platform that helps patients with cancer take a proactive approach to their care from diagnosis throughout every stage of life and care. Its direct-to-patient platform integrates clinical guidelines, genomics, trial matching, and symptom tracking to help patients navigate through a cancer diagnosis with confidence and clarity. The company recently announced a $21M round of funding from new investor - Salica Investments, with participation from all existing investors: Labcorp Venture Fund, Forecast Labs, Northpond Ventures, Sierra Ventures, Asset Management Ventures, IRA Capital, and Merstal LTD.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Maya’s background story and her experience in academia at MIT. Her transition into industry and the various leadership roles she held. The full story of Outcomes4Me including how the platform works and how they help patients, plus their plans looking ahead. The importance of data to speed up innovation and the drug development process. The impact of TV advertising The overarch theme of what she has learned while building a company. Fundraising advice And moreEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 389 and today’s guest is Jeff Taylor, serial entrepreneur and Founder of Monster.com.About a month ago, the combined entity of Monster & CareerBuilder filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It signaled the end of an era and a 31 year run for Monster which is pretty extraordinary.A reflective tribute was added to LinkedIn by Jeff and after reading his post, I immediately reached out, as the story of Monster needed to be told and documented.Thus, I went long form for this interview, a la Joe Rogan style, to bring you the most detailed account of Monster.com from an initial dream to a top 11th or 12th website in the world & a major consumer brand.An initial dream, you might ask… yes… it’s true. Jeff dreamt of the idea, the brand, and the mascot… which received tremendous pushback from multiple parties in the early days.It’s this story and so many others that we uncover: The early building blocks of the internet and how groundbreaking Jeff and Monster.com was in terms of being the 454th dot com and posting the first jobs and resumes on the internet. The debatable too-early acquisition of Monster in the very early innings of the dot com bubble by TMP Worldwide. Stories of the hypergrowth years at Monster. Behind the scenes of the, what was first considered a failure then turned iconic - When I Grow Up - Super Bowl commercial.* And what I found to be the most shocking story… which we lead with - the paper napkin agreement between Jeff Taylor and Reid Hoffman for Monster.com to acquire LinkedIn. Wow - can you imagine what might have happened if Monster’s board didn’t turn the deal down?In addition to the deep dive into the legendary story of Monster, we also discuss Jeff’s background story, other companies he’s built like Eons, and his current company called BoomBand - which is reinventing the resume and building a new AI talent marketplace. The company is still in stealth mode but expects to launch its product late fall.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 388 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Andy Ellner, Founder & CEO of Quilt Health.Yes, there are endless possibilities in terms of the platform shift to AI and how it will disrupt industries, but the one that I’m most excited about is the healthcare industry. Could there be a great moment to hopefully improve lives and maybe even eradicate diseases or even cure cancer someday? The future is unknown but these advanced in technology certain give a lot of hope.To tackle these big problems, we need people who are not only the top brilliant minds on this planet, but they also need to be risk takers in terms of building these companies.Andy fits the bill. Not only is he an MD with top academic credentials, but he’s also a serial entrepreneur. And probably the most important quality of Andy is that he comes from a medical family that’s passionate about making a difference across the world and that quality is deeply rooted into his mindset as well.His latest company is Quilt Health, a digital health company dedicated to bridging gaps in treatment access for complex diseases. They are focused on sickle cell disease and plan to expand to address other complex conditions. Quilt Health just announced a $6M seed round of funding led by MaC Venture Capital and Underscore Ventures, with participation from Meridian Street Capital, BoxGroup, Watershed VC, and Coalition Operators.In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like: Some key lessons learned while building healthcare startups, including the importance of finding the right business model. Andy’s background story including his connection to the Baseball Hall of Fame and his work helping to solve the global HIV pandemic where his learnings from this timeframe have carried over to Quilt Health. Co-Founding the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care. Starting Firefly Health to address the inefficiencies of primary care with a virtual-first care model. What led him down the path of starting Quilt Health and their plans for disrupting the industry. His Minimum Viable Team philosophy and advice around hiring. What excites him about the potential AI use cases in the healthcare industry. And so much more.
Episode 387 of The VentureFizz Podcast features John Voith, CEO & Co-Founder of InStride Health.A common theme for John that you’ll hear throughout the interview is how he has always followed his head and heart. It’s a philosophy, where you can build something meaningful for the world that fulfills your interests yet has a mission to help people. Healthcare is certainly an industry where one can have an impact and what’s interesting is that he has never wavered. As you’ll learn, John’s interest in healthcare began as a child and it has followed through his career and entrepreneurial journey. InStride Health provides specialty outpatient care for pediatric anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and related presentations. The company is venture backed with $56M in funding raised by General Catalyst, .406 Ventures, Valtruis, Mass General Brigham Ventures, and Hopelab Foundation.In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like: John’s background story and how medical illness in his family influenced his future in the healthcare industry. Seeing rapid growth of his career at athenahealth where he became one of four General Managers in the company. The founding story of Virtudent, a venture backed company that provides preventive dental care and care coordination through teledentistry services, on-site services and virtual support. All the details about InStride Health and how he met his Co-Founders Drs. Mona Potter and Kathryn Boger, plus all the details on their unique and effective approach to treatment. Lessons learned as a CEO and advice for healthcare entrepreneurs. And so much more.
Episode 386 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Shahid Azim, Managing Partner & CEO of C10 Labs, an AI venture fund and studio.When ChatGPT was released towards the end of 2022, it changed everything and the AI era officially began.It was perfect timing for Shahid and his two co-founders of C10 Labs that being Professor Ramesh Raskar and Dr. Patricia Geli, as the organization was born out of a course they were co-instructors on called AI for Impact.They knew the time was now and it was an opportunity to build a market leading venture studio that is specifically focused on AI-first companies.They were early to the movement and helped create the spark for the AI ecosystem in the Boston area. Fast forward to today, Shahid and the team at C10 Labs are deeply involved in creating the core foundation for AI in the Boston tech ecosystem from the startups that are participating in their accelerator to playing a key role in lots of other initiatives like the Massachusetts AI Hub. Overall, C10 Labs is making a major impact.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Details about how C10 Labs came to fruition. Shahid’s background story and his journey into entrepreneurship. The details about Shahid’s startups which focused on lots of important matters like brain health or heart health like Quanttus, a VC backed company with ground breaking tech for a continuous blood pressure monitoring wearable device that came before the launch of the Apple Watch. All about C10 Labs and what companies can expect by going through their program. The criteria they look for while reviewing companies for their accelerator and the details on their upcoming AI Biology cohort this fall. Common stumbling blocks for native AI companies.* And so much more.
Episode 385 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Julia Austin - Board Member, Executive Coach, HBS Senior Lecturer, Operator, Angel Investor, and now - Author.Another repeat original guest! Julia was a guest for Episode 30 of The VentureFizz Podcast back in 2018 where we do a deep dive into her background plus cover lots of interesting topics like what it takes to become a great Product Manager and others.In this interview, we catch up to discuss her new role as an author and the details about her new book called After The Idea - What It Really Takes to Create and Scale a Startup:https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/julia-austin/after-the-idea/9781541705296https://www.amazon.com/After-Idea-Really-Create-Startup/dp/1541705270Julia is a seasoned operator who has served in leadership roles at several scaled technology companies like Akamai, VMware, and DigitalOcean. She has also advised hundreds of founders and startups.In this new book, which I believe will become a new staple in the entrepreneurial startup circles, she helps entrepreneurs navigate the complexities and challenges of building a startup like important matters around product, people, operations, and more. What I also appreciate the most about this book is the fact that it is very comprehensive, yet easy to understand and implement.In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like: A quick run through Julia’s background - check out Episode 30 for the deeper dive. How Julia became a member of the faculty at Harvard Business School and the impact of The Startup Operations course that she created. The inside look at what it’s like to write a book. How proper discovery can help avoid false positives. Why entrepreneurs don’t always need a co-founder. The importance of ABR - that being Always Be Recruiting - for founders. The difference between Founders & Joiners Comparing the Boston and NYC startup ecosystems.* And so much more.
Episode 384 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Thomas “TK” Kinsella, Co-Founder & Chief Customer Officer of Tines.The success of Tines is not based on luck. The company’s co-founders experienced a major problem that wasn’t being being solved by existing platforms and after talking to peers who were also dealing with the same problem, they decided to do something about it. But, it wasn’t just an idea that got them to where they are today. This team was uniquely qualified to build the next generation solution based on TK’s and his Co-Founder & CEO, Eoin Hinchy’s many years of experience in the cybersecurity industry, plus a history of working together for something like 15+ years at Deloitte, eBay, and DocuSign.Tines empowers teams to build, run, and monitor their most mission-critical and sophisticated workflows. The company recently announced a $125M round of funding at a $1.125B valuation and is co-headquartered in Dublin and Boston.In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like: A discussion about the cybersecurity industry and the platform shift to AI. TK’s background story growing up in Dublin and some mutual geeking out on rugby. Starting his career in cybersecurity at Deloitte where he met Eoin, plus lots of details about what they worked on at eBay and DocuSign. Getting Tines started from the early days and all the details about the platform today. Why they hired a top designer as one of the first employees in the company and the importance of making products that are easy to use. Details on the latest round of funding and what’s next.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 383: Rob Biederman - Managing Partner, Asymmetric Capital Partners by VentureFizz
Episode 382 of The @Venturefizz Podcast features Abe Murray, General Partner at AlleyCorp.I recently had Matthias Hofmann, the Co-Founder & CEO of Eyebot on the podcast and when I was doing my research on the company, I realized that their recent investment from AlleyCorp was led by one of their partners who was located in the Boston area.It made me pause, as I didn’t realize that AlleyCorp had someone in the local Boston area. If you are not familiar with AlleyCorp, it is the venture fund started by Kevin Ryan who is a tech icon in NYC. Kevin led DoubleClick’s growth to an IPO and acquisition by Google. He’s also a co-founder of MongoDB, Business Insider, Zola, Gilt Groupe, and many others. AlleyCorp was backed as a family office by Kevin until last year when it became an institutional VC firm through the announcement of its $250M Fund I which includes outside LPs for the first time.Abe is leading AlleyCorp’s deep tech investments, so it just makes sense that he is based in the the Boston area, as there is such a high concentration of innovation and companies in the Northeast.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Abe’s background story which includes dropping out of high school to run fishing boats & factories in the family aquaculture business and the importance of growing up with a chip on your shoulder. Starting his career at BAE Systems where he worked on Generative AI and advanced technologies for the defense industry. Going to Harvard Business School and working on a startup called Doodbleboard, an online whiteboard. Landing at Google, then later Alphabet, where he worked on various AI/ML initiatives, as well as the Android mobile team with Rich Miner. Taking on the healthcare industry and leading the Boston office for Verily, an Alphabet company. Getting into angel investing and how he landed at AlleyCorp. All the details about AlleyCorp and the investments they are making across the firm, plus the specifics about what Abe is targeting. The importance of storytelling and advice on how to get great at it.* And so much more.Eyebot interview:https://venturefizz.com/insights/episode-368-matthias-hofmann-co-founder-ceo-of-eyebot/
Episode 381 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Mike Massaro, CEO of Flywire, a global payments enablement and software company.This is the full lifecycle story of an idea to a pillar publicly traded tech company in the Boston tech scene and it has it all. An international founder who discovered a major problem while trying to pay his tuition at MIT, to Mike joining the company after its Series A, an evolving business model from consumer to B2B, navigating choppy near death experiences to scaling aggressively, then raising multiple rounds of venture funding to an IPO, and more!It really is an inspirational story for all entrepreneurs to hear, as it is never an easy up & to the right story. There is so much that goes into building a successful company and this one does not disappoint.Chapters00:00 Intro02:17 Learning to Lead & the Importance of Communication04:51 Mike's Background & Getting Started in Tech at edocs15:00 Carrier IQ19:47 The early days of Flywire19:52 Navigating the Go-to-Market Strategy29:52 Moving into the Role as CEO of Flywire31:55 Challenging Times35:09 Scaling the Company & Playing Long Ball39:17 Expanding into New Industries41:47 The Impact of COVID-1945:20 Flywire IPO50:06 Looking Ahead: Growth and Innovation51:42 Building a Strong Company Culture57:12 The Importance of a Strong Board of Directors59:50 Hiring for Leadership Roles01:02:13 Apps, Books, & FunEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 380 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Eduardo Torrealba, CEO & Co-Founder of Lumafield.As part of my conversation with Eduardo, we talk about the importance of working on hard things. Yes, it’s hard to build things that seem impossible at the time but it is that level of difficulty that attracts the top talent across engineering and other functional areas to join the company. And, it is that level of difficulty that once you establish product market fit, it can been highly defensible and really difficult to copy. And, it is that level of difficulty that attracts the best investors to fund a company with the hopes that it can be an industry defining company, especially when there is hardware involved.Take Lumafield, a pioneering developer of accessible X-ray CT technology, recently announced a $35M Series B round of funding led by Spark Capital, along with previous investors Lux Capital, Kleiner Perkins, DCVC, Future Shape and angel investors like Tony Fadell - yes that Tony Fadell, the inventor of the iPod and Founder of Nest.When you have an industry leader like Tony, who after seeing their product & vision and ended up committing to an investment into the company after a 30 minute meeting, you know you are on to something big, as he understood the problem first hand based on his experience. In the video version of our podcast, there is a brief video showing Lumafield’s platform in action, as you need to see it to truly appreciate the complexity yet the obvious use case it has when building physical products.In the show notes, I have also included a fun video from Lumafield with Tony where they take a look at the evolution of the iPod by looking at the inside of different generations.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EC6BQPowf7wIn this episode of our podcast, we cover: Eduardo’s background story and his initial journey into entrepreneurship with an IoT soil moisture sensor company called Oso Technologies. Joining Formlabs and what he worked on in the earlier days of the company and what he learned during the company’s growth to a billion dollar valuation. The full story of Lumafield in terms of how the team came together and the problem they are solving. The fundraising process and the current state of the company, plus future plans ahead. Lessons learned from building companies and raising capital. The importance of a strong company pitch.* And so much moreEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 379 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Graham Brown, Managing Partner at Lerer Hippeau.It seems like just yesterday when I first interviewed Graham seven years ago back for Episode 32 (https://soundcloud.com/venturefizz/episode-32-graham-brown-partner-at-lerer-hippeau) when Lerer Hippeau was announcing its sixth fund. This puts Graham in elite company as one of the very few people who have made a repeat appearance on The VentureFizz Podcast – which I’m sure is an incredible honor for Graham to achieve… just kidding obviously. But in all seriousness… in that first interview, we discussed Graham’s background (he’s actually a fellow native of New Hampshire) and the early innings of his career, so in this interview, we were able to get much deeper into other topics around startups and fundraising.As you might know, Lerer Hippeau is one of the top early stage VC firms in the country and they recently announced another new fund, that one being LH Fund IX, a $200M fund which is exclusively focused on early stage companies.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: How to land a job in venture capital. How our original interview discussed AI seven years ago and what Graham is excited about in terms of this platform shift. The renewed interest in energy startups and the innovation in this sector. What he’s looking for out of a first meeting with an entrepreneur & the process of getting funded. PLG versus founder led sales and advice on avoiding entrepreneurial envy. The latest on the NYC tech ecosystem.* And so much moreEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 378 of The VentureFizz Podcast features two of the Co-Founders of Copley - David Henriquez, CEO and Sean Marshall, Chief Operating Officer.It is just a necessity for any thriving tech ecosystem. You need companies that scale and people from those companies take their learnings and go off to start their own company. HubSpot has been a big feeder of alumni who have gone off to start companies and you are starting to see the next wave with founders coming from Toast and now Klaviyo. What’s even better is when you see the founders of these anchor tech companies fund the next generation of entrepreneurs.David & Sean were part of the hypergrowth scale up years at Klaviyo that ultimately led to a pillar public tech company in the Boston tech area. David held a variety of engineering & sales engineering roles, whereas Sean led global sales.Now, they are building a new company with a third Co-Founder & CTO, Mike Torra called Copley. It is an AI-Powered Content Optimization Platform that allows marketers to quickly create, test & deploy content everywhere. Copley recently announced a $4.8M pre-seed round of funding led by Asymmetric and Underscore. And yes, the founders of Klaviyo - Andrew Bialecki and Ed Hallen are investors… plus Tom Ebling & Jeffrey Barnett of Demandware which was acquired by Salesforce.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Startup fundraising advice for first-time founders and the importance of building long term relationships with investors. The background stories for both David and Sean. The explosive growth years at Klaviyo. The full story of Copley in terms of the problem they are solving and their unique approach to finding early adopter customers. GTM advice for early stage startups and the importance of storytelling. And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode #377 of The VentureFizz Podcast is Victor D. Lombard (aka DIVINE), CEO & Co-Founder of Notes.As the host of this podcast, I have the honor of being able to help tell the story of so many founders and investors and each story is unique.But this one is a whole new level.DIVINE’s full story is probably the most unique entrepreneurial story that has been told on our podcast. From the streets of NYC to incarceration to master networker to fintech entrepreneur, this story has it all… including how one of Silicon Valley’s top venture capitalists, that being Ben Horowitz helped change his life and built a friendship, plus his rap song that was the intro for the A16Z podcast.Oh… and it just so happens that the co-founder of his latest startup called Notes is Rakim. Yes, that same Rakim from the 80’s hip-hop duo of Eric B & RAKIM… with legendary songs like Don’t Sweat the Technique and Paid in Full… which is why you are hearing their song Let The Rhythm Hit ‘Em for this podcast intro and outro.Notes is a fintech and AI-powered platform empowering independent urban music artists and creators with access to capital, financial literacy, entrepreneurship and music business education, and more, for financial independence, and career growth and sustainability. The company is in pre-launch.We cover a lot of ground in this podcast including: DIVINE's full background story His journey into the tech industry including working with Greg Selkoe at Karmaloop How he connected with Ben Horowitz The details of his own career as a rap artist The journey into entrepreneurship All the details on Notes * And more!
Episode #376 features Prem Sharma, Founder & CEO of Tandem.When you are a serial entrepreneur like Prem, you are probably coming up with lots of ideas but how do you decide which one is viable to focus on and actually build a company around?For Prem, it comes down to recognizing an experience that is broken and lots of market research. And this is not light market research, this is total submersion into the industry market research.The interest in Tandem started with a puppy arriving at his home as a new family pet and an experience at the vet. During a visit, he recognized how fragmented the industry was and how inefficient the office operated.This got him thinking about a unified vet experience. But, before jumping into build mode, he spent time working at veterinary clinics and recognized that the appetite for adopting a whole new system was not going to happen, so just a new tech platform wouldn’t be the answer. Instead, he had to build a healthcare company from the ground up that includes a comprehensive service leveraging onsite clinics, mobile care, telehealth, and a whole new tech stack for running the overall operation.Tandem raised $10M in funding earlier this year to redefine veterinary care with a comprehensive solution through its novel approach to care delivery, AI technology, and more.Chapters:00:00 Prem Sherma Intro02:48 What Ideas Should You Build a Company Around?07:00 From Childhood Dreams to Startup Realities10:39 Navigating the Startup Landscape14:30 The Full Story of DayToDay Health18:16 Building Impactful Solutions in Healthcare21:50 The Complexity of Patient Care27:03 Lessons Learned From Building DayToDay Health29:45 All the Details about Tandem38:26 Current State of the Business & GTM44:36 Advice for Building a Healthcare Company50:00 App & Book RecommendationsEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 375 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Becca Xiong, Managing Director of Programs & Engagement at Harvard Innovation Labs.Becca is a serial entrepreneur with the rare experience of having success in both consumer and B2B products. She was a Co-Founder of an early social networking startup called Going.com which was acquired by AOL and then she went with her fellow Co-Founder, Roy Rodenstein to start SocMetrics, a social insights platform for marketers that was also acquired.This combination of experiences makes Becca the perfect leader for the Harvard i-lab where 1 in 9 students across all of the schools under the Harvard umbrella are a member of the i-lab. Since its founding in 2011, the i-lab has supported over 6,000 ventures that have gone on to raise over $8B in funding including unicorns like WHOOP, Shield AI, Mark43, Lightmatter, and others.Chapters00:00 Intro02:34 The Most Common Startup Mistakes04:40 The Importance of Storytelling for Startups06:31 Becca's Background Story09:26 Early Career and Startup Experiences13:28 The Story of Going.com27:00 Building Socmetrics: A Social Insights Platform30:34 Difference Between Building B2B & Consumer Products32:52 Transitioning from Startups to Supporting Entrepreneurs36:05 The Harvard i-lab: Fostering Innovation and Entrepreneurship40:46 How the Harvard i-lab Supports Student Entrepreneurs43:55 Alumni from the Harvard i-lab45:10 Using ChatGPT for Customer Research47:05 Startup Pitch Advice51:15 Fundraising Advice53:34 Book Recommendation for Founders
Episode 374 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Dave Blundin, serial entrepreneur & investor.Dave’s track record is legendary as one of the top entrepreneurs and investors in the Boston tech scene. He’s co-founded 23 companies… and many have been incredibly successful: DataSage - acquired by Vignette for over $1B in today’s dollars EverQuote - which went public* Vestmark - manages over $2 trillion in assetsCompanies like CourseAdvisor, Jobcase, Autotegrity, LeadKarma were all acquired.Plus he’s invested in CarGurus, TripAdvisor… and he is the Founder & General Partner of Link Ventures and he’s also the founder of the startup incubator, Cogo Labs.One might think that after all of this success, Dave would downshift and relax… but it is the exact opposite. He has been waiting for this moment since he was 14 years old and that is the current platform shift to AI.He studied AI at MIT back in 1984 and pioneered quantizing neural networks as early as 1992. Needless to say… his time is now and he believes that it has the potential to be the greatest thing that ever happened to humanity. He wants to savor the moment and work to train and build faster, better, & smarter AI.Chapters00:00 Intro02:43 Dave Blundin's Journey Begins08:27 Founding DataSage and Early Innovations15:55 Meeting Jeff Bezos & Building Personalization at Amazon18:18 DataSage Acquisition by Vignette20:59 Founding Story of Vestmark & Its Scale27:39 Link Ventures & Cogo Labs - Building Consumer Companies at Scale32:31 Story of EverQuote to IPO35:04 The Best Friend Method for Investing36:33 AI & The Importance of Chip Manufacturing41:45 The AI Revolution & Opportunities44:11 Liquid AI: General-Purpose AI Systems at Every Scale47:45 Boston's Talent Density & MIT's Advantage53:44 Personal Insights and Hobbies57:40 Podcast & Book RecommendationsEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 373 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Jeff Bussgang, General Partner at Flybridge. Jeff has accomplished so much throughout his career. I’m sure lots of people probably know him best as a Venture Capitalist and Professor at Harvard Business School.But... you might not know the details about his startup career prior to Flybridge which I was really excited to dig into because he played a key role at two incredibly successful companies in the Boston tech scene.The first being OpenMarket, which pretty much invented eCommerce with its shopping cart technology that was licensed by companies like Amazon when they were just getting started. The company went public at a billion dollar valuation back in 1996 which was a very big deal.The second company is Upromise, where he was a Co-Founder along with Michael Bronner, who was also the Founder of Digitas and really helped establish the world of direct & loyalty marketing and David Fialkow, who you might also recognize as one of the founders of General Catalyst. Upromise allowed consumers, including myself, to save for their kids' college education through a loyalty rewards program. The company was very successful and it was later acquired by Sallie Mae.In addition to being an entrepreneur, investor, and professor, Jeff is also an author of three books and his latest book is called The Experimentation Machine - Finding Product-Market Fit in the Age of AI.Plus we talk about his Dad (Julian Bussgang), a scientist and entrepreneur who developed the Bussgang Theorem, Jeff's educational background in AI, Flybridge’s history of investments in AI, Hack.Diversity and so much more!Chapters:00:00 Intro00:05 Jeff's New Book - The Experimentation Engine04:47 Jeff's Background and Early Influences08:47 The Story of OpenMarket & Shopping Cart Tech17:21 The Creation of Upromise25:06 Transition to Venture Capital & Flybridge26:37 Flybridge's History & Focus on AI32:50 Flybridge's Investment Process34:13 Advice on Go-to-Market Strategy35:36 Getting Pitched by Curt Schilling38:03 Teaching at Harvard Business School39:48 Career Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs42:22 Must-Have Versus Nice-to-Have Products44:00 Hack.Diversity46:46 The Boston Tech Ecosystem & AI52:55 Recommendations - Apps & PodcastsEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 372 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Florian Hillen, CEO & Founder of VideaHealth.It goes without saying that AI is going to transform pretty much every industry, but I think there is such a unique opportunity in healthcare as the benefits are hopefully going to be extraordinary. The tricky thing about building a company in healthcare is that it’s heavily regulated industry, so you need to get FDA approval on the algorithms and AI technology if you are building software as a medical device, so that is going to take a lot of time… but once you get there, it makes your company highly defensible. And this is the very case of VideaHealth which was ahead of the curve as an AI native company that has been in existence for 6.5 years and crossed the hurdles of the FDA. Fast forward to today, VideaHealth has scaled to over 40,000 dental clinicians using their platform every day for identifying and treating dental conditions and the company is processing over a half of a billion x-rays a year. VideaHealth recently announced a $40M Series B round of funding.Chapters:00:00 Intro00:10 The Rise of AI in Healthcare03:19 Florian's Journey from Medicine to Entrepreneurship08:35 Founding VideaHealth: The Vision Behind the Company12:03 The Importance of Oral Health and Its Impact13:34 Early Days of VideaHealth18:10 Transforming Dental Practices with AI25:06 Scaling Through Strategic Partnerships26:56 Hiring and Company Culture at Video Health30:00 Lessons Learned in Building a Startup30:15 Hiring & the Importance of Talent Density31:09 Priorities and What You "Do Not Do"31:49 Be Customer Obsessed32:59 Process for Fundraising39:07 App, Podcast, & Book Recommendations
Episode 371 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Melissa Withers, Managing Partner & Co-Founder of RevUp Capital.As an entrepreneur, are you thinking about your capital stack? Meaning, how are you going about funding your company? There are lots of options… you could bootstrap, raise money from friends & family, grants, and of course, raise venture capital which is the most discussed option in the media and blog posts.But, one vehicle that I don’t think is talked about enough is Revenue Based Financing which is a non-dilutive form of financing where repayments are tied to a percentage of the company's revenue. In this interview with Melissa, we get into lots of details about what why this is a compelling option for entrepreneurs as RevUp is focused on this category as a non-equity investment fund for B2B and B2C companies ascending the $1M-$10M growth curve. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics: Melissa’s background and the story of her journey to becoming an investor. All the details about RevUp and how their model works. The importance of storytelling when pitching your startup to investors. KPI’s and figuring out your company’s God Metric. The importance of mental health and balance for entrepreneurs. And so much more
Episode 370 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Toshit Panigrahi, Co-Founder & CEO and Olivia Joslin, Co-Founder & COO of TollBit.There are going to be so many amazing benefits and advancements that are a result of the platform shift to AI. However, in this new world, many industries will need to go through radical transformation and the publishing industry is right in that mix.We even see some of these issues with VentureFizz, of course at a much smaller scale as compared to major publishers. For example, if you are searching for information about some startups in Boston, it’s possible that the results will include content from VentureFizz in the results from Google Gemini.While in one regard, it is great that Google views us as an authority on the topic, it does however eliminate the need for the consumer to come to our site because they likely have their question answered. It’s really not a major problem for us because of our business model, but it is certainly a major problem for publishers who count on pageviews for ad revenue.Enter TollBit, a two-sided marketplace for AI companies and publishers started by two alumni of Toast. The platform seeks to address the new economics of content creation in the AI era by reducing the legal uncertainties of scraping and protecting the health of the entire content ecosystem.The company recently announced a $24M Series A round of funding in October of last year which comes shortly after raising a $7M seed round in March of last year, as well.In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics:Chapters:00:00 Intro00:10 AI & the Media Industry03:51 Olivia's & Toshit's Background & Professional Journey12:48 Starting TollBit17:46 The Details of TollBit's Platform25:07 TollBit's Funding & Pitch Advice31:06 TollBit's Business Model37:27 The Importance of Advisors for Your Startup39:12 Lessons Learned While Building TollBit42:18 Hiring44:11 App & Podcast RecommendationsEpisode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 369 of The @Venturefizz Podcast features Krenar Komoni, CEO & Founder of Tive.The question: “What led you down the path to start this company?” is always interesting, as you never know what ultimately inspired the entrepreneur. It could be years of experience working in an industry, maybe it is a personal experience, or it could be a tremendous amount of research to find a problem that’s worth solving… or in the case of Krenar and Tive, it could be your family as the idea stems from his father-in-law’s trucking company and the manual process of located its drivers. From Krenar’s point of view, it is a problem that could be fixed with a tracking system and oh… it is a problem that Krenar just happens to be uniquely qualified to solve based on his expertise and background with wireless connectivity, hardware, and chipsets.Fast forward to today, Tive is a leading provider of supply chain and logistics visibility technology. Trusted by over 900 customers, the company recently announced a $40M Series C round of funding led by WiL (World Innovation Lab) and Sageview Capital.Chapters00:00 Intro02:23 Advice for Raising Follow On Rounds of Venture Capital08:47 Krenar's Background Story in Kosovo11:11 Landing in Vermont & Experience at Startups19:45 Background Story of Tive23:32 Industry Trends25:22 Naming the Company28:25 Landing First Customers30:50 Early GTM Approach & Learning from the Sales Team36:08 Picking the Right Industry Vertical43:19 The Latest at Tive46:35 The Question that Entrepreneurs Need to Ask Themselves.48:09 The Culture at Tive48:20 New Chapter50:06 Apps & Book Recommendations
Episode 368 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Matthias Hofmann, Co-Founder & CEO of Eyebot.I met Matthias and Jack, Eyebot’s Co-Founder & CTO at a pre-party for TechCrunch’s Early Stage event in Boston a couple of years ago.It was one of those meetings that when someone describes their product - an AI powered kiosk that could conduct vision tests in 90 seconds… it sounded like something out of science fiction… but it made you pause and think… what if they actually build this… the market opportunity is massive - like TAM - everyone in the world massive.On top of that, here are some crazy stats of the void in the market that needs to be addressed with a solution:40,000 unfilled eye doctor positions in the U.S. - more doctors retiring than graduating from school)25% of U.S. counties don't have a practicing eye care provider 63% of Americans don't have vision insuranceWell, this product and solution became a reality when Eyebot announced its partnership with Zenni Optical by deploying their kiosks in various locations and as you’ll hear from Matthias… the pipeline of demand for their kiosks is incredibly strong. Another crazy stat that he shared with me is that the team is only 14 people.It’s another perfect example of the level of innovation in the Boston tech scene with several next generation hardware & robotics companies that are emerging like 10 Beauty, Ozlo Sleepbuds, Pickle Robot, and many more.Eyebot raised a $6M seed round of funding last year led by AlleyCorp and Ubiquity Ventures with participation from other top investors.In this podcast, we cover: Eyebot’s first appearance at CES this year and advice on how to create a buzz. Matthias’ background story and how positions at EyeNetra & Formlabs helped shape his career. The full story of Eyebot and the challenges in the market that they are addressing. How their technology works, plus their go-to-market strategy, and details on funding. Advice for founders on building hardware and raising capital. And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 367 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Vivjan Myrto, Founder & Managing Partner at Hyperplane.Why Boston Be The Star of the AI Revolution - this is the title of an article that Zach Winn wrote for VentureFizz seven years ago. It talks about the history of AI in the Boston area including Marvin Minksy’s first neural net machine back in 1951, the amazing academic institutions, plus the state of the tech ecosystem in this industry back then.Vivjan was featured in this article along with this quote: “I think machine intelligence represents a once in a lifetime opportunity for entrepreneurs...” It’s impressive to see how Vivjan and his partners were well ahead of the AI hype machine, as they built Hyperplane’s focus around backing the best founding teams working in this sector along with other innovations in hardtech like robotics, sensors and more.The firm’s name is even based on a term in machine learning applications, a higher-dimensional plane used to help categorize data based on its underlying structure from images to real-world events. In this podcast, we cover: Vivjan’s inspirational background story from growing up in Albania to fighting cancer and moving to the United States for treatment and learning how to speak English while he was in the hospital. Going on to build a healthcare startup that was acquired. How Hyperplane came to fruition and how they raised their first fund. All the details about Hyperplane and the firm’s area of focus for investments. A deep dive into Modulate, one of their portfolio companies. Advice on taking the entrepreneurial leap A discussion around the Boston tech scene and areas for improvement. His passion for wind sports and photography.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode #366 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Graham Brooks, Partner at .406 Ventures.“Data is the new oil” - it’s a slogan that you hear everywhere these days… it’s on TV commercials, print ads, LinkedIn posts… but this is not a new trend or revelation for Graham. His interest in data goes back to his first job out of college and his passion for data has followed him throughout his career, including in his current role as the leader of .406 Ventures’ Data + AI strategy..406 Ventures is a Boston-based venture capital firm with over $1.4B under management and nearly two decades of experience leading or co-leading early-stage investments in pioneering healthcare, data + AI, and cybersecurity companies founded by visionary entrepreneurs. Oh… and here’s a fun fact about Graham… his sport of choice while growing up was fencing. He competed all over the world and was a two-time All American at Princeton. So cool.In this podcast, we cover: Graham's thoughts on AI and the investment outlook for 2025. His background story including how he got into fencing. Joining a Princeton startup called ALK Associates which was early AI for data cleansing that was acquired by Trimble. Learning sales and fundraising as part of the founding team at Accentus after he received his MBA at Dartmouth. Graham’s journey to landing a job in venture capital which was intentional, plus he shares some great advice for others who are interested in this career path. The details about .406 Ventures and its thesis driven approach, plus portfolio company examples and their investment process. His passion for extreme sports And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 365 of The VentureFizz Podcast features John Harthorne, Founder & Managing Director of Two Lanterns Venture Capital and Founder and decade-long CEO of MassChallenge.A career is a body of work. It doesn’t have to be a straight line… it can take twists and turns… yon can switch industries… you can reinvent yourself… and it should be fulfilling.As you’ll learn from John’s background, he had lots of twists and turns but ultimately, he decided there must be more to his career. One where he can make a massive impact, but he obviously had to weigh the risks of the unknown during one of the worst economic conditions back in 2009.That unknown became one of the largest accelerators in the world with over 4,000 alumni and over $13B raised with a 65% survival rate which includes companies like Flywire, Ginger, Bitso and many, many more. It’s proof that you can think and dream big!Today at Two Lanterns Venture Capital, John is focused on making pre-seed and seed investments in software startups in the U.S. and Israel.In this podcast, we cover: John’s outlook for 2025 as an investor. His background with lots of twists and turns, including how he landed in the tech industry at a cybersecurity company called @stake. The decision to go back to business school at MIT Sloan and how his passion for entrepreneurship developed. The full lifecycle story of MassChallenge. All the stories from leaving Bain as a consultant along with Akhil Nigam to start the accelerator, all the obstacles they overcome, and then scaling the organization. What led him down the path of starting Two Lanterns Venture Capital, plus all the details on the firm and what they are targeting for investments. Common entrepreneurial mistakes.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode #364 of The VentureFizz Podcast features John Andrews, Co-Founder & CEO of Cimulate.There is a wave of entrepreneurs who are uniquely qualified to build a pillar tech company in the Boston tech ecosystem while leveraging the platform shift to AI. Not only is John one of them, but he is also an alum of the very successful crew from Endeca.John and his co-founder, Vivek Farias, are tackling the future of eCommerce and as you’ll hear, their platform is a perfect use case for Gen AI. Their last company, Celect, was a big data predictive analytics platform for the retail industry which was acquired by Nike.Cimulate recently announced a $28M Series A round of funding led by Spark Capital with participation from their seed stage investors SIERRA Ventures and Pillar VC, with additional participation from LFX Venture Partners and Commerce Ventures.In this podcast, we cover: A deep dive into the use cases of AI in the retail & eCommerce industry especially around personalization. John’s background story and getting his career started at Deloitte Consulting and getting an MBA from HBS. How he met Steve Papa, the founder of Endeca, and the full lifecycle of his experience there including the acquisition by Oracle and integration of their tech there. Connecting with Vivek Farias and Devavrat Shah through Steve Papa and the story of building Celect which was using AI / machine learning back in 2014. How the acquisition by Nike came together All the details about Cimulate and how the platform works, plus their growth plans ahead. Biggest lessons learned as a multi-time CEO. And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 363 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Jay Batson, Acquia Co-Founder & Founding CEO, serial entrepreneur, investor, and mentor.Lots of people like to make predictions, especially around this time of the year. Few are right. Jay on the other hand made some bold predictions about the future in a Forrester report that he published back in 1995 called Beyond Internet Gaga and it is pretty remarkable. So what does Jay predict in 1995? Yes, the internet was emerging but these predictions were made when there were only about 35 million internet users and before the Netscape IPO. He detailed three scenarios:1. The first was internet-based cyberattacks.2. The second was how a younger generation would be glued to the internet (think screentime) and how it would replace the television, plus the emergence of social media, & online gaming.3. The third was the advancement of smart appliances.It’s really amazing and as you’ll hear, Jay has a knack for seeing the future and creating businesses that capitalize on shifts in technology, some that have been widely successful or some that just didn’t hit. We chat about all of them.In this podcast, we cover: Jay’s background story and how he got started in entrepreneurship by building a company in the energy sector. Moving to Boston and more of his early experiences in the tech industry. All the details about founding PingTel and its innovation in IP phones and he even pulls out one of the phones for the visual, plus his reflection on why the company didn’t succeed. The full story of how he met Dries Buytaert (who was a guest on Episode #326) and how they co-founded Acquia together and lots of great scaling stories to unicorn status. His role post-Acquia as a mentor and investor.Why founders should spend more time on their go-to-market strategy. The importance of co-founder and investor alignment.* And so much more.
Episode 362 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Alice Pomponio, Managing Director at BrightEdge, the investing arm of the American Cancer Society.Venture capital and private equity investors are all working on meaningful initiatives in terms of building great companies with the hope of gaining a meaningful return for investors.However, the role that Alice plays in the world of investing into startups is different…As the innovation, impact investment and venture capital arm of the American Cancer Society, BrightEdge propels groundbreaking patient-centric solutions by accelerating ACS’s mission to advance science, reduce disparities, and promote healthcare sustainability.All of the investments from BrightEdge have a common goal and that is to fight for a world without cancer. On top of this incredibly important mission is how the firm operates where the financial returns are reinvested back into the fund or are returned to the American Cancer Society to build a diversified and sustainable source of funding for the organization.In this podcast, we cover: The platform shift to AI and its potential impact on cancer research. Alice’s background and how cancer has affected her family, plus a walk through her career in the biotech & pharmaceutical industry. The details of the firm’s proprietary Cancer Impact Investment Framework. Sample portfolio companies and the overall impact that BrightEdge has made. How BrightEdge is helping to advance health equity and increase representation for underserved populations. And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 361 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Phil Pergola, CEO at CloudZero.Phil has a tremendous track record and we talk about a lot of great companies that he’s helped build throughout his career, but I need to highlight one of these companies in this intro and that is BladeLogic and the lasting impact the company has made. If you’ve ever read the famous startup book by Ben Horowitz called The Hard Thing About Hard Things… the competitor to his company Opsware was BladeLogic which is absolutely classic.BladeLogic went on to become a public company and was subsequently acquired by BMC Software. Another fascinating point about BladeLogic is the people and how many have gone on to become C-level sales executives or advisors at some of the most successful companies out there like MongoDB, AppDynamics, Snowflake, Wiz, Okta, and others. There is even a podcast called Hunters + Unicorns which interviews a bunch of them.CloudZero is the leader in proactive cloud cost efficiency. They enable engineers to build cost-efficient software without slowing down innovation. The company announced a $32M Series B round of funding last year.In this podcast, we cover: The importance of building a successful pre and post-sales organization, plus the details of the LAYR model (Land Adopt Expand Retain). Phil’s background and the story of his initial interest in pursuing a career path as an actuary. A trip down Boston tech memory lane across multiple companies like Eggrock Partners which was acquired by Breakaway Solutions, BladeLogic, enerNOC, and CloudHealth Technologies. All the details about CloudZero - how they found product market fit, why he joined as CEO, and the latest at the company today. Advice on raising venture capital funding. Lots of great advice on being a first time CEO - his lessons learned, what you should think about in the first 90 days, and advice on how to get on the radar for CEO positions.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 360 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Mike Troiano, Partner at G20 Ventures.When I think of Mike, I think of a master marketer, a branding guru, and an amazing storyteller. As we start our conversation we discuss the importance of these traits as it relates to entrepreneurs. The importance of storytelling and brand building is often overlooked by entrepreneurs. Yet, it is such a critical part of a startup’s success as a good story attracts customers, talent, and capital. If you haven’t followed his blog, please make sure you check it out on Medium, as there are so many great pieces of advice to help you improve your skills in storytelling, creating a brand, and building a startup. He’s one of the best.G20 Ventures is the capital partner that helps new businesses grow with smart money, great storytelling, and the right connections. The firm’s sweet spot is mainly Series A investing in enterprise software companies.In this podcast, we cover: Playing sports at Cornell and getting his career started in the marketing agency world, plus starting his own company which was acquired and went public. The full lifecycle story of M-Qube which was acquired by VeriSign and all the details about how the company powered the voting for American Idol and the lucky case drawing for Deal or No Deal. * Launching a startup called MatchMine which was backed by the Kraft family and was building a personalization tech for consumers that ended up being too early for the market. The story of Actifio and its copy data management solution which grew into unicorn status with backing from Tier A investors and was acquired by Google. How a viral post on Medium started his journey into venture capital and joining G20 Ventures, where he was a founding member and LP. Getting started as a VC and how he found his Zone of Genius, plus what he’s targeting for investments. The 5 phases of a career.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 359 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Matt Douglas, Founder & CEO of Sincere.Boston has this legacy reputation that you can’t build consumer companies in the area, yet there are so many great companies that have scaled like Wayfair, DraftKings, iRobot, SimpliSafe, and so… so… many more. Plus, don’t get me started on how many brands, especially footwear, are located here.Anyway, Sincere is another example of a great consumer company at scale. It is highly likely that you’ve used one of their products like Punchbowl to plan a party, Timehop to relive past memories, or Memento, where you can collect and preserve memories together for a group video or photo album.Sincere’s latest brand is Lovebird, a new platform for the wedding industry which is taking on The Knot and other outdated incumbents and as highlighted in this interview with Matt, there will be more coming from Sincere.In this podcast, we cover: A discussion around the legacy of an entrepreneur and what led Matt down the path of starting a corporate foundation at Sincere for charitable initiatives. Matt’s background story, growing up with 5 brothers and how he started his entrepreneurial roots early on. Getting his career started and how he became the youngest Product Manager at Adobe. His brushes with tech luminaries like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Alexis Ohanian, Justin Kan, and Dharmesh Shah. The background story of Punchbowl and the three key characteristics he used for building a business. Why the expansion into the wedding market with Lovebird made sense for the company and how they are differentiating themselves from the competitors. Matt’s philosophy around buying premium domains and a hint about his best 5 letter domain that is not even live yet. And so much more.
Episode 358 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Simon Taylor, Founder & CEO of HYCU.One of the things that I love about this podcast is hearing the stories of entrepreneurs and the ambitious moves they make to build their companies. For example, last week’s interview with Brian Liu was a great example where he and his Co-Founder cold called and got the most recognizable lawyer on the planet - that being Robert Shapiro - involved with LegalZoom in the early days of the company. Simon’s story is also legendary. At the point of having an MVP, they wanted to partner with a fast growing company called Nutanix. He flew out to the company’s offices in California and unannounced, he asked to speak to the CEO. After pitching his company and convincing team members during that initial unannounced call, the CEO did finally sit with him and after building a backup solution for Nutanix, a partnership was established and they were off and running.HYCU is a leader in the multi-cloud and SaaS data protection as a service industry. The company has raised $140M in VC funding to date.In this podcast, we cover: A discussion around leveraging a partnership model for a company’s GTM strategy and how to build it with the right mindset and approach. Simon’s background story, including receiving a signed book from legendary computer entrepreneur An Wang, the founder of Wang Laboratories, when his family moved to the U.S. Starting his career in cubicle jobs and how he learned the importance of rigor like his experience as a 401K rep answering phones and how it helped shape him as an entrepreneur. Building his first company in Prague, an IT outsourcing company which was acquired by Comtrade and then his next company, a monitoring tools company that was acquired by Citrix. The full lifecycle story of HYCU and all the details about their platform. The benefits of raising capital from corporate VCs.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 357 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Brian Liu, serial entrepreneur and co-founder of companies like LegalZoom, BizCounsel, & Overture.Lots of the best ideas come from experience within your own industry and it was Brian and his co-founder, Brian Lee (who has since gone on to be a co-founder of ShoeDazzle and The Honest Company) who both had experience in the law industry and saw an industry which was ripe for disruption. After experimenting with some ideas, the idea for LegalZoom had the best validation for building a company and some of the most successful entrepreneurs take bold risks. For example, to bring validation for consumers about the legitimacy of their business for legal docs, they cold called and got Robert Shapiro (yes, the high profile attorney from the OJ Simpson trial) involved in the business… and from there, they were off and running… which ultimately led to a publicly traded company.His latest company is Overture, an attorney-to-attorney referral platform for solos & small firms. In this podcast, we cover: A discussion about the impact and potential that AI has for the legal industry. Brian’s background story and his experience as a practicing attorney. The full lifecycle story of LegalZoom, including the Robert Shapiro cold call and how they scaled the company. All the details about Overture. Brian’s work as an advisor for entrepreneurs like Julia Rodgers from HelloPrenup, who was featured in Episode 336 of The VentureFizz Podcast. And so much more.
Episode 356 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Erika Ebbel Angle and Colin Angle.I’ve had co-founders on my podcast in the past but it is very rare that I have a married couple and it is very hard not to use the phrase power-couple of this one. Having both Erika and Colin on the podcast was awesome, as we were able to dig into both of their background stories and professional journeys.If you are in the Boston tech scene, you probably know about Colin as a co-founder and former CEO of iRobot, but equally impressive is his wife, Erika.Here are some examples of her many professional accomplishments: B.S. in Chemistry from MIT; Ph.D. in Biochemistry from BU.2004 Miss Massachusetts Founder of a non-profit organization called Science from Scientists which teaches STEM lessons to students in grades third through eight. TEDx speaker about Your Gut Microbiome that has over 2 million views.Co-Founder & CEO of Ixcela.Ixcela is a pioneering company in internal fitness, specializing in the gut microbiome. The company recently announced its Ixcela Cancer Support Program in collaboration with Roper St. Francis Healthcare which showed the critical role that gut microbiome health plays in reducing cancer care side effects. Ixcela's supportive care is designed to be hyper-personalized to help mitigate symptoms and improve the patient’s health.In this episode of our podcast, we also cover: A discussion about the gut microbiome and Erika’s research. The story of iRobot and how they discovered product-market-fit through a combination of work in mine-hunting algorithms, industrial store cleaning, and the My Real Baby doll with Hasbro led to the Roomba. All the details about Ixcela and how their personalized care and support works. Colin’s role in Ixcela as a member of its Board of Directors. The state of personalized healthcare and how AI has its place but why the human element is still very important. The future of robotics and AI, plus a discussion about 10Beauty. What dinner looks like in the Angle household.* And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 355 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Ben Maitland-Lewis, Director of Startup Banking & Founder Success at Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and yes, this episode is also sponsored by SVB.Ben and I go way back. His previous company, Pretty Instant, had a long-standing relationship with VentureFizz. This Y-Combinator company was an on-demand photography marketplace that did all of our office tour photoshoots on VentureFizz. It honestly was an amazing experience… such a great company.But even when you work with someone for a long time and you have a great professional relationship, there is so much about the person that you don’t know and this is one of the reasons why I love this podcast.I learned that Ben’s background story is very eclectic… from living abroad as a child, to being a street performer and being in the circus to playing music with an orchestra… and then being in a band playing the top clubs in LA to playing drums for other bands like Incubus, Dishwalla, and others… I could go on and on, so I’ll stop here and let him tell his story in this interview.Today, Ben is still leveraging his experience as a founder but helping other entrepreneurs in lots of meaningful ways at SVB.In addition to Ben’s background story, we also cover: A discussion about making the transition from founder to employee. Ben’s journey into entrepreneurship and the story of PressKit. All the details about Pretty Instant and how the company got started and scaled. His current role at SVB and the different ways he is working with founders.* Some analysis and positive vibes from SVB’s State of the Markets report. * And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 354 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Paul Morville, Co-Founder & CEO of Parrot AI.This episode was recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University. I recorded two episodes at this year’s event, so stay tuned for the second episode in a couple of weeks.Paul is a serial entrepreneur and as you’ll hear from our podcast, he is very successful but likes to fly under the radar. Case in point, while most companies can’t wait to broadcast a round of funding, I couldn’t find any press releases or media coverage about any outside investment for Parrot AI. Come to find out, the company raised capital in 2021 from Accomplice, Pillar, Legion Capital, and others. We discussed his reasoning as to why they decided against announcing funding which was very interesting.Parrot AI is not just a meeting recorder, transcription, and note-taking tool. It is an AI-powered collaborative workspace that turns conversation into results because of its understanding of the full context of a business.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The 2 biggest lessons learned while building multiple companies. Paul’s background story and his work on building Barron’s online property which was one of the first financial websites. His professional journey as a Product Manager, including experience at Arbor Networks and how so many people have gone off to start other companies like Twilio. The founding story of Confer which was one of the first endpoint security solutions in the cloud that was acquired by Carbon Black which later went public & was acquired by VMware. * His decision to pass on an opportunity to join a VC firm and continue down the entrepreneurial path. All the details about Parrot AI and how it differentiates itself from competitors. What makes a great Product Manager.* And so much more.
Episode 353 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Giuseppe Stuto, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of 186 Ventures.Did you know that the venture capital industry originated in Boston back in 1946 with the founding of American Research and Development Corporation (ARDC) which backed Digital Equipment Corporation and saw a 1200X return when the company went public.Since then, Boston has been very fortunate to have a steady stream of VC investors at all stages to foster the local startup ecosystem and one of the newest firms is 186 Ventures.Co-Founded by Giuseppe and Julian Fialkow, 186 Ventures is a pre-seed & seed stage VC firm investing broadly across technology. I kept hearing about the firm, so I was excited to interview Giuseppe for the podcast as they have been out there hustling and have been earning the respect from entrepreneurs and their peers in the VC industry.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A discussion around the importance of investor & founder alignment. How a conference at Stanford changed the trajectory of his career into entrepreneurship. * The full background story of SmakHigh and how they evolved to Fam, the first live group video application for iMessage, including how Jeff Bussgang’s book - Mastering the VC Game - helped them raise venture funding from Jeff. The full story of how the acquisition by DraftKings came to fruition. The details about 186 Ventures and what they are targeting for investments. The 4 fundamental parts of a business that matter. The importance of building a repeatable sales model for not only your go-to-market strategy but also how it factors into raising capital. Why Boston is the best place to build an AI startup. And so much more.
Episode 352 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Mark Ghermezian and Manisha Shah, Founder of Tildei.Mark is the Founder and General Partner of m]x[v Capital and he’s also the CEO of two companies that have spun out of his firm, that being Tildei and Gynger. Mark has been an entrepreneur pretty much his entire life and he shares lots of fun and interesting stories of these ventures, including the full story of Braze, a customer engagement platform that eventually went public in 2021.Manisha is a Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Tildei. In this interview, she shares her professional journey into the tech industry and ultimately running customer success at Rebel which was acquired by Salesforce.Tildei is changing how companies and customers communicate. The company’s AI-powered platform, which is initially focused on WhatsApp, enables brands to build deep relationships with customers through conversation at scale. The company has raised $6M in funding led by Susa Ventures with participation from Ludlow Ventures, Gradient Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, Vine Ventures, MXV Capital, Marcelo Claure, Jason Lemkin, and other angel investors. In this episode of our podcast, we also cover: The importance of persistence and grit when building a startup. How Mark and Manisha came together to build Tildei and how it works. Building and investing into companies from m]x[v including the details on Gynger. Mark’s contrarian point of view of PLG sales models and why he favors a traditional outbound sales operation. Manisha’s biggest lessons learned as a co-founder. And so much more.
Episode 351 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Meredith McPherron, CEO & Managing Partner at Drive by DraftKings.Legalized sports betting, NIL, transfer portals, college conference re-alignment, streaming, pitch clocks, new kickoffs, the explosion of pickelball, and so much more, there is no denying it, the sports industry is going through a rapid amount of transformation.But the number one area that I’m the most excited about is the explosion of women’s sports… from college basketball, WNBA, NWSL, Olympic success, and more… there is so much going on!Thus, I couldn’t pick a better person to have a conversation about how women’s sports are having a moment than with Meredith and this topic is exactly how we kick off our interview.If you are not familiar with Drive by DraftKings, the firm invests in seed and Series A companies in the SportsTech and Entertainment industry specifically in Gaming, Fandom, and Human Performance.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Meredith’s background story including being a walk-on two sport Division 1 athlete at Harvard. Getting her career started in investment banking and consumer products at General Mills and how she made the switch to the tech industry. Running her own startup called Zipteva, which was early to market and would have been perfect in today’s world of NIL deals. Her role at The Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship at HBS which was the segue into her role as a VC at Glasswing Ventures. All the details about Drive by DraftKings and what she is targeting for investments, plus its all-star network. Biggest challenges around building a startup in the sports industry.* And so much more.
Episode 350 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Steve Papa, serial entrepreneur, mentor, and investor. It is time for another milestone episode and I couldn’t be more excited about this interview. Steve has accomplished so much throughout his career, so let’s just dive in. In this interview you are going to hear lots of amazing stories like: Steve’s background and how he got his career started in the tech industry, including his involvement in the early days of Akamai. The full lifecycle story of Endeca in terms of how the idea originated, to getting traction and raising funding, scaling, to a $1.1B exit to Oracle… plus so many amazing stories along the way. The Special Ops team at Endeca and how many of the members of this team have gone on to be founders & leaders of companies. Investing all of the money that he made from Endeca back into startups. The story of Toast and how its distribution channel innovation drove the company’s success and helped create the vertical SaaS category. The importance of Parallel Wireless and why it is such a passion project for him. The problem that Shoobx was solving for startups and its exit to Fidelity. How the tech industry repeats itself and his thoughts on AI.* Plus so much more!Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 349 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Chris Gardner, Partner at Underscore VC.One time, could be luck. Two times, ok… maybe you are on to something… but in the case of Chris, he has been part of several acquisitions, so there is something deeply there in terms of his ability to pick the right company to join or company to help co-found. There is no denying it, based on his track record as an operator, there is an obvious translation to his current position as a venture capitalist.This episode is another fun walk down Boston tech memory lane, as we talk about some legendary companies that were acquired like edocs (an early e-billing and customer self-service applications), M-Qube (early mobile messaging and content services company), ExtendMedia (white label video platform), and Paydiant (an early mobile wallet tech company that powered payment apps for Subway, Harris Teeter supermarkets, Capital One, MCX, and many more).What I also find really interesting is how Chris’ background spans across both product and marketing, where he led both entities at companies. Perhaps I’m wrong, but it is a skillset that I haven’t seen too often.Chris is currently a Partner at Underscore, a firm that is investing in pre-Seed and Seed B2B software founders. The firm recently announced a new $58M Fund III.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Chris’ background story and how he got into the tech industry. The stories and his role in the companies previously mentioned including being a co-founder of Paydiant, their impact on mobile wallets, and the company’s acquisition by PayPal and what he learned there. How Chris became a VC and the details on what he is targeting in terms of investments at Underscore. Pitch advice for startups and the importance of storytelling. How you need to think about compensation structure as a company scales. And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 348 of The VentureFizz Podcast, sponsored by Silicon Valley Bank, features Jonathan Bensamoun, Founder & CEO of Fi.It’s crazy to think that The VentureFizz Podcast has been around since 2018 and I believe that I’ve only had one repeat guest and that founder was talking about a new company.Thus, this is the first time I am doing a follow up episode and Jonathan was my guest for Episode 110 back in 2019.I ran into Jonathan at the Lerer Hippeau summer party in NYC and as we were chatting about his business, it seemed very obvious that we needed to do a new interview.What’s cool about this episode is the format, as it is different from most of my interviews. Since we already discussed his background story in the original episode, we were able to go deeper into Fi’s business and what has happened over the past 5 years.If you are not familiar with Fi, they are the creators of the Fi Smart Dog Collar which not only has real-time location tracking, but the device also includes activity, sleep, and behavior monitoring. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A brief overview of Jonathan’s background story and what was the inspiration behind Fi. The latest about the Series 3 product line, plus a demo and all the cool features. The importance of sleep tracking for your dog and how the movement to health tracking is a key piece of Fi’s strategy. Lessons learned from retail and why a straight direct-to-consumer model is the right fit for them at this point in time. Building out a company’s leadership team and Board of Directors. What the fundraising process has looked like through Fi’s journey. Creating a category and why more competition in the industry would be a good thing. And so much more.More about our sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 347 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Joe Caruso, Investor & Mentor.Lots of people know of Joe as an angel investor, but when I think of Joe… I think of a mentor to so many entrepreneurs and a major supporter of the Boston startup ecosystem.If you go through Joe’s portfolio of investments from his Bantam Group website, it will give a strong perspective to the depth of his connection to the Boston tech scene. This podcast interview is a bit different. We start off by talking about his role as a mentor and during that conversation, we weave in his background like leaving high school before getting his diploma and enrolling into Northeastern. He shares lots of great advice throughout the conversation.What I found to be incredibly fun was the talk down memory lane and getting to hear the inside story of some of his investments in companies like HubSpot, Constant Contact, Carbonite, and LevelUp, plus the missed opportunity with DraftKings.And one of my favorite stories actually has nothing to do with tech… he was on the board of the company that invented the Frappuccino. Oh, you think that was Starbucks? You’ll have to listen to find out…
Episode 346 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Scott Weller, CTO & Co-Founder at EnFi.The formula for a thriving tech ecosystem ideally looks something like this: Entrepreneurial-minded person works for startups and learns a ton. Perhaps they even witness success at scale to an exit. Said person takes lessons learned and builds their own company to an exit. Said person then starts to mentor and invest back into the ecosystem to fund the next generation of companies. Said person eventually finds an idea that they can’t get out of their head and launches another company.This is the case for Scott, as he was involved in tech from an early age and connected with a talented group of entrepreneurs who were building the first generation of online gaming where he witnessed a couple of exits. He then co-founded and was the CTO of SessionM which led to a successful exit to Mastercard. He was angel investing and advising companies when he and another successful entrepreneur, Josh Summers, saw a problem which was a perfect opportunity to disrupt an industry using AI. Josh has the same startup founder pedigree as he was part of the WHERE team that was acquired by PayPal and then went on to found Clypd which was acquired by Xandr.The two have come together to build a company called EnFi which recently announced $7.5M in seed funding led by Unusual Ventures with participation from Boston Seed, Argon Ventures and Impellent Ventures. EnFi is accelerating complex credit analysis and risk monitoring with AI Assistants for bank and private lending origination, underwriting, and portfolio management teams.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A discussion about the AI landscape in the Boston tech scene. Scott's background story and his early involvement with one of the very first Internet Service Providers called Intelecom Data Systems as a teenager. Working at an early stage web gaming startup called Gamesville which was acquired by Lycos. GameLogic and the early innovation of working with regulated games and the level of innovation in terms of patent creation which was acquired by Scientific Games. Being early to market with an online video product for SMBs called SnapYap that he started with others. The founding story of SessionM with Mark Hermann & Lars Albright and how the company evolved through the years, plus its acquisition by Mastercard and how things materialized post-acquisition. SessionM’s involvement in building the very successful mobile app for Starbucks and its bonus & loyalty campaigns. * The background story and all the details about EnFi and how they are disrupting the market. Common startup mistakes that he sees entrepreneurs make over and over again.* And so much more.
Episode 345 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Laura Teicher, Executive Director at FORGE.Did you know that there are over 7,000 manufacturers in the state of Massachusetts? I certainly didn’t. My gut is that most entrepreneurs think that they need to go overseas for manufacturing versus leveraging local resources. And, let’s face it, building a startup is hard but when it is a physical product… it is a whole different ballgame. However... FORGE can help.Spun out of Greentown Labs, FORGE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that helps startups figure out some of hard stuff through the journey from physical prototype to commercialization. The organization works with startups to help them figure out how to establish and scale manufacturing to sourcing from supply chains and suppliers.FORGE has supported over 800 startups with an amazing high survival rate. So, you are probably thinking… is this an accelerator… or what’s the cost… maybe they are expecting equity from your company… nope. It’s free and their impact is massive as you’ll hear from this interview with Laura.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The specialized and collaborative nature of the organizations that support the Boston hardtech startup ecosystem. Laura’s professional journey including how volunteering helped open doors for her career. All the details about FORGE in terms of how companies can get involved and how they help companies at each step along the way. The key benefits to manufacturing locally and some of the hidden costs that can arise from offshore manufacturing. * The Valleys of Death for building physical products.* And so much more.
Episode 344 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Wardah Inam, Founder & CEO of Overjet.Building a company in an underserved industry has its pros and cons. Yes, it’s nice to have less competition and a head start, but on the flip side… it might be harder to raise funding if it isn’t a sector of interest for investors or it might even tougher to acquire customers because you have to educate the market.But… if you can build it and the market is ready… it can be magic, just like you’ll hear from Wardah’s interview.Based on a personal dental experience, she recognized a problem and embarked on a journey to build a dental AI platform which ended up being the first FDA approved solution.From detecting oral disease with unmatched precision to educating patients with clearly annotated images to getting insurance claims approved 5X faster, Overjet is the dental AI platform that lets dental professionals put patients first and operate efficiently.Back in March the company announced a $53.2 million Series C round of funding which is the largest investment ever in an AI for dentistry company and it brings the total funding to date at approximately $133M.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Wardah’s background story including how she got started in building autonomous robot during undergrad. Her history as an entrepreneur starting multiple companies and her early experience working with AI. The full story of Overjet and how a lucky Uber-pool ride helped her get started in terms of building expertise in the dental industry. All the details about the company’s platform and value, plus the current state of the state of the company. Fundraising advice for underserved markets and how the Overjet story evolved over time. The importance of velocity for a startup.* And so much more.
Episode 343 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Jonathan Corbin, Co-Founder & CEO of Maven AGI and our first sponsored podcast episode! Yes, please welcome Silicon Valley Bank (more info about SVB below) as a supporter of The VentureFizz Podcast. Any time I see a funding announcement for a new company, I get excited, as I’m an optimist and I hope that every company will scale and reach great milestones… but when I saw the news about Maven and how they are using Generative AI for enterprise customer experience… it was different… it was a no-brainer moment and I’m calling it now… this is going to be an anchor company in the Boston tech scene.Why?The team. They have a world-class team from HubSpot, Google, Meta, Amazon, and Stripe. Take Jonathan for example. He was the Global VP of Customer Success & Strategy at HubSpot where he led a team that was responsible for over 200,000 customers. Prior, he held leadership roles with major tech companies like Sprinklr, Marketo, Adobe, and others. He is one example of a team that is uniquely qualified to solve this problem.The problem. The use case for Generative AI at Maven just makes a world of sense and they already have early customers with amazing results which he gets into in during our discussion.Backing. In May, Maven announced that it had raised $28 million from investors Lux Capital, M13, E14 Fund, Mentors Fund and 786 Ventures, with participation from executives from OpenAI, Google, HubSpot, and Stripe. Maven is absolutely a company to keep an eye on and one of the key companies that are part of the next wave in the Boston tech scene. Oh... and they are hiring - you can check out their jobs here.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: What the fundraising process looked like for Maven. Jonathan’s background story and a journey through his career path, plus his early entrepreneurial roots as a kid. How he learned to lead a global organization of over 1,000 team members at HubSpot. What led Jonathan and his two co-founders Eugene Mann and Sami Shalabi down the path of starting Maven. All the details about Maven and the velocity they have been operating under in terms of building the platform and getting early customer adoption. Advice for startups on building out a customer success function. The vibe for the AI startup community in the Boston tech scene. And so much more.Episode Sponsor:As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $40B in loans as of Q1 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 342 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Matt Weinberg, Partner at Max Ventures.Did you know that there are a ton of resources available for startups from the government including non-dilutive funding? I’m talking billions of dollars are allocated to hundreds of startups every year.This is a topic that has never been discussed on The VentureFizz Podcast and Matt is uniquely qualified to speak about this topic based on his experience in the public sector, including his time at the Small Business Administration’s Office of Investment and Innovation.Matt shares some very useful information about the pros and cons of exploring this potential funding path which includes information from organizations like the National Science Foundation’s SBIR program.Today, Matt is in the private sector as a Partner at Max Ventures, an early-stage venture firm based in New York City with a global reach and a primary focus on digital health, SaaS, and digital commerce. The firm has also co-founded 8 venture backed companies.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Matt’s background story and getting his career started in government under the Obama administration. How his various positions in the public sector helped him take his career into venture capital. Joining Max Ventures in the early days of the firm and how it differentiates from other VC firms in terms of both investing and incubating its own companies. The details about The Post and Elion, two of the companies it has launched. How to get on Matt’s radar and what he expects to get out of a first meeting. The benefits of small group dinners and some tips for success.* And so much more.
Episode 341 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Somak Chattopadhyay, Managing Partner at Armory Square Ventures.Yes, markets like the Bay Area, NYC, and Boston get a lot of attention when it comes to building startups and having the ability to raise capital, but there are lots of other places to build a successful company. This has always been the case, but the pandemic definitely pushed this reality further. This is why a firm like Amory Square Ventures exists. There are lots of secondary markets where entrepreneurs need access to capital and it is also a very important matter for the local economy for these companies to grow and create jobs, versus relocating. Somak shares the details of what led him down the path to start Armory Square Ventures, a seed and early stage venture fund, and why their approach of investing in seconday markets has not only been a differentiator for their firm but what they also consider as an optimism engine and a community catalyst for regions outside Silicon Valley.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice on how founders can push back on advice from investors. Somak’s background story and his early career in startups. How he landed in venture capital at Edison Ventures and Tribeca Venture Partners. The details on what they are targeting for investments and portfolio company examples like Machinery Partner and ACV Auctions, a Buffalo company that went public. Somak’s anti-portfolio, companies that he reviewed and an investment didn’t work out and went on to be a successful company. Advice on building a marketplace.* And so much more.
Episode 340 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Steph Johnson, Co-Founder & CEO at Multiplayer.Steph is an inspiration. As discussed in this interview, her background might not be the prototypical tech CEO profile for a few reasons. First, she came up through the agency world and then ran comms in-house for major tech companies like DigitalOcean and MongoDB. Second, she is a female founder of a dev tools platform startup and yes, we need more female founders. And third, she has a neurological condition called Tourette Syndrome. All of these factors have ultimately given her unique skills to thrive in her current role.Multiplayer is a visual collaborative platform that makes it easy for engineering teams to design, develop, and manage distributed software. The company is venture backed and on a mission to create better ways for developers to work.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Steph’s background story and how she got her career started with agencies in NYC. Her decision to move in-house to run comms at DigitalOcean and MongoDB, plus what she learned at each company like the importance of a developer community. Advice for making the shift from agency to in-house roles. Founding Multiplayer with Tom Johnson, her Co-Founder, CTO, and husband… and why being married was a strategic advantage when they raised capital. The details on the Mutliplayer platform and its beta release. Advice on the storytelling element for a company building technical products.* And so much more.
Episode 339 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Andy Palmer, serial entrepreneur, seed investor, and now author.Andy is one of my OG’s, that being original guests. If you go way back into the archives of The VentureFizz Podcast, you’ll find my first interview with him for Episode #22 back in 2018. In that interview, we talk about his full background story, his career building companies like Tamr & Vertica, plus investing in companies.For this interview, Andy and I connected for a different reason. He has written a book with his co-author, Paula Caliguiri titled “Live for a Living: How to Create Your Career Journey to Work Happier Not Harder.”The two met on a Bumble date which resulted in a friendship and a collaboration for this book, which is useful at any stage of one’s career. It’s ultimately a guide to designing a life that leverages your personal values, motivators, and goals in your career.I’m a fan of audiobooks, so it was fun listening to Andy and Paula narrate the book and I have to admit, they both have great voices for it. Plus, it was cool to know some of the people that they highlight in the book like Elizabeth Lawler, CEO & Co-Founder of AppMap, who we recently on my podcast.The format of this interview is different from my normal style which was a fun change of pace.In this episode, we chat about: How Andy got involved in AI back in the 80’s and how this is his third AI hype cycle, plus the details about his latest company called DBOS. The inspiration behind the book. The 5 phases of ideal careers that being: Starter Phase, Foundational Phase, High-Growth Phase, High-Focus Phase, and Give-Back Phase. We go through each phase in detail. Why a simultaneous career path can be a benefit. The advantages of working at startups and how it can push your career forward. And more!There is obviously a lot more to this book than what we had the opportunity to chat about, so make sure you check it out! The title again is Live for a Living and you can find it on Amazon or the audio version Spotify or any other major outlet.
Episode #338 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Tasneem Dohadwala, Founding Partner at Excelestar Ventures.It’s a lot more common to find VC firms that are investing into deep tech or hard tech, but when Tasneem started Excelestar Ventures in 2010, it was far from the norm. Not only was it abnormal to invest in companies building highly advanced engineering products, but it was also a very challenging time in the tech industry in general. So, to start a new VC firm was very rare.Excelestar Ventures is a bit different than most VC firms as they operate an evergreen fund which gives them flexibility, especially during different economic cycles, in terms of the types of investments they can make versus having to raise a new fund every 2-3 years. The firm is also passionate about funding disruptive businesses led by under-represented founders. Across Excelestar’s entire portfolio, 61% of their companies are minority-led and 50% are female-led.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Fundraising advice for women or minority founders and why you should always be thinking about asking for introductions. Tasneem’s background story and how she got her career starting in finance at Goldman Sachs, plus her decision to go back to B-school at HBS. All the details about Excelestar Ventures in terms of the companies they are targeting, including her interest in personalized medical devices, as well as how their due diligence process works. Tasneem’s involvement with Golden Seeds, a firm focused on investing in women-led companies. Advice for pitching your company and the importance of being able to properly articulate the value proposition of your company, having the right market size for that investor, and another factor that she calls the confirmatory mindset. And so much more.
Episode 337 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Gloria Hwang, Founder & CEO of Thousand.Gloria’s career has centered around mission oriented initiatives and companies. Starting at Habitat for Humanity… then to TOMS, which is the gold standard in terms of businesses with a social mission based on their One for One model. She joined the company in its early years and played several key roles while there.As the Founder of Thousand, a Public Benefit Corporation, Gloria named the company after an initial goal of saving 1,000 lives (which they have passed) by making a bike helmet that consumers will actually enjoy wearing. The inspiration for the company came from a tragic story of a coworker who passed away from a bike accident in NYC.When you think of it, it is a category that hasn’t really evolved in terms of style and functionality. What started out as a Kickstarter project… then fast forward to today, Thousand has brought a new level of style and innovation to a category that has been stagnant forever. And, it is working. The company continues to grow aggressively and has been expanding into other categories like the launch of its Thousand Jr. collection. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A deep discussion around building a company that is mission and community focused. Gloria’s background story and her mentality as a builder that started as a child which was influenced by her father who started the robotics program for NASA. Her experience at TOMS including playing a key role in building out their non-profit and giving programs and what it was like working closely with Blake Mycoskie. The full lifecycle story of Thousand, including how she got started from designing the product to manufacturing to building a brand. How they decided to expand their product line based on feedback from existing customers versus trying to build out new markets. Starting the company with a bootstrapped mentality and how that helped the company over the long run.* And so much more.
Episode 336 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Julia Rodgers, Esq., CEO & Co-Founder of HelloPrenup, a platform that takes the awkwardness out of discussing and creating prenuptial agreements.This is the 3rd and final podcast interview from my live sessions at Suffolk University with 3 alums that being Don Bulens, Ernesto DiGiambattista, and Julia Rodgers.Some of the best entrepreneurs that I have interviewed for this podcast have either bootstrapped or raised a very, very minimal amount of capital to build their company in the early years. If you are successful with this approach, there are many benefits including the fact that you will have likely built a solid foundation for your business and if you do decide to raise capital to help fuel the growth, you’ll have a lot more control over the terms.As you’ll hear from this interview, Julia has raised only $150,000 total. She started working on HelloPrenup while working a fulltime job. This would involve working with the developer on the initial build of the product while also writing 1,200 word blog posts daily about prenups. This is a true foundational story of entrepreneurship and why I love doing this podcast.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Julia’s background story and her experience as an attorney in family law. The industry trend that prompted her to start a business around prenups, a topic that has a history of being a taboo between couples. All the details about HelloPrenup including how she met her co-founder, Sarabeth Jaffe. A deep dive into their appearance on ABC’s Shark Tank and their successful investment from Kevin O’Leary and Nirav Tolia, the Founder of Nextdoor. Why she hasn’t raised institutional venture capital funding to date. How she has approached hiring for the team and found people who are passionate about their business. Advice for female founders and the power of networking. And so much more.
Episode 335 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Ernesto DiGiambattista, entrepreneur and investor.This episode is the 2nd of three interviews that were recorded live at Suffolk University with Suffolk alums. Ernesto has a unique background that hits the trifecta of experience. He spent time in senior roles with larger enterprise corporations, then he founded a venture backed company called ZeroNorth which was acquired by Harness, and he’s now an investor in early stage startups as Managing Director of Genesis Accel.Thus, he was able to provide a very unique perspective, not only around building companies but we also talk about some of the inner-workings of the venture capital industry.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The details behind EIEIO, which is the acronym that Ernesto uses for hiring, that being Energy, IQ/EQ, Experience, Integrity, and Organizational Fit. Ernesto’s background story and how he got his career started in the tech industry and how he landed his role at Bank of America and then as an executive at Sentinel Benefits. What led him down the path of entrepreneurship and how he recognized the market opportunity that turned into ZeroNorth and the full lifecycle story behind the company. What Ernesto and his partner, Tom Meredith, are targeting for investments. The importance of understanding the fund dynamics of a VC firm like their deployment requirements and other key factors. Common pitch mistakes that he sees from founders and why you should show customer retention and revenue growth.* His view on customer success at a startup in the early stage and why it might be more important than sales.And so much more.
Episode #334 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Don Bulens, 5 time Startup CEO and Executive Chair at CloudZero.This episode was recorded live at Suffolk University which was so much fun! We recorded 3 interviews with Suffolk alums on April 2nd, so this is the first conversation and we’ll have two more coming in the following weeks.And just a side note about Suffolk, the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well at the school. I was blown away by how many students attended the sessions and how many came up to me afterward with great questions.Back to this episode... Don has had lots of success throughout his career including being the CEO at EqualLogic which exited to Dell for $1.4B in cash, which was the largest cash transaction of its time for a venture backed company… but what I admire about Don is his transparency about his failures.His first two CEO positions didn’t quite work out and he shares the details of this experience of getting knocked down and losing confidence, but how he got back at it and ultimately persevered.Today, Don is the Executive Chair at CloudZero, a venture backed cloud cost intelligence platform, which raised $41M last year in one of the most difficult markets to raise capital.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Why the success of a company is all about the people. Don’s background story and how he got into sales, plus the importance of learning how to sell. A journey down the tech industry across the companies he led as a CEO - that being Radnet, Trellix, EqualLogic, Unidesk, and CloudZero. Don’s 3 secrets to success. The story of the EqualLogic exit. All the details about CloudZero and how they found product market fit. Meeting his wife, Lynne Capozzi at Suffolk, who was the Chief Marketing Officer at Acquia. And so much more.
Episode 333 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Geri Kirilova, Managing Partner at Laconia.From what I’ve seen, it is very rare for someone to start their career in venture and continue to progress up the ranks. Usually, an Associate or Senior Associate will do a rotation for 2-3 years and then move on to a portfolio company, maybe start a company, or do something else.For Geri, outside of a stop at Techstars, the path to venture capital started when she was at NYU as an intern for VC firms including Laconia. Fast forward to today, she is a Managing Partner at the firm and has been recognized by Forbes as a 30 Under 30 recipient.Laconia leads investments in pre-seed and seed stage B2B software companies with a focus around supporting founders in the early days in terms of sales acceleration, operational execution, and capital strategy.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice on building a career in venture capital. Why she chose NYU and the details of her experience while in college as an operator. A masterclass on how to build your network and lots of really useful tips on how to avoid the uneasy feeling that some people might have with networking at events. How Laconia got started by David Arcara & Jeffrey Silverman, plus all the details on the firm. Seed round funding benchmarks in the current market. The unique due diligence process that Laconia runs which helps founders make potential customer introductions. Details on Laconia’s internship and fellowship programs. And so much more.
Episode 332 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Ben Lerer, Managing Partner of Lerer Hippeau.The tech scene in New York City has come a very, very long way over the past 14 or 15 years. A lot of that transformation and growth was due to access to early-stage capital which wasn’t prevalent back then, but Lerer Hippeau was a key element to the foundation of its success as a seed stage investor.The firm was an early investor in many consumer brands that you recognize as they have all been very successful like Allbirds, Casper, Warby Parker, BuzzFeed, Mirror, Venmo, and many more. Its reputation was built on these consumer breakouts, but ultimately the firm is category agnostic investing equally across the enterprise and consumer landscapes.For example, take a look at two of their most recent investments, which are Boston companies, 10Beauty (consumer robotics for manicures) and Tollbit (content monetization in the era of AI), which we talk about in details for this podcast.Ben is now a fulltime VC after founding and running Thrillist that scaled and then added other digital media brands under its umbrella as Group Nine Media, which was acquired by Vox Media.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Ben’s thoughts on the market and if now is the ideal time to start a company. The inspiration behind Thrillist, plus lots of stories and lessons learned around the full lifecycle and evolution of the company to Group Nine Media and acquisition by Vox. Advice for entrepreneurs on building a startup media company in today’s world. How Lerer Hippeau came to fruition and what they are targeting for investments, plus why he considers himself a talent driven investor versus a thesis driven investor.* And so much more.
Episode 331 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Rob Go, Co-Founder & Partner at NextView Ventures.I’ve been fortunate to have many people support my journey with building VentureFizz through the years and Rob was one of the earliest. Shortly after I launched the site, he reached out looking to meet up and needless to say, I jumped at the chance. Through the years, Rob has always been incredibly helpful with his feedback on VentureFizz when I needed an outside perspective. I thank him at the beginning of our show, but I did want to note a sincere “thank you” here as well.Rob’s also has a podcast that you should check out called The Idea Maze where he asks the question: where do great entrepreneurial ideas really come from? You can find it on all major podcast platforms, plus I have included a link to it in the show notes.NextView Ventures is a pre-seed and seed stage VC firm that invests in founders who want to redesign the Everyday Economy. The firm’s portfolio includes Bobbie, The Browser Company, Devoted Health, WHOOP, Attentive, and more.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The five flavors of AI. Rob’s background story including what he learned from his Dad’s entrepreneurial endeavors, getting his career started in management consulting, and then learning product at eBay. How he landed a VC position at Spark Capital, plus a fun story about his almost investment into Groupon. What led Rob and his Co-Founders, David Beisel and Lee Hower, down the path of starting a seed stage firm and what the seed investing landscape looked like back then. What Rob is targeting for investments and the importance of founder-opportunity fit. What he’s learned while running a venture firm.* And so much more.This Week's SponsorThis is exciting… for the “Hey Mom, I made it” category… we are in a book… not any old book… but a book from MIT! Be on the lookout for the new book for entrepreneurs called Startup Tactics. It is available globally starting on April 2nd and it features 15 tactics entrepreneurs need for success. You’ll find VentureFizz listed as a “tool of the trade” in the chapter on Hiring for Startups! Amazing!!! Get your copy now from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookshop.org.
Episode 330 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Harman Singh Narula, Co-Founder & CEO of Canary Technologies.“Are these entrepreneurs uniquely qualified to build an industry leading company?” - this is one of the many questions that most (if not all) VCs ask themselves when deciding to make an investment into a company.When you look at Harman’s background, it is obvious that his “Founder Fit” is at a very high scale. As a graduate from Cornell’s esteemed hotel school, he built a foundation in an industry that was ripe for disruption, that being the hospitality industry. The guest experience is so mission critical, yet for years and years, hotels relied on old systems and the same old check-in process.Not anymore. Canary Technologies is modernizing the hotel tech stack with its end-to-end Guest Management Platform that digitizes everything from post-booking through checkout. The company works with more than 20,000 hoteliers in 80 countries and is venture-backed by Insight Partners, F-Prime Capital, Y Combinator, Thayer Ventures, Commerce Ventures, and others.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A conversation about the market for vertical SaaS solutions. Harman’s background story and how he landed at Cornell to study Hotel Administration, plus how he got his career started including spending time in the strategy group at Starwood Hotels. His long standing friendship with his Co-Founder, SJ Sawhney, and what led them down the path of starting Canary Technologies. All the details about Canary, from their experience at Y Combinator to surviving the pandemic to the latest with the company & its platform, including their use of AI. Outside of their domain experience, the key factors that influenced future rounds of capital. And so much more.
Episode 329 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Pano Anthos, Founder & Managing Director of XRC Ventures.I always love it when things come full circle. I first met Pano back in, what I believe was 2008 when he was building Hangout Industries. I was running a recruiting firm at the time and I stopped into their offices to discuss some of their hiring plans. Hangout was early to market as the company’s technology in the metaverse lane was very impressive but not ready for adoption by consumers yet which apparently is still the case.It was great to come full circle years later to interview Pano for The VentureFizz Podcast and get up to speed on what he’s been up to in the startup circles. Inspired by a discussion with his wife about the retail industry, Pano went off to start XRC Ventures, a venture firm & startup accelerator investing in retail tech, consumer goods and the consumer healthtech sectors. The firm’s portfolio includes companies like Billie, ShopShops, Fillogic, and many more.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A conversation about anti-dilution protection and why that is an important term for entrepreneurs to understand. How Pano got into entrepreneurship by starting a company in the global trade industry and how the early days of the internet impacted this sector. Other companies that Pano has been involved in like Pantero, Hangout, and others. Launching XRC Ventures and how the accelerator works, plus what makes it unique like not having a traditional cohort program. The details on the firm’s Opportunity and Brand funds. Thoughts on the Apple Vision Pro and spatial computing.* And so much more.
Episode #328 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Ellen Chisa, Partner at boldstart ventures.Back in 2016, we wrote a profile about Ellen on VentureFizz when she was leading product management at Lola.com. The profile was part of a series that we called Driven, which I think is a very fitting word to describe Ellen… and ironically, the discussion around considering a role in venture capital actually came up. So, in my opinion, it was only a matter of time.From being part of the winning team in high school for the FIRST Robotics competition, to starting a company in college, to a career path in product management, to leading a company that was developing a new programming language… Ellen has built the perfect core foundation for a successful career as an investor.boldstart is a venture capital firm that is your partner from inception for developer first, infrastructure, & SaaS founders that looking to turn your idea into a category-creating iconic company. The firm’s portfolio includes companies like Snyk, Kustomer, BigID, Superhuman and many more.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A conversation about what makes a great product manager. * Ellen’s background including the story off taking some time of to build an EdTech startup with other classmates while in college at the Olin School of Engineering, * Working on early mobile initiatives at Microsoft, then joining Kickstarter as a Product Manager, and what led her to pursue her MBA at Harvard Business School. Meeting serial entrepreneur, Paul English, and leading product at Lola.com, a travel app. Developing a new programming language for her startup called Dark with Paul Biggar which allows companies to build software faster, plus what this experience taught her in terms of leading a company and getting adoption with the developer community. The future of AI developed code. How she landed in venture capital at boldstart including what she is targeting for investments and what has been her biggest surprise as a VC. Startup pitch advice. * And so much more.
Episode #327 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Reed Sturtevant, General Partner at Engine Ventures.This is exciting! Why? Because this episode is longer than my normal interviews, as Reed and I cover his career that spans multiple decades across major technological platform shifts. This means that based on his career, he has so many great stories to share. It is like a historical walkthrough of the Boston tech scene. We even had to do two sessions, so if you are watching this video from our YouTube channel then you’ll notice the different sweaters that Reed is wearing.Today, Reed is a General Partner at Engine Ventures, a “tough tech” venture capital firm launched by MIT and trust me on this one, as you’ll want to stay tuned throughout the whole episode! Here is an outline of what we cover: Reed’s background story, including graduating from high school at 15 years old, his experience as a factory worker and his studies at MIT. Developing a program called Freelance Graphics at a startup that was acquired by Lotus and his experience there, which was twice the size of Microsoft at the time. Co-Founding Radnet, which raised the largest venture round of its time in Boston. Running company development in Boston for IdeaLab, Bill Gross’ internet incubator which spun out companies like Compete, Picasa and others. Meeting Katie Rae at EONS, a startup founded by Jeff Taylor, and then running Microsoft Startup Labs. Launching Project 11 Ventures with Katie and then running Techstar Boston together which included many successful companies like GrabCAD, PillPack, and others. Founder conflict and how it can destroy a startup. The details of Engine Ventures and what Reed is targeting for investments, plus portfolio company examples. What it was like leading a course at MIT with Sir Tim Berners-Lee. And so much more.
Episode 326 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Dries Buytaert, Founder and Project Lead of Drupal and Co-Founder, CTO, and Chief Strategy Officer of Acquia.Many of the most successful companies in tech were created by founders who built something that was to fill their own need. This was certainly the case for Dries, who back in 2000, started an internal online message board for his friends from his dorm room in Belgium which turned into Drupal. Fast forward to today, Drupal powers 2% of all websites in the world and over 10,000 people contribute to the Drupal open source project every year. In addition to running one of the most successful open source projects, Dries went on to build Acquia, along with his Co-Founder & the company’s first CEO, Jay Batson and early investor - Michael Skok. Acquia’s innovative business model has been a blueprint for other open source companies.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The details of the Drupal community and what are the right ingredients for building a successful community. Dries’ background story growing up in Belgium, how he developed a passion for technology, and the full story of how Drupal came to fruition. Drupal’s growth and momentum, plus a great story of how the community stepped in to help fund this open source initiative. The early days of Acquia in terms of figuring out the business model and then scaling the company under Tom Erickson’s leadership. The current state of the state of Acquia as a Digital Experience Platform. Why entrepreneurship is 80% sales and marketing, even as an engineer.* And so much more.
Episode 325 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Alex Shashou, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of 10Beauty.About 10 years ago, Peter Thiel is credited for saying “We wanted flying cars, instead we got 140 characters.”True, Twitter or X certainly was not in the same frame of mind as to what we saw on The Jetsons, but are we finally starting to get there? The Roomba was a step in the right direction in terms of a consumer robot success story. But… the future just might be closer than you think in terms of the possibilities of robotics and automation? Behold… I share with you 10Beauty! The world’s first and only autonomous manicure machine. I might not be the target market for this robotics company, but my wife and two daughters are definitely in the strike zone and when I told them about it… their immediate response was "WHEN AND WHERE CAN I GET ONE!" 10Beauty is not going to be available for consumers to purchase (at least not initially), as they are taking a B2B approach in terms of their go-to-market strategy.For me, it’s less about the tasks that this robot is performing and more about a team that is thinking bigger and ultimately delivering on something that is incredibly difficult. 10Beauty has raised $38M in funding from Shine Capital, Lerer Hippeau, Imaginary Ventures, and Red Sea Ventures. And, they already have serious traction as they already sold out of their entire first run of machines which means they have over $13M in annual manicure subscription revenue ahead.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A deep dive into the challenges and the complexity of building a robotics startup. Alex’s background story and how Alex met his co-founder, Justin Effron, the first day of school at the University of Pennsylvania. The story of their first company, Alice, a task management platform for the hospitality industry that was acquired by Expedia, plus how they connected with their technical co-founder, Dmitry Koltunov. The definition of a good partnership between co-founders and how they divvy up roles & responsibilities. All the details on 10Beauty… from meeting Chris Casey (one of the original Roomba engineers) to building out the initial prototype to raising funding to the company’s business model and projected launch. And so much more.
Episode #324 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Sameer Gulati, Founder & CEO of Ordway.Sameer loves SaaS and it’s for good reason… it is expected that the size of the SaaS market may hit almost $1 trillion by 2030! Yes, the tech industry is having some challenges, but did you know that… even though the evolution to SaaS started 20 something years ago… the adoption of SaaS still only sits at a 36% adoption rate versus traditional on-premise software. There is still such a massive opportunity for growth.Ordway is a billing and revenue automation platform that is specifically designed for today’s innovative, technology-centric business models. With Ordway you can automate billing, revenue recognition, and investor KPIs for recurring revenue from subscriptions or usage-based pricing models. The company is venture backed by leading VC firms like CRV, Clocktower Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, and others.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A deep conversation around the current state of the SaaS industry and the evolution of pricing models. Sameer’s background story and how he joined one of the first SaaS companies called Intacct which exited for a billion dollars. Working as part of the early stage team at Workday, Zuora, Zynga, GrubBeat, and Spree Commerce. How he leveraged his experience in finance and billing software to disrupt the industry and build Ordway, plus all the details on the company. Why it is a bad idea to over-capitalize your startup. The importance of being a mission critical application versus a nice-to-have solution.* And so much more.
Episode 323 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Elizabeth Lawler, Founder & CEO of AppMap.A question that I ask every guest at the end of every interview is - “What do you like to do for fun outside of work?” Oftentimes, I get common answers like - hiking, traveling, etc. But, Elizabeth’s answer has by far been the best one yet and it is proof that she is not only a great entrepreneur but also a maker at heart.Elizabeth is building with her husband & Co-Founder, Kevin, and their kids, a two seater RV-12 airplane. They previously built a car together when the kids were 6 & 8 years old, so this is their next challenge. So cool!AppMap is a leading developer of code visualization and runtime code review analysis technology. Its platform is redefining how developers improve their software and has become one of the fastest-growing tools for software visualization and runtime analysis. The company has raised $10 million in funding.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A deep conversation around community building and the importance of authenticity. Elizabeth’s background story and how she learned entrepreneurship from her parents. Getting her career started in public health research and epidemiology after receiving her PhD. The background story of Conjur, which was bootstrapped initially and raised a minimal amount of capital and had a successful exit to CyberArk. Preferred versus common stock and how that affects the payout post-acquisition. All the details about AppMap and how they built traction and got developers to engage with their product. How Elizabeth is supporting women entrepreneurs and the role that Andy Palmer is playing, as well. And so much more.
Episode 322 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Ryan Shank, CEO & Founder of ShareWillow.Finding the right idea for building a company that will scale is hard. It’s even harder when you get influenced by all the news about the trends in tech like AI, Web 3, crypto, or whatever is the latest trend.Yet, there are still some very large industries that are still operating with very old tech and are still ripe for disruption.Case in point is Ryan’s latest company, ShareWillow, which is a modern platform that enables businesses to design, launch, and manage profit-sharing plans.It makes me think of Gusto, which modernized payroll or Stripe, that modernized payments with tech that just worked.As Ryan was looking under the hood of this industry, it became very obvious that there was a massive opportunity. Instead of stock options, lots of companies issue profit-sharing plans and come to find out businesses that have a profit-sharing plan tend to be more profitable over the long term and get more output from employees.Yet, there really isn’t an easy way for creating a profit-sharing plan on a modern tech stack that does everything from getting started to ongoing management of the plan. Bingo! Here is a massive market opportunity to build a category defining company which is in desperate need of a modern tech stack and user experience.Investors have noticed too as the company has raised $6.5m from top-tier software investors in what ended up being an over-subscribed round.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The importance of learning sales as an entrepreneur. Ryan’s background story growing up in Ocean City, Maryland and his early entrepreneurial roots. A rant / business idea about how the experience of college tours is broken. The story of mHelpDesk and its acquisition by HomeAdvisor. The details and lessons learned about his next startup, PhoneWagon, which was a TechStars company that went on to get acquired by CallRail. The state of the state with ShareWillow * Things to think about during the acquisition process, including how an escrow factors in.* And so much more.
Episode #321 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Gabi Steele, Co-Founder & CEO at Preql.Building a company is hard and there is no “one right way” to go about getting started, especially when you are creating a new category. But, when I talk to founders like Gabi, there was always an emphasis on generating revenue from the start.It’s a smart move, as you can obviously control your own destiny through any customer work that might seem more like a services play. But, in addition to being able to pay the bills by bootstrapping, you are also getting a tremendous amount of market research and exposure to the real world problems that your customers are trying to solve.It was this approach that allowed Gabi and her Co-Founder, Leah Weiss, the ability to spin off and launch Preql as a stand alone product company and raise capital to grow it.Preql is a no-code data transformation solution built for business users. Their technology’s core solutions help companies with data access, metric management, and data governance. The company has raised $7M from Bessemer Venture Partners.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A deep dive into the world of data visualization and the career path into this field. Gabi background story including how her career got started at The Washington Post. Her experience at WeWork, where she met her co-founder, and the creation of the company’s Data Cult program… plus, how the portrayal in the WeCrashed series may have been under-dramatized. The founding of Raw Haus, a community connecting emerging talent across the art, design, technology, and entrepreneurial spaces. The background story of Preql and how they built revenue from its consultancy and spun out a product. The challenges of building a new category in tech and selling it to a business user. Hiring the company’s first sales leader. Lessons learned while building a product company.* And so much more.
This is episode #320 and today’s guest is Mike Duda, Managing Partner at Bullish.Peloton, Harry’s, Warby Parker, Casper, Birchbox… these are all iconic direct-to-consumer brands that have all disrupted various categories that were ripe for disruption. Take Warby Parker, the eyewear company that disrupted Luxottica’s business which pretty much owned the whole market from eyewear brands to storefronts. Or Casper, the company that made the process of purchasing a mattress much more enjoyable.A common thread for all of these companies is Bullish. One-part consumer investment firm, one-part strategic agency, Bullish blends capital, consulting and creation to design the most remarkable businesses in the world.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A discussion on the state of the state of the consumer market and a dive into Function of Beauty, a personalized shampoo DTC company. Mike’s background story and initial career through the ranks in the agency world. A sincere nod of appreciation to First Round Capital for starting office hours for startups and how they were helpful to both of us starting our own businesses. The story of Bullish and how they set out to build a different firm through its project based work and investments. What it’s like building a Super Bowl commercial for a brand. The investment criteria for Bullish and what he means by a “chip on the shoulder” entrepreneur.* And so much more.
Episode 319 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Peter Berg, Managing Partner at M12, Microsoft’s venture capital fund.I’ve had lots of investors as guests on the podcast, but I was excited to interview Peter because I’ve never interviewed an investor from a CVC or a Corporate Venture Capital fund.I’m not sure what the number is today, but according to a 2023 report about CVCs, it counts 1,100 active CVCs. Based on this scale, it is a very meaningful opportunity for entrepreneurs in terms of raising capital.Thus, Peter and I pretty much get right into the details towards the beginning of our conversation about the world of CVCs… from what they are, differentiators, strategic advantages of raising capital from a CVC, how to evaluate a CVC, and other topics.As previously stated, M12 is Microsoft’s VC fund. The firm invests in Seed, Series A, and Series B rounds of funding across different categories like Cloud Infrastructure, AI, Cybersecurity, Web 3 & Gaming, Vertical SaaS, and Developer Tools. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: How Peter landed a first name @peter handle on Twitter / X.com. A walk through Peter’s career including his investment into Square and the creation of Visa Ventures which scaled to a global organization and went on to invest in Stripe, LoopPay (a Boston startup that was acquired by Samsung), and many other companies. All the details on Peter’s area of focus at M12 and what he is targeting for investments. M12 portfolio company examples like Inworld and Typeface. His thoughts and opinions on the current state of the market for raising capital. And so much more.
Episode #318 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Henrik Werdelin, entrepreneur & author.Incubators are not a new thing but some are certainly more successful than others. Take prehype, a venture development firm in New York City where Henrik is a Founding Partner. It has holdings in major success stories like BarkBox and Ro, plus over a dozen other venture capital-backed startups.As a Co-Founder of BarkBox, he was part of the team that built one of the most successful subscription commerce companies with a focus on making dogs and their owners happy. The company went public in 2021 and has launched several businesses internally on top of the core business like BARK Food, BARK Bright, and more.Henrik’s latest project coming out of prehype is Audos, an AI copilot for entrepreneurs which is committed to making entrepreneurship accessible to all. With a focus on customer-centric strategies and innovative problem-solving, Audos empowers people to “just get going.” Conversation Outline: A discussion around how greatness can’t be planned. The details about Henrik’s background including his experience at MTV and how he ended up in the startup world. How prehype operates. The story of BarkBox in terms of the full lifecycle of the company including the day that BarkBox went public. All the details on Audos and how it will help entrepreneurs. Henrik’s 8+1 Framework which allows him be a bit more purposeful with what he spends his time on and live a more rich & meaningful life.* And so much more!
Episode 317 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Deon Nicholas, CEO & Co-Founder of Forethought.I was at a couple of networking events the other week and let’s just say the word AI was brought up many, many times. Yes, we are in a major shift in terms of a tech platform, but doesn’t it feel like some companies are forcing AI into their business model or solution… versus an organic solution. Well, this is not the case for Forethought where AI has been core to their platform since the beginning. Forethought is a leading Generative AI company providing customer service solutions that transform the customer experience. The company has raised over $92M in VC funding from top investors.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A discussion around AI and how it should be organically applied to a business and not forced. Deon’s background story including how he got involved in AI back in high school and getting his career started at Dropbox and Pure Storage. The background story of Forethought and how they ended up pitching at and winning TechCrunch Disrupt. How Forethought is disrupting the customer service industry and why AI as a solution makes sense. * The current state of the company and future outlook. The importance of storytelling for raising capital, hiring, sales, etc. And so much more.
Episode 316 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Clement Cazalot, CEO & Co-Founder of Machinery Partner.From scaling docTrackr to an exit… to running the Boston Techstars program… to his latest company… since coming to Boston from France in 2011, Clem has become an anchor of the Boston tech scene as an entrepreneur, investor, and community builder. Machinery Partner is on a mission to digitize access to high quality heavy equipment and machinery for small and medium sized businesses. Its unique, integrated model offers procurement, financing and service that are more affordable, more efficient and more accessible for customers, enabling them to start or scale their businesses and punch above their weight in a competitive landscape. The company just recently announced $11M in funding.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A discussion around the current state of the tech scene in Boston. Building docTrackr and how Katie Rae, who was the Managing Director of Techstars Boston at the time, persuaded Clem to move the company to the U.S. His experience running the Techstars Boston accelerator and the most common issue he would see with entrepreneurs. His family roots in heavy equipment and all the details about Machinery Partner in terms of how they are digitizing the heavy equipment and machinery industry. The latest on the company in terms of the new round of funding and plans ahead. The importance of finding the right investors who are aligned with your business.* And so much more.
Episode 315 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Jordan Fliegel, Managing Director of Techstars’ NYC and Sports accelerators.Athlete, entrepreneur, investor, mentor, are just some of the words to describe Jordan’s career.Originally a fixture of the Boston tech scene with his first company, CoachUp, and now a major part of the NYC tech scene as the leader of the Techstars program, it is shocking that Jordan hasn’t been a guest on The VentureFizz Podcast, since that is the two markets that we are focused on. Well, the wait is finally over and it was worth the wait! If you are not familiar with Techstars, it is the world’s most active pre-seed investor and one of the top accelerators in the world. Since 2006, Techstars has worked with over 9,000 founders from companies like DigitalOcean, Zipline, DataRobot, and more that have gone on to raise over $26B in funding.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The similarities between coaching athletes and mentoring entrepreneurs. Jordan’s background story and his experience playing professional basketball in Israel. The inspiration behind CoachUp, a venture backed marketplace that connects athletes with personal coaches, and how he landed Steph Curry as an investor. Working closely with his childhood friend, Jeremy Levine, on Draft, a fantasy sports company, which was acquired by Paddy Power Betfair. Launching the Techstars Sports Accelerator in Indianapolis and portfolio company examples, plus the details on the NYC program. The inside look at how companies are selected for Techstars.* And so much more.
Episode 314 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Cory Munchbach, CEO of BlueConic.There is no set rule on how one becomes a CEO of a tech company and when you look at Cory’s career path, it is one of the main reasons why I encourage people to work for high growth startups. She was employee #17 at BlueConic, eight years ago, and was announced as the company’s CEO earlier this year. My point isn’t that you should join an early stage company because it is the best shot to a CEO role, but it is a perfect example of the career progression that one can experience if they are dedicated and are a top performer. If you are interested in becoming a CEO some day, then you are in luck as Cory shares some great advice.BlueConic is a leading pure-play customer data platform that liberates companies’ first-party data from disparate systems and makes it accessible wherever and whenever it is required to transform customer relationships and drive business growth. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Cory’s background story and how she got her career started as a Research Associate at Forrester covering the Martech industry. How she landed at BlueConic in the early days of the company and how they were able to gain traction initially. All the details about BlueConic in terms of the company’s platform today and the value it provides to customers. Lessons learned since becoming a CEO. How Cory thinks about the culture at BlueConic. The future of the Martech stack and how AI will play a role.* And so much more.
Thanksgiving is not only a special holiday because of the time with your family, all the great food, and of course, football, but it is also a time when lots of people volunteer and give back.Thus, the timing of this interview with John couldn’t have been more perfect as we head into the Thanksgiving holiday.Most people know of John as an entrepreneur and investor, as he was the founder of a company that went public and was a co-founder of General Catalyst and has since been with Sigma Prime.But what many people might not know is the philanthropic side of his background.John is the co-founder of the GreenLight Fund, a national nonprofit network matching local communities’ unmet needs with evidence-based social innovations. The organization takes a unique approach which is similar to how a VC firm operates where each city that it supports raises it’s own fund and decides on what strategic investments will have the greatest impact.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for founders on how to incorporate a social mission into their company or a culture of giving back. John background story and how he started his career in venture capital in the earlier days of the industry. Starting and scaling UroMed Corporation to an IPO. The story of how General Catalyst got started and his experience as a Venture Capitalist at Sigma Prime Ventures. What led John and his co-founder, Margaret Hall, down the path of starting the GreenLight Fund, plus how their model works and the impact it has had to various cities. Advice for entrepreneurs on how to build a company of lasting value. Why he has focused on investing into founders who are uniquely qualified and have world-leading domain experience to solve problems. And so much more.
I don’t mind shopping for groceries but my problem is that I’m a creature of habit and I tend to purchase the same things over and over again. Plus, I am terrible about meal planning, so after doing a full shop there is still “nothing to eat.”I guess I’m not the only one. As Ben and I discuss, on average, consumers spend 2-3 hours a week grocery shopping. 75% of what we buy at the grocery store are the same items as the week before and 20-30% of what is purchased at the grocery store is thrown away and wasted. Terrible.So, what if you could have a service that cuts that shopping time down to 2-3 minutes a week, plans the meals for you, creates the list of ingredients that is only 10% of what you purchased the week before, and delivers it to your home!Sounds dreamy right… well, say hello to Hungryroot.Hungryroot is the only grocery and recipe delivery service designed to make healthy eating easy, personal, and sustainable. The company is profitable with revenues of $182M for the first six months of this year all while building a “relatively speaking” capital efficient business.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Ben’s background story and how entrepreneurship was part of his DNA from an early age including starting a company at 18 years old that was ultimately acquired. The details about Savored which helped restaurants book empty tables using dynamic pricing which was acquired by Groupon. The full story about Hungryroot which evolved from selling its own line of food products and how they pivoted to a grocery service and using AI at its core since 2019. His lastest entrepreneurial side project called Every which is an app focused on enhancing human experiences and fostering deeper connections among individuals. Advice on creating and scaling a consumer business. And so much more.This week’s episode is sponsored by MarketMuse, a content intelligence platform that sets the standard for content quality. Their AI-powered software enables companies to create predictably better content at scale that increases traffic and engagement, improves productivity, and drives revenue. Get more out of your content with packages starting at $0/month, plus you can get 20% off the MarketMuse Standard plan by using our code "FIZZ20" at checkout. Go to marketmuse.com to get started!
Did you know that 23% of global emissions come from single family homes? Needless to say, this is a underserved segment and an industry that is ripe for innovation. Carl’s current company, Aro Homes, is a purpose-driven company on a mission to redefine residential construction. The company was founded in 2021 and has raised $21M in funding from world-class investors including Eric Schmidt’s Innovation Endeavors.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Why Carl has build a career with a focus on working on products that touch the lives of millions of people in a positive way. A deep dive into Carl’s professional history across lots of market leading companies including Unilever, Amazon, Dyson, eBay, Affirm, and other startups. The environmental impact for single family housing and why the industry has lacked innovation. All the details on Aro Homes and how they are disrupting this industry, including their emphasis on reducing waste and improving efficiency. Advice for building a great consumer product. And so much more.It’s hard to believe that we have over 300 episodes of The VentureFizz Podcast. We have built up an amazing catalog of inspirational stories around building companies and every episode includes lots of great advice to follow, as well. If you haven’t checked out our past interviews, go to venturefizz.com/podcast for the complete list. Oh, and one ask - please share The VentureFizz Podcast with your friends and colleagues in the industry. I appreciate your support
This episode is the second live interview that we recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University which was a ton of fun and maybe it is something that I should do more often.As you’ll hear, Wes is a native New Englander. He grew up in Acton and launched Fetch while he was in school at the University of Wisconsin. The company has office locations in Madison, Chicago, and other locations, but he is local to the Boston area again as he moved back a couple of years ago.Fetch is a consumer-engagement platform that rewards shoppers for buying the brands they love. The company has over 700 employees and has raised over a half a billion dollars in capital with its most recent round valuing the company at greater than $2.5B.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for when you are in the pre-product market fit and figuring out the right problem to solve. Wes’ background story and how entrepreneurship was always a focus. How the idea of Fetch came to fruition while at the University of Wisconsin and how he met his co-founder, Tyler Kennedy. The early days of the company and how they built the foundation of customers and consumers. The current scale of the business which includes 6M DAUs (Daily Active Users) and $150B of aggregated spend. Lessons learned from scaling the company and how he learned to lead. Why they don’t use surveys for making decisions. And so much more.Is your company hiring? If yes, then you might want to add a VentureFizz subscription. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps to keep your company top of mind for our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A VentureFizz subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com for more details.
This is a first! This episode is one of two interviews that we recorded live at Startup Boston Week at Suffolk University which was a ton of fun and maybe it is something that I should do more often.Material Impact is a deep tech VC firm that was founded by Carmichael Roberts and Adam Sharkaway. The firm is investing in companies that are powered by material science that solve enduring, large-scale, real-world problems. They are full lifecycle investors and work from the earliest stages of companies.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Elyse’s background story including how she made the transition to marketing and her role at high growth startups like MC10 and Lose It! * The importance of understanding your customer and the difference between B2B versus B2C marketing. All the details about Material Impact in terms of the types of companies they invest in and how they support their portfolio companies. A deep conversation about Gen Phoenix, a portfolio company where Elyse is their interim CMO, that rescues leather offcuts destined for landfill and regenerates them into a premium, durable leather material coveted by the world’s most iconic brands in the fashion industry. Advice on getting media attention for your startup.* And so much more.
Steve is an operator turned venture capitalist. After a very successful run at General Catalyst, he joined Juxtapose earlier this year as a Partner to focus on building innovative B2B companies.Juxtapose is an investment firm that partners with experienced entrepreneurs to build category-defining technology companies. The firm has developed over twenty companies over the last 25 years including Tend, Great Jones, Earned, and others.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: How to make big bets and recognize shifts in the tech industry as an investor. Steve’s background from academia to how he got his career started in the tech industry. The story of VMware and how he learned how to scale an engineering organization to over 3,000 people. His experience as an investor at General Catalyst and his thesis around making investments in cybersecurity, along with portfolio companies that have scaled like Illumio and Datto. What he is up to now at Juxtapose and how the firm is unique in terms of investing and company creation. And so much more.If you are listening to this podcast, then it is highly likely that you are interested in the founder journey and lessons learned around building companies. Please make sure you don’t miss any episodes by subscribing to The VentureFizz Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or Soundcloud. Oh, don’t forget to leave us a review. It will really help us out!
It’s nice to get paid, but what happens behind the scenes for each payroll cycle is actually very complex. There’s a plethora of different tax calculations, remittance, filling, plus the movement of money between companies and employees. Yet, it would probably make sense for lots of companies to offer payroll as an add on service to their existing business.That’s where Check comes in. Check is a payroll-as-a-service API that allows companies like Homebase, Bambee, & 7Shifts, an easy way to integrate a payroll product which creates new sources of revenue and the ability to better service the needs of their customers. The company is backed by Stripe, Index Ventures, Bedrock, and Thrive Capital.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The difference between building and scaling a B2B versus a B2C business. Andrew’s background story, the difficulty of getting Duke / UNC basketball tickets, and starting his career at Google. The inspiration behind Oyster, which was like a Netflix for books and how they scaled the company to an exit to Google. All the details about Check and why this market was so interesting for building another company. Advice for founders on building a platform of platforms company. And so much more.This week’s episode is sponsored by MarketMuse, a content intelligence platform that sets the standard for content quality. Their AI-powered software enables companies to create predictably better content at scale that increases traffic and engagement, improves productivity, and drives revenue. Get more out of your content with packages starting at $0/month, plus you can get 20% off the MarketMuse Standard plan by using our code "FIZZ20" at checkout. Go to marketmuse.com to get started!
Syncro is an all-in-one professional services automation (PSA) and remote monitoring and management (RMM) platform for managed service providers (MSPs). The company is backed by Mainsail Partners, a growth equity firm.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: How having a broad range of experience across different functional areas helped position Emily into a CEO role. Emily’s background story and the details on her career path across Product Management, Customer Experience, and more. What is an MSP (Managed Service Provider)? All the details on Syncro and how they are helping their customers run a profitable business. Advice on building a diverse workforce. Some of the challenges she has tackled as the company’s CEO.* And so much more.Is your company hiring? If yes, then you might want to add a VentureFizz subscription. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps to keep your company top of mind for our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A VentureFizz subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com for more details.
Fintech Sandbox is a nonprofit that helps fintech startups build great products. Founded in 2014, Fintech Sandbox provides critical data access and development resources to FinTech entrepreneurs around the world.
It’s a 6-month program where startups can get apply anytime, as the application process is rolling and there are no deadlines to get involved and another big part of what makes this program unique is that they don’t take equity or fees for participation.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- An overview of Boston Fintech Week which is powered by FinTech Sandbox and this year’s event is happening from October 10th - 13th.
- Kelly’s background story and how she got her career started at Bloomberg and then later how she got involved in the entrepreneurial ecosystem while getting her MBA at Indiana University.
- Her experience at Techstars and being part of the team running the Barclays Fintech Accelerator.
- All the details on FinTech Sandbox and what makes their program unique, types of companies they are targeting, and what FinTech startups can expect by participating.
- Fundraising for FinTech startups and a conversation around different trends in the industry.
- And so much more
Did you know that you can set up a user profile on VentureFizz? It is a feature that gives you access to personalized content, job seeker tools, and administrative features to manage your email subscriptions. To create a user profile and maximize your experience on VentureFizz, go to venturefizz.com/register to get started.
Kumospace is a venture backed virtual office space platform that provides immersive and interactive virtual spaces for hosting team meetings, and social gatherings.
Charge Ventures is a venture capital firm based in New York that invests in pre-seed / seed early stage tech ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The details on Brett’s advice around raising capital which is a process that he calls FOMO Fundraising.
- Brett background story which includes a variety of pursuits across investment banking, sailing, VICE Media, starting a band, being a Fulbright Scholar, and how he ultimately ended up in the tech industry as an investor.
- The story of Sonar Media, the first ambient social networking company and lots of lessons learned from building this company.
- All the details about Kumospace and how their platform is solving the challenges of remote work, collaboration, and culture.
- Brett’s experience as an investor with Charge Ventures, plus the details on what they are targeting for investments.
- The difference between figuring product-market fit for enterprise versus consumer products.
- And so much more.
Did you hear that VentureFizz launched a spinoff site a few months ago called Just Product Management Jobs? The title of the website says it all. So, if you are a Product Manager and you are looking for a new opportunity - check out justproductmanagementjobs.com - and you’ll find over 100 PM jobs at all levels of experience! If you are hiring, you can post your PM jobs for just $199 which is such a deal based on this highly curated audience!
Column Tax’s mission is to democratize access to tax and finance advice to improve people’s lives. The company is building the infrastructure and APIs to power year-round income tax products for all mobile banking and fintech companies.
Column Tax is venture backed by Bain Capital Ventures, Felicis, Not Boring, Core Innovation Capital, and South Park Commons.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Building a company and how to think about competing against the large incumbants in the industry.
- Gavin’s background story including sales & operations roles at Dropbox, Premise Data, and Waymo.
- What led Gavin and his co-founder, Michael Beck, down the path of starting Column Tax.
- All the details on Column Tax and how they are approaching the business of filing taxes a different way and the level of impact their platform is having, especially with low-income families.
- Advice for building a remote first company.
- And so much more.
Did you know that you can set up a user profile on VentureFizz? A user profile gives you access to personalized content, job seeker tools, and administrative features to manage your email subscriptions. To create a user profile and maximize your experience on VentureFizz, go to venturefizz.com/register to get started.
Blackbird.AI helps organizations detect and respond to threats that cause reputational and financial harm. Powered by their AI-Driven Narrative & Risk Intelligence Constellation Platform, organizations can proactively understand risks and threats to their reputation in real-time.
The company recently announced its $20M Series B round of funding led by Ten Eleven Ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A deep discussion about how quickly AI is developing and if it should be regulated.
- How Wasim started as an entrepreneur as a sophomore in college and has been building startups since.
- The history of misinformation dating back to 1835.
- How he started to focus on AI back in 2017 and how being early to market as an AI first company has ultimately been a competitive advantage.
- All the details on Blackbird.AI and how their platform is helping enterprises, plus growth plans ahead.
- And so much more.
It’s hard to believe that we have over 300 episodes of The VentureFizz Podcast. We have built up an amazing catalog of inspirational stories around building companies and every episode includes lots of great advice to follow, as well. If you haven’t checked out our past interviews, go to venturefizz.com/podcast for the complete list. Oh, and one ask - please share The VentureFizz Podcast with your friends and colleagues in the industry. I appreciate your support!
Tropic provides data, tools and services to automate SaaS procurement for tech-forward companies, saving them money and time. The company has raised $65M since August 2021 and Insight Partners led its most recent round of funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A very open and honest conversation with David about his history with addiction and how he overcame it and ultimately channeled his tendencies into a superpower.
- David’s background story and how he started out as a novelist and what led him into sales in the tech industry and helped a startup grow from the ground level to over $80M in revenue.
- Why the procurement industry was ripe for disruption.
- The story of Tropic and how they are bringing transparency to the process of purchasing software for companies and why their business is setup to thrive in any type of economic conditions.
- Lessons learned around building out a marketing function.
- And so much more.
Is your company hiring? If yes, then what are you doing to build up your company’s employment brand? If you don’t have a content strategy, then it is likely that you are just flying under the radar. The good news is that we can help! A subscription to VentureFizz includes a content playbook for sharing all the details on your company, people, and culture. We leverage all formats of storytelling to include video, podcasting, employee profiles, and more. Reach out to info@venturefizz.com to learn more.
I’m so excited to announce that with this episode we have hit a new milestone and that is #300 episodes of The VentureFizz Podcast!!! Did you know that my first interview was published 5 years ago, so I am blown away to reach this milestone.
Starting a podcast is not necessarily hard, but keeping up with it is certainly one of the trickiest parts. I believe that the key criteria for a successful, long standing podcast is that the host needs to be genuinely interested in the topic that is being discussed. It goes without saying that I am fascinated by the journey of building startups and I consider myself to be incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to interview so many amazing entrepreneurs and investors. I want to thank them all for taking the time to share their stories and advice with our audience.
So, for Episode #300, I couldn’t think of a better guest than Diane Hessan - Entrepreneur, Investor, Board Member, and Columnist.
Diane has accomplished so much through out her career and during this interview she shares so many great stories from each step along the way including building Communispace (now called C Space) which was the first company to leverage social media for consumer insights.
We had a lot of ground to cover, so we discuss a lot including:
- Diane’s background story growing up in Pennsylvania and why she completed her undergrad at Tufts in three years, plus the story of her very unique application to Harvard Business School.
- Her career path as a Brand Manager for General Foods and later rising through the ranks at The Forum Corporation.
- The full story of Communispace and how the company pivoted and disrupted the market research industry which led to an acquisition by Omnicom.
- Authoring a book and becoming a nationally recognized expert on the American voter.
- Serving on the Board of Directors at companies like Panera Bread, Brightcove, Eastern Bank, and others.
- What it’s like giving a commencement address.
- Saying “yes” and the importance of serendipity.
- And so much more!
Ok quick side note, as you know this is Episode #300. This means we have quite the library of interviews with entrepreneurs and investors in the tech industry. I interview legends like Diane who are wildly successful, but I also interview first time entrepreneurs, as I like to provide insights and advice for entrepreneurs at different stages. So, if you haven’t explored our full catalogue, you can go to venturefizz.com/podcast or any of the major streaming players like Spotify, Apple, Google Play, Soundcloud, and others. I hope you find these interviews useful, as there are so many great lessons learned!
In challenging markets, like we are in right now, companies in the tech industry need to think hard about pricing of their product. Should you discount your product or think through other options like usage based pricing or credit burn down pricing. Kate and I start our conversation around the different pricing options and key points that you need to think about because these decisions can have a major impact in the future when it comes to renewals, so lots of useful information for entrepreneurs.
Nue is the leading quote-to-revenue platform, designed to help businesses of all sizes automate their sales and finance processes. The company recently announced a $9M seed extension, bringing its latest round of funding to a total of $15M.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Kate’s background story and how she got her career started in marketing at Kiva.org and was later the first marketing hire at RichRelevance and what this experience taught her.
- Her experience working in startups and build her career into leadership positions that ultimately led her into a operational role in venture capital at NextWorld Capital.
- What led Kate and her co-founder, Tina Kung, down the path of starting Nue and the details on their journey thus far and plans ahead.
- The emergence of RevOps and the meaning of this function at companies.
- Advice on raising capital for diverse founders.
- And so much more.
This week’s episode is sponsored by MarketMuse, a content intelligence platform that sets the standard for content quality. Their AI-powered software enables companies to create predictably better content at scale that increases traffic and engagement, improves productivity, and drives revenue. Get more out of your content with packages starting at $0/month, plus you can get 20% off the MarketMuse Standard plan by using our code "FIZZ20" at checkout. Go to marketmuse.com to get started!
Becoming an influencer for a particular topic is very challenging. It’s hard to build up a following at scale. It requires a lot of work in terms of building up an effective content, social media, and speaker strategy to build up engagement.
As a serial entrepreneur, not only was I interested in learning about Larry's journey around building companies, but I was also interested in learning how he went on to become one of the top names and faces in the world of digital marketing.
Larry is an influencer and a highly recognized expert in the digital marketing circles. He has over 725,000 followers on Twitter and is ranked the #8 most popular author on Medium. He is pretty much everywhere - Inc. magazine, CNBC, Business Insider, plus lots of niche publications in the digital marketing industry and he is also involved in lots of speaking engagements at top conferences like Dreamforce, INBOUND, and others.
During our interview, he discusses this topic and shares advice on how others can become an influencer too.
His latest company, Customers.ai is an AI powered sales outreach automation platform. The company recently announced a $4.99M Series A round of funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The early days of Larry’s career and how he ended up making the change into digital marketing.
- The full lifecycle story of WordStream from the initial ideal to scaling to an exit, plus the story of the AdWords Performance Grader product that was a massive and early PLG success story.
- Advice for founders on bringing in a CEO from the outside and the benefits.
- What led Larry down the path of starting Customers.ai and all the details on the company.
- AI and its impact on digital marketing.
- The meaning behind Larry’s statement - “be a unicorn in a sea of donkeys.”
- And so much more.
If you are listening to this podcast, then it is highly likely that you are interested in the founder journey and lessons learned around building companies. Please make sure you don’t miss any episodes by subscribing to The VentureFizz Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or Soundcloud. Oh, don’t forget to leave us a review. It will really help us out!
The world of cybersecurity gets a lot of attention in companies and enterprises, but when you look at what’s happen with consumers, the numbers for cybercrime and identity theft are staggering. Here are some stats:
According to a report from the FBI, Americans lost more than $10B last year to cybercrime. According to the FTC, there were 1.1 million reports of identity theft in 2022. 71% of Veterans and active duty service members have experienced digital crime. Let’s not forget about all the data breaches that seem to be a daily occurrence.
It’s a major problem and like any good storyline, you need a hero to take on the bad guys. In this case, the hero is Hari and the team at Aura, who are all working to make a safer internet for everyone with their all-in-one digital protection for consumers. They even have Hollywood superhero Robert Downey, Jr. and Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg involved as investors and board members of the company.
Hari is a serial entrepreneur, who started Endurance International Group early on in his career and scaled it from scratch to an IPO in 2013 and grew to over $1B in revenue.
His decision to take on cybercrime and identity theft with Aura was a personal one. In this podcast, he shares his story of being a victim of identity theft which opened up his eyes to the problem. Fast forward, this unicorn company has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from investors.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A deep dive into the world of consumer cybercrime and Hari’s thoughts on how AI will factor into the equation.
- The full lifecyle story of Endurance International Group, an early cloud / SaaS company focused on the SMB market.
- All the details about Aura’s platform and how it is helping consumers in terms of its comprehensive approach, plus how they have been building a consumer brand.
- Why you should always bet on yourself and other lessons learned from his entrepreneurial journey.
- And so much more.
Is your company hiring? If yes, then what are you doing to build up your company’s employment brand? If you don’t have a content strategy, then it is likely that you are just flying under the radar. The good news is that we can help! A subscription to VentureFizz includes a content playbook for sharing all the details on your company, culture, and hiring process. We leverage all formats of storytelling to include videos, podcasting, employee profiles, and more. Reach out to info@venturefizz.com to learn more.
The business of doing good. It is an area where companies can build a profitable organization while doing something that is socially responsible. Companies like TOMS and Patagonia are great examples.For JC, she had a successful career, but it lacked fulfilment and she finally hit a breaking point where it was time for a change.From taking the entrepreneurial leap and build a responsibly farmed fish CPG company that reached distribution in over 4,000 stores and landing Leonardo DiCaprio as an investor, to what she is doing now as CEO of SmarterX, her career has aligned with her beliefs and values, all while working to create a more sustainable world.SmarterX is in the business of using data for good through its Product Intelligence Platform™ which is leveraged by retailers and brands to gain product insights and identify how to best handle consumer products across the supply chain, to remain compliant, avoid fines, and reduce their environmental impact. The company has been recognized by Fast Company on two impressive lists that being World Changing Ideas and Most Innovative Companies.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: A deep conversation on the importance of finding personal fulfilment in one’s career. JC’s background story in terms of growing up in rural Pennsylvania and the foundational years of her career. The full story of Love The Wild, from scaling up to ultimately making the hard decision to exit the business. All the details about SmarterX in terms of how its platform and business model works, plus its impact on the planet. The positive use of AI in the cleantech and sustainability industry. And so much more.I don’t know if you heard but the team at VentureFizz has launched a new website called Just Product Management Jobs. We are combining laser focused job postings for Product Managers with high-value blog content that is written by expert contributors covering topics around career advice and the latest trends + best practices in the PM industry. If you are a PM looking for a new opportunity or if you are hiring Product Managers, go to justproductmanagementjobs.com.
I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase - data is the new oil. It makes sense as it is data and of course other techonogical advancements that are powering the growth and use of AI in different industries.But even with all the buzz about AI, data has been the key differentiating factor for companies and a strategic advantage for years and years. It has been a key component for Scott’s success in the retail industry going back to ProfitLogic, a company he co-founded, which leveraged data for its merchandize optimization platform for major retailers.As an investor, Scott shares another great data example from one of his portfolio companies, that being Rent the Runway which went public in 2021. The company set up a data science and analytics team in the early days of the company as a strategic advantage.It will be interesting to see what companies emerge with this platform shift to AI and how it will affect the retail industry. Scott will certainly be in the mix of it all, as BCV recently announced two oversubscribed funds totaling $1.9B. So, lots of dry powder to invest.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Scott’s background story including getting his career started at IBM and what this experience taught him. The full story of ProfitLogic, from how it got started to growing the company to a successful exit to Oracle. What led Scott down the path of becoming a venture capitalist at BCV. More about the Rent the Runway story, plus other investments like Mirakl and Attentive. What he’s targeting in terms of making investments and the importance of unfair advantages. Advice on scaling a company and how you should think about your team and board of directors.* And moreIs your company hiring? If yes, then what are you doing to build up your company’s employment brand? If you don’t have a content strategy, then it is likely that you are just flying under the radar. The good news is that we can help! A subscription to VentureFizz includes a content playbook for sharing all the details on your company, people, and culture. We leverage all formats of storytelling to include video, podcasting, employee profiles, and more. Reach out to info@venturefizz.com to learn more.
If you’ve listened to this podcast in the past, you probably know that I’m an avid fan of tech history. There’s nothing like a legendary founding story of a company that completed disrupted an industry.Well, I have an amazing episode today that is going to cover a lot of ground at several ground-breaking, platform shift companies. I’m talking about the stories of legendary companies or products like AltaVista, Napster, Groove Networks… and the early days of tech pillars like TechCrunch, Y Combinator and more.Here are just a few tidbits that you’ll learn from our conversation: Did you know that AltaVista tried to hire the founders of Google while they were still at Stanford? Did you know that Napster was actually trying to build a legit platform with a business model that would have allowed the music labels to welcome in and embrace the digital era?* Did you know that Y Combinator held their very first demo day in Cambridge, Massachusetts and can you guess what company demoed that day and is now a top 20 web property?Now that I think about it, Don and I go way back. Not only am I thankful for his time to share these great stories, but I am also thankful for all of his support. When I started VentureFizz, I used to syndicate content from investors and influencers in the tech industry and Don was one of our partners. Don was a prolific blogger and it definitely helped up build up our credibility. His blog was called The Next Big Thing and if you want to take another trip down memory lane, check it out, as it is still published.In this episode of our podcast, we also cover many other topics like Don’s thought on AI, which he was blogging about years ago and what he’s up to these days.This week’s episode is sponsored by MarketMuse, a content intelligence platform that sets the standard for content quality. Their AI-powered software enables companies to create predictably better content at scale that increases traffic and engagement, cuts down your content process, and improves your search visibility. Get more out of your content with packages starting at $0/month. Plus you can get 20% off the MarketMuse Standard plan, which includes a ChatGPT integration, by using our code "VFIZZ20" at checkout. Go to marketmuse.com to get started!
It is hard enough to build a startup in a heavily regulated industry like healthcare, but what do you do when your biggest competitor who is publicly traded files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection? It can be discouraging… or it can be an opportunity. In the case of DynamiCare Health, it is hopefully an opportunity… an opportunity to build a world class company that is helping to improve the lives of millions of people that are dealing with an addiction to drugs, opioids, alcohol, or tobacco.DynamiCare Health was founded in 2016 by Eric and his father, Dr. David Gastfriend, who is an international expert in addiction psychiatry. As a digital therapeutics and coaching company, they are using a pre-existing, yet a previously under utilized treatment called Contingency Management that rewards members for certain behaviors. Their solution combines this method along with the usage of a tech platform and a certified Recovery Coach to help people with recovery and it is working.The company was recently granted a Breakthrough Device Designation from the FDA for one of its products, a prescription only digital therapeutic that treats AUD or alcohol use disorder which affects 29 million Americans per year.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Getting press for your startup and the pros & cons of using PR firms or doing it yourself. Eric’s background story and what he learned at the early stages of his career while running a startup called Happy Cloud as its GM. Why he went back to business school at HBS where he also studied AI and Machine Learning. All the details about DynamiCare Health in terms of how their platform is helping its members with recovery. The complexity of the healthcare system. And so much more.
Rember when you needed a full tech team to launch a simple brochureware website? Now you can just jump on Wix or Squarespace and spin up a well designed, responsive website in seconds.The rise of the no-code movement has helped increase the pace and usefulness of technology and it has transcended into lots of other applications and use cases. It’s a win - win, as business users can create applications or make changes on the fly, while the engineering team gets to spend their time working on more complex and sophisticated problems.Candu is right in the strikezone of this no-code movement, as the company is building a better way to activate users and release new features. The simple, drag-and-drop UI Editor empowers product and customer teams to create UI themselves, saving developer time and trimming technical debt. Candu is venture backed by Two Sigma, CRV, Angular Ventures, and Haystack.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for improving the activation rate for SaaS products and whether or not those post activation email campaigns are effective. Jonathan’s background story and how his career accelerated while at InsightSquared, plus the details on wayOUT, a non-profit he co-founded. How Candu came to fruition and the evolution of the platform to its current state including sample use cases for product growth teams and its value. The vibe around raising venture capital in the current market and how entrepreneurs need to think about today’s market reality. Advice on how to have a successful launch on Product Hunt. Business ideas from spending one year writing down a new startup idea every day.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
When you have an idea to start a company that monopolizes your thinking, it’s probably a good sign to take that leap of faith into the entrepreneurial waters.In the case of Bobby, he had wanted to start his own company for a long time and he finally had that idea that he couldn’t shake from his head. It was his years and years of experience in the fintech industry and trends around BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) offerings that gave him the lens to discover a massive industry with big ticket purchase items that was underserved.The need was clear from both the business and consumer sides of the equation, so after recruiting two previous co-workers as co-founders of the company, it was go-time and off to the races, which was a literal statement. As you’ll hear from our interview, their business model focused on the integration and being the financing solution with third party software platforms that specialize in their market, so time was of the essence.Wisetack is the leading Pay Over Time platform for in-person services. Wisetack partners with top SaaS service companies to embed payment options directly into their software through a simple API integration. Small service businesses rely on Wisetack to offer their customers flexible, point of sale financing, enabling them to quickly and easily pay over time for essential services.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for aspiring Product Managers on how to land a job in the profession and how to work your way up to an executive product leadership role. Bobby’s career path from consulting to the world of product management which originated at PayPal. The criteria he used to evaluate new career opportunities and his experience leading and scaling product at companies like YapStone, Lending Club, and Mosaic. All the details on Wisetack and the company’s business model, plus an example use case. Advice for starting a fintech company for entrepreneurs. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The career path to a CEO position at a tech company is not linear. If you look at the background of CEOs, there are many different roads. It could be operations, product management, marketing, or other functional areas. In Frank’s case, he ran several teams including sales and professional services. Some might believe that the CEO’s role is to be the Chief Decision Making Officer, but as Frank shares in our discussion, it couldn’t be further from the truth - at least in the way he leads. For Frank, he believes the best CEOs are influencers where they are able to gain consensus from the team versus convincing people of your own opinion. It is more about more of understanding everyone’s perspective and creating that level of collaboration amongst the team.In addition to this key point, you’ll hear Frank share some other core elements that go into a successful CEO.SmartBear delivers the complete visibility developers need to make each release better than the last. The company’s award-winning and industry favorite tools are trusted by over 16 million developers, testers, and software engineers at 32,000+ organizations – including companies like Adobe, JetBlue, FedEx, and Microsoft. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Frank’s career path from consulting to executive leadership roles in the software industry. The differences of working in a VC backed versus a Private Equity owned company. All the details on SmartBear in terms of the company, scale, and its suite of products. A discussion on how SmartBear has always leveraged a Product Led Growth strategy long before the term PLG was coined. The company’s secret to making successful acquisitions. The culture at SmartBear and why he considers the word “curious” as the most important company value.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
There are so many companies that have been born out of the mobile revolution and some of these companies, while looking back, seems so obvious. But, in the early days of mobile - I’m talking pre-iPhone, pre-App Store days, it was the risk-takers like Rodger who set out to solve really difficult problems that set the stage for the future. Whether if it was leveraging mobile phones for microfinance in emerging markets or co-founding Rave Wireless, which had lots of early interesting mobile use cases, which we talk about… Rodger thinks big and it’s these bold ideas where his companies make an impact.Today, Rodger is building Prove, a fast growing company that is driving the future of digital identity. Over 1,000 enterprise customers use Prove’s platform to process 20 billion customer requests annually across multiple industries. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Discussion around consumer fraud and how tech companies should think differently about their approach to security. Rodger’s background story and getting his career started, plus what led him to start his first company. Lots of stories about his prior companies, Rave Wireless and Vettro. All the details about Prove, in terms of how the company’s technology works and the current stage of the company. Advice on scaling a startup and how your value should factor into your business and pricing model. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s impressive when an entrepreneur builds a company from scratch that ultimately scales, but I think it is even more impressive when you can combine a strong social mission to a company that scales, as well.This is what Rodney and his Co-Founder, Travis Holoway, have built with SoLo Funds, a leading community finance platform focused on underserved communities. It’s a marketplace where you can lend money to those who are looking to borrow. It’s working, as the company has over 1.3M downloads and has surpassed 600K in loans funded and $300M in transaction value.As the only Black owned B Corp Fintech in the U.S. and Canada, the company is backed by a variety of investors including Rich Dennis’ fund, New Voices and Serena Williams’ fund, Serena Ventures.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for entrepreneurs of color on raising funding for their startup. Rodney’s background story including obtaining his MBA from Howard University and his time at Proctor & Gamble as a Brand Manager. We break down the tech and use cases for LISNR, a leading ultrasonic data platform company that he co-founded. All the details about SoLo Funds in terms of how the company came together and the impact that it is making. The story of his recent TV appearance on the Peacock series called Founding in Color. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Fate, luck, destiny… whatever you call it, it seems very apparent that all three founders of Bevi were meant to build a company together.They all shared a common interest in sustainability, a desire to build a company, and experience in a field that had water at its core.Eliza grew up sailing and was always interested in ocean stewardship which led her down the path of evaluating different ideas where she could leverage her industrial design knowledge to build a product that could make an impact on the bottled water crisis.Sean spent three years working in an environmental non-profit and worked on wetland conservation projects in China and later attended MIT Sloan and was president of the MIT Water Club.Frank comes from entrepreneurial roots and worked for an irrigation startup before meeting Sean in China only to learn that they would be attending MIT Sloan together that fall and ultimately roomed together.So, when investors ask themselves - why are these founders uniquely qualified to build this company… I don’t know if you could ever find a better founding team.Bevi is disrupting the beverage industry with its bottleless water dispenser for offices and commercial spaces. The company has over 5,000 customers and has raised multiple round of funding, include a $70M Series D last year which was led by Cowen Sustainable Investments.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The story of how a Bevi machine ended up in HBO’s Silicon Valley. The background story of each founder and more info on how the three came together to start a company. A brief history of the bottled water industry and the staggering number of plastic water bottles that are sold each year which is massive. Early foundational years of building Bevi and early interations of the machine while figuring out product market fit. Scale of the business and the launch of the counter-top version, plus some insight into the possibility of a consumer version. Navigating the pandemic and how some critical decisions ended up benefiting the business over the long term.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
What do the following brands have in common? Casamigos, Skims, Fenty Beauty, Aviation Gin, and Beats by Dre. Well, they all have a celebrity as a co-founder.While celebrities can land a lucrative endorsement deal, it pales in comparison to what the outcome can be if you own part of a company that is successful. The pairing of a brand with a celebrity founder just makes sense as one of the core ingredients that they typically bring to the table is a massive following.However, you can’t just launch a brand and expect that consumers will be customers, especially over the long haul. It needs to be a quality product that is filling a void for consumers. Plus, it needs to be a match for the celebrity with a compeling story behind it, which I think is the other key ingredient.This is where Jobi comes in and specializes. Its startup venture studio is focused on launching consumer brands in partnership with celebrities and influencers.Ryan is a Co-Founder and board member of Homecourt, a home-focused consumer brand founded by Courteney Cox with a collection of fragrance infused luxury cleaning and household products.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Ryan’s advice, as a mixed race professional, on what can be done to improve the diversity numbers across investors and employees at startups. His background story, plus the details of his own startup and lessons learned. Jobi’s approach and role it play around building companies, plus how they identify products and partner with celebrities. The full story of Homecourt and why Courteney Cox was a perfect match. Information about Jobi’s experiential division and its interactive art experiences like INTER_. eCommerce predictions and the key elements that go into building a successful consumer brand.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It goes without saying, but we need more capital going towards female founded companies. While we still have a long way to go, there has been some progress in this regard with dedicated funds like XFactor Ventures. The fund, which is focused on pre-seed and seed investments, was launched in 2017 by Flybridge with Anna as a Co-Founder with a strategy of having women founders invest in other women founders.Fast forward, XFactor now has a portfolio that consists of over 70 companies that are all founded by women and an investment team of successful female founders who have started companies like Away, Figs, and others.After two startups, which were both acquired, Anna transitioned to a role as a fulltime venture capitalist by joining the Flybridge team in 2020 as a General Partner. She is focused on making investments in sectors such as commerce 3.0, marketplaces, mobile, consumer and eCommerce.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Examples of community driven companies like Chief and how they are leveraging this model as a strategic advantage, plus the details of the laptop sticker test at Flybridge. Anna’s background story and her transition from law to entrepreneurship. All the details on Fashion Project, an online designer clothing donation company and a great story of how a pitch contest saved the company. * How Anna made the transition to investing fulltime and the process for making an investment. Various reasons why a VC might not fund your company. * And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For non-technical founders, the thought of building a tech startup might seem very intimidating and downright impossible. But for Jordan, what started out as a blog with editorial recommendations evolved to something much greater and to kickstart her product, she kept it simple.She thought through how the product might work by drawing rectangles of each screen. Later, she would learn that she was actually wireframing and that led her to a point where she could narrow things down and then have an MVP built.It’s advice that she shares in this podcast and hopefully, it will be an inspiration for others to just get started down the entrepreneurial path. You don’t need to be technical to build a product, as long as you are able to articulate the vision to those who can build it.Cobble is solving that long standing problem that we’ve all experienced - what do you want to do tonight? Which often leads to the response - I don’t know, what do you want to do? Cobble is an app that ends decision fatigue for couples or groups and solves this problem through the combination of curated content and a suite of social decision making tools. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The pros and cons of being a solo founder. Jordan’s background story and her career in media, plus what led her down the path of leaving CBS News to launch a company. All the details on Cobble and how it works, plus how the company was able to have a successful launch during the height of the pandemic. Building a product that serves multiple markets and advice on scaling. How to lead as a startup CEO. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
One piece of advice that many successful entrepreneurs share with other founders is to wait as long as possible before you raise outside funding. The longer you can stay as a successful bootstrapped company, the more leverage you will have when you are finally ready to raise capital and negative the company’s valuation.For Oisin and his Co-Founder, Mike Flynn, they took a very smart approach to building their business. They built a product development agency and launched several products to solve different problems with a focus on eCommerce. From this approach, they were able to fund their business until they had the right product where they could built a massive business.This ended up being Recharge, a subscription payments solution helping eCommerce merchants of all sizes launch and scale subscription offerings. Case in point to my earlier statement, the company was self funded for over five years before raising capital. It’s latest round of funding was a $277M growth round of capital at a $2.1B valuation. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice on building a remote-first company and how to create a vibrant and inclusive culture. Oisin’s background story and why he chose the entrepreneurial path.All the details on their product development agency and how it funded the business. Finding product market fit with Recharge and how the company has scaled over the years. * Product Distribution Fit - what is it and why does it matter for entrepreneurs. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Unless you were already in the sector, topics within the manufacturing and supply chain industry were probably not on the radar for most people. As consumers, when you went to the store, you bought what you needed and that was that.However, people became very aware of the importance that these industries play in our lives during the pandemic when everything changed. Supply chain and manufacturing issues were the topics of the nightly news as shelves were bare with lots of essential items missing or purchasing a new car was almost impossible due to inventory shortages.Even though technology has helped these industries evolve over time, there is still a massive opportunity for disruption within the manufacturing and supply chain industries. It is a topic that Colin is thinking deeply about in terms of making investments and we start out our conversation with a discussion around the trends and opportunities for technology to make an impact to these sectors.Two Sigma Ventures is an early stage venture firm that was started in 2012 under the Two Sigma umbrella. The firm has made over 100 investments across many industries.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Colin’s professional background including how he gained experience in the tech industry and then as an Investment Banker at Lehman Brothers. What led him down the path of early stage investing and starting Two Sigma Ventures. An overview of the firm today including portfolio examples. His decision making criteria for making new investments. How the tech scene has evolved in NYC. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Many entrepreneurs have aspirations to make an impact and change the world, which is admirable. However, building a company that impacts billions is obviously very hard and very rare. In the case of Rich Miner, his professional career has been very successful on several levels including the change the world category. As a co-founder of Wildfire, he was part of the team that built the world’s first digital assistant which also includes having his name on the patent for using words to wake up your voice based assistant - which is something that we are all familiar with via our Hey Google, Alexa, or Siri commands. Then, as a co-founder of Android, he helped revolutionize the smartphone industry with a product that has over 3 billion active users and what is now the most popular operating system in the world. Next, he disrupted the corporate venture fund industry by helping to launch Google Ventures (now known as GV) which is one of the top investors in the industry with billions of dollars under management. Last year was another accomplishment that will make an ongoing impact to students for years to come in the naming of the school that he graduated from which is the UMass Lowell Richard A. Miner School of Computer & Information Sciences. We obviously had a ton to cover over the course of this podcast, so stay tuned to hear lots of great stories about his background and all the companies he’s built, plus lots of great advice along the way.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I first met Sravish about 10 years ago. It was an era where there was a resurgence in the Boston tech scene. A new level of excitement that was fueled by a crop of young entrepreneurs who were building companies that were powered by accelerators or incubators like Techstars, Dogpatch Labs, Bolt, and others. What is great about this era in the Boston tech scene is that many of these entrepreneurs, like Sravish, have exited and are now on to building their next startup. Having successful serial entrepreneurs is a critical part of the success of a land standing major startup ecosystem. Not only do they have more experience and lessons learned from their first company, but they can also think longer term and swing for the fences.Sravish’s last company was Kinvey, a company that coined the term Backend-As-A-Service with their platform for mobile developers. The company was acquired by Progress in 2017.His current company is called Kintent, which is looking to become the trusted platform for compliance. Its Trust Cloud will help eliminate those dreaded compliance and security questionnaires that you get from companies that take forever to fill out. The company announced its $18M Series A round of funding led by OpenView earlier this year.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for founders on the acquisition process. Sravish’s background growing up including how he got involved as an early employee at a startup called United Devices that was a pre-cursor to cloud computing. The story of Kinvey and its acquisition by Progress. All the details on Kintent and what the future looks like for the company. Advice for getting started as an angel investor. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Building a startup is tough in any industry, but for a healthcare startup, there is a whole different level of complexity. It is a heavily regulated industry that has been slow to change in terms of digital transformation. As you’ll hear from Troy, the majority of healthcare records are transmitted via a fax machine. How is that possible in our modern world of technology? But, it is opportunities like this that catch the eye for entrepreneurs like Troy.Particle Health’s mission is to enable simple and secure access to actionable healthcare data for digital health innovators. It’s user-friendly API platform lets healthcare providers get patient records from over 270 million patients across the United States. The company announced a $25M Series B round of funding back in July led by Canvas Ventures.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Some of the biggest challenges around building a startup in a heavily regulated industry like healthcare. Troy’s background story including his time as an EMT and how he got involved in the healthcare industry and joining Startup Health in its early days. All of the details on Particle Health and how they are disrupting the healthcare industry. Advice for recruiting and attracting a world class team.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I was excited to interview Rick for The VentureFizz Podcast, as he has a very unique background in terms of scaling great retail and restaurant brands like Borders, Panera Bread, and Wahlburgers, which was a startup at the time when he joined as CEO. Sure in the case of Wahlburgers, it is helpful when the owners are celebrities and you have an A&E reality show to support the company, but regardless… you still need to have the right vision, product, and service… and even more importanlty, you need to have the ability to execute, which is where so many companies fail.Rick is now tackling a new but related industry and that is in the world AgTech as CEO of Freight Farms. It is a company that I have been following and have admired since I first heard about them from their time at MassChallenge and Techstars. It is such a cool concept - hydroponic container farms where can grow food any time and anywhere. Freight Farms recently announced a $17.5M Series B3 round of funding to support the growth of the business.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice for scaling companies in the food industry. Rick’s professional background throughout his early career including his time as the EVP and Co-COO at Panera Bread. How he sought out Wahlburgers and became the company’s first CEO and helped it grow to a $100M brand, plus details on working with the Wahlberg family and the A&E show. All the information on Freight Farms in terms of how their container farms work, plus details on the company’s business model which includes hardware, software, and services.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Who are the tech companies in the Boston tech scene that are going to scale and become the next anchor companies like Rapid7, CarGurus, Amwell, or DraftKings?If I was pulling together a list of companies, I would definitely add Fairmarkit to the short-list. The company is revolutionizing the way organizations buy and sell through automated sourcing. It is a massive market in a sector that has been vastly underserved in terms of leveraging technological advancements like AI. Plus, regardless of economic conditions, procurement teams are always going to be looking for ways to reduce expense and automate business processes.Fairmarket recently announced a $35.6M Series C led by OMERS Growth Equity, with participation from GGV Capital, Insight Partners, Highland Capital Partners, and ServiceNow.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Advice on taking that entrepreneurial risk of starting a company. The beginning of Kevin’s professional journey and how sales helped propel his career at tech companies like EMC and Turbonomic. The full story of Fairmarkit from the very early days of an idea to where it is today. The benefits of having an executive coach.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
You likely know these companies: Eventbrite, Canva, Houzz - so, what do all of these companies have in common other than being incredibly successful? All of the companies were founded by a married couple.Most of the interviews that I’ve had for the podcastare one on one with a few exceptions of talking to a couple of co-founders at once or even a founder and their investor for the podcast, but this was the first time that I’ve interviewed a married couple, which was cool.Gene and Elaine are looking to disrupt the sporting industry with Athletes Untapped, a private coaching platform for young athletes who are looking to take their game to the next level.What’s impressive about this couple’s entrepreneurial journey is that the business is bootstrapped and they are building it while they both have fulltime jobs. It’s something that I can relate to as VentureFizz was a side business until I went fulltime on it five years ago.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: Taking the entrepreneurial leap while working full time. A look at Gene and Elaine’s background including their athletic careers and how it influenced their interest in starting the company. All the details on Athletes Untapped including how they get started and their progress around building the company to date, plus future plans. Lessons learned. Advice on building a company with your spouse. And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Are we entering the primetime era for venture capital investments into Artificial Intelligence or AI startups? It at least seems that way, as things have cooled off with Web 3 and crypto. There is a ton of momentum in this space with lots of use cases including Jasper, an AI copywriting and content platform that recently announced $125M in funding. Or, it will be interesting to see what companies are funded that are built on top of tech like OpenAI’s DALL·E 2.Arthur is looking to ride this wave but they are taking a very smart approach an infrastructure play with its machine learning observability platform. A great analogy for this sector is what network monitoring software does for the netwrk, which detects outages, issues, and vulnerabilities… Arthur is looking to do the same for AI models.The company recently announced a $42M Series B round of funding co-led by Acrew Capital and Greycroft Ventures.In this episode of our podcast, we cover: The pulse of innovation and entrepreneurship at two under-recognized institutions - University of Maryland and Carnegie Mellon. John’s career prior to starting Arthur including a deep dive into his research, experience as an advisor, and his path to becoming a tenured professor. All the details about Arthur and its platform, plus how the company is making AI more transparent and equitable. Advice for academics who are thinking of taking on a leadership role at a startup.* And so much more.If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
There is a growing number of VC firms that are focused on investing in diverse founders. It’s a very important trend, as I believe these firms will continue to build a foundation that leads to more investing in great companies regardless of the founder’s gender or ethnic background.
VamosVentures is one of these firms that is focused on changing the dynamic. 100% of the firm’s portfolio is diverse. Over 40% of their investments are women led and over 90% of their portfolio companies are Latinx led.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A deep discussion on what can be done to grow the number of diverse investors who are funding startups.
- Ashley’s background story including her time at Brown University and how her career got started in various roles across investment banking and eCommerce.
- How she got started in the world of venture capital while at MIT Sloan with the Dorm Room Fund and other firms.
- What led her to join VamosVentures and some of the details around the firm’s investment thesis.
- Lots of great advice for founders around fundraising regardless of the economic climate.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For this podcast, I typically interview founders and investors, but there are times that I like to switch things up and get a different perspective about startups and entrepreneurship.
Thus, I was excited to interview Jorge, as he teaches Entrepreneurial Strategy at Columbia Business School and his research has been focused on entrepreneurship policy, regional entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurial strategy.
He is also one of the creators of The Startup Cartography Project, which is an interactive map showcasing the quantity, quality, and performance of entrepreneurship across America.
Jorge received his PhD from the Sloan School of Management at MIT, and was previously a postdoc at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) and a lecturer at MIT Sloan.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Jorge’s thoughts on the current economic conditions and what it means for entrepreneurs.
- His background story and the path his career took to becoming a professor.
- The latest in terms of the entrepreneurial culture at Columbia Business School, including the details on the school’s brand new Manhattanville campus.
- The expansion of entrepreneurship across lots of different regions and does it matter to be in Silicon Valley?
- A discussion on his research around the gender gap in entrepreneurship.
- Common mistakes that Jorge sees entrepreneurs make over and over again.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
You might have heard the oxygen versus aspirin analogy for finding product market fit for a company. For Matt, he likes to use the burnt pizza analogy. Most people don’t like burnt pizza, but if you are solving a problem that has a very high degree of importance, they will eat the burnt pizza when the product is at an early stage no matter how bad it tastes.
Obviously, as the product evolves it will hopefully end up being a delicious slice of pizza, but you need to eat to survive and it all goes back to what has been discuss several times on this podcast. Don’t build your product in a vacuum where you have cool technology in search of a problem. Instead, talk to your customers or potential customers, figure out the critical challenges they are dealing with, and determine if you can build the product to solve it.
Pave is on a mission to build the world's best compensation tools and easily accessible market data so companies can plan, communicate, and benchmark in real-time. The company recently announced its $100M Series C round of funding at a $1.6B valuation.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A deep dive into the state of the tech industry and how current market factors are affecting compensation.
- Matt’s experiences while at Penn and how he caught the entrepreneurial bug, plus his experience traveling the world.
- The background story of Pave and how he figured out the burnt pizza problem that needed to be solved and how their initiative approach won over customers.
- All the latest on Pave in terms of its platform, recent round of funding, and goals for the future.
- How he came up with the name for the rebrand and was able to obtain a single word .com domain.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Most companies in the tech industry that scale aggressively and create a category leading company usually raise a significant amount of venture capital funding. In the case of LinkSquares, the company has raised over $161M in funding which includes a $100M Series C round of funding that was announced in April. The funding has come along at a very steady clip with its Series B round in 2021 and Series A round in 2020.
Needless to say LinkSquares is in hypergrowth mode and this capital is helping the company take advantage of its product market fit, but Vishal and I start off the conversation with a deep dive into how he’s been able to raise capital each year while balancing his responsibilities as a CEO with hundreds of other taks that need to be tackled.
LinkSquares is the company behind the AI-powered contract management platform for legal teams aiming to move their business forward faster.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Vishal’s background growing up, including the start of his professional career and how the Startup Institute helped pave his way into the world of startups.
- His experience at Backupify and various roles that he played at the company.
- The full story of LinkSquares and how they identified this opportunity to disrupt an industry and take on incumbants.
- All the details on the LinkSquares platform and how they are leveraging AI, plus the company’s growth plans ahead.
- His biggest lessons learned as a CEO of a hypergrowth company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s always great to speak with a fellow podcaster, as Nathan is the host of How I Raised It. He interviews founders of startups and dissects the details on how they raised each round of funding. It’s a great podcast that I recommend, but as I dug into his archives, I realized that we’ve been podcasting for about the same length of time and almost the same number of episodes, which I thought was pretty cool.
Nathan’s podcast makes a lot of sense based on his company. Foundersuite is the leading platform for raising capital, used by thousands of startups, VCs, accelerators and investment bankers around the world. Companies using the platform have raised over $3B in seed and venture capital.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- More of the details on his podcast including his experiences and some of his biggest takeaways.
- His career path coming out of school and his decision to get his MBA at the McCombs School of Business at UT, Austin.
- What led him down the path of starting Foundersuite and all the details on the company, plus a look at its features.
- The most common mistakes that founders make when raising capital.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Did you know that:
- Supermarkets waste $25B of food every year
- 63 million tons of food is wasted every year in the U.S.
- ⅓ of all food produced in the U.S. ends up in a landfill
- It’s a $400B problem
That’s some staggering statistics and obviously a massive problem that needs to be solved.
Luckily, this world has brilliant entrepreneurs who think differently and are able to address these complex problems. In the case of Divert, they are tackling this key issue for supermarkets and retailers.
Divert works with five Fortune 100 companies and more than 5,200 retail stores across all 50 U.S. states, providing technology, logistics and anaerobic digestion facilities to help retailers reach their sustainability goals.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A discussion focused on the food waste issue that I previously mentioned.
- Ryan’s professional background working at Raytheon and what this experience taught him.
- The founding story of Divert and what led him down the path of starting the company.
- All the details on what they are doing and how they are working to transform the food industry into a zero-waste sector.
- Ryan’s lessons learned on hiring executives.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This is episode #268 and today’s guest is Jeffrey L. Bowman, CEO & Co-Founder of Reframe, the first tech enabled change management platform that helps build inclusive employee and customer experiences at scale.
From what I’ve noticed by working with hundreds of tech startups through the years, is that the companies that are the most successful at building a diverse and inclusive workforce start from the very early days and make it a priority. It ultimately becomes more and more difficult to change the course as the company grows and scales, especially if you are talking about large Fortune 500 companies.
Jeffrey has been working to help change the narrative around this very important topic and throughout our conversation, he gives some great insights into items like the current state of diversity in the tech industry, historical references, and advice for founders on how to build a solid foundation for a diverse workforce through its mission, vision, and value statements.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover:
- Jeffrey’s background story and his experience in sales and then in various marketing positions after completing his MBA.
- His experience at Ogilvy & Mather where he pioneered the industry’s first cross-cultural practice that modernized the marketing and communications industry.
- What led Jeffrey down the path of starting Reframe and how he was able to productize the company’s services with a software platform.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Market timing. It can destroy a business or it can be the greatest gift and the launchpad to massive scale and adoption. For Dan and the team at Donut, it was the latter.
While some companies saw an uptick over the past couple of years, the real challenge has been maintaining that growth when the tide changes.
The good news for Donut, is that remote and hybrid work are not going away anytime soon (if ever) and it’s this shift in terms of how we work that has kept up Donut’s momentum. The company’s Slack extension has ultimately replaced the watercooler chatter that would happen in the office and has been a key part for helping keep a company’s culture intact by connecting people internally no matter the working environment.
Based on Dan’s background, it is not a surprise that the company has built a product that creates value for users and can withstand market conditions. His background in product leadership and as a lecturer on lean startup methodologies are the perfect foundational blocks for building a market leading company.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Dan’s framework for naming a company which includes customer feedback and how they landed on Donut, plus how they secured the single word .com.
- A journey through Dan’s career in academia and product leadership roles at startups.
- Working with Steve Blank and how Dan got involved in the lean startup methodology.
- The full background story on Donut which includes lots of key decisions (like building on top of Slack), lessons learned along the way, and the explosive growth during the pandemic.
- His experience as a professional musician for Mobile Steam Unit which writes songs with a business theme.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I’m sure most of our listeners remember or even still use Mint.com. I have vivid memories of the company as it basically kicked off a Fintech revolution and it was such a major success story. In the span of two years, it launched at a TechCrunch event and was acquired by Intuit for $170M. This was back in 2009, about a year after Sequoia Capital published its famous RIP good times presentation.
Lofty valuations and unicorns were not a common thing back then and this exit was a homerun at the time. I still remember the blog post about the exit from Josh Kopelman of First Round Capital, who was an early investor in the company. It mentioned how Aaron was a member of the First Round Capital blank check club, which they did follow through on that promise as an investor in his other companies.
Looking back, there were 3 reasons why Mint.com stood out for me - 1. It was a design first type of product which was not common especially in the financial services industry. 2. It was free for consumers to use, so they had to figure out an alternative way to generate revenue. 3. It automatically pulled in your financial data and categorized transactions, which is something that we just take for granted now.
Since Mint.com, Aaron has gone on to build other companies and his latest startup is called Vital. The company is building software for care teams & patients, with a focus on the Emergency Room (ER) experience. Vital uses AI/ML to transform the care experience, increase patient & staff satisfaction, and increase revenue for their clients.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Why having a “fail fast” mentality may not be the best way to build a company if you are solving a really complex problem.
- Aaron’s full background story including examples as an entrepreneur and a builder from an early age. He even had a business called getawebsite.com and yes, he owned that domain, which he later sold.
- The full lifecycle story of Mint.com with lots of great stories and lessons learned along the way.
- How Vital is disrupting the healthcare industry and emergency room experience for consumers.
- The difference between building a consumer product versus an enterprise solution in the healthcare industry.
- Advice on building the initial foundation team for a startup.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Whether it was being a member of an advanced studies program as a child, to moving to Los Angeles from Israel as a teenager, or his experience as part of an elite team called Unit 8200 of the Israel Defense Forces, Udi has always been up for a challenge and has a passion for solving hard problems.
This passion has continued throughout his career as he took the leap of faith into entrepreneurship towards the beginning of his career by building an enterprise software company that was later acquired by SAP.
Udi is now looking to replicate the same level of success that he’s had at multiple enterprise software companies at Earnix. The company is a global provider of real-time AI-driven rating, dynamic pricing, product personalization, and fully operationalized telematics solutions for Insurance and Banking. Earnix achieved unicorn status last year after its latest funding round and recently opened its new North American headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The overview of the tech and startup industry in Israel and the momentum there.
- Udi’s full background story and his experience scaling and growing enterprise software companies.
- All the details on Earnix, plus use case and customer examples.
- Details on the growth plans for hiring at Earnix and what it is like working there in terms of its culture.
- Advice for entrepreneurs and CEOs who are looking to expand in the U.S.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Typically, you don’t hear many venture capital backed companies get mentioned during daytime talkshows, but did you know that SevenRooms is one of Drew Barrymore’s favorite companies. At least that is what she said during her show.
She highlighted the company’s Fresh Start policy which gives new hires their first two weeks of employment as paid time off as a chance to recharge before they get going at the company. In addition, SevenRooms has a 7R&R program which requires employees who have been with the company up to five years gto take five consecutive days off twice a year and employees with a longer tenure must take double that.
Joel and I talk in detail about these benefits and why they are so meaningful for the company’s people first culture.
SevenRooms is a guest experience and retention platform that helps hospitality operators create exceptional experiences that drive revenue and repeat business. The company is venture
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Joel’s professional background and what he learned as the Chief of Staff at LivePerson.
- The founding story of SevenRooms and the details on the platform, plus the impact it has for its customers.
- What it was like running a company focused on the hospitality industry during the height of the pandemic and how some key decisions made the company stronger in the long run.
- The market opportunity and areas for disruption within the hospitality industry.
- Advice on building a global company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Through the years, many successful businesses have been born from unbundling CraigsList with stand alone companies from different categories across the site. I’ve recently read articles about how the same could be said for Google and internet search with more of a curated web approach which makes me wonder if the same opportunity exists to unbundle YouTube into different streaming platforms for a targeted audience.
Twitch was obviously the homerun in this category, as it proved that there was a large enough audience and interest to build a business around livestreaming videos games. Well, did you know that, according to Jenny, that the beauty market is five times larger than the gaming industry.
Based on this massive opportunity, Jenny has taken her experience, knowledge, and passion to build NEWNESS, which is the livestreaming platform built specifically for the beauty community. The company is venture backed by Sequoia Capital and other leading VC firms and angel investors.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A very open discussion about imposter syndrome and advice on how to overcome it.
- Jenny’s background story in terms starting her career in investment banking and why she made the transition to the tech industry.
- Her experience at Twitch right before the acquisition by Amazon and her different roles there, plus some key lessons learned from working under the Amazon umbrella.
- All the details on NEWNESS and how she got the business started in terms of raising funding (where she shares a very unique tip), building out the tech, identifying creators, and growing an audience.
- Her thoughts about the future of livestreaming.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Healthcare is the biggest labor sector in the country and the demand for healthcare workers continues to grow as the population is aging. The challenge is that the number of healthcare workers has certainly not kept up with demand, as we are on track to be short 1 million nurses by the end of next year.
Any solid entrepreneur would hear that number and think of one word and that is opportunity. However, when you combine two industries that can be very difficult to transform that being healthcare and staffing, well most entrepreneurs are going to run the other way.
This was not the case for Iman and her co-founder, Rome Portlock, as they both come from families with lots of roots in the industry and how they have built their own careers with domain experience in healthcare, it makes them uniquely qualifies to flip this industry on its head and scale a massive company.
Incredible Health’s mission is to help healthcare professionals live better lives and find and do their best work. The company is backed by leading VC firms and was recognized by Forbes as a “Next Billion-Dollar Startup” company.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice on perfecting your company’s story & pitch deck when raising capital.
- Iman’s background including how her experience in medical school and management consulting helped build out the initial foundation for her career.
- Why she decided to join the tech industry as a Product Manager out of business school at Wharton and her path into entrepreneurship.
- All the details about Incredible Health from how the idea come to fruition to how the company differentiates itself through the use of technology and other key benefits to solve this staffing crisis.
- The value and importance of focus and the emphasis on delivering user delight.
- Advice for entrepreneurs who are building companies in the healthcare industry.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
How many times a week does someone ping you with a question about how to do something? You could respond by explaining it over email, jumping on Zoom to show them to give the visual, detail it with step by step instructions in a doc… or you could just make a Scribe in seconds.
Lots of products help solve pain points, but very few really nail the user experience to the point where you pause with a delightful look on your face and blurt out “that’s cool.” It’s that a-ha moment that any founder would love to see from its users.
Before interviewing Jennifer, I signed up for Scribe. As a product-led-growth company, the onboarding process was incredibly simple, as it should be, but it was the experience of using their product that gave me the exact a-ha experience.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice and tips on best practices for onboarding remote employees.
- Jennifer’s background story including how she landed on the investment side of the equation and how her experience at Greylock helped her as an entrepreneur.
- Lots of details about Scribe including how the idea came to fruition, building out the company, their go-to-market strategy, onboarding of new users, and more.
- Key advice for entrepreneurs on raising VC funding and how to build out a diverse team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Pop quiz… what do you think would be the most detrimental to your health… lack of food, water, or sleep? Well, you’ll have to listen to this episode to find out, as Joe shares the answer and it may surprise you.
Not only is Joe a successful startup CEO, but he is also an endurance athlete. I’m talking about someone who is pushing their body to the ultimate limits… things like running a marathon a day for six days across six continents which is something that Joe accomplished.
As he shares, running a startup is a lot like being an endurance athlete in terms of the mentality and the commitment not to quit when things get hard or challenging. Your mindset is so critical to the foundation of your success.
1upHealth is an intelligent health data platform powered and connected by FHIR® that connects an ecosystem of payers, providers, patients, life sciences and app developers within a trusted interoperability network. The company announced a $25M Series B round of funding last year led by F-Prime Capital.
Joe also has a podcast called Chasing Tomorrow where he interviews other endurance athletes with his co-host Dave Proctor.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Joe’s background story and how he got his career started at E&Y, plus his journey in the tech industry.
- All the details on 1upHealth and how they are disrupting the healthcare industry, plus growth plans ahead in terms of hiring.
- Lots of fun stories from his experience as an endurance athlete.
- How to prepare yourself for a CEO position at a startup.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
There is a tremendous amount of information that has been written about the process of raising funding for startups, but for some reason, you don’t see nearly as much information about the acquisition process. What are the good, the bad, or the ugly experiences? How does one get on the radar for a potential acquirer? What are the common pitfalls, etc., etc.?
It seems like there are so many things that can go wrong, so it’s a common question that I ask entrepreneurs for this podcast. Based on Brian’s track record, it was a perfect opportunity to get some solid advice for entrepreneurs to follow, as he’s been through multiple acquisitions via companies like Google and Facebook.
Brian’s latest startup is focused on data privacy for digital marketing, as Sourcepoint provides tools to protect consumer privacy, manage compliance and optimize revenue.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Brian’s background story and how he got his career started in the tech industry in customer service.
- His experience in leadership roles in the tech industry at DoubleClick, Admeld, and LiveRail.
- The story behind Sourcepoint with his Co-Founder, Ben Barokas, and how their vision of transparency around usage of data became a reality.
- The current stage of Sourcepoint and growth plans ahead.
- Advice around hiring for startups and how to think about the recruiting process.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The shift of founders building startups in other regions outside of Silicon Valley is an interesting trend that has been taking shape especially since the pandemic hit and working with remote employees really hit its stride.
So, what does it take to build a thriving tech ecosystem in a city or region? Well, it takes a lot of different components plus you need the people who can execute on a vision.
Lakshmi is a builder of these ecosystems from her time in Chicago to what she is doing now in terms of building up a robust startup scene in Tampa Bay, Florida. As CEO of Embarc Collective, she has helped to build out the vision of Jeff Vinik, who is the owner of the Tampa Bay Lighting. Today, Embarc Collective is thriving with a 32,000 sq ft facility and over 100 startups.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Detailed advice on how to build out a successful tech ecosystem.
- Lakshmi’s background story and the foundational years of her career.
- Her experience at 1871 which is Chicago’s technology hub for over 450 startups.
- How she landed her current position at Embarc Collective and what they have accomplished over the past 4+ years.
- A deep dive into the tech scene in Tampa Bay.
- Three tips on how founders should leverage their own local startup community.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Episode 257 features a discussion from a recent webinar we hosted with OpenView Venture Partners around hiring and competing for talent in this competitive market. Since most companies are hiring, we thought this topic would be incredibly beneficial.
For this discussion, I was joined by Steve Melia, Talent Partner, and Maggie Crean, Talent Manager from OpenView and we cover a lot of ground.
We discuss great topics like:
- Lots of data from OpenView’s State of the SaaS Talent Market Report.
- Advice on how to demonstrate a company’s culture during a remote interview process.
- Why consistency and transparency during an interview process are so important.
- Unique ideas on how to build up your top-of-the-funnel talent pipeline.
- How to get more employee referrals and buy-in from employees on helping out with employment branding.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I was excited to interview Rahul for our podcast since his background before starting Clora is very deep in the life sciences industry as the head of clinical development at several biopharma companies. It was an opportunity to explore this industry, as I haven’t interviewed anyone who has the same depth of experience, so we talk about the drug discovery and clinical trials process.
It was this industry knowledge that led Rahul down the path of starting Clora to address a critical pain point in the life sciences industry and that is the lack of resources. And, when I say resources… I’m referring to talent and having the right expertise at the right time during the drug discovery process. As you’ll hear, it takes over 300 unique skillsets to bring a drug to market.
Well, Clora is helping to solve this talent crisis with its intelligent platform that efficiently matches life science companies with flexible, on-demand expertise. The company is venture backed by Spark Capital, Social Capital, Notation Capital, and others.
Rahul is also a fellow podcaster, as he is one of the hosts of the Biotech 2050 Podcast, which I would recommend checking out if you are interested in learning more about the biotech and life sciences industry.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What’s the biggest difference between building a tech startup versus a life sciences company.
- Rahul’s background story and why he pursued a career in the life sciences industry.
- His experience leading clinical development across multiple companies.
- All the details about Clora in terms of their mission, the details on their platform, and growth plans ahead.
- Advice for founders on building a company in the healthtech industry.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I feel like this interview was long overdue, as I’ve know Rob for a long time. I probably first met him at one of the tech events in Boston… maybe Web Innovators Group or something like that.
It was during a resurgence of the tech industry in that region where a new crop of entrepreneurs were building companies and Rob’s company, Backupify, was one of the hot companies in the Boston tech scene. Backupify raised funding from top investors like First Round Capital, Avalon Ventures, General Catalyst, Lowercase Capital and top angel investors like Dharmesh Shah, Chris Sacca, and Jason Calacanis.
It was a big deal because he chose to build his company in Boston instead of Silicon Valley or NYC, which helped him make a splash coming from Kentucky.
Since having a successful exit with Backupify, Rob has gone on to make a major impact to not only the Boston tech scene, but to the tech industry at large as both an entrepreneur and investor.
His latest company is called Dianthus, the world's only AI-first eCommerce company which is acquiring small to medium sized brands and helping them grow faster with a common AI platform that includes not just new technologies, but new AI-centric workflows, processes, and ways of working. The company just announced $11.5M in seed funding led by PJC, Underscore, and Jason Calacanis.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The use of AI and the areas that Rob finds the most interesting in terms of use cases.
- Rob’s early professional career out of school and a look at how he got into blogging in the early days, including how it has helped him as an entrepreneur.
- The story of Backupify, a backup cloud company that was started in 2008 for Salesforce and Google Apps and was acquired by Datto.
- His experience as an investor - first as an angel, which includes some amazing advice on how to get started as an angel investor and then his experience as a Venture Partner at PJC.
- A deep dive into the creation of his latest company, Dianthus and how they are leveraging AI as a competitive advantage.
- Advice for hiring when building out your company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Entrepreneurship… is it something that is taught or is it just engrained into some people? Personally, I think the answer is both but in the case of Ritik, it is deeply rooted in his DNA.
His journey into entrepreneurship started in middle school when he built a successful web development & hosting business. He’s now a successful serial entrepreneur, as his last two companies were acquired by Box and Brex. Ritik’s next company, Savvy, could be his biggest success yet.
Savvy is a next-generation wealth management firm that supercharges its wealth managers with enhanced software, sales and marketing automation, and back office servicing. The company recently, announced a $7.3M seed round of funding co-led by Index Ventures and Thrive Capital.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The benefits of having a waitlist before you launch your product.
- How Ritik got involved in entrepreneurship and stories from his earlier companies.
- His experience as a Thiel Fellow.
- A look at his prior two companies, Stream & Elph, plus advice on the acquisition process.
- All the details on Savvy and how they are disrupting the financial services industry.
- Advice on applying to Y Combinator.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s not every day that you get to interview someone who launched four product lines with Steve Jobs and the rest of the Apple exec team, so as a fan of all things Apple, lets just say I was a little excited for this interview.
Calin’s career has always been at the forefront of emerging technologies and trends. From his first stint at Apple working on software for the iMac and iBook (yes, the shell shaped laptop), to his time at Handspring where he helped bring the Treo - a first generation smartphone - to market, to his return to Apple to work on early iPhone software, iTunes Mobile, pre-HealthKit, Apple TV, and AirPlay, plus the other startups that he’s been involved in.
The next frontier ahead for Calin is sound and as a Co-Founder & CEO of Spatial, their goal is to redefine the human experience by creating virtual soundscapes where you work, where you play and where you stay. The company recently announced its Series B funding highlighted by Mike Gordon, President of Fenway Sports Group, The Kraft Group, Marquee Sports Holdings, WS Development and National Geographic Society.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Predictions for the future of immersive experiences at sporting events and concerts.
- All the great stories throughout his career at Apple, Handspring, and the various startups… including the question I had to ask him about.
- What it was like working with Steve Jobs.
- A deep dive into his latest company, Spatial and how their technology works, plus a glimpse into the plans ahead for the company.
- Advice on keeping a culture of innovation as a company scales.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Real estate is the largest asset class in the world, so it’s surprising that this industry has been slow to change, but this is not the case anymore. The proptech industry is on fire. According to the Wall Street Journal, last year over $9.5B was invested into the proptech industry from VC firms and other investors. It’s proof that there is a tremendous amount of disruption happening in this sector through the use of technology to solve an incredible amount of business challenges and improving operational efficiencies.
After building a very successful career in the real estate and tech industry, Gary saw an opportunity to build on his knowledge to launch Roofstock, the leading end-to-end online platform for single family rental investing. Its marketplace makes the process of investing in single-family properties accessible, cost-effective, and just simple. The company just announced a $240M Series E funding at a $1.94B valuation.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A discussion about the proptech market and what’s going on within this industry.
- A walk through Gary’s background and all the great companies that he’s been involved throughout his career.
- All the details on Roofstock in terms of how the marketplace works and growth plans ahead.
- Three real estate markets that Gary is the most bullish on.
- Gary’s point of view on the current state of real estate market and how economic factors play into the overall puzzle.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I’m always amazed when I talk to an entrepreneur who starts a company while in college. There’s a lot going on during those college years in terms of the academic and social experience, so it’s impressive when they have the vision and maturity to embark on the adventure of building a business.
I find it even more impressive when the entrepreneur's company is working on hard tech and has legs beyond college, as in the case with Indico Data. Since it was founded while Slater was at Olin College of Engineering, the company has gone on to raise multiple rounds of venture funding and their tech has evolved to being an enterprise solution for helping empower organizations’ use of unstructured data.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How training in MMA (mixed martial arts) helped him with his career in entrepreneurship.
- Slater’s decision to attend Olin and how it influenced his career to become an entrepreneur.
- A deep dive into Indico Data, including how the idea came to fruition and the process of building the tech and getting the company started.
- The current stage of the company and growth plans ahead.
- Slater’s role as an EIR at .406 Ventures and his experience as an angel investor.
- When it makes sense to hire an outside CEO for your startup.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This is an extra special episode of The VentureFizz Podcast as it is a milestone episode - welcome to Episode 250! This means we have over 10 days worth of entrepreneurial and investor interviews!
For Episode 250, I couldn’t think of a better guest than Jonathan Bush, Founder & CEO of Zus Health. Yes, his last name is Bush, as in the same Bush family where his uncle and cousin were both president of the United States.
Jonathan has been following his own journey as a very successful healthcare entrepreneur. He co-founded and led athenahealth to a public offering with this early cloud based healthcare software provider.
His latest company, Zus Health, is an even larger swing, as the company is looking to build out the platform to disrupt the healthcare industry the same way Stripe disrupted payments by building the industry’s first shared development platform backed by a shared data record.
The company is venture backed with financing led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). F-Prime Capital, Maverick Ventures, Rock Health, Martin Ventures and Oxeon Investments also participated in the round.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Trends across the healthcare and tech industry.
- His background growing up and how his time spent as an EMT and a combat medic gave him the inside look at the inefficiencies across the healthcare industry.
- The full lifecycle story of athenahealth in terms of the original business model and how the company evolved to being the leading provider of cloud based services for electronic medical records, revenue cycle management, medical billing, and more.
- All the details on Zus Health and how they are disrupting the healthcare industry, plus the details on their growth plans ahead.
- An overview of Firefly Health where Jonathan is the company’s Executive Chairman.
- Advice for first time founders on building startups in the healthcare industry.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
One of the common mistakes that entrepreneurs make is failing to discovery the true market need for an idea by talking to potential customers. Entrepreneurs sometimes fall in love with their idea and go off to build it but to only find out that it’s not a pain point for customer who are willing to pay money to solve.
This was definitely not the case for Shensi and Gil Feig, the Co-Founders of Merge. While they were still employed, they spent 6-9 months talking to at least 100 different companies to validate the problem, their potential solution, and of course the long term opportunity in terms of the addressable market. At that point, the due diligence was done and it was time to leave their jobs and go all in on building the company.
Merge is revolutionizing the way B2B companies integrate with their Unified API for payroll, HR, recruiting and accounting. The company announced a $15M Series A round of funding towards the end of last year led by Addition, with participation from existing investor NEA.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice on raising funding for first-time founders.
- Shensi’s initial experience in investment banking & technology investing, plus her role as the Chief of Staff at a startup and what this experience taught her about running a company.
- The aha moment that led Shensi and Gil to work on Merge and how they got started.
- All the details on Merge today, the platform, use cases, funding, and growth plans ahead.
- What positions were the most challenging to hire for in the early days of the company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Music is a passion of mine. Technology is a passion of mine. Digital marketing is a passion of mine. So, what if you could roll up all three into one… well, you’d have Gupta Media and that is why you’ll hear the fan boy come out several times during my interview with Gogi.
He takes us down the journey of his agency, Gupta Media, and how it has brought the modern world of performance marketing to the entertainment industry. The agency, which is based in Boston (not NY or LA), supports the biggest music labels and entertainment companies in the world… I’m talking the music labels behind The Weeknd, Adele, Taylor Swift, or music festivals like Boston Calling and countless others.
For example - Gogi was one of 5 people who knew about Beyonce’s legendary secret album drop that rocked the music industry in terms of how it was released and Gupta Media was the agency that supported this global digital marketing campaign.
I guess Gupta Media would be the alter-ego business that I’d like to run.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The power of optimism and why it is such a meaningful word for Gogi.
- His background growing up and a look at his professional career prior to starting the agency.
- The full lifecycle story of how Gupta Media built their reputation in the entertainment industry and how it has continued to be a force throughout the years.
- What it is like working there and growth plans ahead.
- Lots of great stories from his experience in the music and entertainment industry.
- Trends in digital marketing.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Serial entrepreneur, inventor, angel investor, film producer, commencement address speaker, world traveler…
These are just some of the words that describe Wayne and it all started at a young age when he discovered the world of technology. It was this world that would lead him down the path to building a very successful future.
Wayne has a history of recognizing technology trends before they hit mainstream like peer-to-peer file sharing (yes, he was involved in companies like Napster and Dropbox, plus his own company i2hub) and developer tools with Crashlytics that was acquired by Twitter and is now owned by Google.
His latest company is Digits which is crafting the real-time finance engine for modern businesses. It is also the latest company he has started with his Co-Founder, Jeff Seibert and the two of them have an amazing track record building companies together.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What makes the foundation of a great co-founding duo.
- Waynes background story and a walk down memory lane with various companies and his involvement in a ground breaking shift in the tech industry.
- All the details on Crashlytics and the underserved market they were focused on and its rapid adoption by developers.
- Why Jeff and Wayne are tackling the world of financial apps and a glimpse into the company’s future.
- His experience as a film producer and winning an Emmy for the documentary, Chasing Coral.
- Why a recruiter should be one of the first hires at a company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
My coffee is shipped to me every two weeks and it is outstanding. It is on a subscription and therefore, it’s one less thing that I need to think about getting at the grocery store. In return, the brand has me locked in as a loyal customer where I’m not tempted by the other options while walking down the aisle. It’s such a win-win!
Subscription Commerce or Relationship Commerce, as Ordergroove has coined it, is just expected these days. However, this wasn’t the case when Greg started the company. At that point in time, just 3 companies offered it.
Sometimes when you are early to market… it can be catastrophic, but in the case of Ordergroove, it gave them the opportunity to build a platform that was ready for primetime once the market caught up.
When you look at Greg, it’s not a shock that Ordergroove has thrived. Entrepreneurship has been rooted into his DNA and it even dates back to his high school days when he started a couple of businesses - one of which was selling sports paraphernalia on eBay and another was a computer consulting firm.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice on managing your company through an early to market scenario.
- Creating his own major in Entrepreneurship at George Washington University.
- His foundational experience at Liquidation.com, a B2B eCommerce marketplace which went public.
- The early days of Ordergroove in terms of how the company got started and a great story on how he raised initial funding.
- All the details on Ordergroove and where the business is today, plus some customer examples.
- Advice on hiring for your executive team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
We have such a great and inspirational story to share with you from this interview with Moah, who prefers to go by her last name btw.
It goes something like this - immigrant founder, attends MIT, starts to build a career in User Experience (UX), becomes the co-founder of a category creating product, where she is now the CEO, and the company proceeds to grow with very little capital raised… and it’s generating about $10M a year with only 11 employees. I don’t know about you, but this is definitely the type of business that I find inspirational. It’s proof that you don’t need to raise gobs of venture capital to be successful.
Boomerang makes productivity tools and I’m assuming many people in our audience are familiar with their Gmail plugin that lets you schedule emails to send later, track emails, and other useful features.
Well, another piece of their product, which I’m really excited about, is their scheduler product. Ironically, after we recorded this episode, there was a debate on Twitter about the etiquette of sending out scheduling links like Calendly. I think it comes down to a personal preference, but I’ve definitely struggled with this approach, as I feel like I’m asking someone to take on the burden of scheduling a meeting with me when I’m usually the one requesting it.
I even took the step of surveying my LinkedIn connections about scheduling links and the majority of the people felt like it was part of the norm now and a timesaver. However, I still struggled with the process.
Well, Boomerang has fixed my dilemma with their scheduling product, as it allows you to send available times in an email to review and the recipient can just click on the time in the email that works and it’s done… meeting booked. It saves me a ton of time and in return, it’s not expecting the other party to click on a link, which takes them to a website to book time on your calendar. This experience works much, much better for me and I highly recommend that you check it out.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How having a design / UX background has helped Moah as an entrepreneur.
- Her story growing up and coming to America to attend MIT, plus her experience as a designer at tech companies.
- The background story of Boomerang from the early days to its incredible launch and the company’s continued innovation and progress.
- Lessons learned from transitioning into a CEO position.
- Her experience as an angel investor with ANGELS.vc.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
At this point, it’s assumed that companies have a content strategy pulled together for their marketing plan. However, even though content marketing is not a new concept, it is still really difficult to get it right.
The challenge is on multiple levels. You need to consistently write content that is meaningful and not loaded with keywords and links that add no value to the article. Search engines are too sophisticated now and they will sniff that out.
But, when it is done right… it can be magic, especially if you end up ranking as the authority for keywords that will help drive business to your website.
Jeff saw this problem firsthand and it was a meeting with his future co-founder, Aki Balogh, where he saw the opportunity for a automated solution that bridges the gap between SEO and content marketing.
Fast forward to today… MarketMuse is an AI driven platform that enables companies to create predictably better content at scale that increases traffic and engagement, improves productivity, and drives revenue.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The current state of content marketing and the latest on SEO best practices.
- Jeff’s background growing up and his professional experience at KnowledgeStorm and TechTarget.
- All the details on MarketMuse and how the company’s platform works.
- His experience as a Co-Founder of Silver Bluff Brewing Company and the similarities of being a tech entrepreneur.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
As with most entrepreneurs, you never forget the people who supported you from the early days of the company. I first met Matt towards the end of 2009. VentureFizz had recently launched and I was looking for advertising sponsors to help fund future development of the site.
At that point in time, Matt was heading up marketing for a company called uTest (now called Applause) and they were looking to increase exposure for the company. It ended up being a great match and they were the first company to sponsor VentureFizz. Without that check… who knows what would have happened. So grateful.
Matt has been involved in lots of venture backed tech companies that have scaled. His career progressed through the marketing ranks into leadership positions to the point of becoming a CEO for startups. Thus, I was excited to hear about his professional journey and all the stories of scaling companies, plus the lessons learned along the way.
Matt recently joined GitKraken, the maker of some of the most popular developer tools in the entire Git ecosystem, as their CEO.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice on transitioning through the leadership ranks to a CEO position.
- Matt’s backgroundl in terms of growing up in Michigan and what he learned from his early experience at Herman Miller.
- The story behind the fast track of his career to the point of leading marketing at startups and the details on scaling Applause.
- How he transitioned into a CEO position at Mautic and their acquisition by Acquia.
- All the details on GitKraken and their growth plans ahead.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Launching and scaling a successful company typically takes bold entrepreneurs who are willing to take the risk of building something in a market that doesn’t exist yet. They look at the world differently and they have a vision that some might think is crazy. But, it’s these entrepreneurs that go on to define markets and scale companies at unicorn valuations.
In the case of Formlabs, Max and his co-founders set out to make 3D printing more accessible through its revolutionary desktop 3D printer. Fast forward, the company has scaled to about 700 employees, multiple products, and a global footprint. Just last year, the company announced a $150M Series E round of funding last year at a $2B valuation.
However, when they started the company in 2011, raising capital for a company this complex was incredibly rare as it involves hardware, software, materials, and manufacturing. Landing their first investor - that being Mitch Kapor (the founder of Lotus and a legendary investor) - is absolutely one of the best funding stories that I’ve ever heard.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The current state of the 3D printing industry, including the variety of use cases and predictions for the future.
- Max’s background story growing up, his studies at Cornell & MIT, plus what sparked his interest in the 3D printing industry.
- How he met his co-founders and how they got Formlabs started, plus the details behind their Kickstarter campaign which was one of the most successful of all time.
- A look at Formlabs today in terms of its scale and growth plans ahead, plus the company’s culture.
- Lessons learned around hiring and what has been the key criteria for successful hires.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Calendly, Zoom, Dropbox, Canva - are all great examples of Product-led Growth companies or what is commonly known as PLG for short. So, what is PLG?
As defined on OpenView’s website, PLG is an end user-focused growth model that relies on the product itself as the primary driver of customer acquisition, conversion, and expansion.
It’s a term that was actually coined by Blake in 2016 and has become the dream business model for entrepreneurs. Thus, I was really excited to interview Blake for our podcast as it was an opportunity to do a deep dive with the expert on PLG models and strategies, which is exactly where we begin our conversation. We take a look at some specific company examples and he shares some great advice on how to adopt an effective PLG strategy.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover:
- Blake’s background story and how he got into the investing world including his time spent at Battery Ventures.
- All the details on OpenView and the types of investments he is looking to make.
- Portfolio company examples, including Calendly.
- Advice for companies scaling their hiring during the expansion stage.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s very rare for a company to make it to the public markets. It’s even rarer to have the founder of the company as its CEO throughout the full lifecycle to that IPO milestone.
EngageSmart provides vertically tailored customer engagement software and integrated payments solutions. The company went public back in September of last year and Bob had the honor of ringing the bell of the New York Stock Exchange as its CEO & Founder on a day when the stock had priced above its initial range as a publicly traded company.
This was not Bob’s first company. He’s a serial entrepreneur, who was the founder of MicroFridge, a company that created a refrigerator-freezer-microwave appliance combo which was built for college dorm rooms and motels. The company scaled to millions of dollars in revenue and an acquisition, but as you’ll hear, Bob shares a powerful lesson from this experience that led to his future success.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Bob’s background growing up and the importance of having a chip on your shoulder.
- The full story of MicroFridge and how they were able to create an innovative product in a very complex and competitive market.
- How he gained expertise in the payment industry and what led him down the path of starting Invoice Cloud, an early SaaS / cloud company.
- Scaling Invoice Cloud and acquiring other vertical solutions to the point of launching the overarching EngageSmart brand.
- Advice on building a company’s culture as it scales.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Companies strive to build a strong culture that will hopefully be the foundation for success. In the case of Seth, having a People First culture is the priority and it is why they operate with an upside down org chart. When you think about it, the upside down org chart makes a ton of sense. Aren’t leaders the ones who are ultimately working for their reports to do whatever it takes to ensure the success of each person in their position which ultimately translates into the company’s success?
Another great example of Seth’s leadership and the culture at Conductor is the fact that when the company was purchased back from WeWork in 2019, every employee (which was over 250 at the time) were granted the same class of stock and were all labeled as co-founders in the company.
Seth and I start out the conversation with a deep dive on this topic of a People First culture and he shares lots of useful info about its benefits.
Conductor is an organic marketing platform built for enterprise SEO, Content, and Web teams— powering the organic marketing revolution. The company recently announced $150M in new funding at a $525M valuation.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Seth’s background story including his first startup called MindMD, an online therapy website that was ahead of its time.
- The rise and fall of LinkExperts, a link building business for SEO that he co-founded, which ended up being the precursor to Conductor.
- A deep dive into Conductor and the value of its platform for companies, plus the details on its growth plans ahead.
- The story of their acquisition by WeWork in 2018 and the buy-back in less than two years.
- Advice on scaling hiring and culture at the same time.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
There is so much disruption happening in the healthcare industry, it is truly an exciting time. Just last week, we published our interview with Sean Duffy, Co-Founder & CEO of Omada Health, which is helping people who are dealing with chronic conditions achieve long term improvements and if you go into the archives of The VentureFizz Podcast, you’ll find lots of other discussions with healthcare entrepreneurs.
One particular sector that I’m really excited about is the area of personalization in the healthcare industry. We are all unique, so shouldn’t the way you treat your body in terms of diet, exercise medicine, etc., etc. - all be specific to what your body needs versus what works for a sampling of people?
As you’ll hear, Lola had her own personal health situation which led her down the path to start Base. The company has built a new way to track your health and improve on critical items like diet, sleep, stress, fatigue, and more with affordable at-home lab testing. Our blood is the gateway and Base is unlocking the data to help you figure out the root causes to your health issues, make improvements, and continue to monitor & measure your health along the way.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Lola’s background story including her experience at Amazon, Instagram, and a healthcare startup.
- All the details about Base in terms of how it works and what you can expect as a consumer.
- How they figured out their go-to-market strategy and growth plans ahead.
- Advice for consumers on evaluating healthcare startups and ways to determine which ones you can trust.
- Advice for female founders on raising capital.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
There’s so much going on in the healthcare industry. It is truly a transformative time that spans across the full spectrum whether it’s advancements in medicine, operational improvements, and more, there is obviously no shortage of innovation and an opportunity to make a meaningful impact. Thus, I always get excited when I get a chance to interview an entrepreneur who is scaling a company in this industry.
Omada Health has raised over $250M in venture captial funding and they are on a mission to help people make significant, lifelong changes through incremental steps. They are making it possible for people with chronic conditions to achieve long term improvements in their health and we get into the weeds in terms of how they are accomplishing this very meaningful cause.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Sean’s full background story including his time working in the healthcare industry, Google, IDEO, and a side hustle business that still operates today.
- His fascination with building out ideas and how it led him down the path of becoming an entrepreneur.
- All the details on Omada Health and how they are making a difference in the healthcare industry, push the complexity of their business model.
- A look at their Series D round of funding and growth plans ahead.
- Hiring advice when scaling your company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
A disproportionate amount of capital invested into companies does not go to gender diverse teams and it’s a problem. It’s a problem and an issue that I’ve brought up multiple times in this podcast as I hope the continuous awareness of this issue creates a positive impact over time.
Based on Lori’s background and the focus on her firm, it was a perfect opportunity to find out if we are making some level of progress in terms of capital fundraising for gender diverse companies. We kick off our interview on this topic and we address a recent report from Pitchbook that shares some positive statistics from this year in terms of company exits, funding activity, and unicorn valuations for women-led startups… but as you’ll hear… there’s still a long way to go.
Victress Capital is working to address this issue with a focused on investing in early-stage consumer startups with gender diverse teams. The firm recently announced its second fund and portfolio company examples include companies like Daily Harvest (which was recently valued at over $1B), Droplette, Summersalt, Alyce, and many others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Lori’s background story and how she transitioned into an investor role, then co-founded a private equity firm called Lineage Capital.
- What led Lori and her partner, Suzanne Norris, down the path of starting Victress Capital.
- All the details on the firm in terms of the size of their fund, stage of investing, and how they evaluate startups.
- Advice on building a consumer company and why you should focus on retention versus paid acquisition.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
On Upper90’s website you’ll find the following phrase: It’s not how much you raise… it’s how much you own. It’s a very compelling statement that makes a ton of sense, yet every day in the world of tech news, there’s a concentration on the size of the round and company’s valuation.
Wouldn’t it be cool if they also reported how much of the company the founders still own? Since the entrepreneurs are the ones taking the most risk, shouldn’t we celebrate their ownership stake instead?
Upper90 is working on solving this exact challenge as the firm aims to help founders keep more of their ownership by potentially delaying or even skipping their Series A round of funding. They do this by leveraging alternative forms of financing, like debt, to provide the capital for the company’s growth.
The firm is focused on eCommerce and fintech businesses and have been first investors in companies like Thrasio, Clearbanc, and several others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Common mistakes that founders make as it relates to equity and fundraising.
- Billy’s background story in terms of time at Wharton and his experience in the financial services industry which focused on building electronic trading businesses and exchanges.
- What led him and his Co-Founder, Jason Finger, down the path of creating Upper90.
- All the details on their investment thesis and how their model works.
- Hiring advice for founders on building out your initial leadership team for a company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
If you look across the investing landscape for companies, there are firms that typically specialize in each stage like seed, Series A, growth rounds, etc. Some firms even provide capital through the full lifecycle.
However, what if the foundation of your firm was even earlier. I mean, even before the entrepreneur has an idea. What if you built your firm on the thesis of taking a long term approach to identify and invest in the world’s top talent by building a community of incredibly bright, driven, and entrepreneurial individuals. In this scenario, you can provide these individuals with the resources and network to push their career and eventually their idea forward with access to capital.
As a headhunter for several years focused on product management and marketing talent, I have a deep appreciation for Eric’s firm Contrary Capital and their approach to this unique way of thinking and leverage community to build their competitive advantage.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Key factors that people are looking for when starting to build out a career.
- Eric’s background growing up, including his time at Northeastern and a look at the startups he worked on while there - one of which was a Toast competitor.
- How Eric came up with the idea for Contrary Capital and a deep dive into the firm’s unique model and how it all works.
- The details on their second fund and the stage of investments they are targeting, as well as portfolio examples.
- How the firm has been able to achieve a high level of diversity of cohorts.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Dr. Meisha-ann Martin, Director, People Analytics at Workhuman, joined us to discuss how the great resignation will shape and impact the future of the workforce.
As part of this webinar, we covered:
- What is The Great Resignation and why does it matter?
- Details from Workhuman's survey & Bureau of Labor statistics.
- Why are people looking for a new opportunity?
- More details on the type of flexibility employees are looking for these days.
- Impact on DEI
- What can companies do to reduce turnover?
- And more!
The negotiation dance… some might enjoy it, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that most people probably don’t, especially when it comes to purchasing software. It’s like a known fact that if you wait until the end of the quarter, you’ll likely get a better rate versus if you purchase the same product at the beginning of the quarter.
It was Ryan’s experience in sales that opened his eyes to this challenge in the industry and realized that there must be a better way. A better way with transparent pricing and a frictionless buying experience which also saves you money.
Enter Vendr, the SaaS buying platform that is changing how companies buy and renew SaaS. With over $300+ million in SaaS purchases across over 1,000 suppliers, the Vendr SaaS buying platform enables the world’s fastest-growing companies to purchase SaaS, without friction and at a fair price. The company recently announced a $60M Series A round of funding led by Tiger Global.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Why is it important for entrepreneurs to think big about their business starting day one.
- How Ryan transitioned into a career in sales at SCVNGR, then HubSpot where he worked his way into a leadership role and then led enterprise sales at InVision.
- All of the details on Vendr including their massive growth, hiring, culture, and funding.
- What his experience at Y Combinator taught him.
- Advice for entrepreneurs on hiring and structuring their sales team.
- And so much more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The world of sports and media has been radically changing. Not to date myself, but I remember back in college, it seemed like ESPN was continuously on. It was our go-to for breaking news and SportsCenter gave us the scores and highlights from the day prior. Now, you go to Twitter and other social media outlets if you need to find out what happened or to catch the highlights from a game.
As part of this evolution, athletes are building their own personal brands and engaging with their fans through social media. Even college athletes can now earn money from their name, image, and likeness.
Tiffany’s experience in the sports industry gave her a front row view of where things were heading. She discovered a need in the market to build a company around this trend. If athletes are now content creators, they need an easy way to create this content and once they build up a following, they need an easy way to monetize it.
Thus, Curastory was born. A video creation and monetization platform that is initially targeting athletes, but the company certainly has ambitious plans to eventually grow to other categories. Curastory recently announced a new $2.1M round of funding which included Lightspeed, Techstars, Randi Zuckerberg, and others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A discussion around the evolution of sports and media.
- Tiffany’s background growing and how she discovered the world of sports analytics.
- All the details on her role as part of the Sports Analytics team at ESPN and the origination of the Fan Happiness Index.
- The aha moment that led Tiffanny down the path of starting Curastory and the company’s progress to date.
- Advice for diverse founders on raising capital.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Lars is a serial entrepreneur with multiple successful exits, as he has built companies to capitalize on the growth of mobile adoption. It’s a fun discussion and a nice trip down mobile memory lane, like remember when you would get billed by your mobile carrier if you purchased a ring-tone?
Not only has Lars had successful exits but his last two companies have been acquired by two world-class organizations: Apple and Mastercard. Thus, he shares some great stories, including some insights into the negotiation process with Steve Jobs, which does not disappoint!
For Mastercard, the acquisition has been a massive success, as the company is rapidly expanding this division in Boston with a new 25,000 sq ft state-of-the-art office space in Post Office Square and the Data & Services team is hiring across the board. They are also investing back into the local tech ecosystem through various charitable initiatives such as TUGG, Build Boston, Girls4Tech with the Red Sox Foundation, and more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A discussion around the key factors that Lars looks for when deciding to go all-in on an idea for a business.
- His background growing up and the details on his first startup which was a photo-sharing app and how he later get involved with the team at m-Qube.
- All the details around Quattro Wireless and how the company disrupted the mobile web.
- Building SessionM and the tough decision to pivot a successful business which led to its ultimate acquisition by Mastercard.
- Lars’ experience as an investor and how it benefits him in terms of learning.
- Hiring advice for building out your team at an early-stage company. And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s a Zoom world that we are living in these days as it relates to meetings. Yes, Zoom became a verb and the company experienced insane levels of growth from the pandemic… but let’s face it, the future of work has also changed with most companies embracing remote work and the world of online meetings are here to stay.
So, if this is the way of the world, shouldn’t your online meeting experience and profile look a lot more personalized and meaningful?
Ankith thinks so and the company just launched their new Zoom client for creatives where you can remove the barriers to true self expression and bring the full you. Macro raised over $4M last year with tier-A investors.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Tips for running a successful and inclusive online meeting.
- Ankith’s background and his experience with a startup before going back to school to pursue an MBA/MS at Harvard, which is where he met his Co-Founder, John Keck.
- A deep dive into the creation of Macro and the different iterations of the product to where it is today.
- A product demo of Macro where he shares lots of the core features, which you can also find on YouTube.
- Why a company should have three different versions of their pitch deck when raising funding.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I’m excited that there is a renewed interest in space and new goals that seem aggressive, like traveling to Mars for example. But as we’ve witnessed in the past, when the most brilliant and ambitious people work on a challenge, the improbable becomes probable.
Natalya is one of these pioneers, who as a child dreamed of becoming an astronaut. She actually applied to NASA twice but was unfortunately denied. Instead, she is using her brilliant mind to build a company in the space industry, which has turned out to be perfect timing because of this renewed interest in space and also the rapid growth of the satellite industry. According to The Hustle, there are about 6,000 satellites in orbit and that number is expected to grow to 50,000 by 2030.
Accion Systems is redefining space mobility with the world’s most advanced ion electrospray in-space propulsion systems. To put it simply, the company has built ground breaking technology which helps satellites maneuver while in orbit. The company recently announced a $42M Series C round of funding led by Tracker Capital.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A discussion around the space industry, the mission to Mars, and civilian space travel.
- Natalya’s academic career which ultimately led her down the path to pursue her PhD studies at the MIT Space Propulsion Lab.
- The full founding story of Accion Systems with her Co-Founder, Louis Perna, and all the details on their revolutionary product.
- How they went about getting traction and raising capital.
- Lessons learned from building a company in the space industry.
- Natalya’s role as an investor with XFactor Ventures which invests in female funded companies.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For this podcast, I’ve interviewed lots of Venture Capitalists, who talk about their portfolio of investments in companies, but where does this capital come from? When a VC firm announces it’s latest fund of $100M or $1B, who is providing this capital?
Well, It’s typically pension funds, university endowment funds, family offices, or high net worth individuals. The investors in these funds are called Limited Partners or LP’s for short and they are the end client for a VC that is ultimately expecting a return on the capital that has been allocated to a fund.
Thus, I was excited to speak with Sara, who has a lot of experience in the venture industry as an LP and her current firm Recast Capital is a fund of funds, meaning she has raised her own fund that in return provides capital to VC firms. The firm’s strategy is to invest in and empower emerging managers in venture with a focus on diverse partnerships. The goal of the firm is to provide exceptional returns by investing in diverse emerging venture managers.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Is the VC industry making progress in terms of having more diversity?
- Sara’s educational background and her experience joining an early stage startup and how her career progressed over this period of time.
- How Sara transitioned into the investment side of the equation and her experience at CNF Investments & Greenspring Associates.
- What led Sara and her Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Courtney McCrea, down the path of starting Recast Capital and how they go about making investments into VC funds.
- Details on how the VC industry works and how to get a venture capital fund started.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This is a long overdue episode, as I’ve been wanting to interview Joe for our podcast for quite some time. Joe has been a long time supporter of VentureFizz and was one of our earliest contributors. If you look into the archives of VentureFizz, you’ll find lots of blog posts where he shares advice on tech trends and building companies.
What’s great about Joe is the level of transparency that he shares in his stories and when giving advice, which translates into not only a great and inspirational interview, but so much useful information.
Joe founded CloudHealth Technologies in 2012 to focus on creating a new product category and after multiple rounds of venture capital funding and years of hypergrowth, the company was acquired by VMware in 2018.
Here’s a fun fact about Joe, he was actually part of the first Scrum team back in the early 1990’s when Waterfall was the go-to methodology for developing software.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice for founders on letting go and delegating responsibilities.
- A journey through Joe’s professional career as a Software Engineer and the evolution to a leadership role in terms of heading up the engineering function at startups.
- The full background story of CloudHealth… from its MVP and first sale… to figuring out product market fit… to raising capital… and of course, scaling the company to the point of the acquisition.
- Advice for founders on building a world class engineering team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Technology Analyst, Venture Capitalist, Philanthropist, Entrepreneur, Movie Producer… these are just some of the roles that Todd has held throughout his career.
His track record as a VC is very impressive, but could his latest initiative be his most successful yet? Todd and his Co-Founder, Jeff Morin, are jumping into the home connected fitness ring with Liteboxer.
The company recently announced a $20M Series A round of funding for its full body boxing experience which includes breakthrough technology to give you a challenging and engaging workout.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Todd’s thoughts on the market for tech investing and skyrocketing valuations.
- His background growing up, plus the early foundational years for his career and how he got into the VC industry.
- His time at Battery Ventures, including the story of his early investment in Akamai.
- What led him down the path to start Spark Capital and what he looks for when making investments.
- All the details on Liteboxer - from the initial inspiration, to building the product, plus some of the details on how they are planning on competing in the home fitness category.
- Advice for founders on hiring and recruiting for their management team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This is a first! It’s the first time I’ve had the opportunity to interview both a founder and an investor in the same episode. I wasn’t sure how it would go, but after conducting the interview, I think this might be an interesting format to consider moving forward.
We obviously discussed all the details about Vecna Robotics, the autonomous mobile robot and workflow orchestration company, but it was really interesting to learn the story behind the investment. It was like a live version of those common “why we invested” blog posts the VC often write to detail their thought process behind their investment.
As you’ll hear, the background story of each person and how they got to where they are today really sets the stage for why I love doing this podcast. It would be hard to find other individuals who have more expertise in their respective fields and why this is a perfect match to hopefully build a massive company.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover:
- What the future holds for mobile robots and autonomous vehicles.
- The founding story of Vecna and why they spun out Vecna Robotics.
- Use cases and why the market is ready for the solutions provided by Vecna Robotics, plus the company’s growth plans ahead.
- The details on Blackhorn Ventures and what Trevor is targeting for investments.
- Common pitch mistakes entrepreneurs make while raising funding for robotics companies.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
From this podcast, I get to interview lots of highly accomplished entrepreneurs, however it’s not every day that you get to interview a successful entrepreneur, investor, Head of Brand at a fast growing startup, a Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient, author, .. oh and…. and a four time US national champion for gymnastics...and a Hall of Fame gymnast.
Needless to say, we cover a lot of ground and it’s an inspirational interview on so many levels.
In addition to her many accomplishments, a lot of Lisa’s personal brand and platform is centered around empowering women which is helping to create the next generation of female leaders.
I know my two teenage daughters will be listening to this episode because I want them to know that the world is their oyster and if you put in the hard work, anything is possible.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Lisa’s background growing up, plus all the details on the level of dedication that was required to be a world class gymnast and what this experience was like.
- How she got involved in the world of entrepreneurship.
- Her experience building SheWorx, a leading community platform for female entrepreneur, which was acquired by Republic, where she is currently the Head of Brand and Communications.
- Three pieces of advice for being a confident investor.
- An overview of her first book, The Bad Bitch Business Bible, which is scheduled for release next year.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
If you are a Venture Capitalist, you are most likely looking for entrepreneurs who can identify problems ahead of the market, but of course not too-too early. And, you’re looking for founders who are uniquely qualified to solve those problems, plus build a world class company at scale.
It’s a tall ask, but entrepreneurs like Andres are made for this. He’s a serial entrepreneur who loves hard tech. He likes the technical challenges that most people don’t have the expertise or desire to solve. He has built many successful companies and the common thread is his ability to see how the market will evolve and in his case how it will evolve around the world of data storage, especially in the cloud.
His latest company, Nasuni, is the world’s first cloud-native global file system. As previously noted, being early to market can be a competitive advantage and this is certainly the case for Nasuni, as the company has been growing at a very rapid pace.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A fun discussion about a failed startup that Andres was building with his brother, Antonio, which was aiming at solving the problem of home media storage for consumers which was a very different landscape back in 2000.
- How his graduate work in Physics at Boston University helped shape the foundation of his expertise.
- The details on Abuzz, a first generation social media company, that was acquired by The New York Times.
- Building Archivas, the first enterprise-class cloud storage system which was acquired by Hitachi.
- All the details on Nasuni - from its creation to it’s aggressive growth plans ahead.
- Advice on hiring and building out a company's initial engineering team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Landing a job in venture capital is challenging and one of the main reasons why is based on the scarcity of positions available. This stat might be a bit old, but at one point, the number of professional athletes in the US was about equal to the number of VC positions. Pretty crazy when you paint the picture that way.
To top it off, there’s no defined career path on how to get there and oftentimes the jobs are not advertised.
However, this has changed in recent years due to the availability of information and John was one of the first to really provide a deep level of insight into how to land a job in venture capital and he also started aggregating the positions available. If you type the search term venture capital jobs or something related in Google, John’s blog - which started in 2008 - appears on the first page of the search results.
Fast forward, John and his co-founder, Arno Niazi, have taken this expertise to build GoingVC, a VC education and career acceleration program to help you land that ideal job in the industry. The program already has hundreds of members & alumni.
Oh… and one would think this is a full time job, but believe it or not, John also has a very successful career in product management for tech companies.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Tips and advice on time management, which is something that he needs to be very good at.
- John’s background growing up and a look at how he was able to break into the VC industry.
- A deep dive into his professional career at companies like Turbonomic, AWS, and DigitalOcean.
- The full background story on how John started his blog and started aggregating jobs in venture capital.
- How he went on to start GoingVC, the impact it has made, plus what people can expect by going through the program.
- How a VC firm is structured by each role.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Successful serial entrepreneurs are unique in their ability to see transformational shifts before they happen and then they ultimately build a company to meet this future demand. In Jon’s case, it started during his time at MIT when he saw an opportunity in the CAD industry to automate an engineer’s sketchbook. It led him to start his first company called Premise which was later acquired.
The next shift was recognizing the difficulty of using CAD software for product designers and thinking there has to be a better way. This led to the launch of SolidWorks and they built their software to run on Microsoft Windows, which was groundbreaking at the time. The company scaled rapidly and it led to another successful acquisition.
As technology evolved to more of a SaaS business model and cloud based architecture, this opened the door for his latest company called Onshape. It changed the game for product designers in many ways, but especially for team based product development collaboration. The company also scaled aggressively and another amazing acquisition, this time by PTC in 2019.
Oh, and not only is Jon a great entrepreneur, but he was also part of the famous MIT Blackjack Team, which we discuss in lots of detail about this experience and also his interest in magic.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- His experience using a computer for the first time at his high school which includes a very precious fun fact about a popular movie from the 80’s.
- Why he chose to study Mechanical Engineering at MIT and how he got involved in the CAD software industry.
- A journey through Jon’s entrepreneurial career including lots of stories around the companies he’s built.
- All the details about the launch of Onshape, its acquisition by PTC, including the growing popularity of the platform as well as their focus on making a meaningful impact on important initiatives like education where over 1M educators and students have free access to their software.
- Advice for founders on building out their core foundational team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
2016 was a pivotal moment for VentureFizz and it was Greenhouse that helped us get to where we are today. We saw lots of companies adopting its ATS to help out with their recruiting initiatives and it was their open APIs which allowed us to scale our job board by pulling in jobs automatically through a feed. It was game changing for us. Historically, companies had to manually add their jobs to our site which was easy but let’s face it, incredibly inefficient and time consuming.
Needless to say, I was excited to speak to Daniel and learn more about the history of the company. Yes, I’m always fascinated by the entrepreneurial journey, but this one was unique based on its impact the company had on our business. I actually looked at some stats and over 40% of our customers are users of Greenhouse.
Daniel is a serial entrepreneur and now an author, as he and his co-founder, Jon Stross, wrote a book that was recently published called TALENT MAKERS. It’s a step by step guide for implementing a structured hiring process and it captures their experiences at working with more than 4,000 companies.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The details and what you can expect from reading TALENT MAKERS.
- His journey into entrepreneurship and how Lab49 opened his eyes to the world of talent acquisition and how challenging it is yet if you do it right, it’s a competitive advantage.
- What led him and Jon down the path of starting Greenhouse and the full story of how it built a market leading product and scaled.
- The future ahead for the company including it’s recently reported $500M investment to further their mission of helping every company become great at hiring.
- Advice on how companies can build a more diverse pipeline of candidates.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The world of medical billing is incredibly complex and let’s face it, most times it’s a mystery from the consumer’s point of view. The descriptions of service provided are in codes and how to make payment is not simple.
It was through a challenging medical billing experience with his wife where Florian saw firsthand how the process was broken. As a serial entrepreneur and former physician, the light bulbs went off where he saw an opportunity to radically transform this industry. Not only was it a situation where you could digitize the process and make it more consumer friendly, but it was an opportunity to fundamentally redefine the patient experience. Thus, Cedar was born.
Cedar has been scaling aggressively and has tremendous momentum. The company recently announced a $200M Series D round of funding at a $3.2B valuation and they also announced a definitive agreement to acquire OODA Health, where the combined companies will offer the only complete financial technology platform in the healthcare industry.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How ideas are easy to come by, but his advice on the hard part, how to execute.
- Florian’s background story in terms of his early career in medicine to his transition to McKinsey's healthcare practice and what this experience taught him.
- Launching a daily deals site in Brazil, which was acquired by Groupon.
- The full story behind Cedar and all the details on the company’s platform and growth ahead.
- Why building a diverse workforce is such a competitive advantage.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It was time. The insurance industry had been lagging in terms of its digital transformation. But, in recent years, lots of startups have accelerated a change in this market through the use of technology and innovative business models. Investors have certainly noticed the opportunity, as well. Crunchbase recently reported that VC firms have invested over $20B in Insurtech companies over the last three years.
It’s perfect timing for an entrepreneur like Phil. He gained critical domain experience and insights about the commercial insurance industry through the success of his prior company and his current startup is scaling at a massive rate.
Corvus Insurance is the leading provider of smart commercial insurance products powered by AI-driven risk data. The company recently announced a $100M Series C round of funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Phil’s background story and his experience in the insurance industry, including scaling his own insurance brokerage firm which was acquired.
- What led him down the path of starting Corvus Insurance and how they are transforming commercial insurance by leveraging advanced data science, with an AI-driven approach to empower brokers and policyholders to better predict and prevent loss.
- The details on their latest round of funding and growth plans ahead.
- Phil’s experience as an investor in the Insurtech industry and the areas that he believes are still ripe for disruption.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Entrepreneurship is not for everyone, but for some people… they were just born with the ability to recognize opportunities in the market that are ripe for disruption and let’s face it, some were just born with that plain old hustle and desire to succeed.
Take Ryan, a successful 3X entrepreneur who started his first company at the age of 17, an action sports video production company that was acquired by USA Today while he was still in college.
His second company, Swarm Mobile, was acquired by Groupon and it was his experience running this company where he witnessed the frustration and problems with IT for companies. Someone had to wear the IT support hat internally for a small to mid-sized company and in some cases, it’s the founder (as was the case at Swarm), which triggered the aha moment… there has to be a better way.
Electric was launched to solve this problem and the company recently closed a $40M Series C round of funding to revolutionize IT by making it simple, accessible, and cost-effective for businesses everywhere. The company provides real-time IT support to 25,000 users and centralized IT management to over 400 customers.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice for founders on figuring out your ideal customer profile before leaping into a business 100% of your time.
- Some great stories around building his first company and how starting a company as a teenager benefited him… think “no fear.”
- The details on Swarm Mobile and the lessons learned from this experience.
- What led Ryan down the path of starting Electric and the incredible value they are providing companies.
- A discussion around branding and how he wanted to make the Electric brand bold and memorable.
- What founders should be thinking about as it relates to building the company’s culture.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Ahhh… this episode takes me back. It takes me back to my childhood years in Hooksett, New Hampshire, hanging out with my buddies in the neighborhood trading baseball cards. I was a Red Sox fan and would collect cards of Jim Rice, Carl Yastremski, Dwight Evans, and lots of other Boston greats. I also collected baseball cards and memorabilia for Steve Garvey, the first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers. I have a cousin who lives in LA, so that was the connection there.
It was fun and all of my friends thought our treasures would appreciate in value and we would be set for life! Yet, the baseball card industry hit rough times, as the market ended up being flooded with cards that ultimately become worthless. I’m sure my friends who bought complete sets every year were crushed.
Well, what’s old is new again and trading cards are hot! This time the card issuers are much smarter in their releases by having a scarce supply to drive up demand. It’s very similar to what the sneaker industry has experienced.
To capitalize on this trend, StarStock has built a marketplace that essentially operates like a stock market for sports cards. Fans and card hobbyists can buy, sell, and invest in their favorite athletes while the sports cards are stored in a centralized vault, so there is no actual exchange of the cards. The company recently announced its $8M Series A round of funding led by Andreessen Horowitz.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A deep discussion on the sports trading cards industry and how it has come full circle.
- Scott’s background story including his entrepreneurial roots and building a company with his sister, Lynn, a recent Forbes Next 1000 recipient.
- What led him down the path of starting StarStock and working with Nigel Eccles, a Co-Founder of FanDuel, who helped get the company started along with StarStock Co-Founder Mike Kuchera.
- All the details on StarStock and how the business works.
- The challenges of building a two-sided marketplace.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
You hear about lots of venture firms who are working hard to build a strategy and network that will yield more investments with diverse founders. But for a firm like Mendoza Ventures, it’s rooted in their DNA… like literally, as it is both minority & woman owned and it’s the first LatinX founded venture fund on the east coast.
As you would think, their portfolio has impressive diversity numbers. As of the beginning of this year, 67% of the portfolio included investments in minority, female, and immigrant founders. Needless to say, we were able to talk in detail about the venture industry and what other investors can do to back more diverse founders.
Mendoza Ventures was launched five years ago by Senofer and her husband, Adrian. The firm is focused on making pre-seed investments in FinTech, AI, and Cybersecurity.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Senofer’s background in interior design and what she learned as an operator.
- How Senofer and Adrian got involved in tech investing.
- All of the details on Mendoza Ventures and the types of companies they are backing.
- Advice on how to build a career path into the VC industry.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Early to market… it can sometimes mean the kiss of death for a company. However, if you get it the timing right, it’s a competitive advantage and an opportunity to build a massive company. In this episode, we’ve got a great story about a company that was in this exact scenario, yet they executed, scaled and remain a pillar tech company in the industry.
The company I’m talking about is Brightcove and in today’s interview we discuss the company’s full lifecycle journey. Brightcove was founded by Bob and serial entrepreneur, Jeremy Allaire. They were early pioneers in the world of online video back in 2004. Andy also joined the company early on as an executive and eventually served as its CEO.
Thus, in this interview, we are able to get into all the weeds from the early days of the company to its IPO. And as a bonus,Bob provided a really cool video that shares the very first prototype of Brightcove's concept back in 2004. So, how much did they get right for online video? It’s pretty cool to see how a lot of their concepts still hold true close to 20 years later:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxaOpsSoHp8
Bob and Andy are now running Argon Ventures, a pre-seed venture fund, which is leading investments in Intelligent Industry Solutions.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover lots of other great topics like:
- Their background stories, including some great details from Bob’s time at ATG and Andy’s experience at Lycos.
- How Bob got into investing and his experience with Project 11 and as a mentor at Techstars.
- All the details on Argon Ventures and the types of companies and investments they are targeting.
- What it’s like being a CEO of a publicly traded company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Corey has an impressive background in terms of his career path and his many accomplishments as a leader, which we discuss in detail. But that is only part of the story.
I was also very excited to talk with Corey about Rapid7’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion initiatives. The company has been very open about their goals and progress. In 2018, Rapid7 set a goal to have 50% of their workforce to be women and people of color.
The company published a DEI Annual Report for 2020 which shared their results. They achieve 49.7% of their goal and one would think they would just round up and say mission accomplished, but as noted from a recent blog post on VentureFizz from Christina Luconi, Rapid7’s Chief People Officer, they are immensely proud of their progress to date, but they know they still have so much more to do.
Thus, we talk at length about how Rapid7 has gone about building a more diverse & inclusive workforce and Corey shared lots of advice on how other companies can follow.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover:
- Corey’s background growing up and his decision to study Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at Vanderbilt.
- His experience at AT&T during college and working at Deloitte after graduating, then attending business school at HBS.
- His time working at Microsoft as a Group Product Manager, where he worked on one of the largest releases of SQL Server back in the day.
- The details on Rapid7, plus his career progression to CEO and the company’s IPO.
- Advice on building a career path to a CEO position.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Much like cloud computing, open source technologies have changed the game. When I think about it, it’s unlikely that VentureFizz would exist if it wasn’t for open source software. There’s no way I could have gotten it off the ground if I had to purchase an expensive content management system.
It took many years for open source to become commonplace and especially to the point where you could build a successful tech company around an open source project.
Ed has been involved in the open source technology industry for 20 years, so he’s witnessed firsthand how things have evolved and how open source has propelled technology forward, which we discuss in detail.
He’s currently leading EDB, which provides products, services, and support to over 5,000 customers who are using PostgreSQL, an open source database. The company is headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts and has 16 offices worldwide.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Ed’s background studying business at Boston University on an ROTC scholarship and how his experience in the Army helped him as a leader.
- How he got into the tech industry and the rapid growth years at Red Hat.
- All the details on EDB, including their record growth from last year and what the culture is like working there.
- Advice on building out pricing and go-to-market models in the tech industry.
- When is the right time to bring in a Chief Revenue Officer and how the position is different from a VP of Sales.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
When you think of the greatest athletes, like Serena Williams or Tom Brady, you are in awe of their success and the number of championships that they have won. In the business world, success is often measured by an exit - either an acquisition or an IPO and one could also argue that the IPO is many times the harder hill to climb.
Well… when you look at Carol’s track record, it is extraordinary. She has been part of 4 companies (yes 4) that have all gone public: Shiva Corporation, Unica, LogMeIn, and Rapid7.
In addition to her success as an executive, Carol has also made a major impact as a member of the Board of Directors at several startups and as an advisor to many entrepreneurs. And, on top of all of this… Carol recently joined Glasswing Ventures as a Venture Partner.
Needless to say, we had a lot to talk about - not only about all the stories from her professional career, but it was an exciting opportunity to do a deep dive into the world of marketing.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice on how to build your personal brand.
- Carol’s background growing up and how she pivoted her career from finance to sales to marketing.
- Her professional journey including lots of great stories from scaling companies.
- How marketing has evolved through the years and her thoughts on the current state of B2B marketing.
- Lots of great advice on how to hire marketers and how to shape your own career path to a CMO position.
- And so much more.
Payal is a Partner at .406 Ventures. She joined the firm almost 6 years ago and co-leads the digital health practice. Karthyn joined .406 Ventures this year as a Vice President and she is also aligned with the digital health sector. Needless to say, the healthcare industry has gone through radical transformation due to the pandemic and a lot of the technologies that support the industry have been accelerated, so we had a lot to talk about in this space.
Named after the legendary baseball player, Ted Williams, .406 Ventures is an early stage venture capital firm that has raised over $1B across four core funds and two opportunity funds. The firm invests in innovative IT and services companies in data & cloud, digital health, and cybersecurity.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Payal and Kathryn’s background and how they ended up breaking into the VC industry.
- All the details on .406 Ventures including their investment area of focus, stage of investing, and portfolio examples.
- A look into the trends across the digital health industry.
- Thoughts on helping to improve the diversity numbers in the VC industry and career advice on how to land a job as a Venture Capitalist.
- What makes the position as a VC so difficult.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Many successful entrepreneurs disrupt industries with innovative ideas, but how many can say their disruption actually helped create and jumpstart a whole industry that is massive.
Chris has been involved in the cybersecurity industry since the beginning as a member of the elite hacker think tank in the 90’s called the L0pht, which went on to testify before the U.S. Senate about cybersecurity and vulnerabilities of the internet.
20 years later, the cybersecurity industry is only growing by the day with new threats popping up and new technologies being developed to help companies and consumers play defense.
Veracode is one of the anchor companies and Chris is one of its co-founders. Veracode is the largest global provider of application security testing (AST) solutions serving more than 2,500 customers worldwide across a wide range of industries.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The story of the L0pht, which has the makings for a great Netflix show as it reminds me of the series Halt and Catch Fire.
- @ Stake’s acquisition of the L0pht and the early days of the cybersecurity industry.
- The full story of Veracode in terms of starting the company, scaling to an acquisition, and spinning back out as an independent company.
- Advice for technical founders on starting a company.
- Lessons learned on scaling.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
A sign of a great entrepreneur is someone who has the drive, the hustle, and that unique ability to not only recognize opportunities where things can improve, but also the ability to follow through and take action to create something.
This entrepreneurial trait for Shanel started at a young age, as she remembers selling her art work at family BBQs and it only continued to build from there. She later took the initiative, while working at athenahealth, by founding the company’s first ethnic diversity business resource group, which was well ahead of its time and it grew to 775 members globally.
Now, she is the founder of a company called MD Ally, a public safety telehealth company that is working to ensure the appropriate use of emergency resources and improve patient outcomes, which is a game-changer.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice for landing media coverage and public speaking opportunities
- Shanel’s background growing up and the foundation of her professional career at AT&T and athenahealth.
- All the details on MD Ally and how they are using telehealth to optimize the system for 911 and EMS resources.
- Her experience participating in MassChallenge and Techstars, plus what she is hoping to accomplish with her new role as a board member at Techstars.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
What do these three things have in common: ESPN, the Olympics, and ABC News? Rob was an on-air contributor for all three. As you’ll learn from our interview, he has a very unique background in the media industry. Not only was he on-air, but he also worked in business development and in the investment arm of media companies as well, which is very rare in terms of working on both sides of the equation.
This well rounded experience has now set him up to start his own company and entrepreneurial pursuit with Persona, a video Q&A marketplace where you can get personalized video answers or shout-outs from influencers and experts. Think of it like a business version of Cameo matched up with Quora.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice on storytelling and why it matters for entrepreneurs.
- Rob’s background growing up and his passion for the media industry and how practicing law helped him get started.
- What it was like being an on-air personality, plus the details on his roles on the business side of the media industry.
- What led him down the path of starting Persona and why now is the ideal time for this startup.
- Advice for diverse founders on raising capital.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Peter has a tremendous track record of success as a CEO for fast growing tech companies and scaling them to a successful exit. He’s done it several times and Snyk is on pace to become another anchor tech company in the area.
What’s interesting to note about Peter is the fact that it was a career pivot from a role as a Controller into tech sales that helped catapult his career into an executive leadership role.
Snyk is a developer-first security company that helps software-driven businesses develop fast and stay secure. The company announced $200M in funding last September at a valuation that is greater than $2.6B. This is fresh off the heels of announcing $150M just 9 months prior.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The 3 basic principles Peter follows as a leader.
- The story of Peter’s career transition to tech sales and his quick ramp into a leadership role.
- A journey through all the companies that Peter had the opportunity to lead like eCredit, Watchfire, Desktone, & Veeam Software.
- All the details on Snyk and the massive market opportunity for the company, plus growth plans ahead.
- Advice on advancing your career towards a CEO position.
- How to get on the radar for Board of Director positions.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Grant’s entrepreneurial experience started as a paperboy. He noticed that the real business model of newspaper companies was the ads. This triggered an idea that he could help small businesses with advertising too. Through the encouragement of his dad, Grant started cold calling and learned the great business lesson of what it’s like to get a bunch of “no’s” but when you finally land on that “yes” - it’s the magical word and it is all you need to get started.
Unstack is his latest startup and the company just announced $3.1M in funding. The company provides a no-code marketing platform that gives marketers and entrepreneurs the fastest way to launch and scale a business. They already have significant traction and some really exciting plans ahead.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How to crush your launch on Product Hunt.
- Grant’s background story including how he learned online marketing.
- All the details on his prior company, Grapevine, an early to market influencer marketing platform that was acquired.
- A deep dive into Unstack and how they are competing against the massive incumbents.
- Advice on getting involved in angel investing.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Imagine that you’ve worked your way into an executive leadership position with one of the top insurance companies where you are overseeing an organization of hundreds of people generating billions of dollars, yet you realize that you are a builder and there’s an opportunity to build a company around an idea.
So what do you do? Do you stay at the safety net of the Fortune 500 company or do you take the risk and start something from scratch?
If Ty is a guest on our podcast, you probably know the decision he made and it is a decision that is taking off. Openly is reinventing home insurance with a different approach with an emphasis on tech, an improved customer service experience, and a very smart sales model where they are partnering with independent insurance agents.
The company announced $40M in funding back in December and this is fresh off the heels of announcing $15M just 6 months prior.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Ty’s experience at MIT and how he got involved in competitive ballroom dancing.
- His career progression at Liberty Mutual where he was most recently EVP and Chief Product Officer.
- How he thought through the decision to move on and start a company.
- All of the details on Openly and how they are disrupting the insurance industry.
- What the future holds for Openly, including their growth and hiring plans.
- Advice for senior level executives on the decision of taking a risk to start a company.
- And so much more
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This is an exciting episode because Paul is my first repeat guest on the podcast! I interviewed him about 2.5 years ago for Episode 37 where we spent a lot of time talking about his background and all the details around KAYAK and Lola.com.
This time around, we took a slightly different approach. We of course caught up on Lola.com, which as you may remember is focused on helping companies with business travel. We talk about the effects of the pandemic where business trips booked on Lola.com were down 97%. But the real story here is the resiliency of the team. Not only did the team fight against an incredibly tough situation, but they launched a major new product called Lola Spend and expanded their product offering and value for finance teams at companies.
We also talk about his latest side product that he’s been working on called Moonbeam which is a new podcast player. Moonbeam is the easiest way to discover great new podcast content. It’s almost like a TikTok for podcasts, plus it has additional features that make it unique in terms of growing an audience, monetization, and other cool features.
But then, we spend a lot of time talking about hiring. I was particularly excited about this part because Paul is well known for his hiring practices, as he’s a master in this field.
For hiring, we discuss:
- His 7 Day Rule - which has been written about many times. It is the timeframe and speed of his process from when he first hears about a candidate to making an offer.
- How to qualify and hire talent for remote teams.
- His thoughts on building out initial teams within engineering and design.
- What job seekers should be thinking about before joining a company.
- When is the right time to bring in a company’s first recruiter.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Did you know that rowing works 86% of your muscles? It provides a full-body workout that puts less stress on your joints, yet it’s been an under-rated exercise in terms of popularity. Maybe that’s because of accessibility, as rowing on the water is not as easy to pull off as it is to run and cycle outside and let’s face it, the old style rowing machines in gyms were never really that appealing.
Technology has caught up with the needs of consumers where you can have a fully immersive and instructor led experience right in your own home and let’s not ignore how the pandemic has really turned the fitness industry upside down.
Well, now rowing is having its moment and Hydrow is leading the charge.
Hydrow is the company behind the beautifully designed Live Outdoor Reality rower. In addition, they are a content company that provides classes with world-class athletes which are streamlined live on the water and they are building a massive library of classes..
It’s not a coincidence that Bruce founded Hydrow. As you’ll learn from our conversation, he has been involved in the sport of rowing for many, many years as a rower, coach, and entrepreneur.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How competition within an industry can help pick each other up.
- Bruce’s background growing up including how he got involved in rowing and his career in the sport.
- A deep dive into Hydrow in terms of creating their product, producing content, scaling the company, and more.
- How they were able to land comedian and actor, Kevin Hart, as a Creative Director and investor in the company.
- Advice for founders on building out their initial core team.
- A look into the future of the fitness industry.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s 2021 - Happy New Year to everyone!
We are kicking off the new year with an amazing episode, as my guest is Paul Liberman, President, Global Technology and Products & Co-Founder of DraftKings.
The story of DraftKings has all the twists and turns of a Hollywood movie. It has the classic beginning of three co-founders looking to radically transform an industry, but this story is not a linear path. Along the way, there were so many obstacles to overcome which we discuss like regulatory changes, raising massive amounts of venture funding, a fierce battle against the competition for market share, scaling to a public offering, and more!
We also have a deep discussion about their tech and platform, which is incredibly complex and it operates at a massive scale.
In addition, we also cover:
- A fun recent story featuring Michael Jordan, who was recently announced as a special advisor to the company’s board of directors.
- Paul’s background story, including immigrating to the US from Russia at a young age
- His experience at Vistaprint where he met Jason Robins and Matt Kalish, the two other co-founders of DraftKings.
- A look into DraftKings’ culture and hiring plans ahead.
- Hiring advice at different stages of a company
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This is episode #200...yes, we are at another milestone episode! Three years ago we kicked off The VentureFizz Podcast to bring you the amazing stories from leading entrepreneurs and investors. It’s been a blast and I want to say thank you to Alex, who made it happen initially, Dan, who is our podcast editor, and of course a special shout-out to all of our amazing guests!
For Episode 200, I’m really excited to share with you my interview with Helen Greiner, CEO of Tertill.
Helen is a legend in the tech industry and one of the co-founders of iRobot which brought robots into our homes with the Roomba. At this point, I can’t imagine not having our Roomba… it’s a game changer.
Helen’s next company, CyPhy Works, revolutionized the drone industry and now as CEO of Tertill, she is looking to tackle another domestic chore and it's one that is dreaded, in my opinion, way more than vacuuming and that is weeding. I think I was scared as a kid and if a robot can take away this task, then please sign me up!
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What Helen envisions for the future of robotics & drones.
- Her background growing up, including how R2D2 was her inspiration, plus her time at MIT.
- The story of iRobot - from the early days of the company, to bringing the Roomba to market, and building a pillar tech company to an IPO.
- The details on CyPhy Works and how they helped pushed the drone industry forward.
- Why she joined Tertill and how the product works, which is brilliant.
- Advice for founders on building a company centered around innovation.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
"Let’s schedule some time to meet” is a common phrase that you’ll hear multiple times a day. Sounds simple, but it’s not, especially the more people who are involved. It starts an endless amount of back & forth to coordinate schedules. It’s a problem that affects everyone and there have been attempts to solve this problem with things like online scheduling tools, but no one has gotten it right.
There has to be a better way and that is exactly the way of thinking that led Nash down the path of starting Undock. The company is on a mission to connect the world’s calendars and dramatically change the future with predictive scheduling.
Undock recently announced $1.6M in funding from investors like Lightship Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Lerer Hippeau, Arlan Hamilton of Backstage Capital, and many more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Why startups should think bigger when it comes to launching products and advice on planning a launch event.
- Nash’s background, including his time as a music producer and then moving into the role as CEO at Viper Box.
- A deep dive into Undock and how the product works, plus some insights about the bigger vision of the company.
- Hiring advice for startups.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The world needs more risk takers, big thinkers, and problem solvers that are willing to take on the really hard problems that need to be solved. As you’ll hear from this interview, the world needs more Eden’s.
She started her first company in high school which was focused on improving energy and water access in the developing world. She left Princeton to pursue an opportunity as a Theil Fellow as the program was just beginning and Eden is now building a company that is taking an innovative approach to mobile app testing.
Her company is called Mobot and they are using robots (real robots) to test mobile applications. This was a problem that she witnessed firsthand as a Product Manager and decided to build a company around solving this problem. The company is backed by leading investors like Primary Venture Partners, Newark Venture Partners, Bling Capital, RRE Ventures, and Y Combinator.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Words of encouragement to others on taking risks and starting a company.
- Eden’s background growing up and the creation of her first company, SunSaluter and the progress she made building it.
- The story behind her decision to leave Princeton to become a Thiel Fellow.
- A deep dive into Mobot and how they are taking a much more effective approach to mobile testing.
- Why she decided to build a company as a solo-founder.
- Advice on getting traction from the media.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Starting a business is hard. Starting a business during a pandemic is even harder. Let’s put another layer on top… starting an events business where people are in person during a pandemic… well, timing is everything.
But, the best entrepreneurs persevere and find another way and it’s sometimes when you are forced to pivot that ends up being the game changing move for success.
Ian is a serial entrepreneur who sold his last company and his latest startup is Kindred, a venture backed professional network built to prepare executives for the future of socially responsible businesses.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The business of doing good, and why doing the right thing can help companies thrive.
- Ian’s background growing up and his experience working in the early days of the internet.
- The creation of Deep Focus, an ad agency that was focusing on the evolution of advertising through social media and other emerging channels.
- All of the details on Kindred in terms of the background story of the company and how they evolved the business.
- Kindred’s current business model and the benefits of their platform for companies and members.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s incredibly rare for a co-founder to remain as CEO at a company for as long as Art has, especially when the company has been involved in multiple financing rounds from venture capital and private equity firms, which says a lot about Art’s leadership style and his ability to stay focused.
A key part of this focus is being the best solution for a specific industry. In Bullhorn’s case, it is building the best software to power staffing firms. One might think that being focused on what one might call a narrow industry would be a mistake, but it’s this focus that has allowed the company to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue with over 10,000 customers.
The company recently announced a new strategic investment from Stone Point Capital to power the next phase of the Bullhorn’s growth.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The secrets to his parents' achievement of raising 3 very successful children who are all in the tech industry.
- Art’s foundational years studying mathematics at Tufts University and his first jobs out of college.
- All the details on the early days of Bullhorn and how he got started building the company with his two co-founders.
- How they scaled the company and worked with multiple investors successfully.
- Advice for founders on how to integrate an acquired company into your culture.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Siobhan was part of the early team at Communispace, now known as C Space, which was a big win for the Boston tech scene. The company scaled aggressively and was acquired by Omnicom in 2011. Siobhan joined MassChallenge in 2016 as its Chief Operating Officer and was promoted to CEO last year.
MassChallenge is a global, zero-equity accelerator that was established in 2009, shortly after the financial meltdown. Needless to say, the economy was in a very tough spot and the outlook was bleak for startups. It took two visionaries - John Harthorne and Akhil Nigam - with a bold belief that they could create an accelerator that would award $1M to startups. There were definitely skeptics out there, including myself, but they pulled it off and the impact has been extraordinary.
MassChallenge has over 2,400 alumni startups that have raised over $6.2B in funding and have gone on to generate over $3B in revenue and create over 157,000 jobs!
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Siobhan's background and how she got involved with Communispace.
- The full lifecycle story behind the growth of Communispace to its acquisition and beyond.
- A deep dive into the history of MassChallenge and how the program operates.
- Advice for founders when applying to MassChallenge and how they decide which companies to accept.
- And so much more.
Did you know that resumes have been around for over 500 years, yet why is it that resumes haven’t really evolved? Sure, maybe a LinkedIn profile is a digital version of you… but companies generally look for a copy of your resume when you apply to a job.
Paul has built a career largely focused on pushing the industry forward with a better way, as he was the founder of a company that was early to use video for job interviews.
His latest company is Filtered.ai, which is helping companies solve a very hard problem and that is hiring engineers. Sure, you could look at a resume with lots of technical buzzwords, but how can you be sure that the individual is qualified to tackle the work that needs to be done?
Filtered.ai is focused on helping companies make the shift to skill-based hiring, as it is focused on determining an engineer’s true ability versus the words listed on a resume. Not only is it more effective and efficient, but it is also making the hiring process unbiased, which is also important for helping companies build a diverse workforce.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Tips for non-technical founders on hiring engineers.
- His background, including his professional basketball career in China.
- Paul’s entry into entrepreneurship with PangeaConnect and being early to market and the decision to step away from the business.
- All the details on Filtered.ai and how it all works.
- Experience raising money during the pandemic.
- And so much more.
Digital asset management is not a new term, but the number of assets that are being generated by companies is exploding, which in return makes it very challenging to collaborate and keep tabs of everything. Take VentureFizz, we have videos, audio files, images and more spread throughout Google Drive, Dropbox, Canva, multiple hard drives, and probably several other spots that I’m forgetting.
Air is taking on this problem head on, as they are building the collaboration platform for your team’s visual work. The company just announced a $12M Series A round of funding led by Tiger Global.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The belief that every company and individual is a media company.
- Shane’s background growing up in Toledo and his decision to attend Stanford where he met his co-founder, Tyler Strand.
- His prior company, Swap Mobile, and his experience as an investor and what these experiences taught him.
- All of the details on Air in terms of the founding story to where the company and platform is today.
- What it was like fundraising during the pandemic.
- Advice for founders on building their initial core team.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The Fintech industry has been blowing up over the past few years with lots of innovative advances and solutions. From digital products geared towards consumers like Robinhood and Lemonade which logged a very successful IPO back in July. To more of the foundation tech layer with platforms like Stripe for online payments and Plaid that was acquired by Visa for a reported $5.3B.
Alloy is right in the sweet spot of this rapidly growing Fintech industry, as they are providing the identity operating system for the financial services industry and the company just announced a $40M Series B round of funding.
Fraud detection has always been a challenge for banks, but the problem has only grown more severe due to the pandemic which has definitely shifted consumers’ behavior. Their solution makes it easy for financial services companies to quickly and safely onboard and manage more customers.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The explosion of the Fintech industry and what the future holds for financial services.
- Laura’s background including her original interest in law school to how she ended up as the first employee at a Fintech startup.
- A deep dive into Alloy and how their platform is helping financial institutions with a much needed solution.
- What it was like raising venture capital during a pandemic.
- Advice on building a diverse team
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s incredibly impressive to see what Edward has accomplished throughout his career. He’s a serial entrepreneur, board member, and an investor in over 200 companies… and he’s still in his twenties.
His latest company is called Conduit, which he founded with Sree Kolli. Conduit is creating a highly curated and value added marketplace with the goal of connecting the best operator investors and founders who are building the next generation of startups around the world.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The importance of building a network even at a young age.
- Edward’s background and his decision to move from France to the United States to attend the University of Pennsylvania.
- His early entrepreneurial pursuits.
- How he got into angel investing and the details on what he targets for making investments.
- A deep dive into Conduit in terms of how it all works and how it is differentiated in the marketplace from other platforms.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
David and I go way back. We first met when he was the Executive Director of TUGG, a non-profit embedded in the tech industry in Boston. He is now back to his roots living in Rochester, NY which has a growing tech scene with several startups and lots of great academic institutions.
Impellent Ventures is a fund that is supporting early stage startups. The firm has made investments in multiple regions like Boston, but a core piece to their strategy is to invest in startups in western NY. After returning to the area, it became apparent to David that there was a large opportunity to fund companies locally and help grow the ecosystem there.
During our conversation, we get into the weeds on the startup scene in Rochester, NY which was very interesting to learn about because it has some parallels to the earlier days of the Boston ecosystem.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How David got into venture and if he always had a goal of being an investor.
- His foundational years and career path leading up to the start of a new venture firm.
- All of the details on Impellent Ventures and a look at their current portfolio of companies.
- Common pitch mistakes that entrepreneurs tend to make.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
In these podcast interviews, you’ve probably heard me talk about my background in recruiting. I ran a search firm called Dissero and product management was a core area of specialty.
Thus, I was really excited to interview Nate, as he is one of the top product leaders in the tech industry and it was an opportunity to really geek out on the topic of product management. We discuss lots of great topics related to this field like how to determine if a career in product management is right for you, what are the key traits for a strong product manager, and what a day in the life of a product leader looks like.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover:
- Nate’s appointment to the Board of Directors at Cockroach Labs and how this seems to be a growing trend of having more operating *.
- executives on the board at companies.
- A journey through his career including his decision to attend business school at MIT Sloan and being part of the team that won the famous MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition.
- How Nate groomed his career into a product management leadership role at a startup.
- All the details on Cockroach Labs and its cloud-native, distributed SQL database.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I always think the best ideas for a business are from entrepreneurs who are tackling the problems they have faced in the real world. As you’ll hear from this episode, NeighborSchools is a perfect example.
Finding quality and affordable child care is a tricky thing and when you factor in the COVID-19 world we are living in, the stakes are even higher. It was this challenge that Bridget was facing as a new working mom. Brian, Bridget and their third co-founder, Cedric McDougal, all met while working together at InsightSquared and once they started to poke around the industry, they noticed some critical issues that were ripe for disruption through technology.
Thus, NeighborSchools was born. The venture backed company provides a platform to help parents find trusted child care, while enabling child care providers with all the tools they need to successfully run their own home daycare.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Starting a podcast and the details behind their own podcast series called Work Like a Mother.
- Their background stories leading up to working together at InsightSquared.
- All of the details on NeighborSchools and how they are revolutionizing the child care industry through home daycare.
- How they navigated the business through the pandemic.
- Raising a $3.5M seed round led by Accomplice.
- Challenges founders face when starting a company.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Sam is an investor and entrepreneur, who is one of the top product leaders in the tech scene. After leading product at BzzAgent and HubSpot, he went on to be a co-founder at InsightSquared, the leading provider of revenue intelligence solutions.
At Accomplice, he is focused on making investments in B2B software and marketplace companies. He’s also part of the faculty at Harvard Business School where he teaches the early-stage startup course called Launching Tech Ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How Sam’s experience as a product leader and operator has helped influence his role as a Venture Capitalist.
- His background story and how he ended up leading product teams.
- The founding story of InsightSquared and how they built product market fit.
- What led him down the path of becoming a VC again.
- Lots of great tips for hiring product managers, including a useful secret on where to find them.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Did you know that 2.3B people in the world seek help for skin issues every year? Two-thirds of these cases are evaluated by non-specialists and the shocking statistic is that 50% of these cases are misdiagnosed. It’s a challenge because there are not enough dermatologists and most physicians only spend one week learning dermatology in medical school.
So, what if you could leverage AI and computer vision to help physicians quickly and accurately identify skin conditions. It sounds like a perfect use case for AI and this is exactly what LuminDx is doing. The company recently closed a $2M seed round of funding led by Argon VC.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Advice for founders on how to give an awesome demo day pitch.
- Susan’s background story and her time in academia.
- How Susan’s diagnosis with melanoma, when she was 22 years old, led to the creation of LuminDx.
- All of the details on LuminDx and the evolution of the company.
- Her experience raising funding as a female founder.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
CareAcademy recently announced its Series A round of funding, but I need to put this accomplishment into perspective. Raising capital is hard for any entrepreneur, but Helen had some extra obstacles in her way - a pandemic, she is a female founder, and a Black entrepreneur. The percentages for each independent scenario for raising capital are not favorable, never mind putting everything all together. No one could have predicted obstacles around a pandemic, but the other numbers around the other obstacles need to be improved, which I hope is finally starting to happen.
But, as you’ll hear in this podcast interview, Helen is a resilient entrepreneur and her process of fundraising was incredibly thorough. It’s a process that all entrepreneurs need to pay attention to.
CareAcademy is the leading home care & home health workforce empowerment platform, upskilling and preparing workers for the growing eldercare market and home care model.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The importance of storytelling and its impact on your company.
- Helen’s background story as a multi-generational entrepreneur and experience in education.
- A deep dive into CareAcademy and the opportunity ahead to transform the caregiver market.
- How they were able to adapt & respond to Covid-19.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Klaviyo is one of the fastest-growing companies in the tech industry, but the path to their current scale is a fascinating story. It’s a story of a company that remained lean and bootstrapped for a long stretch of time. For the first three years of the company, it was just Andrew and his Co-Founder, Ed Hallen, handling everything.
Even as they started to scale, it was a different philosophy versus what most startups decide to do in terms of rushing to raise venture capital as soon as possible. Instead, they focused on building a solid foundation for the business by iterating the platform to the point where they were solving critical problems for companies.
Klaviyo did eventually raise a modest amount of venture capital over the years, but it wasn’t until last year when they raised a major growth round of $150M to add some high octane gas to the fire.
Today, Klaviyo has over 400 employees and its platform helps growth-focused eCommerce brands drive more sales with super-targeted, highly relevant email, Facebook and Instagram marketing campaigns.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Andrew’s thoughts on space travel, the recent SpaceX launch, and the possibility of landing on Mars
- The early foundational years of Andrew’s career.
- A deep dive into the story of the early bootstrapping days at Klaviyo and how they started to get traction.
- Why they finally decided to raise funding.
- Lessons learned around scaling a company to over 400 employees.
- Why resumes should be in chronological order - not reverse chronological.
- Advice for founders on how to stay organized and productive
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
When I think of Chet, I think of an entrepreneur who is a builder and a massive risktaker. He has a track record of building companies that are completely transforming industries and disrupting the status quo. It’s a go big or go home philosophy, where the stakes are high and you can’t fear taking on the very powerful and established incumbents. In order to build the next generation of transformative companies, we need entrepreneurs like Chet who are up for the challenge and thrive on building real products that solve real problems at scale.
His latest company is Starry which is building a better kind of internet service. When it comes to selecting your internet service provider, most consumers don’t have a choice. This leads to poor service, bloated pricing plans, and a bad customer service experience. We all know there needs to be a better option, especially if you are part of the rapidly growing segment of wire cutters. Starry is reinventing everything from the top - down with next generation technology and lightning fast internet service.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Chet’s foundational years and his first entrepreneurial venture as a teenager.
- Navic Networks, Chet’s first company which transformed the interactive TV ad market and was acquired by Microsoft.
- The full story behind Aereo, which was bringing over-the-air television on internet-connected devices and we discuss the legal battles that took matters all the way to the Supreme Court.
- A deep dive into the story of Starry and the complexity of building a next-generation internet service provider.
- Advice for founders on attracting the best talent for their teams.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Bill has a knack for noticing market opportunities where a company can scale. As either a founder or executive, the majority of the companies he’s been involved in have exited. We discuss this topic in terms of how he decides where to focus his time and how he evaluates the potential market need.
Earlier in his career, he was a founding team member of SpeechWorks which went public, merged with Scansoft, and later became known as Nuance. Another more recent success story was Black Duck Software, where he was CTO & EVP of Engineering. The company was acquired by Snopsys.
He is now the CEO of Fairwinds, the Kubernetes enablement company. The company’s software and services enable organizations to run secure, reliable, and scalable Kubernetes infrastructure.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A journey through Bill’s career and all the different companies.
- The background story on Fairwinds which was formed via the acquisition of ReactiveOps and all the details on how they are helping their customers.
- What is Kubernetes and why it is so popular these days?
- Advice for founders on figuring out their Go-to-Market strategy.
- Bill’s thoughts on how to build a career path to a CEO position.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Andrew is a serial entrepreneur with multiple companies under his belt like urbantag, which was tackling the trillion-dollar online-to-offline commerce market. It was acquired in 2012.
His latest company is Teampay, which was born out of a realization around how software was helping companies collaborate and put controls in place across pretty much every business function. For example, Github helps with your source code repository, Marketo for your marketing cloud. So, what controls access to your company’s money?
It was this realization that led him down the path of starting Teampay. The company’s distributed spend management platform gives high-growth companies total control and real-time visibility over purchasing, while empowering employees with smart, policy-driven access to company spend. Teampay has raised $16M in funding and is headquartered in New York City.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The end-user era and the shift towards a decentralized work environment.
- Andrew’s journey into startups and a look at prior companies.
- The full background story and all the details about Teampay.
- Very unique advice on how to get a warm intro with your ideal investors.
- How to scale your initial team and culture.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
You’ve probably heard of the PayPal Mafia on the west coast. In Boston, you have the Endeca mafia, where lots of alumni have gone off to start companies like Toast, Salsify, Parallel Wireless, and many others. Andrew is part of this crew, as he joined Endeca in the early days and was part of the team that helped scale the company, which later resulted in an acquisition by Oracle.
Andrew’s latest company is Jellyfish, the leading Engineering Management Platform (EMP), which provides complete visibility into engineering organizations, the work they do, and how they operate. The company announced a $12M Series A round of funding back in May, which was led by Accel and Wing Venture Capital.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Andrew’s decision to study computer science at MIT and how working at a handful of internships helped shape his career.
- A deep dive into his experience at Endeca, plus another startup he founded called LoopIt.
- All the details on Jellyfish and how they are enabling the business of engineering.
- Advice to entrepreneurs on idea creation and what is a viable product to build a business around.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I have always been fascinated by how video games are created, especially the complexity of today’s games and storylines. So, I could wait to talk with Jon about this topic since his last company created games for major franchises like Game of Thrones and Star Trek.
Jon is a serial entrepreneur going back to the very young age of 13 years old when he monetized his first game. He went on to start a very successful content management software company called Eprise which went public.
After selling Disruptor Beam to Tilting Point, he is now focused on his latest startup called Beamable. The company enables game makers to easily add social, commerce and content management features to their games with drag-and-drop prefabs.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The story of how he monetized his first game, Space Empire Elite.
- A journey through Jon’s entrepreneurial background and the companies he founded.
- Disruptor Beam and how they were able to land such iconic titles.
- How Beamable came to fruition and all the details on the company and its technology.
- What the future of the video game industry may look like.
- Advice for starting a career in the gaming industry.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I have been a long time listener to Sal’s podcast, so I was really excited to collaborate with him for this bonus episode.
If you’ve ever wanted to learn about the background story of VentureFizz and The VentureFizz Podcast, then this is an episode that you don’t want to miss.
In this podcast interview, we also discuss:
- My background and the entrepreneurial roots and work ethic that I learned from my dad.
- How I got to the point of founding my own recruitment firm, which focused on working with venture-backed companies.
- Lots of details on Sal’s professional career and how he got into angel investing, plus the details on his area of focus for making investments.
- Tips on building a podcast and growing your audience, including the #1 channel that you should be focused on.
- And, a lot of fun back and forth banter.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
TJ has a legendary background in the tech industry having founded and run several successful companies through multiple decades. A lot of these successes have been in partnership with another tech legend, that being Jim Clark, the founder of Silicon Graphics, Netscape, and many other companies.
Their latest company together is Beyond Identity which recently announced $30M in funding. The company is creating a new identity management platform that will hopefully put an end to all those dreaded and not so very secure passwords we all use.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- TJ’s foundational years - growing up in Hawaii and studying Computer Science at Virginia Tech.
- The details on his role at Silicon Graphics as President & CEO, plus examples around how the company’s innovative technology was being leveraged.
- His experience as Founding Chairman & CEO of @Home Network, where we discuss its merger with Excite, which was laying down the foundation of how consumers access the internet and content.
- A journey through his other entrepreneurial endeavors as an operator or investor, including Ibotta, where he is a board member and investor.
- All of the details on Beyond Identity and why this could be one of their biggest companies yet.
- Advice on building out your leadership team.
- And so much more.
I have been wanting to interview Lee for a long time, as he has played a key role in the early stages of two iconic tech companies. He was an early employee at PayPal and was part of the founding team at LinkedIn before becoming a venture capitalist. Needless to say, he’s worked with some amazing people like Elon Musk, Reid Hoffman, Peter Thiel, Max Levchin, David Sacks, and others.
He shares some awesome stories around each company, especially how LinkedIn started to gain traction in the early days.
Today, Lee is a Partner & Co-Founder of NextView Ventures, a seed stage investment firm that is focused on investing into companies that are redesigning the Everyday Economy.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Lee’s background and why he was so interested in joining a startup after college.
- How he met Elon Musk which landed him a job at the startup he was working on that turned into PayPal.
- A deep dive into the early foundational years at LinkedIn.
- His transition into VC and all the details on NextView Ventures.
- Why you shouldn't hire specialists for your startup.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Jessica and Steve are serial entrepreneurs. They both started successful companies separately in other industries, but it was their personal experiences that brought them together to build ianacare.
If you’ve ever had to care for a loved one who is ill, then you know first hand how challenging it can be on so many levels. You need help but you don’t want to be a burden to others and there are challenges around coordinating the care. In the U.S. alone, there are over 43M family caregivers and over 90% of the care happens in the home, not a hospital.
ianacare was built to support these caregivers. It is a mobile app that provides the emotional and practical support they need.
The creation of ianacare is a perfect example of entrepreneurs who find a problem through real-world experiences and realize that something needs to change and it becomes their passion to create the solution.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Steve & Jessica’s background and entrepreneurial stories including scaling a consumer subscription business to an exit for Jessica and Steve’s experience taking a video AdTech company public.
- The details behind their personal experiences caregiving for a family member and why they decided to take action.
- A deep dive into ianacare in terms of their business and product.
- What the Just Show Up movement means.
- Advice for founders on hiring during different stages of a business.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
This episode must have been fate. I subscribe to an email newsletter about podcasting from PodReacher and they had recommended Otter for transcriptions. I had been looking for a way to include a transcript for each podcast episode on VentureFizz, but I wanted something that was accurate and cost-effective. No, this is not a commercial for Otter, but I tested out the product and was blown away by its accuracy. If you go to our recent podcast episode, you’ll now see a full transcript available, which is powered by Otter.
Anyway, a few weeks later after becoming a fan of Otter, I heard from their PR firm about having Sam as a guest on our podcast. When I took a deeper dive into his background, things just got even more interesting.
Sam started and led Google location server, which powered the blue dot feature on Google Mobile Map in 2006 - 2010. After Google, he launched a successful startup that was acquired and now with Otter, he has a very big vision in how their platform might even change our lives.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Sam’s background including his PhD studies at Stanford under famed professor, David Cheriton.
- The story of his involvement in creating Google Maps and the blue dot.
- The details on Sam’s previous company, Alohar, and the acquisition by Alibaba.
- A deep dive into Otter in terms of its many use cases, plus the complexity of their platform and its use of AI & deep learning.
- What the future might look like if you could document and search all of your conversations.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Carlos is the definition of a serial entrepreneur. He has started over ten companies and many of which have exited. I first learned about Carlos back around the year 1999, as I was still cutting my teeth as a recruiter during the internet 1.0 era. He was the founder of a company called Opus360, a professional services automation software company that went public.
After numerous startups later like CourseAdvisor, APT, OrionCKB, and others… his latest venture is Thrasio, which could be the biggest opportunity yet.
Thrasio is the fastest-growing acquirer of Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) businesses. The company recently closed $110M in financing at a valuation of almost $800M and its just a couple of years old. As you’ll hear from our discussion, it is a business that just makes sense in terms of how they are leveraging their knowledge from previous companies to build this consumer company at such a rapid pace.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Carlos’ background and his unique major at MIT.
- The story of Opus360 and why he decided to travel cross country on a motorcycle afterward.
- A journey through lots of the companies that Carlos has started.
- A deep dive into Thrasio and its business model.
- Advice for founders during the acquisition process.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It was obvious that entrepreneurship was in the future for Aubrie being that she started her first venture as a child with a neighborhood door to door art gallery. After graduating from Harvard and spending time in the finance industry, she knew that she always wanted to start a company.
She had noticed a growing trend towards mass customization across different sectors and decided to start a platform for custom fashion called Bow & Drape with her co-founder Shelly Madick.
Like with so many startups, you have to find the right product-market fit for your audience and it took lots of experiments, determination, and good old fashioned hard work before they landed on a hit - that being personalized casualwear that was fun and all about expression. Not only did it appeal to a mass audience but soon celebrities and influencers became customers. The company was acquired last year by Win Brand Group.
For Aubrie’s next chapter, she has joined Alpaca VC as a Partner. She is looking to leverage her combination of experience as an operator and investor to work with entrepreneurs who are reshaping the real world and layering technology over daily life experiences.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A deep dive into Bow & Drape and the stories behind the company.
- Why entrepreneurs might want to consider debt financing more often.
- How Aubrie landed in the VC industry and discovered a passion for working with other entrepreneurs through XFactor Ventures.
- All the details on Alpaca VC, a seed-stage investment firm.
- Advice for female & minority founders when raising capital.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Episode #171 - Yan Liu, Co-Founder & CEO of TVision.
It is a golden era of television. There is a tremendous amount of amazing content out there across the major TV networks and subscription services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney Plus, Apple TV+, and more. It’s hard to keep up with it all.
You might be familiar with the Nielsen TV ratings system which measures what television programs people are watching. It hs been around for many years, but it really hasn’t evolved with how consumers actually watch TV and advertising only works if people are actually paying attention to it.
This is where TVision comes into play. They are a TV performance metrics company and their technology measures what was once unmeasurable - how people really watch TV. They are collecting unique viewability and attention data, which in return helps brands and agencies maximize their advertising budgets. The company has raised over $24M in venture funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How the pandemic is affecting viewership and what it means for the media industry.
- The story of Yan’s first company which pivoted from a women’s underwear eCommerce company to an interactive agency.
- How TVision got started at MIT Sloan after the idea was validated by 20 industry experts.
- All the details on TVision in terms of how they are disrupting the TV performance metrics industry, plus how they landed ABC Disney as an early customer.
- Why you should hire based on culture & character, versus skillset.
- What a viral show like Tiger King means for Netflix’s business.
- And so much more.
Disclaimer: Keith Cline is an angel investor in TVision. Not that it matters all that much, as this interview is like all of his other interviews, but just wanted to disclose it upfront.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
A lot of apps these days count on knowing your location. It is a key piece to enabling the product and offering the right user experience. However, the options for enabling a location offering from a technical point of view have been very limited. It basically has involved a lot of custom built solutions.
It reminds me of the world of payments. Online payment services have existed for several years, but it wasn’t until Stripe changed the game and built a platform that allowed companies to enable online payments and subscription services easily with a product that just worked.
Radar is looking to do the same for location-aware products experiences with its privacy-first location data infrastructure platform. Nick and his co-founder, Coby Berman, are Foursquare alumni and have a lot of experience with location services. The company recently announced a $20M Series B round of funding led by Accel.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The current trends in the tech industry as it relates to data and privacy.
- Nick’s decision to pursue a career in product management and his experience at Microsoft, Foursquare, and Handy.
- The aha moment that led to the founding of Radar.
- All of the details on Radar in terms of how they are changing the narrative on location data, plus some use case examples.
- Advice for entrepreneurs on negotiating a company’s valuation.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
As you’ll hear from this discussion, data is the new oil. It is what runs businesses and the amount of data that is created daily is exploding. Every business is trying to figure out to harness and leverage this data and there are a never ended amount of use cases.
Justin’s entrepreneurial journey has focused on helping companies with this challenge. While at Yale, where he received his MBA, he connected with a team that went on to create Hadapt, which focused on Hadoop and was acquired by Teradata.
His next company is called Starburst which is on a mission to modernize big data access and analtyics. The company raised $22M in Series A funding towards the end of last year and it is centered around an open source SQL query engine called Presto. Starburst is providing enterprise grade features and services around this open source initiative, which is certainly a business model that has been successful for other companies like Red Hat, Acquia, and many others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- A discussion around the massive growth of data and how it affects businesses.
- Justin’s career path which started out in engineering and moved to product management.
- How Justin got into entrepreneurship while at Yale and the story of Hadapt.
- All the details on Starburst and how they were able to achieve significant traction before raising capital.
- Lessons learned from his first startup that he has been able to apply the second time around.
- Advice on selecting the right VC’s to partner with when raising funding.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
A common question that often arises is whether or not entrepreneurship is a skill that you are born with or is something that can be taught. Based on the number of successful companies that he’s built, it’s obvious that BC was born to be an entrepreneur. For someone with his level of success, he is also extremely humble and that is a skill that really can’t be taught.
BC started his first company in 1996 with a company called FutureTense that revolutionalized the digital publishing industry on the web with a first-generation content management system (CMS). Since then, he’s started companies across multiple domains like security (Memento) and accounts payable automation (MineralTree).
He’s now working on his fourth startup called Centime, a stealth mode startup that is tackling another massive multi-billion dollar opportunity.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Why BC keeps building companies.
- All the details on FutureTense and its acquisition by OpenMarket.
- His experience as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Greylock
- The background story and all the details on Mememto and MineralTree.
- A glimpse into his latest startup.
- When a founder should consider exiting from a company. And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
One might say that Lily was destined to be a venture capitalist. She started out angel investing when she was just 23 years old. Then, the role became a bit more formal when she joined the investment committee at Yard Ventures, Harvard’s alumni angel group.
As a Partner at Underscore, she is focused on making seed and Series A investments in Boston startups. The firm is focused on building a community driven model through its various initiatives like Underscore Core, a community of several hundred proven entrepreneurs, business builders, and domain experts that portfolio companies get to leverage to help drive their own success.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The current entrepreneurial vibe at Harvard and HBS.
- Lily’s experience after Harvard at Endeavor where she spent two years working with entrepreneurs in Chile.
- Her position at Facebook where she was part of a global growth & connectivity team that brought on 100M new users in 3 years.
- All of the details on Underscore including the firm's model and what makes the firm so unique.
- A discussion around why it might be a good idea for Boston companies to brag about success.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s no secret that diversity is an issue in the tech industry, but it is an even bigger issue when you look at the venture capital industry. Rich has conducted a lot of research on this topic and based on his last report, only 2% of African Americans were represented as investors in the venture capital industry.
Rich is the type who takes action. By publishing his findings (which have been featured on TechCrunch, his personal blog, and in many other interviews), it helps to bring awareness to this key issue. In addition, Rich is also the founder of Stealth Mode, a community of more than 1,500 African American founders, operators, and investors.
After spending time in the venture capital industry at IVP and Venrock, Rich is now a Co-Founder & General Partner at a new firm called Equal Ventures, which recently announced a $56M first fund. The firm is focused on bridging the digital divide by investing in founders who are transforming legacy markets in industries like insurance, retail, supply chain and the care economy.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Rich’s early career in investment banking and how he landed in the venture capital industry, which involved a lot of cold emailing to partners at firms.
- All the details on Equal Ventures in terms of the firm’s thesis and the stage of investments they are focused on.
- What an investor is looking to get out of a first meeting. And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
At home, my family has a Cavapoo, who basically rules the roost. She has a big personality in a small frame and when she is sick, we definitely want to give her the best care possible.
In the world where personalized medicine is becoming very real for humans, why shouldn’t the same apply for pets? Enter Mixlab, the first-ever modern compounding pharmacy for animals. Mixlab customizes medication ingredients, strengths, forms, and flavors, specifically for your pet. The company announced $8.5M in funding last year and in addition to providing this very meaningful service, they also have a knack at wowing their customers, which we talk about in detail.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Stella’s background as a Designer and how that shaped her experience as an entrepreneur.
- What led her down the path of starting Mixlab and how she met her co-founders.
- The details on Mixlab and how their business model works.
- Advice for founders on hiring a designer.
- How a startup should think about branding and packaging.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The fashion industry is constantly changing. It feels as though one week something can be in style, and the next it is already out of fashion. As a company, it’s nearly impossible to be able to keep up with trends and get them manufactured in a timely manner before the look goes out of style. Choosy is utilizing social media and algorithms to tackle this problem and this direct to consumer eCommerce company is on a path to revolutionize the fashion industry.
Jessie was born in China before moving to the United States while she was in elementary school. She originally envisioned a career in politics, but she ended up in finance which is where she met her co-founders for Choosy.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What it's like being selected and featured by Forbes as a 30 Under 30.
- Jessie’s early career and experience working in the finance industry and what that taught her.
- What led Jessie and her co-founders down the path of starting Choosy?
- All the details on Choosy and how their business model works.
- How Choosy is able to flourish in a highly competitive market.
- Advice on getting publicity for your startup.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The insurance industry is extremely complex and can be very challenging to break into as an industry outsider. After being in a minor car accident, Snejina’s premium increased. Like any of us, she went online to find a better option only to realize that a marketplace for insurance didn’t exist. Existing sites were all lead gen. The complexity of the insurance industry probably kept other entrepreneurs from trying to build this type of marketplace, but it was the a-ha moment that led Snejina to take on this challenge, which has required a tremendous amount of grit and determination.
Insurify is reimagining the way you compare, buy, and manage your insurance online. Through artificial intelligence, they make insurance shopping simple, affordable, and hassle-free. The company recently announced $23M in Series A funding led by MTech Capital and Viola FinTech, with participation from Nationwide, Hearst Ventures, and MassMutual Ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Snejina’s background growing up in Bulgaria and her professional career, including her move to the U.S.
- What led her down the path of starting Insurify and why she spoke with hundreds of people in the insurance industry before even starting to build out the core product.
- How she landed her first insurance carrier which created a snowball effect.
- The current state and scale of Insurify, plus its growth plans ahead.
- Advice on building a customer acquisition strategy.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Lots and lots of startups and corporations have moved to an open office environment, which was supposed to foster collaboration amongst employees. As it turns out, according to research published by CNBC, “90% of employees working in offices with an open floor plan experience increased stress levels, conflict, blood pressure and turnover rates.”
Wow… shocking! So, how do you solve this issue without completely renovating your office, which would be very costly and disruptive? That’s where ROOM comes into play. They are rethinking the modern workplace with their innovative phone booth design. They are on to something, as the company has over 3,000 customers.
Growing up Brian always dreamed of being an entrepreneur and being a part of a startup. This is his second company, as he was previously a co-founder of a smart suitcase startup called Bluesmart, which was a Y Combinator company.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Brian's early experience teaching English in Ecuador and what that taught him about leadership.
- How he got into startups and his involvement with Bluesmart.
- The origin story of ROOM and how they discovered an underserved market that is helping to improve mental health and wellness in the workplace.
- The current stage of the company and growth plans ahead.
- Advice on setting up and finding the right manufacturer, plus why they choose to work with partners in Indiana and Portugal.
- And so much more.
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It’s one thing to build a successful business, but it’s a whole different level if you can build a business out of doing good and creating better lives for others.
As you will hear in this podcast, Liz has a heart of gold and a do whatever it takes attitude to help others out in need. She has a history of volunteering and during her time at Harvard, Liz realized that there was an opportunity to help the less fortunate succeed through art.
This led Liz and her brother to pull together $4,000 from their personal savings to create ArtLifting. The company empowers artists living with homelessness or disabilities through the celebration and sale of their artwork. Its impact? Artists have earned over $1M from ArtLifting.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Liz’s experience and her background in volunteering for non-profits.
- The inspiration that ultimately led to the start of ArtLifting.
- All of the details on ArtLifting and the massive impact they are having on improving the lives of the homeless or disabled.
- How they raised capital from prominent investors, like the founder of TOMS Shoes, while building a social enterprise.
- The evolution of their business from a direct to consumer model to a more sustainable B2B focus.
- Advice for other founders around getting PR.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It is a known fact that building a business is hard. It can be tricky because as an entrepreneur, you are filled with optimism. You are putting your blood, sweat, and tears into a business and it might feel like you are making progress and great traction. Yet, it could all just be a false positive. So, what happens if you come to this realization, then to put another layer of complexity to the scenario, the situation gets worse. An acquisition falls through and you are left with $1,000 in the company’s bank account?
Well, you could shut down the company, which would be a logical decision for most people. Or, you could pivot and bet your company on one piece of your platform.
This is exactly the scenario that happened to Ben. Pivots fail too, but in this example, it couldn’t have turned out better and it is a great story for all entrepreneurs to hear.
Privy is the leader in eCommerce marketing for small businesses and entrepreneurs. They are on a mission to be the front office operating system for eCommerce and its working. They have over 400,000 stores in 180 countries using their platform for marketing automation.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Ben’s early career and how he got into entrepreneurship.
- The first iteration of Privy and some of the lessons learned.
- Hitting rock bottom with the failed acquisition and the decision to pivot.
- All the details Privy’s incredible growth since and what’s in store for the future.
- Advice on communicating good & bad news with investors
- How to determine when to pivot your business.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Kyle and I are from the same hometown, that being Manchester, NH. Growing up, I used to purchase my gear from his family’s sporting good store called Indian Head Athletics, so it is definitely a small world.
After graduating from Bentley, Kyle worked in the tech and went on to be part of the core leadership team that built Dyn, one of the most successful companies to come out of New Hampshire. Not only did they scale revenue to $100M in ARR, but Dyn also became one of the most important tech companies in the world as thousands of the top websites counted on the company for internet performance and security. Dyn was acquired by Oracle in 2016.
After investing in over 70 startups over the past decade and building companies as an operator, Kyle is leveraging this experience to help other entrepreneurs succeed through his firm called York IE (Investment Enterprise). This is a new value-add investment firm and operating company with a commitment to reshape the way startups are built, scaled, and monetized. In addition to York IE, Kyle is actively involved with several other companies as either an investor, operator, or board member.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Kyle’s background and some reminiscing about Manchester.
- All the details in terms of how he led corporate strategy, growth, and go-to-market at Dyn.
- How a massive DDoS attack at Dyn turned into a positive.
- Kyle’s experience as an angel investor.
- The details on York IE and how they differentiate from other investors.
- Advice for founders on building out an initial sales strategy.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I once read a blog post that stated an interesting fact. The number of professional athletes in the U.S. is equal to the number of positions in venture capital. Needless to say, positions are scarce in the VC industry and they are highly sought after.
For Claire, she was determined to land a position in venture capital after getting her MBA at Wharton. She devoted months of her time sitting in coffee shops researching and learning the industry, while creating a recruiting plan, cold emailing VC firms, and offering her research to investors in hopes of landing an open position.
Well - Her determination paid off when she joined Corigin Ventures and she recently joined Highland to help the firm built out its New York office. Highland has a long history of success as a leading VC firm and their track record speaks for itself to the tune of 46 IPOs and 127 acquisitions.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- How living in Kenya for six months influenced her career.
- Her experience working in investment banking during the economic crisis.
- How dedication and commitment through cold emailing landed Claire a position in the VC industry.
- All the details on Highland Capital Partners and what she is targeting for investments.
- How to get investors to respond to cold email pitches.
- What first-time founders can expect during the process of raising capital.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Semyon’s professional journey started out in a rather unconventional manner. As one of the members of the famed MIT Blackjack team, he’s always had an incredible knack and drive for mastering whatever challenge was in front of him.
After living the life of a high roller, Semyon went on to become a successful founder of multiple tech companies but he found his true calling when he started angel investing and running the Techstars Boston program. He realized that his passion was really centered around helping other entrepreneurs succeed.
Today, Semyon is the Founder and Managing Partner of One Way Ventures, a venture fund that is focused on investing in immigrant founders.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Semyon’s own story as an immigrant who migrated to the U.S. from Moscow.
- How he became a member of the MIT Blackjack Team, which has been featured in movies, books, and documentaries.
- His experience as an entrepreneur and the companies that he founded.
- How he got into investing, where he made over 100 angel investments, plus his involvement with Techstars.
- All of the details on One Way Ventures and how they are helping immigrant entrepreneurs.
- Advice on generating interest from investors.
- Common mistakes made by entrepreneurs.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Sometimes in life, you need to turn negatives into positives. Ben suffered a back injury that left him paralyzed from the neck down for a period of time. While recovering from surgery for over a year, he had to purchase everything online and it was his constant usage and dependency of eCommerce that sparked his idea.
Ohi was built to solve the problem for other eCommerce retailers who are trying to accomplish the same delivery expectations that consumers have based on the Amazon Prime experience and that is next day or same-day delivery. Ohi’s micro-warehousing strategy not only allows up and coming brands to compete, but this strategy is also much better for the environment, which was interesting to learn about as I wasn’t aware of how much of a negative impact that next day or two-day delivery has on our environment.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Ben’s early background in the Financial Services industry and why he decided to go back to business school.
- Advice on the application process at Stanford.
- How a back injury influenced the creation of Ohi.
- All of the details on Ohi’s strategy and how their business model is helping the environment.
- Advice on recruiting for your team.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
To kick off the new decade we have an amazing episode for you today that has everything a great Hollywood movie should have - a groundbreaking idea that changed our lives, a team of risk-takers, the dramatic ups & downs of building a company to the point of potential failure, and of course... the heroic outcome.
I’m talking about the story of E Ink and my guest today is Russ Wilcox, Partner at Pillar. Russ is a venture capitalist these days, but he was a Co-Founder of E Ink and later on, he led the company as its CEO and growth to $200M in revenue.
E Ink commercialized electronic paper which was invented at the MIT Media Lab and was the technology that changed how we read, as it made the Amazon Kindle and lots of other devices a major success. Russ and I get deep into the weeds of this story which is ultimately a 15 year journey that ended in a very successful acquisition.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Russ background story.
- How E Ink got started and the early days of the company.
- The story of how the first launch of their product was a failure, but somehow this failed product ended up on Jeff Bezos’ radar.
- Scaling the company and what the Oprah effect can mean.
- Why Russ decided to become a venture capitalist and all the details behind Pillar and the type of investments he is making.
- Advice for founders who are looking to commercialize technology.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
As her intro suggests, Mona has accomplished a lot throughout her career. She always knew that someday she wanted to start a company and it was her experience working in the fashion industry which led her to start JOOR. She recognized an opportunity to start a company that brought the antiquated wholesale buying process between brands and buyers into the digital era with an online marketplace.
In addition, Mona recently authored a book titled Startups and Downs: The Secrets of Resilient Entrepreneurs which was published back in September.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What its like writing and getting a book published.
- Mona’s background story and what led her down the path of starting a company.
- All of the details on JOOR and how they modernized and disrupted the fashion industry.
- Her current role as a Partner with her investment firm, Kings Circle Capital.
- Hiring advice for first-time founders.
- When is the right time to raise venture capital funding.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The 800 meter race is said to be one of the hardest events for a runner. You need to have the long distance endurance combined with all-out effort as a sprinter. This is a perfect analogy for being an entrepreneur where you have to move fast, but you need to also think about the long haul for building a long-standing company for the future.
Thus, it’s fitting that Alasdair is a runner who specialized in the 800. He grew up in England before coming to America to attend Harvard, where he was the captain of the Track and Field Team. To help him buy textbooks, Alasdair began selling products out of his dorm room, which led to him becoming one of the first third-party sellers on Amazon. It was this experience that ultimately led him down the path of starting Teikametrics.
Teikametrics is the leading Retail Optimization Platform (ROP) for sellers on Amazon. They are optimizing billions of transactions for thousands of sellers, brands and agencies around the world to increase their overall sales and profits.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Alasdair’s journey to America to attend Harvard with only $900 in his pocket and two suitcases.
- The story of how he became an entrepreneur and how being one of Amazon’s first third-party sellers led him down the path to starting Teikametrics.
- All the details on their platform, how they are helping their customers, and growth plans ahead.
- Alasdair’s prediction on what the future of E-Commerce could end up looking like
- Advice on when’s the right time to raise funding.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
It takes courage to be able to take a risk and leave a career to pursue something that is your passion. Although it might be hard at times, they say that if you do what you love, you will never work a day in your life.
Chris is a perfect example of this scenario. He developed a passion for lacrosse that carried over into his college career playing at Wesleyan University. After working in an industry that didn’t inspire him, Chris and his co-founder and teammate, Matt Wheeler, took a risk to start a company around their passion for lacrosse.
They recognized an opportunity to help student-athletes and parents with the recruitment process. Thus, SportsRecruits… or what was originally called LacrosseRecruits, was born.
SportsRecruits, based in Brooklyn, is a platform that helps high school athletes market themselves to college coaches across the country. Think of it like a LinkedIn for college recruitment, where the student-athletes and parents have the tools and communication capabilities to assist with the recruitment process.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The current state of lacrosse as a growing sport and how the Premier Lacrosse League is getting traction as a professional league.
- Chris’ background and the story of how he left a steady job in real estate to pursue his passion.
- The early days of the company and how their scrappiness built a solid foundation for their business over the years.
- The evolution of their business to where it is today.
- Advice on the recruitment process for high school athletes.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Let’s face it. Your company is only as strong as your team and Mike knows this first hand. As a former Olympic sailing coach, you can’t compete unless you have a winning team of people that mesh well. Yet, finding and hiring the right people that help you climb that mountain together is really hard.
It was Mike’s own use of The Predictive Index at a former company that opened his eyes to how effective their behavioral assessment tool was in terms of hiring. It was so effective, in fact, that he and his partner, Dan Muzquiz, went on to purchase the company to help expand its value for helping companies with designing and executing their talent strategies.
This interview actually takes place at the company’s first annual Optima conference, which brought together the best minds in business to learn cutting edge strategies for designing, hiring, and inspiring high-performing teams. We discuss why they started this talent optimization conference and its importance.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Details on his background - growing up on the water and racing sailboats and what his experience as a coach for the US Olympic Sailing Team was like.
- How he got into the business of buying businesses.
- The history of The Predictive Index and the value it provides to building teams.
- How they SaaS'ified the business and their plans ahead for growth.
- Advice on scaling a company once you hit product-market fit.
- How to let things go.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Modern advancements in technology have impacted almost every industry, but there are still some areas that might not be modernized. As we discuss in this podcast, Matt and his co-founders found one of those industries that was ripe for disruption while at Harvard and that is the public safety sector.
Based on the important role that first responder, law enforcement, and public safety professionals play in our lives, you would think they would be leveraging state of the art technology to make their jobs more efficient and effective. However, this wasn’t the case and Mark43 is building a company to solve this issue with a modern, cloud-native platform for dispatch, records, evidence, and analytics.
The company is backed by lots of notable investors such as Spark Capital, General Catalyst, Goldman Sachs, Lowercase Capital, Jeff Bezos, Ashton Kutcher, Tom Eisenmann, and many others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Matt’s background and how a class at Harvard led him and his co-founders down the path of starting a company.
- All of the details on Mark43 and how the company is building a modern tech platform for public safety professionals.
- How Mark43 was able to land a who’s who list of notable investors.
- The ways that Mark43 has been successful with PR initiatives.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For the 149th episode of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Keith Frankel, Co-Founder & CEO of Parlor.
Keith’s professional journey has not been a linear one. It has been the exact opposite. It’s been one that has taken lots of interesting twists and turns. From producing reality television shows to running creative & design for software companies, he has never been afraid to stretch outside of his comfort zone.
Keith and his co-founders are now focused on tackling a problem which surprisingly, hasn’t been solved. Parlor, which recently closed a round of funding led by Bain Capital, is an all-in-one Discovery platform designed to help product teams validate the impact of all the features they're thinking about building, so that you are actually building the stuff that your customers actually want.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Keith’s backstory in terms of how he got to Boston and ended up being the captain of a touring stepping dance squad and brought him to MTV.
- Why he made the transition to the software industry and how he worked his way into a creative and design leadership role, including his experience at HubSpot.
- The a-ha moment that led the founding team at Parlor to start the company and the details on how they are solving this problem.
- The unconventional method that Parlor used to raise funding.
- And so much more.
We just published the December edition of Career Forward. It has over 100 of the hottest jobs across the Boston tech scene. There are positions listed across all levels of experience and all functional areas like sales, product management, software engineering, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/careerforward to start exploring.
Jay is a serial entrepreneur, who has a history of building companies that have reflected the trend towards the gig economy. From package delivery to the taxi industry’s answer to Uber, he has transformed multiple industries and his latest company is tackling the insurance industry.
If you are a small business owner or freelancer, it is probably smart to have insurance to protect yourself, but you probably don’t need insurance all the time. You probably just need it while you are actually providing your service. In the past, if you wanted coverage, you would have to purchase a plan for a full year. Thimble is disrupting the industry by providing essential risk protection with a flexible model where you can purchase coverage by the hour, day, or month - starting at just $5. The company recently announced $22M in Series A funding led by IAC.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What its like building a company that ended up being an answer to a Jeopardy question.
- Jay’s background growing up and how he ended up in entrepreneurship.
- His first two startups eCourier and Hailo, which both transformed an industry and led to an exit.
- All the details on Thimble and how it is allowing small businesses and freelancers to get flexible insurance on demand.
- Advice on hiring during the early stage of a company.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Inspiration for a business idea can come from the most unique scenarios. Case in point, take Arik, who as a serial tech entrepreneur, decided to purchase a small-town grocery store in Vermont at Sugarbush. And pretty much everyone, for good reason as I would have told him the same thing, was that he was crazy and it was just an overall bad idea.
Well, this crazy idea turned into the inspiration that led him down the path of Mable. As he was getting into the weeds of running a local grocery store, he discovered how archaic this industry was in terms of the ordering process, which was still phone, text, or email.
Mable is modernizing the ordering process with an enterprise-level B2B eCommerce platform to simplify wholesale in the grocery and convenience industry. The company recently announced a $3M seed round of funding led by Venrock, Accomplice, and Founder Collective.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
Arik’s career and his different roles in numerous successful startups, including the story of how his company was acquired by WHERE, which was then acquired by PayPal just months later. The a-ha moment that led him to start Mable and all the details on the company. Tips on what makes a great Product Manager. Advice for first-time founders on raising capital. *And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
A couple of years ago, I rarely used emoji while communicating with friends, family, or professional contacts. Now, I use them all the time, as it is an easy and accepted way to communicate with people, especially since you can’t read tone with just words.
Holler is a venture-backed company in New York City that is helping people have better conversations through expressive content. Travis saw the future of this form of communication early on and this is definitely a situation where being early to market was definitely a competitive advantage for Holler. It is an industry that has exploded where messaging is one of the top 5 activities that people engage in and last year alone,100 trillion messages were generated.
What is also truly inspirational about Travis’ career path is how his whole career began at Chick-fil-A as a teenager and how he quickly rose up through the ranks into management and what this experience taught him at an early age.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Why he decided to turn down an offer at Goldman Sachs to start his own company.
- All the details on what Holler does, and where they plan on heading in the future.
- How the company is working with leading brands to help bring visual, engaging, and expressive content to the masses.
- Advice for founders who might be early to market.
- How to successfully leverage PR to grow awareness for your company.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The best part of hosting The VentureFizz Podcast is getting a chance to talk to some of the most intelligent and driven entrepreneurs in the tech scene. Paul definitely fits the bill on both accounts. He is a highly accomplished technologist, who earlier in his career, actually worked on the broadband network infrastructure that we would all later know as the cloud.
Paul, along with his twin brother Peter, founded iboss to address security issues for a mobile workforce. The problem is that traditional security appliances were ineffective at protecting a cloud-first and mobile world. The iboss cloud has solved this problem by providing organizations and their employees secure access to the Internet on any device, from any location, in the cloud.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What it’s like founding and running a company with your twin brother.
- A deep dive into the early foundation of Paul’s career and various technical initiatives he worked on.
- The full background story on iboss and all the details on their platform.
- Why they decided to move the company’s headquarters to Boston.
- Advice for scaling a venture-backed company
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
The concept of Sable was born based on Andrej’s own personal experience as an international student while attending business school at Columbia. The complexity and the process of getting a bank account set up was incredibly archaic and challenging. The same goes for obtaining a credit card and it all can take months to get set up.
Like any ambitious entrepreneur, especially one who was interested in the Fintech industry, Andrej took action. Along with his co-founders, Sable is making banking in the US for internationals easy. This NY startup recently graduated from Y Combinator’s summer cohort.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Andrej’s background and professional history.
- What led the team down the path of solving the problem of banking for internationals.
- All the details on Sable and how they got started.
- The challenges they had to be overcome while dealing with the complicated and regulated banking industry.
- Advice on the application process at Y Combinator and how to maximize your company’s time there.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Jamus has a strong history of success in the tech industry. He was an early member of the team at Demandware, which was a massive success story in the early days of SaaS. He played a key role in the company’s growth to an IPO in 2012 and the company was later acquired by Salesforce.com for a reported $2.6B.
Jamus is now leading Moltin, a venture backed company that embraces an API-first Headless Commerce Service for high-growth businesses with sophisticated consumer engagement strategies.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Jamus’ background and the overall progression of his career.
- A deep dive into the story of Demandware and how they were able to scale the company to an IPO and acquisition.
- All the details on Moltin and how the company and its technology is disrupting the digital commerce industry.
- Advice for executives who are looking to take on a CEO role at a company.
- Tips on how to make the transition into a founder-led company a smooth one.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
I used to envy… well let’s be honest, I was downright jealous of the other podcasts and their use of video for promoting their episodes. I would see a clip of audio transformed into a video with a cool wavy line that matched up with the voice of the guest. I thought… wow - that must be expensive to do that level of production.
A few months ago, I discovered a company in NY called Headliner that makes it easy to create social video. No, this is not an advertisement, but we are users and fans of this product as it is incredibly intuitive and their freemium pricing model makes it cost effective.
Headliner is being used by thousands and thousands of Radio Producers, Podcasters, and Publishers to generate a massive amount of videos per week. Oliver and his co-founder, Neil Mody, are serial entrepreneurs and this is their second company together.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Some observations and thoughts on starting a podcast.
- How being in a band influenced Oliver’s professional career.
- The details on their first company, Nrelate, which was acquired by IAC.
- How Sparemin evolved into Headliner and all the details on the company, its tech, and future plans.
- Advice on how to get feedback on your product from your customers.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
International expansion can offer a tremendous opportunity for companies, but it is also incredibly complex to hire employees in different countries. When you factor in the various legal, tax, and HR regulations that vary from location to location, it is a major undertaking that requires a lot of time, knowledge, and money.
Nicole is an experienced entrepreneur, traveler, and philanthropist who started her first company in the Caribbean right out of college. After gaining industry experience in the software industry for an international business services firm, she founded Globalization Partners to address this issue of international expansion. Through its Global Expansion Platform, they make it easy to hire employees in more than 170 countries.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Nicole’s experience building schools in underdeveloped countries.
- Her background story and professional journey.
- What led Nicole to start Globalization Partners, and how their platform is solving the challenges of hiring and expanding internationally.
- Advice for founders on getting press and coverage from the media.
- Thoughts on building a more diverse and inclusive leadership team.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Lucy was a student at Harvard during the same timeframe when Mark Zuckerberg was starting Facebook. As we discuss in this podcast, Facebook was a key catalyst to ignited the entrepreneurial spirit at the institution.
She was a co-founder and COO of Paperless Post, which included two other Harvard alumni. The company disrupted the online invitation industry by making the process a lot more elegant and personalized with a design-led philosophy, which was unique at the time.
Lucy is now a Partner at Inspired Capital, an early stage investment firm that was recently launched by Alexa von Tobel. Alexa is best known as the Founder & CEO of Learnvest, a company that was acquired by Northwestern Mutual. And yes, it was at Harvard where Lucy originally met Alexa.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- What is was like attending Harvard during the creation of Facebook and its impact on entrepreneurship there
- The full background story on Paperless Post and the many challenges they had to overcome
- The details on Inspired Capital and what they are targeting for investments.
- What pitfalls to avoid when scaling.
- When you should hire a COO to join your company.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Very few people have the same level of knowledge about Artificial Intelligence than Max. He holds two PhDs, several patents, and co-founded Boston University’s Neuromorphics Lab.
Yes, AI is a major buzzword heard across multiple companies these days, but Neurala is actually building AI… not just using it. The company’s technology has been deployed on 30 million devices globally and its Brain Builder platform has multiple use-cases for drones, robotics, smart devices, industrial inspection, and more.
And if you were wondering about his last name, yes… Max is part of the same Versace family tree, except his idea of modeling is very different.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of other topics:
- A discussion around the debate on whether AI is dangerous for our future… aka the Terminator scenario.
- Max’s early life in Italy, how he got into AI from a young age, and his experience at BU
- All the history and details on Neurala and their technology. Advice for founders on the patent process.
- The biggest challenges of commercializing research and building a company out of it.
- Advice for founders who are ahead of the market and are trying to raise capital.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For Episode 138 of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Gary Hoberman, CEO & Founder of Unqork.
A perfect way to describe Gary is the word fearlessness and it is actually one of the core values at Unqork. He was a sponsored skateboarder as a child which taught him that it was ok to hit the ramp as hard you can, because at that point there is no turning back and failure is ok. You might get some bumps and bruises, but you can try again. This mentality has definitely carried over into his professional world as an entrepreneur.
Unqork is the only no-code application platform built for the enterprise. The company recently announced an $80M Series B round of funding led by CapitalG and this was after raising their Series A round of funding back in April of this year, as well.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- Gary’s career in terms of working his way through the professional ranks in the financial services industry to eventually lead a global organization as MetLife’s Co-CIO.
- As a holder of eight patents, how he was able to inspire innovation in larger companies.
- Why 93% of all projects fail and how that led Gary down the path of starting Unqork.
- All the details on Unqork in terms of their technology and the value that it is driving within the enterprise.
- How negative feedback from investors turned out to be a positive motivator.
- Advice for corporate executives on taking the entrepreneurial leap.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For Episode 137 of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Jeremy Hitchcock and Gray Chynoweth of Minim.
Manchester, NH…or for you insiders, Manchvegas… it is where I grew up. My dad was an entrepreneur and he ran a leather coat factory in the historic mill buildings there.
The same mill buildings were the home to a major tech company that played a key role in keeping the internet running (for real) and it was called Dyn - the leading cloud-based Internet performance and DNS provider. The company was started by WPI students and it went on to scale to an eventual acquisition by Oracle for a reported $600M.
Jeremy Hitchcock was the CEO of Dyn and one of its co-founders. He is on to his next company which is called Minim. Gray is also an alum of Dyn and is now Minim’s CEO.
Minim, as they put it, is on a mission to make home WiFi as safe and reliable as drinking water through its IoT platform that enables and secures a better connected home. The company is backed by Founder Collective and Flybridge Capital Partners.
In this episode, we cover:
- The current state of the tech scene in New Hampshire.
- A deep dive into the story of Dyn from the early beginnings to acquisition.
- All the details on Minim and their technology.
- Advice for founders on raising capital.
- A discussion about the acquisition process.
- Recruiting members to your Board of Directors.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
For Episode 136 of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Jon Keidan, Founder and Managing Partner of Torch Capital.
Are there parallels between identifying musical talent that will become the next great recording artist and the next great entrepreneur who will transform an industry by building a unicorn company? There are definitely some similarities, as you are taking a risk by investing in the artist or the entrepreneur and betting on their ability to execute. We have definitely seen some crossovers from the music industry into tech investing with examples like Troy Carter or Guy Oseary.
Jon is another example of a crossover whose career has transcended both industries and identifying talent has always been a superpower. He started his own music talent management company at a very young age and he worked on developing the careers of high-profile artists and since becoming an investor, he made early stage investments in lots of great companies like Sweetgreen, Acorns, Zocdoc, and many more.
Torch Capital is a new investment firm that he founded with a $60M fund which will focus on investing in early-stage consumer companies.
In this episode, we cover:
- Jon’s early career in the music business and what he learned from running a talent management company.
- The details on InsideHook, a digital media publication that he co-founded and was acquired.
- How he became an investor and why he decided to start Torch Capital.
- What he looks for when making an investment.
- Why entrepreneurs should be careful about valuations.
- Advice for founders on building a consumer brand.
- And more!
If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Welcome to Episode 135 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed John Burns, CEO of TB12.
A lot has been reported about Tom Brady’s health and training regimen. At 42 years old, he is still performing at an elite level in the NFL as the quarterback of the New England Patriots.
So, it makes you wonder… what if we all could apply these same methods that the 6-time Super Bowl champion and 3-time NFL MVP has leveraged to help us improve our own health and wellbeing?
Well, that is the goal of TB12, the company that was started by Tom Brady and his partner Alex Guerrero. As described by the company, TB12 is centered around a holistic philosophy for health and wellness by using workouts and nutrition to help you do what you love, longer.
John Burns is TB12’s CEO. His career has been focused on investing and helping to build consumer companies like Lululemon, Spartan Races, Oath Craft Pizza, EveryBodyFights, and others. It was John’s own personal experience at TB12 that helped him recover from a hockey injury which ended up being the catalyst for his involvement in the company.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of other topics:
-What it’s like having Tom Brady as your boss. -A discussion about the trend of professional athletes who are becoming entrepreneurs or investors. -John’s background story and the details behind his investments in the consumer industry. -How Tom Brady got connected with Alex Guerrero and how TB12 got its start. -Lots of details on TB12 and its future plans. -Great advice on building a consumer brand from the ground up. -And so much more.
Is your company hiring? If yes, then you might want to add a BIZZpage subscription. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps to keep your company top of mind for our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A BIZZpage subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com for more details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 134 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jannick Malling, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Public.
Public is a new kind of brokerage that makes it possible to buy any public stock with any amount of money commission-free. It is an idea that I wish existed when I was younger, as they are democratizing the public markets by allowing people to purchase slices of stock. It is a different philosophy where you are focused on how much you want to invest or can invest versus the number of shares. They also have a really interesting social component to the app where you can see what other people are purchasing.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Jannick’s background and career, including how he caught the entrepreneurial bug. -All the details on Public, including how everything works in terms of purchasing slices and the company’s business model. -How they are building a social layer to Public and how it is a key differentiator. -How they got the Public.com domain, as well as advice for founders on buying domains. -Advice on raising capital. -And so much more.
Public is offering our listeners $10 for anyone who is approved and funds a Public account through this episode. Go to: http://share.public.com/jannick to get started.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 133 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Sarah Downey, Principal at Accomplice, a seed-stage venture capital firm.
In the past, there really weren’t too many career paths into the venture capital industry. Typically, someone joined a firm from a top business school or investment banking firm. Or, another common path is being a successful founder and switching over to the investment side.
Well, this isn’t the case anymore and Sarah is a perfect example of someone whose career has taken lots of great twists and turns leading up to her current role as a Principal at Accomplice. In addition to Sarah’s role as an investor, she is also a community-builder. She is actively involved in Rev Boston, TUGG, and other non-profits.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-The value of having your own user guide to provide others with instructions on the best way to interact with you. -Sarah’s background story including her time in law school and her career pivot into the tech industry as a marketer. -How she made the transition into venture capital. -Trends in the AR/VR space, as well as other areas of tech. -The importance of elevating more women in the Boston tech scene, and -Sarah’s role in making that happen. -And so much more.
TUGG is one of the organizations that Sarah is apart of. One of their flagship events is called Tech Gives Back, which we talk about in the podcast. It is the largest industry service event in the country and an opportunity for your company to volunteer for a day of service and work with some incredible non-profits. This year’s event is taking place on October 10th & 11th. Go to tugg.org to learn more and sign your company up for this worthy cause!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 132 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jon Staff, Founder and CEO of Getaway.
With today’s always-connected and always-on world, I think most people would agree that disconnecting is good for the mind, body, and soul. This is exactly the business that Jon has created, an environment where you can disconnect in one of their tiny cabins that are situated in nature a couple of hours from a major city. The goal is to let you recharge and spend time on the things that matter, like ourselves and our relationships.
Jon is a serial entrepreneur. We actually wrote a story about prior company called Favecast on VentureFizz several years ago. Getaway ended up being the right idea, as the company recently announced a $22.5M Series B round of funding and is scaling aggressively.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-The interesting places Jon has lived including the basement of a frozen yogurt shop. -The details on his background, including where his work ethic came from and the multiple companies he started. -What led him down the path of founding Getaway and how the company got started. -His experience pitching Getaway on Shark Tank and the impact it had on the company’s business. -Advice for building a great brand. -The challenges of building a team in the early days of a company. -And so much more.
Did you know that every Monday morning, we send out two weekly digest emails? There is one for Boston and one for NY. It is your weekly email to stay connected to all the “must-know” information from the local tech scene. It includes information on companies, jobs, events, deals and more. Go to venturefizz.com/email and look for the “Weekly Tech Buzz” to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 131 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Dan O'Malley, Founder and CEO of Numerated.
Dan has built a strong level of domain experience in the Fintech industry. What is really interesting about his career is how he’s been a driver of innovation at startups, as well as much larger companies.
At Capital One, he built their payment product into one of the company's largest strategic initiatives. As CEO and Co-Founder of Perkstreet Financial, they built an online-only consumer banking startup, which just didn’t hit the market right from a timing point of view.
He later joined Eastern Bank as the Co-Founder and Head of Eastern Labs, the company’s innovation arm which was built to help keep Eastern Bank competitive in their industry.
It was this experience that has led to the founding of Numerated, a company that was spun out of the lab and is focused on helping banks grow relationships faster with its real-time sales platform. Numerated recently announced a $15M Series B round of funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics like:
-How innovation works at larger companies. -Dan’s background story and a walk through his career. -All the details on Numerated’s platform and why the company was spun outside of Eastern Bank, plus its growth and hiring plans. -The current state of FinTech in Boston. -Advice for first-time entrepreneurs on raising capital. -And so much more.
Whenever someone asks me who are the fastest-growing tech companies in Boston or New York City, I simply direct them to our BIZZpages. From there, you can do a virtual tour of each tech scene and explore over 290 companies! Each BIZZpage tells you everything you need to know from a high level like the details on the company, culture, job openings, leadership team, and more! Go to venturefizz.com/bizzpages to start exploring!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 130 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Eddie Geller, Co-Founder and CEO of Tinybeans.
Eddie is a serial entrepreneur who is originally from Australia. He founded his first company, a software development services firm called Unique World in 1999 with just $5,000 in the bank. By the time he sold the company, he had grown the business to $15M with nearly 100 employees.
Tinybeans is a company that is dedicated to storing family memories through its secure photo-sharing platform and mobile app. Every day millions of people including celebrities, politicians and high-profile families rely on Tinybeans as their primary platform for capturing, storing and sharing their children’s life stories. It is a product that I wish existed when my kids were younger.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of other topics, like:
-The importance of having a transparent company culture. -The story of building and scaling Unique World to an exit. -The background story of Tinybeans and how Eddie got involved, plus the current state of their business and scale. -The benefits of having a concentrated, rather than a general, audience as your users. -And so much more.
If you have been enjoying The VentureFizz Podcast, then please leave us a 5-star review on iTunes. The more reviews we have, the more that people will discover these amazing stories about entrepreneurs across the Boston and New York entrepreneurial ecosystems. Thanks in advance—we appreciate it!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 129 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Alicia Lindgren, CEO at CollegeLab.
Alicia’s career started out in the financial services industry and then she later moved into the non-profit sector before transitioning into the educational field where she has developed a deep level of expertise around college admissions.
CollegeLab is an AI-driven college admissions tool that helps families and counselors better navigate and manage the college admissions process. Built using machine learning methods, CollegeLab utilizes over 4 million student applications with outcomes to tell students their chance of admission at 500 colleges and universities, comparing 12 data points and identifying areas they should focus on to improve their chances.
I have a confession to make about this podcast episode. Not only do Alicia and I have a deep conversation about the CollegeLab platform, but we also talk in great detail about the college admissions process, which was of great interest to me. I have a daughter who is a sophomore in high school, and while we are not out there doing college visits just yet, it is all right around the corner.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of other topics, like:
-The truth behind college rankings and their data. -Alicia’s background story in terms of her professional career. -All the details on CollegeLab and what makes the platform valuable to students, parents, and counselors. -Her thoughts on the SAT and ACT, and the current status of these tests. -How colleges and universities make their decisions around admissions. And so much more.
Our Job Board has over 4,500 positions listed, and the design of our job listings just went through a major overhaul. It is a much cleaner design and you’ll find highly relevant information on each listing like employee testimonials, photos, video, and the latest featured story from VentureFizz. This way you can learn a lot more about the company and its culture direct from each job listing. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 128 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Leslie Borrell, VP of Smart Cities at Intersection.
When we talk about the next 5, 10, 15 or more years of urban living, the phrase “smart city” will almost definitely be a part of the conversation. Now, smart city can mean a number of different things, from good public Wi-Fi to autonomous cars and much, much more.
Intersection is a company at the forefront of the smart cities revolution. Its mission is to improve the experience of public places through technology that provides connectivity, information, and engaging content and experiences to civilians across various cities. You might know them from LinkNYC, the largest and fastest free public Wi-Fi network in the world.
Leslie is part of the team that is making Smart Cities a reality and as we discuss her background, you’ll notice that she has not been afraid to take chances and go for it. This has all paid off as she has held engineering leadership roles at a variety of tech companies in NYC.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of other topics, like:
-Leslie’s thoughts on what our smart city future will look like. -The full background story of her career and how she worked her way into engineering leadership roles. -All the details on Intersection’s products and how they are powering smart cities, plus their business model. -The company’s culture, including their approach to diversity and inclusion, and advice for companies on building a diverse workplace. -Advice for women on pursuing leadership roles in tech. -And so much more.
Ok - quick side note - Our Job Board has over 4,400 positions listed, and we just went through a redesign of the job listings. It is a much cleaner design and you’ll find highly relevant information on each listing like employee testimonials, photos, video, and the latest featured story from VentureFizz. This way you can learn a lot more about the company and its culture direct from each job listing. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 127 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Doron Reuveni, Founder and CEO of Applause.
Building a successful company is incredibly difficult. It is definitely not a sprint, it’s not even a marathon… it is more like an Ironman competition where you have to train for multiple events and do it at a massive scale. Well, Doron can definitely relate to this analogy, as an Ironman competitor, biker, and marathoner.
He and his co-founder, Roy Solomon, disrupted the software testing industry with a new approach by leveraging a crowdsourcing model. Applause went on to raise over $115M in funding and was acquired by Vista Equity Partners in 2017.
Here’s a fun fact: Applause was originally known as uTest and they were one of the very first sponsors of VentureFizz. It was uTest, General Catalyst, and Akamai. Without their support in the early days of VentureFizz… we might not even exist!
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Doron’s background story and professional history. -How the idea for uTest originated, how they built out the community of testers, and started to gain traction with customers. -The story behind the rebranding of the company. -The current state of their business in terms of size and scale. -Advice for founders on how to remain as CEO of your company over the long term. -The hardest part of scaling a business -How to build a management team. -And so much more.
Did you know that you can get customized job alerts delivered to your inbox every day? It’s a great way to keep informed of the over 4,000 jobs listed on VentureFizz and have jobs from a specific category sent directly to you. Don’t let that career-defining opportunity pass you by, go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 126 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Melody Koh, Partner at NextView Ventures.
Melody has a strong mix of professional experience as an entrepreneur, operator, and investor. At Blue Apron, she was the company’s first product hire. She went on to lead a 35-person team through the company's hypergrowth years to an IPO.
At NextView Ventures, she’s part of the team that is redesigning the “Everyday Economy,” which we dive into, as it is the firm’s investment thesis. Melody is passionate about working closely with founders at early-stage companies where she can leverage her experience in things like product, go-to-market strategies, hiring, and more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of other topics too, like:
-How parenting relates to entrepreneurship, which is relevant, as Melody and her husband recently welcomed a newborn son to the world. -Her background story and how she landed in venture capital early on in her career and later transitioned into product management. -The details of her experience at Blue Apron and the hypergrowth years where she led product, design, and analytics. -Her current role as a venture capitalist and what she is targeting for investments. -Advice for founders who haven’t made their first product hire yet and finding the right product manager for your company. -Tips on how to pursue a career in venture capital. -And so much more.
Is your company hiring? If yes, then you might want to add a BIZZpage subscription. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps to keep your company top of mind for our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A BIZZpage subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com for more details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 125 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Amy Spurling, Co-Founder and CEO of Compt.
By the time Amy started Compt, she was well-versed in the world of startups. As a COO or CFO for multiple venture-backed companies, where many had exited, she knew the playbook around raising funding, negotiating an acquisition, and running the operations of a startup. This experience all led her down the path to where she is today as a Co-Founder & CEO.
The idea behind Compt came from a real-world problem that Amy was experiencing. Companies give a standard list of benefits, but not all employees are able to leverage them. So, Compt’s is changing this with their platform that allows employers to develop and manage lifestyle spending accounts so employees can get the perks they want and need the most.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Amy’s background as a northern California native and how she ended up on the east coast. -A walk through her career and how Amy methodically prepared herself to run a company. -All the details about Compt and the company’s mission to empower employees to choose their own benefits. -How you need to think about the valuation of your company when raising funding and why you shouldn’t always swing for the fences with the highest number. -Advice on how to negotiate the sale of your company. -When a company should think about hiring a CFO. -And so much more.
Did you know that every Monday at 9:15 & 10 am, we send out two weekly digest emails? There is one for Boston and one for NY. It is your weekly email to stay connected to all the “must-know” information from the local tech scene. It includes information on companies, jobs, events, deals and more. Go to venturefizz.com/email and look for the “Weekly Tech Buzz” to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 124 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Stephen Sokoler, Founder and CEO of Journey Meditation.
I have to admit, I don’t have a history of meditating. Even though I understand the benefits and have seen the growth in terms of its increasing popularity, I just haven’t taken the leap yet. However, as you’ll hear from this podcast, I feel like it is time and like the analogy Stephen shares: it’s kind of like going to the gym. You just need to get started and build from there. Who knows, maybe we’ll do another podcast a year from know where I can discuss my experiences with meditation.
Stephen is a serial entrepreneur with several years of experience founding, building, and running companies. His latest company, Journey Meditation, is building the world’s largest, most supportive, inclusive meditation community, both online and off. Journey’s history has B2B roots, but the company recently announced its consumer product called Journey LIVE, a group meditation app, which TechCrunch referred to it as the “Peloton for Meditation.”
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Why meditation is so valuable for entrepreneurs, and how to get started. -Stephen’s background story and his experience building successful businesses. -How he got into meditation and how it was the inspiration that led him to start Journey. -All the details behind getting the business started with corporate customers and the launch of Journey LIVE. -The benefits of group meditation. -Growth plans for the company. -And so much more.
Our Job Board has over 4,300 positions listed across all functional areas, and we just went through a major redesign of the job listings. It is a much cleaner design and you’ll find highly relevant information on each listing like employee testimonials, photos, video, and the latest featured story from VentureFizz. This way you can learn a lot more about the company and its culture direct from each job listing. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 123 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nitzan Shaer, Co-Founder and CEO at WEVO.
Nitzan was early in the mobile world that we live in now. I’m talking about a pre-iPhone era, when he was part of the team that was figuring out early mobile strategy from Microsoft and Skype.
He’s a serial entrepreneur and his latest startup is called WEVO. You might be familiar with A/B testing after your website is launched. Well, WEVO is taking a radically different approach by helping companies optimize your website before going live. It does this through artificial intelligence and a proprietary behavioral model which generates recommendations that have proven to significantly increase conversion.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Nitzan’s background in terms of growing up in Israel what he learned from being a member of the Israeli Air Force. -His experience at Microsoft, which included an interesting story of a mobile strategy session at Bill Gates’ house. -His time at Skype where he helped the company launch the mobile version of their product. -All the details on WEVO, including what led them down the path of starting the compan and the value of their platform. -What makes a great product manager. -Advice for founders on starting a consulting firm. -And so much more.
Our Job Board has over 4,500 positions listed, and we just went through a redesign of the job listing. It is a much cleaner design and you’ll find highly relevant information on each listing like employee testimonials, photos, video, and the latest featured story from VentureFizz. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 122 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Brandon Gell, Founder and CEO of Clyde.
Product protection is one of those things that you don’t think you need until you really need it. Clyde is disrupting this industry with a radically different approach and it is a massive market which currently stands at $44B. The company’s platform is making it easy for retailers to offer product protection plans online. It is not only an opportunity to increase revenue, but through Clyde’s platform and approach, it is also a way to drive customer loyalty at the same time.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics like:
-Brandon’s foundation years and his experience at Venture for America. -The aha moment that led him to start Clyde and how they got the company started, including a great story about a hard decision to say “no” which ended up being the best decision for the company. -All the details on Clyde in terms of the complexity of their platform and how they are building a better experience for consumers. -Advice for first-time founders raising capital. -His thoughts on hiring the first layer of employees at a company. -And so much more!
Have you checked out our YouTube channel? It is loaded with lots and lots of great content from our interviews with founders, executives, and investors. You will find lots of advice shared from these podcast interviews, plus our popular Inside and CxO briefing series. Go to youtube.com/venturefizz to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 121 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Bryanne Leeming, Founder and CEO of Unruly Studios.
I am always fascinated with entrepreneurs who are launching physical products. There is such a greater level of complexity and ultimately risk behind their business. You have to design the product, get it manufactured, and then sold, which is also very challenging in terms of figuring out which sales channel is going to get your product in the hands of consumers. Do you go direct with an eCommerce model, sell to retailers, or figure out a B2B2C business model. There is so much that goes into it.
Bryanne Leeming’s company, Unruly Studios, is taking this challenge head-on with a product that is very cool, different, and needed. Unruly Splats are the company’s first product and it teaches kids critical STEM skills while being active and having fun all at the same time.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-All about Bryanne’s background including her first jobs and the decision to go back to business school. -The story of how Unruly Studios came to be, and how they named the company. -Her experience building hardware and how she went about getting feedback on the product. -All the details on Unruly Splats in terms of how kids play with it and what they learn. -Her experience creating a successful Kickstarter campaign and what channels have been effective for sales. -Advice for entrepreneurs trying to build and bring a physical product to market. -And so much more.
Is your company hiring? If yes, then you might want to add a BIZZpage subscription. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps to keep your company top of mind for our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A BIZZpage subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com for more details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 120 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Aleksandr Yampolskiy, Co-Founder and CEO of SecurityScorecard.
It seems like there is a major data breach announcement every week these days. The most recent one being Capital One, where more than 100 million consumers had their personal information exposed.
The issues that affect consumers are the ones that generally make the news, but if you are a business, you’d probably want to make sure any other business you are working with has a secure environment. That’s where SecurityScorecard comes into play. They provide a security ratings platform, so that you are able to reduce your company’s risk and exposure. SecurityScorecard recently announced $50M in Series D funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Aleksandr’s background including his early interest in cybersecurity. -His experience leading security operations at leading companies and his career path to a Chief Information Security Officer position. -What led him and his co-founder to start SecurityScorecard and all the details behind the company. -The most common security issues that companies are dealing with these days. -What we can be doing as consumers to help keep our information safe. -And so much more!
Did you know that you can get customized job alerts delivered to your inbox every day? It’s a great way to keep informed of the over 4,000 jobs listed on VentureFizz and have jobs from a specific category sent directly to you. Don’t let that career-defining opportunity pass you by, go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 119 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Gail Goodman, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Pepperlane.
Gail is a legend in the Boston tech scene. As CEO of Constant Contact, she took the company from its earliest days to a successful IPO and later, an acquisition by Endurance International Group for over $1B. Constant Contact was a groundbreaking company that was going against the grain in terms of building a successful SaaS business while working with SMB’s (Small-to-Medium) sized businesses. This was unheard of back then and it is truly an inspirational story that all entrepreneurs should listen to.
Gail is now working with an amazing team to hopefully build another pillar tech company that is unlocking a massive market opportunity. Pepperlane is on a mission to help mothers build successful businesses and become entrepreneurs on their own terms.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-A walk through Gail’s career and the different roles she held before Constant Contact. -A deep dive into the story of Constant Contact and how they overcome the odds to build one of the most successful tech companies in the Boston area. -The spider web effect that Constant Contact has made to the Boston tech ecosystem with several CEOs, founders, and executives who are building companies. -All the details on Pepperlane and why she is incredibly excited about the mission behind the company. -Why she is the company’s Chief Product Officer versus CEO. -Advice on how to land a seat on the Board of Directors at a company. -And so much more.
If you are listening to this podcast, then it is highly likely that you are interested in the entrepreneurial journey and all the lessons learned around building companies. So, make sure you don’t miss any future episodes by subscribing to The VentureFizz Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or Soundcloud.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 118 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Sam Dunn, Co-Founder and CEO at Robin.
I have a strong appreciation for entrepreneurs, as it is really hard to build and scale a business. But, starting a company while you are still in college is a whole different ball game that requires guts and determination.
Sam, along with his twin brother Zach, and Brian Muse, the 3rd co-founder and CTO, have never worked professionally for anyone else. They started One Mighty Roar while they were still in college and this business eventually evolved into Robin.
Robin is SaaS workplace scheduling and management platform that is modernizing the open office. Back in May, the company raised a $20M Series B round of funding to help fuel their growth.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Office trends, and some interesting hacks on how to set up workplaces. -The background story of Robin and how the company evolved from an agency to a product company. -A deep dive into Robin, its platform and the value it provides for their customers. -The experience of raising capital through multiple rounds. -Their thought process behind their pricing model. -The three questions Sam uses to evaluate talent. -And so much more.
Have you checked out our YouTube channel? You’ll find videos from our podcast, plus lots of other interviews with founders and our very popular Inside: series, which gives you an inside look at a functional area in one of the fastest-growing tech companies. Go to youtube.com/venturefizz to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 117 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Danielle Cohen-Shohet, Co-Founder and CEO of GlossGenius.
While some children may aspire to become a doctor, astronaut, or firefighter, Danielle’s plan, even from an early age, was very different. Her plan was to start and build a company.
Danielle’s aspirations became a reality with GlossGenius, the all-in-one solution for top beauty professionals. Their platform is helping very small business owners with the complexities of running a business. It simplifies and automates things like scheduling, client management, and payment, so the business owner can focus on servicing their customers.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics:
-Danielle’s background story, including some of her entrepreneurial endeavors as a child. -All about GlossGenius and how they are helping very small business owners operate and run their business. -How narrowing the potential customer lens to a specific segment helped propel their business forward. -The Techstars experience and how they benefited from going through this accelerator. -Danielle thoughts on why all founders should learn how to code. -Lessons learned around hiring and onboarding. -And so much more.
If you are listening to this podcast, then it is highly likely that you are interested in the founder journey and lessons learned around building companies. Please make sure you don’t miss any episodes by subscribing to The VentureFizz Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or Soundcloud.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 116 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed David Friedman, Co-Founder and CEO of Knox Financial.
David is a serial entrepreneur and as you’ll hear from this episode, his latest company definitely struck a chord with me. My wife and I previously owned an awesome condo in South Boston about 13 years ago. Needless to say, if we were able to hold on to that property and rent it out without all the hassle of being a landlord, it would have been such an amazing investment. Knox makes this situation a reality and we get in lots of details on how the company operates.
Back when he was at Tufts, David always knew that he wanted to start a company. His first company was Boston Logic, an integrated marketing platform for the real estate industry that was acquired by a private equity firm.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-David’s background and how he initially got a taste of startups. -The story of Boston Logic, including the evolution of their product and how they mostly bootstrapped the company and scaled it to an acquisition. -A deep dive into the process of hiring and working with an investment banking firm. -All the details on Knox Financial and how they are helping people turn their homes into investment properties. -Advice for entrepreneurs trying to build an advisory board. -And so much more.
Did you know that you can get customized job alerts delivered to your inbox every day? It’s a great way to keep informed of the over 4,000 jobs listed on VentureFizz and have jobs from a specific category sent directly to you. Don’t let that career-defining opportunity pass you by, go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 115 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Isa Watson, Founder and CEO of Squad.
Isa is one of those guests that just makes you go “wow” when you hear about their background. Whether it’s how she skipped two grades in school or the story about how she built her own computer from a young age. Or, how about her experience as a chemist, a VP on Wall Street, and a classical pianist, and this was all before taking the entrepreneurial journey.
Squad is the name of her company, which she calls “social media 2.0.” It’s a social community for millenials and gen-z, who are looking to move beyond screens and share real-life experiences together. The company has raised $3.1M to date, via a seed round that was led by Harrison Metal.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Isa’s upbringing including stories of how her parents instilled a foundation of knowledge and curiosity. -A walk through her professional and academic history, which spans across various industries and the top academic institutions in the world. -How she became an entrepreneur, and what made her take the leap. -The details on Squad, including the story on how the product pivoted and her vision for the company moving forward. -The meaning of the word “sacrifice” for an entrepreneur. -How she’s so successful with PR despite having no formal PR strategy. -And so much more.
It’s summer and no doubt, it’s hot out there. However, it's not as hot as the VentureFizz Job Board. It is on fire! You’ll find hundreds of job opportunities at some of the fastest-growing tech companies across the NY tech scene. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to start exploring.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 114 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ryan Boyko, Founder and CEO at Embark.
You are probably familiar with the DNA testing companies like 23andMe and Ancestry. I actually tried out Ancestry and was really surprised with my results, as certain parts of my heritage were very different than I originally thought.
Embark is a venture-backed company that is providing a similar service except for dogs. So, I was excited that Embark offered to test our family dog, Stella, as part of this podcast interview. What’s cool about Embark is that you are not only able to determine or confirm your dog's breed, but a key part of their testing is to help discover if your canine has any underlying health conditions. Embark provides the most comprehensive DNA testing in the market which tests for over 170 genetic health conditions.
Before making an investment, most VC’s usually ask the question of “Why this team?" and "Why now?”, and as you’ll hear from my discussion with Ryan, he and his brother spent an extraordinary amount of time building what is a very defensible foundation in terms of the technology and what they are able to provide with this service.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Ryan background, including his time with Mark Zuckerberg at Harvard. -How Ryan and his brother, Adam, gained an interest in dog genetics and the details behind all their research. -The story of how Embark was built over time and how their testing works. -A walk through Stella’s (our family Cavapoo) test results. -Advice for scientists who are looking to commercialize their research and start a company. -The things he didn’t expect when he first started running a business. -Plus, a lot more.
Embark announced a $10M Series A round of funding back in April from a very impressive list of investors and I have some good news for you. They are hiring aggressively, so if you are interested in working at Embark, you can go to their BIZZpage on VentureFizz to see a list of their openings. Go to venturefizz.com/embark for all the details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 113 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nitesh Banta, Co-Founder & CEO at B12.
Nitesh is deeply rooted in the tech industry as both a serial entrepreneur and investor. We actually go way back, as I remember connecting with him while he was a VC at General Catalyst. He was co-founding a new, first of its kind, student-led VC firm called Rough Draft Ventures. Fast forward, this initiative that is still powered by General Catalyst, has gone on to make a massive impact with over 150 investments in early stage startups.
Today, Nitesh is back as an operator with his next startup called B12. It is a venture-backed company that has a human-assisted AI platform called Orchestra. The current use case of their technology is focused on building websites that are a fraction of the price of hiring an agency and a lot less work than a DIY site.
In addition to building out B12, he is still very active in the startup community as a mentor and an angel investor.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Nitesh’s passion for outer space. -How he became a Venture Capitalist and what’s the hardest part about being a VC. -His experience at General Catalyst and the story behind the launch of Rough Draft Ventures. -B12 and all the details behind its platform. -What he looks for when making an angel investment, and advice for others looking to be an angel investor. -Common mistakes entrepreneurs make when trying to raise capital. -Plus, a lot more.
Are you hiring? If the answer is yes, then you should definitely consider adding a BIZZpage on VentureFizz. Is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps you engage with our very targeted audience of professionals in the tech scene. It is an incredibly cost-effective solution used by all stages of companies, from early startups to larger publicly traded companies. If you are interested in learning more, please send an email to info@venturefizz.com.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 112 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Anant Agarwal, Founder and CEO of edX & Professor at MIT.
Anant is the very definition of a serial entrepreneur. Over the course of his career, he has founded five companies including Tilera Corporation, Virtual Machine Works, and others. In addition to being a successful entrepreneur, he is also a professor at MIT, where he teaches electrical engineering and computer science.
edX is a non-profit company that is changing the world by bringing education to the masses through its open source, online learning platform. Founded by Harvard & MIT, edX is home to more than 20 million learners, the majority of top-ranked universities in the world and industry-leading companies.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Anant’s background including running a chicken farm as a teenager and what that taught him. -A journey through his experience as an entrepreneur and the companies he founded. -The story of edX, its evolution, and the massive scale of its platform. Current plans for hiring and growth at edX. -What areas of education are still ripe for disruption. -And so much more.
Whenever someone asks me who are the fastest growing tech companies in Boston or New York City, I simply direct them to our BIZZpages. From there, you can do a virtual tour of each tech scene and explore over 280 companies! Each BIZZpage tells you everything you need to know from a high level like the details on the company, culture, job openings, leadership team, and more! Go to venturefizz.com/bizzpages to start exploring!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 111 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Todd Garland, Founder of BuySellAds.
BuySellAds is an adtech company that builds scalable revenue programs for companies with captive audiences. Todd has built the company by bootstrapping it from day one. There are no tricks to their business model. It is a marketplace that aims to find audiences who are passionate and match up advertisers who are interested in advertising their product or service to these audiences. The goal is to add value to the web with contextually relevant ads for consumers.
Here’s a fun fact about BuySellAds that you might not know. Remember the website Digg, the popular news sharing website from the early Web 2.0 era of user-generated content? The site was founded by Kevin Rose, who infamously appeared on the cover of BusinessWeek representing this new wave of Silicon Valley founders. Well, did you know that Digg was acquired last year buy BuySellAds? It’s true.
I find it fascinating that a Boston company owns this piece of internet history. At the beginning of our podcast, we get into lots of the details behind this acquisition. Although the site is not nearly as popular as it once was, I’m really curious to see what they do with it - stay tuned!
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Todd’s background growing up in Maine and his experience as an early employee at HubSpot. -The origin story of BuySellAds. How it went from being a side project generating over a million dollars in revenue to becoming his full-time job, and the challenges of building the first versions of the product. -How he built out the marketplace in terms of supply and demand. -Why he’s decided to bootstrap his company over raising outside capital. -Speculation on the future of AdTech. -Advice for founders looking to acquire companies. -Plus, a lot more.
We just published the July edition of Career Forward. It has over 120 of the hottest jobs across the Boston tech scene. There are positions listed across all levels of experience and all functional areas like sales, product management, software engineering, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/careerforward to start exploring.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 110 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jonathan Bensamoun, Founder and CEO at Fi.
Did you know that 10,000,000 dogs are lost in the U.S. every year? That’s an insane number and if you own a dog, you probably consider that dog to be a member of your family. I know I do.
And like any other family member, you want to make sure your dog is given the best care, attention, and security possible. That’s where Fi’s Smart Dog Collar comes in. It’s a collar that tracks your dog’s location 24/7 and it also tracks steps to make sure your dog is getting enough exercise. The company has raised $10M to date, including a $7M Series A in March led by RRE Ventures.
Jonathan is a serial entrepreneur, who started his career in the technical ranks as an engineer before transitioning into product management. His first company called Pins was acquired by Square. His new company, Fi, is on a mission to keep dogs safe and healthy with a device that has many benefits and improvements as compared to other products in the market.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Jonathan’s background and how he made the transition to product management. -What led him to start his first company Pins and how he built out his network in the Bay Area? -All the details behind Fi and how his dog Thor was the inspiration. -How the Fi collar works, plus what makes it such a game-changer. -A deep dive into hardware development. -What makes a great product manager. -Advice for founders looking to raise capital for a hardware company. -Plus, so much more.
Ok - quick side note. Have you checked out our YouTube channel? You’ll find videos from our podcast, plus lots of other interviews with founders and our very popular Inside: series, which gives you an inside look at a functional area in one of the fastest growing tech companies. Go to youtube.com/venturefizz to check it out.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 109 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed the Founders of Wistia, Brendan Schwartz and Chris Savage.
Wistia is a company that creates video software for growing businesses and they’ve helped over 500,000 of them. What is truly amazing about the Wistia story is how the business has grown with a very limited amount of outside capital and they have gone on to build one of the marque B2B software brands in the industry.
Here’s a very random fun fact that I have to share about Wistia. You know when you go to the team section of a company’s website. Then you mouse over the photo and it switched over to a different picture? Well, Wistia invented this style and in the early days of the company their team page went viral and ended up landing them a bunch of customers. It is a simple, yet effective example of their creativity and over the long-term, their approach to content marketing is probably one of the best examples out there.
If one word could sum up this episode it would be transparency which is a trait that I admire about Brendan and Chris. They share lots of stories about getting the business off the ground, to all the trials and tribulations, and lots of amazing advice.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Brendan and Chris’ background story prior to starting Wistia. -All the details about how they founded Wistia and started to gain traction. -A cool story about how they had to make a hard decision by saying “no” to HBO as a potential customer and why that decision ended up being an important one for their future. -Why they didn’t take on traditional venture capital to fund the growth of the business and what led them down the path of taking on $17M in debt financing last year. -How they have built a strong culture that is centered around transparency. -Plans for future growth. -Plus, a lot more.
Ok - quick side note… This is exciting because you have two options for catching this episode. You can either listen to the audio from your favorite podcast app or, for this special episode, you can watch the full video of this interview! The video version is classic, as the background from one of their in-house studios at Wistia looks like a Blockbuster store with real VCR movies in the background. Don’t miss it!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 108 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Chris Litster, CEO at Buildium.
Chris had a goal of being a CEO of a company, and his experience at Constant Contact put him on the right path to make this professional goal a reality. He held multiple leadership roles over the 10 years he spent at the company and saw the business grow at a hypergrowth pace. Chris is actually one of the growing number of CEO’s that was part of the team that scaled Constant Contact to an IPO and acquisition by Endurance International Group for $1.1B.
Chris joined Buildium originally as its Chief Customer Officer before moving into the CEO position about a year ago. Buildium is the property management solution for real estate professionals, and the company has been growing aggressively. Its platform services over 16,000 customers in more than 50 countries, totaling over 1.8 million residential units under management.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Chris’ background and how he got involved in the tech industry. -The story of Constant Contact and how they scaled the company. -The details on Buildium and their market opportunity, plus growth plans. -Advice for others looking to become a CEO. -When a startup should think about getting a board of advisors. -Plus, a lot more.
Is your company hiring? If yes, then you might want to add a BIZZpage subscription. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps to keep your company top of mind for our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A BIZZpage subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com for more details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 107 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Christine Schindler, Co-Founder and CEO at PathSpot.
Even from an early age, Christine is the type of person who has always tried to connect the dots and come up with solutions. Whether it was figuring out how to turn off her lights without having to get out of bed as a child or recognizing the need to help promote STEM education and engineering careers for girls or building technology that helps protect us from foodborne illnesses, there’s no doubt that she is a problem solver who takes action.
Her current company, PathSpot, is working to address the 48 million cases of foodborne illnesses a year. The company’s hand scanner ensures that food-handling team members are in compliance with a positive food sanitation culture.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Christine background and her experiences across multiple areas. -What led her down the path of starting Girls Engineering Change. -All the details on PathSpot and how their product works. -Advice for founders on getting the most out of their Techstars experience. -How to determine whether or not to accept advice from mentors. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that we have a YouTube channel? We started it early this year and it is rapidly growing with lots of great content from our podcast interviews and video series. Go to youtube.com/venturefizz to subscribe, so you don’t miss out!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 106 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Chase Garbarino, Co-Founder and CEO of HqO.
Entrepreneurship is core to what Chase is all about professionally. It is in his DNA that even stems from his childhood years.
I was excited to interview him to learn more about his history of building companies, including one that you might have heard of and maybe even read today, that being BostInno. It is a story of how he became an accidental media entrepreneur and scaled it to the point of an acquisition by American City Business Journals.
His latest company is HqO, a tenant experience platform that connects people to places, experience, and each other. They fall under the PropTech segment of the tech industry, which is one of the fastest growing areas. HqO company recently announced a $6M new round of funding from several notable investors.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-His background and the early companies he founded. -The full story of BostInno in terms of how it got started, raised funding, scaled, and exited. -All the details behind HqO, including its business model and plans looking ahead. -Advice on how to communicate a company’s pivot with investors. -Lessons learned from raising capital. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that you can get customized job alerts delivered to your inbox every day? It’s a great way to keep informed of the over 4,000 jobs listed on VentureFizz and have jobs from a specific category sent directly to you. Don’t let that career-defining opportunity pass you by, go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 105 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Zak Normandin, Founder and CEO of Iris Nova.
Zak is a serial entrepreneur with a deep background in building successful consumer products. It was his first company, Little Duck Organics, that taught him about the CPG industry and how the whole ecosystem works. This organic snacks & cereal company was a success as its products were distributed to over 10,000 stores worldwide including major retailers like Whole Foods, Target, and others.
This time around, his new company is selling direct to consumers and they are disrupting a $1 trillion dollar market. The company is called Iris Nova, which is building a platform to launch new brands. However, it is the technological innovations that are core to its strategy and their ability to differentiate themselves in a very crowded market.
For example, its first brand is DIRTY LEMON, a high-end beverage line that is the first to be sold via text message in a method that they are calling conversational commerce. Its next offering is called The Drug Store, which is a conceptual retail experience where customers pay for drinks on an honor system.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Zak’s experience in the U.S. Coast Guard, and what that taught him about entrepreneurship. -The background story on Little Duck Organics and how he navigated through the ecosystem and ultimately land distribution at Whole Foods. -The details on Iris Nova, DIRTY LEMON, and The Drug Store… and how they are disrupting the beverage industry and changing consumer buying habits through technology. -Why Coca-Cola’s Venturing & Emerging Brands unit invested in the company, plus other VC firms and notable names like Tim Armstrong, Gary Vaynerchuk, Kate Hudson, Alex Rodriguez, and others. -Advice for entrepreneurs looking to start a food or beverage company. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that we’ve published over 30 interviews with leading entrepreneurs and investors across NY tech? Thank you so much for listening. We have several more episodes coming soon, but if there is someone that you think we should be interviewing, we are always up for suggestions. Just send them to info@venturefizz.com.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 104 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Chris Lynch, CEO and Executive Chairman of AtScale.
Chris is a serial entrepreneur and operator who has a tremendous track record at building successful tech companies like Vertica, Acopia Networks, Arrowpoint Communications, and others. He also co-founded and was a General Partner at Accomplice, a VC firm where he led investments in early-stage companies.
He’s back into an operating role with AtScale, the global leader in data warehouse virtualization. The company has raised $120M in funding, including a $50M Series D round which was announced this past December and led by Morgan Stanley.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Chris’ background and what his paper route taught him about entrepreneurship. -A walk through the different companies and his experience as an investor. -All about his current company AtScale, including what the company does, the story of how he got involved, and what the plans are for the Boston office. -How he learned to manage and build sales teams. -Advice for founders trying to build out their go-to-market sales strategy. -His charitable work with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation and why it means so much to him. -Plus, a lot more.
Is your company hiring? If the answer is yes, then you might want to consider adding a BIZZpage for your company. It is our employment branding and hiring solution that helps keep you company top of mind with our targeted audience of professionals in the tech industry. A subscription includes a BIZZpage for employment branding, unlimited postings to our Job Board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. If you are interested in additional details, please send an email to info@venturefizz.com.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 103 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nigel Eccles, Co-Founder and CEO at Flick.
Nigel is a serial entrepreneur with a tremendous track record. If you are a fan of football, you are probably very familiar with the TV ads from his previous company. He’s a Co-Founder and former CEO of FanDuel, one of the leading companies that emerged in the daily fantasy sports category. The company raised over $400M in funding and was acquired Paddy Power Betfair just over a year ago.
His latest startup, Flick, is focused on building communities around podcasts. The app allows audiences to engage and communicate on a much deeper level with the content, the creators, and other members of the community. The company has raised over $4M to date.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-The game of Shinty, the coolest stick-and-ball sport you probably haven’t heard of. -Nigel’s decision to take a major risk at an interesting stage of his life and start his first company called Hubdub, the precursor to FanDuel. A deep dive into the history of FanDuel, including the story behind its founding, where the name came from, how it scaled over time, and lots more. -What it was like running a hypergrowth company. -All the details behind his current startup Flick. -Advice on finding a co-founder. -How to build a consumer product, as well as the acquisition strategies behind it. -Plus, a lot more.
The VentureFizz Job Board is blowing up! There are so many amazing opportunities to check out across the hottest tech companies in NYC. You’ll find positions at all levels of experience across all job functions like product, engineering, sales, marketing, customer success, UX, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to start searching.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 102 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed David Delmar Sentíes, Founder of Resilient Coders.
Some people wish for change, while others take action. David is in the “take action” category. He calls himself a Workforce Equity Activist, which means he is passionate about both economic opportunity and economic equity.
Resilient Coders is a coding bootcamp that trains people of color for careers as software engineers and connects them with jobs. One might think that he has a passion for coding, but that is not the case. Coding is actually the megaphone, as it provides the window of opportunity for his students to pursue a high-growth career building software.
Students participate in a 14-week program which teaches them coding skills in various languages like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and more. Lots of companies are employing graduates of Resilient Coders like Wayfair, Wistia, R Studio, Digitas, and many others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-David’s background and how he got involved in the tech industry. -What it means to be a “Workforce Equity Activist.” -What led David down the path of starting his own coding bootcamp. -All about Resilient Coders, including its mission to use coding to make social change. -Advice on Implementing diversity and inclusion in the workplace. -Plus, a lot more.
If you have been enjoying The VentureFizz Podcast, then please leave us a 5-star review on iTunes. The more reviews we have, the more that people will discover these amazing stories about entrepreneurs across the Boston and New York entrepreneurial ecosystems. Thanks in advance—we appreciate it!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 101 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Alex Iskold, Managing Partner at 2048 Ventures.
Alex is a serial entrepreneur with a proven track record of success. Recently, he was the Managing Director for Techstars New York, where he ran the program for five years.
Alex is now onto the next chapter in his career. He has launched an early stage venture capital firm called 2048 Ventures with his Partner, Paul Sethi. The firm recently announced a $27M fund which will be used to invest in exceptional first-time entrepreneurs or repeat founders with a first-time founder mindset, which is a term that he explains during our interview. Another important strategy for this firm is the fact that they will be taking a location agnostic approach.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Alex’s background story going back to when he immigrated to the US when he was 19, and his early positions on Wall Street. -His experience as a serial entrepreneur and the companies he founded. -How he got involved in Techstars, and what that experience taught him after running the program, plus some practical advice for getting into this top accelerator. -All the details on 2048 Ventures and what they are targeting for investments. -The questions that entrepreneurs should ask investors. -What is the “magic moment” that a company should be looking for? -The current state of the NY tech scene. -Plus, a lot more.
Brex, the corporate credit card for startups, is the sponsor for this week’s podcast. Brex founders Henrique and Pedro built a payments business in Brazil, but kept getting rejected for a corporate credit card when they were in Y Combinator. So they decided to build Brex, with instant online sign-up, no founder liability required and limits 10 to 20 times higher than standard cards. It is a must-have for entrepreneurs. Sign up for Brex at brex.com and get card fees waived by entering the code “fizz” during signup.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 100 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
Today, we are hitting a major milestone: Episode 100!!! There’s no doubt, The VentureFizz Podcast is the top podcast focused on entrepreneurship and tech across Boston & New York.
Before I introduce today’s guests, I do want to take a moment to say some “thank yous” to:
-Christina Luconi, Chief People Officer at Rapid7, for being my very first guest and being willing to experiment. -All of our guests, for taking the time to share your background and all the amazing advice for others (including myself) to learn from. -Alex Culafi. Alex does lots of different things here at VentureFizz, but it was his knowledge in this world of podcasting that allowed us to start creating this amazing content. -And, of course, you, our audience, for listening to all of these great stories. I hope each interview has maybe provided you with a little bit of inspiration and some helpful tips that you can apply to your own business.
Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
or this milestone episode, I was excited to interview Wombi Rose and John Wise, the Founders of Lovepop. I first learned about Lovepop through TJ Mahony, who made an investment in the company, and it was one of those companies that immediately made sense. The greeting card industry was in need of disruption and Wombi & John’s background in naval architecture made them uniquely qualified to tackle this market.
Lovepop creates beautiful laser-cut pop-up cards, and the company is on a mission to create one billion magical moments. You might have seen Lovepop on ABC’s Shark Tank, when they landed an investment from Kevin O’Leary, who is still very involved in the company today. Since then, Lovepop has done an amazing job of building a successful consumer brand and scaling the company.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Wombi and John’s backgrounds, including how they met in college and reunited at Harvard Business School. -The inspiration behind their product and a deep dive into the history of the company. -How Lovepop’s business was built from the ground up, and lessons learned along the way. -The whole Shark Tank experience and what it has meant for the company. -Advice for founders looking to build a consumer brand. -How the company determines whether a potential hire will be a good fit. -Plus, a lot more.
Brex, the corporate credit card for startups, is the sponsor for this week’s podcast. Brex founders Henrique and Pedro built a payments business in Brazil but kept getting rejected for a corporate credit card when they were in Y Combinator. So they decided to build Brex, with instant online sign-up, no founder liability required and limits 10 to 20 times higher than standard cards; it is a must-have for entrepreneurs. Sign up for Brex at brex.com and get card fees waived by entering the code “fizz” during signup.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 99 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Simon Lorenz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Klara.
Simon comes from a long family history of medical doctors and it was his time working in a hospital during his teenage years that prompted him to take a different career path. He recognized the inefficiencies and challenges within the healthcare industry and it became his passion. A passion to make a difference by improving the healthcare industry.
Klara is a venture-backed company that was founded in 2013 with a mission to transform healthcare communication so that every patient can receive great care. Its HIPAA-compliant messaging platform makes it easy for healthcare providers to communicate with their patients and with each other.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-All the details on Klara and how they are improving the healthcare industry and making it more efficient through their communication platform. -Discovery-based selling and why it is important for your business, especially for landing early adopter customers. -How to know when you have product-market fit. -Figuring out your pricing strategy. -Avoiding the Series A funding crunch. -Plus, a lot more.
Every Monday at 10 am, we send out our NY Weekly Tech Buzz email. It is your one email a week to stay connected to all the “must-know” information from the local tech scene. It includes information on companies, jobs, events, deals and more. Go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 98 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Greg Raiz, Chief Innovation Officer at Rightpoint.
Greg founded Raizlabs right when the mobile revolution was starting to take shape. The firm worked very closely with lots of companies help build out their app or mobile presence. Companies like Runkeeper, Rue La La, Care.com, and many others.
Under his leadership, Raizlabs continued to grow and expand to the point where the company was acquired by Rightpoint in 2017. In his role as Chief Innovation Officer, he is responsible for building the culture of innovation throughout Rightpoint, and working with clients to help them digitally transform their businesses using design and innovation thinking.
Here is a fun fact: did you know that Raizlabs had a mobile accelerator and that VentureFizz was part of the first cohort? Even though we weren’t a pure mobile company, Greg was kind enough to let us participate and hang out at their offices for an extended period of time.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Greg’s background before starting Raizlabs including what his time at Microsoft taught him. -The full background story of Raizlabs. -A deep dive into the early years of mobile and how customers’ started to adopt a mobile-first strategy. -The details on Rightpoint and its future growth plans. -Advice for founders trying to build a successful service-based business. -Plus, a lot more.
It has been far too long since VentureFizz has hosted our own event. Well, that is finally changing. Last week, we announced a new event which is taking place on May 30th at Acquia’s offices in Boston. For this event, we are turning our popular Lead(H)er series into a live interactive event. You'll get a chance to hear some of the inspirational stories firsthand from an amazing group of women. Tickets are only $10 and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Boston chapter of Women Who Code. You can register on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/venturefizz-leadher-live-tickets-60945087397
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 97 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nicholas Horbaczewski, CEO and Founder of The Drone Racing League.
Let’s face it, the world of sports is changing. Consumers are looking for options outside of the traditional sports categories like baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. This evolution started to take place several years ago when Xtreme sports started to come into the fold and now eSports has tremendous momentum with a rapidly growing audience.
Now, Drone racing is also on the rise and it is a sport that has a history dating back to 2010. It features a high energy racing competition that reminds me of the pod racers from Star Wars Episode 1 meets Formula 1 racing, because it is actually taking place in the physical world.
Drone Racing League is the global, professional racing circuit for elite pilots that fly drones at 90+ MPH. Nicholas has a massive vision for the future of this sport and you’ll be able to catch the 4th season this year on NBC, Twitter, and other outlets.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Nicholas’s background and how his experience led him down the path of starting this new sports league. -A dive into the history of drone racing and how The Drone Racing League got started. -Lots of details on how this sports meets tech company operates. -How he got investors, broadcasters, and sponsors involved. -His thoughts on the future of sports and entertainment. -Advice for founders on building a consumer brand. -Plus, a lot more.
The tech industry in New York is thriving and the competition for talent is fierce. If you are hiring, you might want to consider adding a BIZZpage subscription on VentureFizz. It is an employment branding and hiring solution that helps keep your company stay at the forefront of the NY tech industry. A subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our job board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com to learn the additional details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 96 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Rudina Seseri, Founder and Managing Partner of Glasswing Ventures.
Glasswing Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm dedicated to investing in the next generation of AI-powered technology companies. The firm announced its $112 million debut fund last July and Rudina has invested in companies like CHAOSSEARCH, Inrupt, Talla, Zylotech, and others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Rudina’s inspirational background story and how at the age of 15, she came to the US by herself for school and what that taught her about independence. -Her professional experience and how she got into the world of venture capital. -The story of how Glasswing got started and all the details on the firm. -The current state of AI and other sectors. -Common mistakes entrepreneurs make. -Advice for founders on trying to get early customers. -The current state of diversity in the workplace. -Plus, a lot more.
On the first Monday of every month, we publish the latest edition of Career Forward. It is a roll-up of the hottest jobs in the Boston tech scene. This month’s edition features over 120 jobs across all functional areas such as engineering, product, UX, sales, marketing, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/careerforward for more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Greetings! I’m Alex Culafi, Producer and Editor of The VentureFizz Podcast, and on today’s bonus episode, we’re going to do something a little different.
Today, we’re talking about a subject near and dear to my heart: video games and the power of play. I sit down with Susanna Pollack, President of Games for Change in New York, which is a nonprofit organization that empowers game creators to drive real-world change using games and technology.
Some of the ways they do that include the game design competition called the Games for Change Student Challenge, interactive arcades produced to show off the best social impact and learning games in the market today, consulting for creators, and more. They also produce the Games for Change Festival in June as well as the recently-announced Games for Change Accelerator, which provides funding, mentoring, go-to-market planning, on-going business development, and continuous support to selected companies.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Susanna’s background and experience, and how she joined Games for Change. -All the details behind Games for Change and what they do. -What Susanna thinks makes video games uniquely qualified to spark change. -Examples of video games large and small that are successfully pro-social. -The details behind the new Games for Change Accelerator. -Some of Susanna’s favorite video games. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 95 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Kristen Caldwell, talent consultant and advisor.
I was really excited to speak with Kristen as we talk at length about a topic that I’m very passionate about and have pretty much built my career around: recruiting.
Kristen has an impressive background where she has played in key role in building out some of the top companies across both coasts like Yammer, Vine, Uber, and Blue Apron. Today, she is working with founders to help out with their talent acquisition strategy, as well as working as an advisor for firms Thrive Capital and NextView Ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Kristen’s background and the story of how she “fell into” recruiting. -The details of her in-house recruiting experience at each company. -The common mistakes entrepreneurs make when hiring. -How Kristen advises brand-new companies on top-of-the-funnel candidate strategy, including how to recruit engineers. -Telling the difference between someone who is good at interviewing versus a good hire. -How to approach diversity and inclusion. -Plus, a lot more.
Our BIZZpages are a great way to do a virtual tour of high growth tech companies across the New York tech scene. Each BIZZpage has lots of information about the company, its culture, job openings, team, and more. You’ll find lots of great companies listed like Ordergroove, SevenRooms, Reonomy, Kasisto, Bowery, UiPath, Facebook, DigitalOcean, and so many more. Go to venturefizz.com/bizzpages to start exploring!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 94 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Mira Wilczek, President and CEO of Cogo Labs. Mira is also a Senior Partner at Link Ventures which is the firm behind Cogo Labs.
Did you know that one of the top incubators in the tech industry is located in Cambridge? It is called Cogo Labs and their track record of success is extraordinary. They have been launching companies for the past 12 years with an 80% success rate, which is unprecedented.
Their data-driven approach and capital efficient model, provides the foundation and insights to identify problems to launch successful consumer businesses. A recent success story is EverQuote, which went public last year.
Mira is an entrepreneur with a passion for building companies and you should definitely keep an eye on Cogo Labs, as Mira and the team there have some very ambitious goals ahead. By the end of next year, they want to be supporting 30 concurrent companies and yes... they are on track to accomplish this goal.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-The #1 reason why startups fail. -Mira’s background including a fun story from her days at MIT, plus her experience as an ‘ethical hacker’ at IBM and the company she founded, Red Panda Security. -The secret sauce of Cogo Labs - how they identify opportunities for building companies and why their model has been so successful. -The details in terms of the operations and platform at Cogo Labs, plus some company examples. -The criteria they use to determine when a company is ready to leave the nest. -What the job of a board member is. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that we have a YouTube channel? We launched one earlier this year and there is a rapidly growing library of content to check out. You’ll find lots of great video snippets from our podcast, plus full interviews from our CEO Briefing and Inside: series. Go to youtube.com/venturefizz to subscribe.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 93 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Mark Gally, CEO at Zaius.
Mark is an experienced executive who has an innate ability to identify fragmented markets in technology that need consolidation. He also has a special talent with leading the go-to-market strategy for high growth software companies.
At Mark’s prior company, he was the Chief Revenue Officer at TribeHR, where he helped deliver 1,100% sales and 470% customer growth which led to an acquisition by NetSuite in 2013.
Zaius has built a B2C CRM system which is bringing together marketing automation, analytics and CRM software in one marketing platform. The company has raised over $50M to date, including a $30M Series B which was announced last year.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-A journey through his professional career across multiple companies. -Mark’s ability to grow a company’s market share, and his philosophy on go-to-market strategy. -A deep dive into what Zaius does and how its B2C CRM works, plus a look into the size and scale of the company. -Great advice for anyone trying to work their way into a CEO position. -How Mark thinks about hiring, including one interesting tip that has benefited him in the long run. -Plus, a lot more.
We have a new series on VentureFizz and it is called Inside. It is a video interview with a functional leader at a company. It could be Inside: Sales, Inside: Engineering, Inside: Product, etc., etc. Each video gives you lots of great information about the company, how this particular functional area operates, hiring, culture, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/inside to check out our collection of videos.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 92 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Noah Isaacs, Co-Founder at Bowery Valuation.
Noah is the definition of the words "determination" and "hustle." This mentality stems back to his teenage years, where he had a dream of working for a Major League Baseball team. With this goal in mind, he actually cold called every baseball team and dialed through to each extension hoping to get in touch with the team’s GM to land a job. He eventually did connect with the GM from the San Francisco Giants, but obviously, he was too young and inexperienced at the time.
He didn’t let this discourage him. When he was 20 years old, Noah and his longtime childhood friend and current Co-Founder, John Meadows set out to build the experience required for a back office position in baseball. They took the initiative to create a website where they would report their findings from scouting minor league players up and down the West Coast.
This ended up creating the very stroke of luck Noah needed to land his dream job as an intern. He shares more of the details in the podcast, but it is definitely one of those stories that sets the stage and tone for their future success as entrepreneurs.
Bowery is bringing the real estate appraisal industry to the modern era with an end-to-end software solution for commercial real estate appraisals. The company has raised a total of $17M in funding, including a $12M Series A round which was announced this past January.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-More of the details on Noah and John’s friendship and the story on how he became an intern for the Toronto Blue Jays. -How they discovered an industry that was ripe for disruption. -The interesting story of how Bowery Valuation was founded, plus its current state and scale. -Advice for founders raising capital. -Lessons learned from building and scaling the business. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that you can sign up for customized job alerts from our Job Board? It’s a great way to make sure that career-defining opportunity doesn’t pass you by. Go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up. After you receive your first edition, you’ll be able to tailor it specifically for the job categories you care about.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 91 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Debi Kleiman, Executive Director at Babson College’s Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship.
When you think of places that encourage and foster entrepreneurship, few places top Babson College. In fact, Babson has been ranked the #1 school for entrepreneurship by U.S. News & World Report for more than two decades.
Lots of very successful entrepreneurs have graduated from both Babson’s undergraduate and MBA programs. For example, the name behind Babson’s center for entrepreneurship. Arthur M. Blank is the co-founder of The Home Depot and the owner of the Atlanta Falcons. Another notable alum is Jamie Siminoff, the founder of Ring, which was acquired by Amazon for $1B last year.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Debi’s childhood dream of becoming a late night TV talk show host. -A journey through her career including her experience in marketing roles in the CPG industry and executive positions at C Space and MITX. -What brought Debi to Babson, all the details about her role there. -A deep dive into the entrepreneurial environment and programs that Babson offers its students -Advice on what people should be thinking about when starting a business. -Advice on crafting a pitch. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that our job board has over 4,000 positions listed with the hottest companies across the Boston tech scene? There are jobs across all levels of experience and across all functional areas like engineering, product management, marketing, sales, and more. Don’t put your career on hold, go to venturefizz.com/jobs today to start searching.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 90 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ash Kaluarachchi, Co-Founder of StartEd, an EdTech Accelerator + Incubator in New York City.
Some of my favorite episodes of this show are the ones where the guest wears their passion on their sleeve, and Ash’s passion for EdTech is nothing short of infectious. We start the podcast discussing where that passion comes from, and his love for education and technology comes through the entire episode.
StartEd invests in and advises innovative EdTech companies with intensive programs ranging from 1-day to 6-weeks. The accelerator provides everything from mentorship to business development and beyond.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Ash’s background story and the early stages of his career, including how he got involved with Techstars. -What led him down the path of launching StartEd and how they work with entrepreneurs, plus all the details on NY EdTech Week. -What he’s most proud of in his career. -The current state of the EdTech scene in New York. -Advice for EdTech founders who are figuring out the process for selling to school districts. -What he’s excited about in terms of the future of education and technology. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that VentureFizz now has a YouTube channel? It is a great way to watch lots of the interviews we have with folks from the New York tech community. You’ll find lots of practical advice or just an inside look at a company and how they operate. Go to youtube.com/venturefizz to check out founders and entrepreneurs.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 89 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Sridhar Iyengar, Founder and CEO of Elemental Machines.
Very few entrepreneurs in the Boston tech scene have had the same level of success as Sridhar.
As a co-founder of three different companies in the medical device and wearables industry, the products that he’s helped bring to market are incredibly innovative. Take AgGaMatrix, a glucose monitoring company that built the world’s first medical device that connected directly to the iPhone.
Or, Misfit, the makers of elegant wearable products that was started along with Sridhar’s longtime collaborator Sonny Vu and also, John Sculley—yes, that John Sculley—the one that was the CEO at Apple. Misfit ended up getting acquired by Fossil for a reported $260M.
At Elemental Machines, the company is modernizing the lab and helping to accelerate science with its IoT and data science platform. The company has raised over $11.5M in funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-How to give constructive feedback to your co-founder. -Sridhar’s early background and a deep dive into AgaMatrix and Misfit, including the story of how John Sculley got involved. -What led him to start Elemental Machines and all the details on the company. -Whether he thinks equity should be equal between co-founders. -Advice for founders on managing cash and raising capital. -Plus, a lot more.
We are getting very close to episode 100 of The VentureFizz Podcast! Can you believe it? So, I need your help. Who is the #1 person that you would want interviewed for the 100th episode? I’m open to all suggestions, the only requirement is that the person is an entrepreneur or investor that is based in Boston or New York. You can reach me via email, Twitter, or LinkedIn. Thanks in advance!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 88 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Saar Yoskovitz, Co-Founder and CEO at Augury.
Saar is an entrepreneur with a deep level of experience in building hardware and software products.
His current company, Augury, is one of those companies that make you go “wow” when you hear what they do. Their technology automatically diagnoses machines based on the sounds they make. It’s kind of like a Shazam for machines and mechanical diagnostics. They do this by connecting vibration and ultrasonic sensors to smartphones and pairing them with machine learning algorithms.
The company just raised a $25M Series C this January, and have raised over $50M to date.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Saar’s background growing up in Israel and his experience working at Intel. -The story behind Augury, and the aha moment that led to its founding. -A deep dive into the world of machine diagnostics. -How Augury got its first early-adopter customers. -Saar’s experience with raising capital, and what the fundraising process was like. -Advice for building hardware. -Plus, a lot more.
Every Monday, we publish the NY edition of Talent on the Move. It is a weekly roll up of people making job changes across the NY tech scene. If you are interested in having any of your recent hires featured, all you have to do is send us the individual’s updated LinkedIn profile via email to info@venturefizz.com. We accept submissions across all levels of experience and functional areas within the company. Our only request is that the person is based in or around NYC.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 87 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Sarah Hodges, Partner at Pillar.
Prior to becoming a Venture Capitalist, Sarah spent a decade as an operator in consumer and enterprise companies like Carbonite, Runkeeper, and Smarterer. As part of the executive team at Smarterer, she oversaw business strategy, operations, and marketing. As you may know, the company was acquired by Pluralsight in 2014 and still today, it has a rapidly growing office in the Boston tech scene.
Pillar is an early-stage venture firm that is on a mission to build the next generation of anchor companies in Boston with a model that has common alignment with the founders. Some of its portfolio companies include PillPack, Soofa, Desktop Metal, Hometap, PathAI, and more.
In addition to being a Partner at Pillar, Sarah is a board member at the New England Venture Capital Association and was a Co-Founder of Intelligent.ly.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Sarah’s background story in terms of all the operating roles she’s held including the details behind the acquisition by Pluralsight. -Her career path into the Venture Capital industry as a Partner. -Everything you need to know about Pillar, including how the firm is differentiating itself from other investors and why they are doubling down in Boston. -Advice for founders who are trying to raise funding. -When you should bring in someone to run marketing. -Plus, a lot more.
As you may know, we publish lots of great stories every day on VentureFizz that share a lot of information about companies, their people, and their culture. Did you know that you can get these stories delivered to your inbox every day? All you need to do is signup for our Daily Stories email and you’ll be plugged in. Go to venturefizz.com/email to signup.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 86 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Christiane Lemieux, Founder and CEO of The Inside.
Christiane is a design entrepreneur with many accomplishments. Outside of starting companies, she is an author of multiple books and has been featured on TV as a co-host and judge on “Ellen’s Design Challenge” on HGTV.
As a serial entrepreneur, her last company DwellStudio was acquired by Wayfair in 2013, where she served as the company’s Executive Creative Director.
The Inside is a venture-backed, digitally native home furnishings brand. The company is disrupting the way consumers buy furniture with a custom, made-to-order approach that offers world-class design and limitless selection.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-The two new books she’s currently working on. -Her background story, including a deep dive into her first company, DwellStudio, and its acquisition by Wayfair. -All the detail on The Inside and her thoughts on building a consumer brand. -Advice for non-technical founders, who are building a technology company. -Her thoughts on selecting the right investors for your business. -How she thinks about hiring and evaluating talent. -Plus, a lot more.
What is the best way to stay connected to all the amazing job opportunities across the NY tech scene? The answer is simple. Sign up for our Job Alerts email. It is a daily email that features the latest positions from our Job Board which you can customize based on the functional area that you care about. Keep pushing your career forward by signing up at venturefizz.com/email.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 85 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed David Chang, CEO at Gradifi.
If you’re a member of the Boston tech community, there’s a good chance you know who David Chang is. As an operator, he’s been part of some amazing teams at companies that have all scaled and exited like TripAdvisor, m-Qube, and WHERE. As an angel investor, he has invested in 40 companies. And, one could argue that the most important role that he’s played is one as a mentor and advisor to countless entrepreneurs.
In his current position at Gradifi, David is leading a company that is trying to solve a $1.5 trillion problem: student loan debt. Gradifi gives employers the opportunity to make direct contributions to their employees’ student loans, allowing them to pay off their loans faster. No doubt, it’s a great benefit, for sure.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-David’s philosophy on paying it forward and what it is so important. -The details behind David’s background and a deep dive into his experience at TripAdvisor, m-Qube, and Where. -Advice on whether or not to attend business school. -The story of his own startup, which was like an early version of Instagram. -All the details on Gradifi in terms of its mission and how they are helping ease the burden of student loan debt. -Why he is bullish on the Boston tech ecosystem. -Plus, a lot more.
Are you hiring? If the answer is yes, then you might want to consider adding a BIZZpage to VentureFizz. It’s the best way to engage with our targeted audience of professionals in the local tech scene. It includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our job board, content and more. If you are interested in the additional details, send an email to info@venturefizz.com.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 84 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Shannon McLay, Founder and CEO of The Financial Gym.
We’re always thinking about our mental and physical health, but how often do we stay on top of our financial health? If you do, that’s awesome, but if you think there’s room for improvement, The Financial Gym could be a great fit for you. The Financial Gym is a revolutionary financial planning company that helps people of all financial backgrounds get and stay financially fit.
Since I was interviewing a financial expert, I wanted to take full advantage of leveraging Shannon’s expertise. Thus, the format for this episode is a bit different where we go very deep on lots of personal finance related topics that are useful for all.
Thus, in this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Shannon’s background and her love for the hustle. -A deep dive into The Financial Gym including the aha moment and how it all works. -What it’s like being on The Today Show and the story about how Shannon started her podcast, Martinis and Your Money. -The 5 financially fit numbers that you should be paying attention to, like how much you should save, benchmarks for your credit score rating, debt-to-income ratio, and more. -Advice on asking for a raise and whether or not you should share your salary with your colleagues at work. -Her thoughts on preparing yourself financially, if you are thinking of starting a business. -Plus, a lot more.
If you are enjoying The VentureFizz Podcast, then please consider giving us a 5-star rating on iTunes. It is such a simple thing, yet it is so helpful for us in terms of having other people discover these great interviews.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 83 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ash Ashutosh, Founder and CEO at Actifio.
Ash is someone who fully embodies what it means to be a serial entrepreneur. In addition to Actifio, he also founded Serano Systems as well as AppIQ, a data storage company that was acquired by HP in 2005.
Actifio, his latest company, is the world’s leading enterprise data-as-a-service platform. Powered by patented Virtual Data Pipeline™ technology, Actifio frees data from traditional infrastructure to accelerate adoption of hybrid cloud, build higher quality applications faster, and improve business resiliency and availability.
Actifio is backed by some of the top venture capital firms in the industry and in case you didn’t know, the company is one of the unicorns in the Boston tech scene with a valuation of over $1B.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Ash’s background growing up in India and migrating to the US. -His early career in the tech industry, including his time at StorageNetworks, an early cloud storage company. -The details of Serano Systems and AppIQ, the first two companies that he founded. -What he learned during the time he spent as a VC at Greylock. -The aha moment behind Actifio and all the details on the company, its technology, and the massive market opportunity. -Advice for founders raising early-stage capital. -His thoughts on sharing a company’s valuation in the media after raising funding. -Plus, a lot more.
Today’s episode is sponsored by Pluralsight.
It is amazing what machine learning can do. With mounds of data being harvested every day, there’s so much we can learn and create.
Pluralsight, the technology learning platform, is using this data for the good of tech professionals everywhere. Their AI helps you see what level your tech skills are at and recommends opportunities to keep learning.
And they’re looking for help to make their algorithms even smarter. If changing the way the world learns technology through the intersection of Design, Product, Data Science and Engineering is right up your alley, apply to work at Pluralsight.
Want to work here? Visit pluralsight.com/venturefizz to learn more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 82 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Elizabeth Galbut, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at SoGal Ventures.
Elizabeth has founded two venture capital firms. While attending business school, she founded A-Level Capital, the first student-led VC firm powered by John Hopkins students.
Her current firm, SoGal Ventures is the first female-led millennial VC firm. They focus on investing in diverse founding teams that are trying to solve major problems in the consumer or healthcare industry.
Elizabeth and her Co-Founder & Partner, Pocket Sun, have invested in over 50 companies including EverlyWell, Function of Beauty, Little Spoon, and many more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Advice for founders on getting media attention. -Elizabeth’s early professional background and the story of how A-Level Capital came to be. -What led her down the path of starting SoGal Ventures, as well as all the details behind the firm and what they are targeting for investments. -The importance of diversity in entrepreneurship. -How Elizabeth manages her time. -Plus, a lot more.
Did you know that we have a weekly digest email that has all the “must know” information about the NY tech scene? It is one email a week that will keep you plugged in. Go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 81 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Richard Dulude, Co-Founder and Partner at Underscore VC.
Richard has a really interesting background with a multi-faceted career. He was a professional skier competing for a spot on the US Olympic team, turned programmer, turned entrepreneur and now a venture capitalist.
In his current role at Underscore VC, he’s leading the firm’s investments in the areas of the blockchain, AI, machine learning, XR, and serverless technologies.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-What it's like competing for a spot on the Olympic team while studying engineering at an Ivy League school. -Richard’s career, including his time working on the pricing strategy for iTunes at Apple and helping to launch the direct-to-consumer eCommerce business for Procter & Gamble. -The story of how Underscore VC came to be, and all the details behind the firm, plus what they are targeting in terms of investments. -His thoughts on whether entrepreneurs are born or made. -What areas of technology he’s interested in right now. -Advice for founders raising capital. -How to determine valuations. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 80 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Alex Song, Founder and CEO at Innovation Department.
Simply put, the Innovation Department is a company that builds companies. In their SoHo studio, their team of brand strategists, builders, marketers, and operators are focused on reducing the time to product-market fit and generating success as efficiently as possible. And they don’t just turn ideas into companies--they invest in them too.
The Innovation Department has incubated companies like DojoMojo (where Alex is also the CEO), WellPath, Wine Awesomeness, and others. Sample investments include well-known tech companies such as Lyft, Dropbox, Pinterest and more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Alex’s background and what he learned from being an investment banker. -All about the Innovation Department and how their playbook helps them launch companies. -Lots of details on DojoMojo and how they are helping clients with customer acquisition efforts. -Advice on how to balance communicating with consumers and what he means by the 70/30% split between content and commerce. -His contrarian point of view on Amazon and why it is should be such an important part of a new brand’s strategy. -How Alex manages his time and how he structures his week. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 79 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jennifer Lum, Co-Founder and COO at Forge.AI.
Jennifer is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and startup advisor. Her track record really speaks for itself. She was part of some legendary teams in the Boston tech scene - that being m-Qube, which was acquired by Verisign and Quattro Wireless, which was acquired by Apple. She, then went on to be a Co-Founder of Adelphic Mobile, which was also acquired - this one by Time.
As an angel investor, she has invested in over 30 startups and companies like Crashlytics, Careport Health, TribeHR, and others have also exited. In addition, she is also really well known as an advisor and mentor for lots of companies & founders.
Forge.AI is tackling a very complex problem with a massive market opportunity. 80% of the world’s information is unstructured and not easily used by computers. That’s a lot of untapped potential and Forge.AI is transforming this unstructured information into machine-ready data for computational use. The company recently announced an $11M Series A round of funding led by Underscore VC.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like:
-Jennifer’s background including the details on how transformative her experience was at m-Qube and Quattro Wireless. -The story behind the founding of Adelphic, and its acquisition by Time. -All the details on Forge.AI, her latest startup and the market opportunity for their technology. -What she looks for in a company before making an angel investment and advice for people looking to become angel investors. -Her thoughts on the current state of the Boston tech scene and companies that she is excited about. -Plus, a lot more.
Today’s episode is sponsored by Pluralsight.
It is amazing what machine learning can do. With mounds of data being harvested every day, there’s so much we can learn and create.
Pluralsight, the technology learning platform, is using this data for the good of tech professionals everywhere. Their AI helps you see what level your tech skills are at and recommends opportunities to keep learning.
And they’re looking for help to make their algorithms even smarter. If changing the way the world learns technology through the intersection of Design, Product, Data Science and Engineering is right up your alley, apply to work at Pluralsight.
Want to work here? Visit http://bit.ly/vfpluralsight to learn more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 77 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed David Cancel, CEO & Founder of Drift.
David is a product minded founder with a proven track record of success at building companies. His last four companies - that being Compete, Lookery, Ghostery, and Performable - were all acquired. Looking back at HubSpot’s acquisition of Performable, it ended up being a key ingredient for the company’s future success.
David’s current company, Drift, is the first and only conversational marketing platform. The company has raised over $100M in funding from Sequoia Capital, CRV, and General Catalyst.
In addition to being a successful founder, David is also an angel investor, mentor, author, and a podcast host of Seeking Wisdom. If you haven’t listened to Seeking Wisdom, you definitely need to check it out. It’s definitely one of my favorite podcasts.
Thus in this episode of our podcast, which is the longest one to date, we cover a lot of topics like:
-Why David keeps building companies. -Growing up in New York and the start of his career at Bolt, which was an incubator building truly visionary products during the early days of the Internet. -The background story on Compete and Performable. -Building the engineering and product function at HubSpot, including his philosophy on hiring without job descriptions. -The story of Drift and how they are disrupting the way businesses buy from other businesses. -Why there has been such an emphasis on building Drift’s brand from the early days of the company. -His thoughts on building a company’s culture. -The two books every entrepreneur should read. -How he builds out his schedule and tips on time management. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 76 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Stephanie Manning, Director of Platform at Lerer Hippeau, which is the most active seed investment firm in the New York tech scene.
Let’s face it, jobs in venture capital are very scarce, yet they are highly desirable. There are different roles that make a VC operate and the path into one of these positions isn’t very clear.
Stephanie and her colleague Isabelle Phelps, recently published a blog series which helps to bring transparency to the topic of landing a job in venture capital.
My conversation with Stephanie is focused on this exact topic, where she shares so much useful information and advice. So, if you are interested in pursuing a role in venture capital, hopefully this discussion will help put you on a path to achieve your goal.
Here is a list of the topics we will cover:
-Stephanie’s background and her journey into the venture capital industry. -How she got involved with Lerer Hippeau, and how her role there evolved over time. -The different types of roles between investment and platform. -How the path into venture capital has changed. -Advice on how to get your foot in the door and what the interview process may look like. -Details on how the compensation piece of the equation may be structured. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 75 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Rebecca Liebman, Co-Founder and CEO at LearnLux.
If you are like most people, figuring out your own financial plan and making financial decisions at any age is not easy. It’s actually intimidating. There are all these different terms and options that are really difficult to understand. You would think, for something this is so incredibly important, that there has to be a better way.
Well, Rebecca and her brother Michael, both recognized this issue which led them to start LearnLux, a company that brings financial wellness to the workplace as a benefit and helps your employees take control of their personal finances.
As you will learn from hearing her story, Rebecca is a master networker and the type of person who is very driven to succeed. Her hard work and determination have been paying off, as she has been recognized by Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list and LearnLux has raised capital from Tier A investors on both coasts. This includes Ashton Kutcher, Guy Oseary, Marc Benioff, Underscore VC, Adam Nash (the former Wealthfront CEO), and others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-The interesting ritual that she does every time before speaking in public. -All about Rebecca’s background and the details behind LearnLux and its business model. -Advice for founders raising capital. -Tips for getting media as an early-stage company. -How she’s developed her leadership skills. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 78 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Spencer Lazar, Partner at General Catalyst in New York City.
Spencer has several years of experience as a Venture Capitalist. He previously held investment roles at Accel and Insight Venture Partners. At General Catalyst, he helped open their office in New York. His current portfolio includes companies like Bowery, ClassPass, Fundbox, Giphy, Lemonade, and others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-His passion for photographing street art. -Spencer’s background, including some interesting details from his time at Harvard as a resident at Kirkland House over the same period of time that Facebook was getting started. -Lessons learned from co-founding his own startup Spontaneously, an early iOS-based mobile calendar. -What he is targeting in terms of his investments at General Catalyst. -Common pitfalls for companies trying to scale. -The current vibe of the New York tech ecosystem. -Plus, a lot more.
Ok, quick side note. Are you expanding your company and growing your team in New York? If the answer is yes, then you need to check out our BIZZpages. It is an employment branding solution which helps you connect with and hire amazing talent in the New York Tech ecosystem. If you are interested in learning more, send an email to info@venturefizz.com and we’ll get you all the details.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 74 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Les Yetton and Tom Hazel, Co-Founders at CHAOSSEARCH.
If there’s one thing to say about today’s guests, it’s that you’d be hard-pressed to find two more qualified people to run a startup like CHAOSSEARCH than these two co-founders.
Les is an experienced executive with multiple exits under his belt at companies like DynamicOps, Neocleus, Softricity, and others.
Tom, is not only a serial entrepreneur with his own level of success, but he is also an inventor of technology, which always fascinates me in terms of how people are actually creating things like, in Tom’s instance, new computer science algorithms for big data.
Their current startup, CHAOSSEARCH, is the first log search and analytics platform built for AWS S3. The company recently announced $9M in Series A funding, which was co-led by .406 Ventures and Glasswing Ventures with participating from Stage 1 Ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-Les and Tom’s early background before CHAOSSEARCH, and how the two co-founders met. -The story behind how CHAOSSEARCH was founded. -All the details of the company in terms of its technology, how they are helping companies, and the market opportunity. -Why they each keep building companies. -Advice for first-time founders raising capital. -The qualities they look for when hiring. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, we have some exciting news to share! You can now listen to The VentureFizz Podcast on Spotify! Last week, Spotify announced their belief in podcasting and will be dedicating a lot of effort to this category, thus I was excited to have our show added. You can follow up by searching for VentureFizz in Spotify.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 73 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jared Hecht, Co-Founder and CEO at Fundera.
Jared is a serial entrepreneur who credits his success to the combination of a lot of hard work and yes, a bit of luck. He was a co-founder of GroupMe, a group messaging app, that was acquired for around $85M just about one year after the company was started.
His latest company is Fundera, a marketplace for small businesses who are looking for financing options. To date, the company has helped 15,000 small businesses secure well over $850 million through its platform.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
- Jared’s early career aspirations to be in the music industry, including the story of how he offered Vampire Weekend to be their manager.
- How he landed at Tumblr when it was still an early-stage company and what he learned there.
- The full story on GroupMe, including how he met his co-founder Steve Martocci and how they were able to get traction that ultimately led to an acquisition by Skype.
- All the details on Fundera, plus the social mission behind the company and how they are filling such a critical gap in our economy by supporting small business owners.
- The hardest parts of building a company.
- How he evaluates talent at different stages of a business.
- Advice for evaluating investors when raising capital.
- Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 72 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Tom Eisenmann, Professor at Harvard Business School.
What do the companies Rent the Runway, Birchbox, ThredUp, Cloudflare, Evertrue, and InsightSquared all have in common? Well, they are all companies that you may have heard of… but did you know that they all participated in Harvard Business School’s New Venture Competition? It’s true and this is a small sampling of the amazing companies from this competition.
Sure, careers in management consulting and investment banking are still commonly considered by b-school grads, but its the path of entrepreneurship that has been one of the fastest growing areas of interest for students.
Thus, I was excited to interview Tom and get an inside look at entrepreneurship at HBS. Tom has over 20 years of experience as a faculty member and he is also the faculty Co-Chair of the HBS Rock Center for Entrepreneurship, which supports these students who are looking to transform their ideas into successful startups and even perhaps… change the world.
In this episode of our podcast, we also cover lots of great topics like:
-ABC’s Shark Tank and how so many HBS affiliated companies have appeared on the show. -Tom’s background and what led him down the path of academia. -How HBS has evolved over time as it relates to entrepreneurship and its curriculum, including their case method approach. -The common mistakes where entrepreneurs get tripped up. -Tom’s thoughts on whether or not entrepreneurship is a trait someone is born with or is it something that can be taught. -Advice on how to get into Harvard Business School. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 71 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Steve Sarracino, Founder and Partner at Activant Capital.
Steve has several years of experience as an investor in disruptive technology companies. He launched Activant Capital in 2012 to focus on growth stage businesses, where they can actively partner with companies and help them scale. The firm makes a small number of investments per year, so they can optimize their value.
The strategy is working as the firm has seen exits from investments in Hybris, Recommind, and Upland. Their current portfolio includes companies like Newstore, Celect, Indigo, Boxed, and more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-Steve’s background, including the story of how he bought Disney stock when he was just 11 years old. -All the details on Activant Capital and how they help companies with scaling. -The three key factors that he looks for when investing in a company. -How pricing has evolved for software companies and their thesis around Value Share pricing. -His thoughts around the future of retail and commerce. -How to build a highly effective Board of Directors. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 70 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nate Walkingshaw, Chief Experience Officer for Pluralsight.
Nate is widely known as a pioneer in technology product development and his Directed Discovery methodology. He is a master in the craft of building and designing amazing products, to the point where he actually co-authored a book on the subject called Product Leadership: How Top Product Managers Launch Awesome Products and Build Successful Teams.
Pluralsight is an enterprise technology learning platform that delivers a unified end-to-end learning experience for businesses across the globe. The company went public just last year and was recently recognized as one of the 2019 Best Workplaces in Technology by Fortune and Great Place to Work.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-Nate’s background starting out as an EMT, what that taught him about empathy, and how that translates into building successful products. -How this experience took him down the path of entrepreneurship and starting a company that invented the most recognizable hospital evacuation sled called the Paraslyde. -His transition into the tech industry and his work as a startup advisor and founder of Tanner Labs. -All the details behind Pluralsight, their mission and products, plus the company’s social impact. -What the team is working on in the Boston office and future growth plans for this location. -What he looks for when hiring and advice for pursuing a career in product management. -Plus, a lot more.
Just in case you didn’t know, Pluralsight is aggressively growing their office in Boston. The company is looking to hire across multiple function areas like marketing, product, engineering, data science & analytics. Go to venturefizz.com/pluralsight to check out all of their openings.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 69 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Caroline Klatt, CEO and Co-Founder at Headliner Labs.
Besides eating, breathing, and sleeping, there is no activity that American adults do more than mobile messaging.
That is a staggering statistic, and it is no surprise that there is a company like Headliner Labs that is leveraging the power of Facebook Messenger to deliver a whole new type of experience through conversational marketing.
Headliner Labs has built a plug-and-play platform that enables brands to connect directly with each individual consumer, at scale through intelligent and automated Facebook chatbots. The company works with leading brands and retailers like Kenneth Cole, Saks Fifth Ave, Cole Haan, and many more.
Caroline’s career in retail actually started while she was in high school through a chance interaction with Steve Madden (the actual founder) while in a shopping mall that set the foundation for developing a deep level of expertise in retail and eCommerce through the years.
In this episode, we cover lots of great topics like:
-All the details on Caroline’s background, including her role as Director of Strategy & Operations at Fab.com. -The aha moment that led her to start Headliner Labs and how the platform works, plus the incredible results it has on sales and revenue. -What she wishes someone told her before starting a company. -Tips on knowing when to take advice. -How she evaluates talent. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 68 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Pat Kinsel, Founder and CEO of Notarize.
You know, some of the most successful tech companies have triumphed not only because they have a great technical solution, but also because they had to totally disrupt an antiqued industry… I’m referring to really hard things like changing laws or regulations. Think of what companies like Airbnb and Uber went through in their earlier days.
Notarize, which has raised $31M in funding, has been in a similar situation, where they are taking the centuries-old process of notarizing documents into the modern, digital era by allowing any person or business to get their documents legally notarized online. It is a massive market opportunity, as over 1 billion documents are notarized every year.
Pat Kinsel is a serial entrepreneur and a venture capitalist. His prior company Spindle was acquired by Twitter, and after the acquisition, he joined Polaris Partners as an investor where he has led rounds of funding in companies like Drizly and Lob.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-Pat’s background growing up on the West Coast and why he moved East. -His experience working at Microsoft’s FUSE Labs in Cambridge and how that experience set the stage for his next company. -How Spindle raised capital from top investors on both coasts for their social discovery app and the details behind the acquisition. -His experience joining Polaris as an EIR and eventually becoming an investor. -The story of a critical mistake that led him down the path of exploring the world of notaries and ultimately starting a company to disrupt this industry. -Advice for entrepreneurs looking to raise capital. -Practical advice for purchasing domain names. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 67 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Dan Sommer, Founder and CEO at Trilogy Education, a workforce accelerator that has raised $80M in funding.
Trilogy partners with some of the world's leading universities to help companies bridge the digital skills gap through their training programs in areas like web development, data analytics, cybersecurity, and others.
Dan is serial entrepreneur, who has a very unique perspective, as he has transitioned between startups and larger companies throughout his career. For Dan, it’s less about the size of the company and more about where you can learn the most and have the greatest impact.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-Dan’s background and his early professional years where he started to gain an interest in entrepreneurship and starting companies. -The excellent piece of advice he got from his father-in-law, and how that led him down the path to becoming a marketing specialist. -How he started working with institutions in higher ed and how this became a passion for him. -All about Trilogy, including the aha moment behind its founding and its current scale, business model, and growth plans. -Great advice for companies that are either looking to get acquired or looking to make an acquisition. -Tips for scaling your business and why focus is so important. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 66 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Andy Cook, Co-Founder & CEO of Tettra, a knowledge management system for high-performance teams.
This could be my most transparent interview ever. When you ask most startup founders how things are going, the majority are likely going to say, “We are crushing it.” However, building a company is really hard, and growing a successful startup is rarely, if ever, a straight line.
Andy recently published a series of blog posts where he shares the intimate details on the ups and downs of building a startup, so I was really excited to chat with him about the really deep and gritty details that go into building a startup, including the depths of nearly failing, to plowing through and coming out the other end to a profitable path for Tettra.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Andy’s background, and how he started a rental marketplace called Rentabilities with his brother and how they were able to convince Dharmesh Shah from HubSpot to write the first angel check. -The aha moment behind Tettra and the current state & scale of the company. -A ton of details on the ups and downs he’s experienced building a company from the ground up, including lots of info on fundraising, finding the right sales model, & how they got to profitability. -The importance of staying transparent when running your business especially with employees. -Tips for communicating with investors. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 65 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Hadley Harris, Founding General Partner at Eniac Ventures, a seed stage investment firm.
Hadley has an engineering degree from Penn and an MBA from Wharton. He has a proven track record as an operator holding executive roles at startups like Vlingo and Thumb, which were both companies acquired.
Eniac began investing in 2010 and what is impressive is the fact that Eniac backed companies get to a Series A round of funding the fastest. This stat was published from a study conducted by CB Insights.
Hadley also hosts a podcast along with his co-founders called Seed to Scale, which is all about the ups and downs of building an early-stage company, securing funding, and more.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-All about his background, including how he met his partners during his undergraduate studies at Penn. -The details behind Eniac Ventures and how they take a truly collaborative approach in terms of the makeup of the firm. -A deep dive into what kinds of companies they are looking to invest in. -What pitch mistakes founders make over and over again. -What to put on your team slide and where it should go in the pitch slide deck. -How he reaches a valuation for a company. -The decacorn investment that got away from him. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 64 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Chris Jones, the CTO of iRobot.
It’s likely that you are familiar with iRobot and the Roomba, which is the product they are best known for. I actually recently made my first Roomba purchase, that being the i7, and I have to admit I had pretty high expectations for this product. Let’s just say all my expectations have been totally exceeded. From the ease of setup and use, to the functionality of setting up floor maps of my home and cleaning schedules, how it recharges itself, and of course, and the fact that it does an amazing job cleaning our floors incredibly well. The experience has been truly mindblowing… I’m serious, it's awesome.
Needless to say, I was super excited to interview Chris for our podcast and talk about his career which spans over 20 years in terms of working with robotics and the opportunity to learn more about iRobot, their engineering organization, and how they build these amazing consumer robots.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-The details of Chris’ background growing up in Texas, and how he got interested in robotics. -The story of how he moved from academia to industry, and how he joined iRobot. -Everything Chris worked on at iRobot, from military robots to the consumer robots we know today. -The details behind iRobot’s 500-person engineering team, plus some great tips around what to expect during the interview process. -The company’s mission to support STEM education. -The future of robotics in the household. -Plus, a lot more.
Ok - quick side note. Today’s episode is sponsored by Pluralsight.
It is amazing what machine learning can do. With mounds of data being harvested every day, there’s so much we can learn and create.
Pluralsight, the technology learning platform, is using this data for the good of tech professionals everywhere. Their AI helps you see what level your tech skills are at, and recommends opportunities to keep learning.
And they’re looking for help to make their algorithms even smarter. If changing the way the world learns technology through the intersection of Design, Product, Data Science and Engineering is right up your alley, apply to work at Pluralsight.
Want to work here? Visit pluralsight.com/venturefizz to learn more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 63 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Rick Braddock, a highly accomplished executive and investor.
Although most people are familiar with William Shatner of Star Trek fame, there are certainly lots and lots of people who also remember him as the pitchman from Priceline. He was partly paid in stock options and helped build massive consumer awareness for this company. The idea for bringing in Shatner was Rick Braddock’s, and he shares a really funny story on how that all came together.
Rick has several years of experience as an executive at large corporations and startups, where his marketing mindset has helped launch several successful products with massive consumer adoption.
He’s currently involved as an investor and chairman of the board at multiple companies like Pypestream, Gravy Analytics, and Linkstorm.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
-Rick’s early background in brand management at General Foods where he led brands like Tang, Stove Top Stuffing, Shake n Bake, and others. -How he grew Citi’s credit card division to be the largest in the world in three years. -The story of Priceline, one of the fastest growing companies from the dot-com era that still exists today. -The evolution of FreshDirect and how he leveraged state-of-the-art digital marketing to help turn the company around. -His experience as an investor, and what he looks for when investing in a company. -What mistakes businesses and investors make when trying to build a lasting brand. -Plus, a lot more.
Ok - quick side note. I have some awesome news to share. As 2019 is here, we are going to be publishing a new episode of The VentureFizz Podcast featuring a NY Tech founder, executive or investor every Thursday! So, if you have been enjoying this podcast, we are doubling up the content with an episode from Boston on Mondays and now a new episode from New York on Thursdays. Enjoy!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 62 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry.
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Aaron Feuer, Co-Founder and CEO of Panorama Education.
Education has always been a passion for Aaron and what ended up being the inspiration behind Panorama actually began when he was in high school. As a student organizer, he got a bill passed in the state of California, which was an attempt at giving students a voice through feedback surveys. Although the bill was passed, it didn’t accomplish what he expected at all, and that frustration ultimately upped the ante for his mission to change the future of what education should be.
Aaron and his co-founders started Panorama Education when they were students at Yale, juggling coursework while embarking on this entrepreneurial journey. Today, Panorama is a venture-backed company ($32M raised) that helps schools collect & analyze data about social-emotional learning, school climate, engagement, and more through its Panorama Platform. The company currently serves 9 million students across 900 school districts.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-The Panorama journey, from the foundation years of building a company while in college to the current state of their business and products. -His experience at Y Combinator, and why that time was so valuable. -Advice on raising capital for first-time founders and how they raised initial seed funding from so many prominent investors like Mark Zuckerberg’s Startup:Education Fund (now know as the Zuckerberg Chan Initiative), Ashton Kutcher, Eric Ries, Spark Capital, Owl Ventures, Uncork Capital, and Emerson Collective, which is the firm that was launched by Laurene Powell Jobs and led its most recent round of funding. -Why focus and solving your customers’ pain points are so important for building out successful products. -A deep discussion around how he learned to be a leader. -Plus, a lot more.
Panorama Education is rapidly expanding the team! They are growing quickly and hiring for a number of key roles across the company including marketing, sales, product and client success leadership. Check out their BIZZpage on VentureFizz for a full list of opportunities: venturefizz.com/panorama.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 61 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Dennis Mortensen, CEO and Founder of x.ai in New York City.
Dennis is a serial entrepreneur who has helped start a number of companies over the course of his career with multiple exits. We talk in detail about these companies and we discuss the successes and lessons learned from them.
x.ai is Dennis’ latest startup which is solving a problem that happens 10 billion times a year. That is scheduling meetings. It is that ritual that we all know so well with the highly inefficient back and forth over email.
As it turns out, it is a complex problem to solve and x.ai is finally providing a solution with its comprehensive AI-powered scheduling technology. The company is venture backed and they have raised $44M to date.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Dennis’s background growing up in Denmark with a family of entrepreneurs, and how this gave him “sales stamina” and led him down the path of entrepreneurship. -All about his prior companies, including Visual Revenue, Indextools and others. -The details behind x.ai and the complexity of their technology. -Why he likes to hire people who are “comfortable in the dark.” -His perspective on whether entrepreneurship can be a career. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 60 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Shimon Elkabetz, Co-Founder and CEO of ClimaCell.
After 11 years in the Israeli Air Force, it was multiple near-death experiences that prompted Shimon’s passion for the weather.
This passion ultimately led him and his co-founders to start ClimaCell, a company that has the very ambitious mission to map all of the weather data in the world. They are combining hyper-sensing technologies that use high-performance computing, which allows them to provide weather forecasts that are much more accurate. Examples of their customer are major companies like JetBlue, Delta, and Autodesk.
The company recently raised $45M in Series B funding, and their total funding to date is now $65M.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Shimon’s experience in the Israeli Air Force and what it taught him about leadership. -The evolution and details behind the weather forecasting industry. -ClimaCell’s business and how they are working on building the world’s largest weather platform. -Advice for entrepreneurs on raising funding in the early days of a business in a unique market. -How he evaluates talent, and why founders should never compromise on the quality of people hired at their company. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 59 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Steve Kokinos, CEO of Algorand.
Steve is the definition of a serial entrepreneur, and one who has seen tremendous success.
His company-building roots go back to when he was in college where he launched a company called WebYes, which was acquired. He was then a Co-Founder of BladeLogic, a company that went public and was later acquired by BMC for $800M.
The next company he co-founded was Fuze, one of the anchor tech companies in the Boston tech scene that disrupted the way companies communicate by removing those clunky old PBX systems to a cloud-based offering for enterprises.
Algorand is another highly disruptive company, as they have built a first-of-its-kind blockchain and cryptocurrency that is built specifically for business. The company recently announced a $62M round of funding, along with the appointment of Steve as their CEO, plus the addition of Sean Ford as its COO. You might recognize Sean’s name, as he is the former CMO of LogMeIn and was a guest on our podcast back in March.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-How he built his first company and got traction with major customers while still in college. -The story behind BladeLogic, and what it was like scaling to the point of going public. -The aha moment behind Fuze, and why challenging market conditions ended up working to their advantage. -All the details behind Algorand and what excites him about the company’s technology and how they are bringing cryptocurrency and the blockchain to the enterprise. -Advice for entrepreneurs on figuring out sales and pricing. -How to manage your company’s culture and keeping the bar for talent high through hypergrowth mode. -Plus, a lot more.
Today’s episode is sponsored by Pluralsight.
It is amazing what machine learning can do. With mounds of data being harvested every day, there’s so much we can learn and create.
Pluralsight, the technology learning platform, is using this data for the good of tech professionals everywhere. Their AI helps you see what level your tech skills are at and recommends opportunities to keep learning. Pretty cool, right?
And they’re looking for help to make their algorithms even smarter. If changing the way the world learns technology through the intersection of Design, Product, Data Science and Engineering is right up your alley, apply to work at Pluralsight.
Want to work here? Visit pluralsight.com/venturefizz to learn more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 58 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ryan Smith, Co-Founder & CEO of LeafLink.
Ryan is a serial entrepreneur and has been recognized by Forbes as a member of their 30 Under 30 list for enterprise tech. Prior to co-founding LeafLink, he successfully founded and exited two companies.
LeafLink is a venture-backed company in New York City that is setting the industry standard for how cannabis brands and retailers work together. With a robust online marketplace, CRM, and order management tools, they have created a centralized sales engine to help cannabis sellers manage and grow their business.
The company was listed as one of the Most Innovative Companies in 2018 by Fast Company.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Ryan’s background and the details on his first two companies. -How he met Zach Silverman, his Co-Founder at LeafLink and what led them to start the company. -The details on LeafLink and how they are building a rapidly growing business in the cannabis industry. -How he raised funding as a cannabis-focused company and other i-industry challenges. -Advice for founders on getting PR as a startup. -What he wishes people told him before starting his own company. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 57 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jules Pieri, Co-Founder & CEO of The Grommet.
The Grommet is a community that has reshaped the way people discover, share, influence, and buy products online. The company’s mission is rooted in what they call “Citizen Commerce,” and they have helped launch many products that are now household names like Fitbit, SodaStream, OtterBox, S’well water bottles, and many more.
To kick off our interview, I ask Jules about “the shoes.” It is a story about Jules and how she was pounding the pavement in the early days of building The Grommet to the point where she wore out these shoes and they fell apart right before a meeting with potential investors. It is a legendary story of entrepreneurial grit and perseverance that is a common theme throughout not only Jules’ professional career but her whole life.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Jules’ background growing up in Detroit and the early foundation years. -Her work on the iconic Reebok Pump sneaker. -What she learned working very closely with legendary tech CEO, Meg Whitman. -The details on The Grommet, a successful consumer marketplace that is now majority-owned by Ace Hardware. -Her scrappy PR strategy, and how she has been able to get coverage in major publications like The New York Times, Fortune, Inc., and many others. -Advice for entrepreneurs, especially women, who are raising venture capital. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 56 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Eric Groves, Co-Founder & CEO at Alignable.
Alignable is a venture-backed social network for small business owners. The company has over 2.5 million small businesses on their platform across almost 30,000 communities.
Eric is also known for being a key part of the early team at Constant Contact that helped the company scale to an IPO. He joined when they had just 10 customers and $100 in revenue. Yes, you hear that right $100 in revenue.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-His early career progression from larger organizations to internet companies like AltaVista, where he actually met the brother of Steve Wozniak. -The details behind Constant Contact’s go-to-market strategy, plus the secret behind how they converted trial users to being paid customers at mind-numbing rates. -All about Alignable, and their mission to transform the small business economy one small step at a time. -How they are building the Alignable network at a national scale all organically where they are adding over 50,000 businesses a week with a zero acquisition cost. -The one piece of advice he wishes he had when starting a company. -Plus so much more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 55 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ben Hindman, Co-Founder and CEO of Splash, an end-to-end event marketing platform that executes, measures, and scales your event programs.
Ben is the kind of entrepreneur that reminds you that it’s up to us to create our own opportunities… and as he has witnessed, each opportunity can open the door to the next one.
Take his current company Splash, which was a pivot away from an original idea called One Clipboard. It was a hail mary opportunity that ultimately saved the company, and it was the right product to build a successful business at scale. The company has raised $14.5M in venture funding from Ascent Venture Partners, Spark Capital, and Lerer Hippeau.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Ben’s background as a serial entrepreneur going all the way back to a free walking tour company in Washington D.C., which taught him web marketing skills. -His experience running events at Thrillist, and how partnerships made a significant difference to their success. -The story behind the pivot to Splash, and how they found the viral coefficient which allowed them to hit scale. -How to speak the same language with investors when raising capital, and why you should prioritize simplicity when giving your pitch. -Great advice on how to become a better leader. -Plus so much more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 54 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Mike Phillips, Co-Founder and CEO of Sense.
Mike is a serial entrepreneur and a pioneer in speech recognition technology. What was so interesting about my interview with Mike is that it was basically a history lesson through the evolution of speech recognition—a very difficult and complex technology to build. After years and years, it is technology that we now take for granted with things like Siri, Alexa, and Ok Google.
After spending time in research at Carnegie Mellon and MIT, Mike co-founded SpeechWorks, a company that created software that allowed you to interact with an automated attendant in call centers in a natural way, which was groundbreaking technology at the time.
Mike went on to be a co-founder of Vlingo, which was often referred to as the “Siri for Android,” which helped make consumer adoption of this form of technology a reality.
Today, Mike is doing something completely new with Sense, which is making our homes smarter with their intelligent home energy monitor. The company has raised a total of $38.6M in funding, including a $18M Series B round of funding back in October.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Mike’s background, and how his interest in electronics started to bloom at a young age by building things like his own computer and an electronic piano tuner. -The details on the early research projects he was working on at Carnegie Mellon and MIT. -Building SpeechWorks to the point of going public, and their evolution of the company through mergers and acquisitions to eventually becoming known as Nuance. -How he was able to convince investors that mobile was the next frontier for speech recognition, which led to Vlingo and was acquired for $225M. -The vision for Sense and how they are letting consumers know what is going on in their homes, all while making them safer, more efficient, and more reliable. -Plus a lot of advice for entrepreneurs.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 53 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Jodi Goldstein, Executive Director at Harvard Innovation Labs.
The Harvard i-lab is an incubator and ecosystem to help Harvard students build their startups and gain valuable connections. Since starting seven years ago, the i-lab has helped incubate over 1,200 companies, and altogether, they have gone on to raise over $1.5 billion. This includes companies like Handy (which was just acquired), Lovepop, Catalant, and Artlifting.
Another amazing statistic from the companies participating in the i-lab is the fact that 50% of their founders are female.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Jodi’s background going back to her early foundational years in Vermont, being part of an entrepreneurial family in the hospitality industry, and what that taught her. -Why she choose the startup path out of HBS, and the details behind early-to-market companies that ended up being precursors to Facebook and Instagram. -What led her down the path of starting her own company, Drync, one of the first apps in the App Store. -How she got involved in the Harvard i-lab, the mission behind this initiative at Harvard, and why they don’t take equity in companies. -Her views on what are the best measures for success, and how they are striving to give students an unfair competitive advantage. -Advice for founders who are looking for a technical co-founder. -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 52 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Allison Page, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at SevenRooms in New York City.
SevenRooms is an all-in-one reservation, seating and guest management platform that is used by customers ranging from neighborhood restaurants to international hospitality groups.
The company raised a $8M Series A round of funding last December and they just announced an investment for Amazon’s Alexa Fund to introduce in-service, voice-enabled technology for the restaurant industry.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Allison’s background, including the lessons she learned having a side hustle while working in investment banking. -How the founding team spent their time learning the hospitality industry to discover the pain points that SevenRooms would initially focus on. -How the curiosity factor is helpful for people who are considering a career in product management. -The trickle-down effect that has happened in terms of hiring across the company based on having a diverse leadership team. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 51 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nilanjana Bhowmik, General Partner at Converge, an early stage venture firm based in Cambridge that she co-founded with her partner Maia Heymann.
Nilanjana has 23 years of experience as a venture capitalist, investment banker, and an operating executive. Prior to starting Converge, Nilanjana was a General Partner at Longworth Venture Partners where she led the firm’s investments in enterprise tech.
In addition to her current role as a venture capitalist, she is also the President of TiE-Boston, an organization that fosters the entrepreneurial scene in the Greater Boston area.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Her passion for distance running and how it related to her role as an investor, where helping entrepreneurs build a business is ultimately a marathon and not a sprint. -Her background growing up in India, plus how she came to the US where she ultimately played a key role in helping Object Design, a company that launched the first object-oriented database, grow to the point of going public. -The “breakthrough potential” she looks for when making an investment. -What led her to take on the role of President at TiE-Boston. -The potential “50-plus year” industry trend that she’s currently keeping her eye on. -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 50 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ben Nye, CEO at Turbonomic, which is an anchor company in the Boston tech scene that has raised over $100M in funding.
Ben has been successful in the tech industry from both sides of the equation. As an executive, he helped take Precise Software public, which was later acquired by VERITAS Software.
As an investor at Bain Capital Ventures, he’s been recognized multiple times by Forbes’ Midas List as one of the top VC investors in the US. His investments have included many companies that you’ve likely heard of like LinkedIn, Rapid7, DocuSign, Solarwinds, Stackdriver, and many others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Ben’s background, from the early days when he started out as a salmon fishing guide to how he got into the tech industry. -His experience as one of the top VC’s in the country building out the Infrastructure Software Practice at Bain Capital. -All the details in terms of the evolution of Turbonomic and their platform that delivers workload automation for hybrid cloud environments. -His thoughts on sales and figuring out which model is right for your company. -Why references are the most important part of the interview process. -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 49 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Lewis Gersh, Founder & Chief Stamp Licker at PebblePost.
Lewis is a serial entrepreneur and investor, having founded a seed stage investment firm in New York City. His latest startup is called PebblePost, a company that has invented Programmatic Direct Mail.
The company provides a solution that combines the new with the old. Their platform takes consumers’ online interest and intent data and ultimately uses that information to send out highly targeted and meaningful direct mail programs on behalf of brands and retailers. PebblePost recently announced a $25M Series C round of funding led by Advance Venture Partners.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Lewis’ background story and the details on his first company, Worldly Information Network. -His experience as an investor and focus on B2B marketing & eCommerce technologies. -The aha moment that led him to start PebblePost, plus the details on how their platform works. -What entrepreneurs should know before starting a company. Hint… it has a lot to do with focus. -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 48 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Bob Davis, General Partner at Highland Capital Partners.
As a founder and an investor, Bob has been there from the very beginning of the Internet. He was the Founder and CEO of Lycos, which was a dominant company back in the Web 1.0 era.
For the past 17 years, he has been a Venture Capitalist at Highland Capital Partners. His track record as a VC speaks for itself, having led investments at several successful companies that resulted in exits like nuTonomy, Bullhorn, Quattro Wireless, Turbine, and several others. In fact, just last week, one of his investments, Handy, announced its acquisition by ANGI Homeservices (the owners of Angie’s List & HomeAdvisor). His current portfolio includes Lovepop, SessionM, Harry’s, Freshly and others.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-The full background story of Lycos, from its early days to ultimately becoming the most visited internet destination in the world back in 1999 -Setting a record as the fastest company to ever go public in the history of the NASDAQ -How he evaluates investment opportunities, and the specific criteria behind those decisions -The difference between products that are vitamins versus pain-killers -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 47 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ed Park, Co-Founder and CEO of Devoted Health.
Ed and his brother Todd Park have a special bond, and their great relationship has carried over into the world of entrepreneurship. Ed joined his brother and Jonathan Bush in the very early days of building athenahealth, one of the anchor companies in the Boston tech scene which is publicly traded on the NASDAQ.
Ed and Todd’s next company is called Devoted Health, and they are looking to fix healthcare for seniors.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-The full background story of athenahealth, and how the HMO revolution of the late 90’s created the perfect storm to solve the administrative headaches for doctors -How their focus kept them on a path which ultimately resulted in the top IPO of 2007 -The details on Devoted Health, and how they are looking to make healthcare easier, more affordable, and a whole lot more caring -How they have built a world-class leadership team, which includes the person who invented the term “data science” -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 46 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Zack Schildhorn, a Partner at Lux Capital in New York City. Lux Capital has $1.4B under management and is currently investing from its $400M fifth fund.
Zack has led the firm’s investment in companies like Shapeways, SOLS Systems, and Moment. His most recent investment is in a company called Latch, a New York tech company that is modernizing buildings by digitizing physical keys with a smart access system.
Oh, and Zack has an interesting hobby as a reef aquarist where his work is actually on display at their offices with a 180-gallon reef aquarium.
In this episode, we cover:
-His interest in technology at a young age and starting his own company -How he sought out and landed an opportunity in venture capital while he was still at Cornell -What his career path has looked like in venture and how he worked his way up through the ranks to a partner at the firm -His interest in making investments that bridge the intersection between digital and physical worlds -Lots of great advice for entrepreneurs in terms of fundraising and hiring -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 45 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Stefania Mallett, Co-Founder & CEO of ezCater.
Stefania is a serial entrepreneur. One of her previous companies was acquired and the deal had a 14X return for its investors. Her current company, ezCater, has raised almost $170M in funding and is focused on becoming the dominant player for a $100B industry worldwide.
We first covered ezCater on VentureFizz back in 2014. In the article, she was quoted by saying that they are going to be a billion-dollar company. Well, it’s now four years later and in our podcast, she shares the details on where they are at in terms of achieving that very goal. Let’s just say… it’s trending in the right direction.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-What led her down the path of entrepreneurship and starting companies -The aha moment behind starting ezCater and the early days of bootstrapping the business -So much great advice for not only building companies but also building a successful marketplace -Her thoughts on hiring, and how they have maintained a strong culture at scale with over 450 employees -Specific recommendations on how to become a leader -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 44 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights in Boston and NYC!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Dave Balter, Co-Founder & CEO of Flipside Crypto.
Dave is a serial entrepreneur having founded two companies in the Boston tech scene that have been acquired. BzzAgent was acquired by dunnhumby and then, Smarterer was acquired by Pluralsight, a company that went public back in May of this year and is aggressively growing their team in Boston.
His current company, Flipside Crypto, is a venture backed startup that is providing indexes and investment vehicles for cryptocurrencies.
Not only has Dave’s impact been felt as an entrepreneur, but he is also an investor and advocate for the Boston tech scene.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
- The legendary Dave Balter tech prom - yes that did happen
- The details behind BzzAgent, plus a fun story involving Jason Calacanis
- Smarterer’s pivot that led to an acquisition
- A simple description on cryptocurrency and blockchain, plus what Flipside Crypto is up to and how they are helping people build a diversified portfolio
- How he got into angel investing, including being one of the first investors at Runkeeper
- Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 43 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Justin Robinson, Co-Founder & SVP of New Business at Drizly.
Shortly after graduating from Boston College, Justin started Drizly with his two co-founders: Nick and Corey Rellas. They saw an opportunity to build a company in a relatively untapped area of eCommerce—that being the home delivery of beer, wine, and liquor. Today, Drizly is available across 101 markets and the company has raised $35M in venture funding.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-The aha moment behind starting Drizly -The early days of the company, which were spent working in a liquor store to learn the ins and outs of the industry -How they able to initially attract consumers and build a company in a highly regulated industry -Why they are poised to win over Amazon -Advice for first-time entrepreneurs raising capital -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 42 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Adam Medros, President & COO of edX.
Adam is one of the most successful consumer web executives in the Boston area. As SVP of Global Product at TripAdvisor, he was one of the key members of the team that helped the company scale to a global, publicly traded company with 400 million monthly users and over $1.5 billion in annual revenue.
Adam joined edX last November in an executive leadership role for this organization that has an amazing social mission attached to it. Founded in 2012 by Harvard University and MIT, edX is an online learning destination and MOOC, which is an acronym that stands for a Massive Open Online Course provider. They offer high-quality courses from the world’s best universities and institutions to learners everywhere.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover:
-Adam’s background and his career path -Advice for people who are considering business school -Great stories behind the hypergrowth years at TripAdvisor -Why he decided to join edX and the details on their platform -His experience as a board member at WordStream, and advice on selecting board members for your company -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 41 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Mike Sullivan, CEO of Acquia.
Mike is an entrepreneur who co-founded an early SaaS company called Steelpoint Technologies, a provider of high-end electronic discovery solutions that was later acquired.
If you are not familiar with Acquia, they are one of the anchor companies in the Boston tech scene, known for helping companies create digital experiences. They have a global presence with about 800 employees.
In this episode, we cover:
-The details on Steelpoint, and how the company moved from a services business to a productized solution -His decision to join Acquia, and his partnership with Dries Buytaert, Acquia’s Chairman, CTO and Co-Founder -The current state of Acquia, and their strategy moving forward (which could include making acquisitions) -Advice for growing a bootstrapped business, as well as how to generate revenue on day one and get your first customers -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 40 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Eric Horndahl, CEO & Co-Founder at Renoviso.
Eric was a major contributor to two successful web companies in the Boston area, that being FlipKey (which was acquired by TripAdvisor) and BuyerZone (which was acquired by Reed Business Information).
If you’ve ever had a major home improvement project like replacing your windows… it’s typically not a great experience, but Renoviso is looking to change that by disrupting the home improvement industry with a whole new approach through transparency, technology, and world-class customer service. .
Renoviso’s investors are Corigin Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, NextView Ventures, FJ Labs, plus a who’s who list of angel investors. This interview is timely, as they just recently raised $7M in venture funding, so we had a lot to talk about.
In this episode, we cover:
-Eric’s background and his experience at BuyerZone, which includes so many great alumni -His experience at FlipKey, where they built a vacation rental marketplace -The aha moment behind Renoviso and their unique business model -Advice for first-time founders raising capital -Plus, a lot more!
Quick side note: It’s hard to believe that this is our 40th episode! It’s been a blast interviewing so many great people in the tech industry. We have a great roster of guests coming up, but I want to make sure we’re giving our audience what they want. So, if there are any guests you’d like to hear the background story of, feel free to shoot us an email at podcast@venturefizz.com!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 39 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
I’m excited, as this is Part 2 of our special podcast mini-series where I interviewed two Boston tech legends. The first being Paul English, who is best known as the Co-Founder & CTO of KAYAK. If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, make sure you do. There’s so much great info in there.
But today’s interview features Mike Volpe, who as most of you already know, was the Chief Marketing Officer and an early employee at HubSpot. And, he was recently the CMO of Cybereason.
So, why is this a podcast mini-series? Well, they are both together now at Lola.com, a disruptive online travel service which is focused on serving the needs of business travelers.
They recently announced the addition of Mike as the company’s CEO, and Paul moved to the role of CTO. I went over to their offices to interview both of them shortly after the announcement was made to bring you these exclusive interviews for our podcast.
In this episode, we cover:
-Mike’s background, and his family’s history of success in the tech industry -The story of HubSpot; we talk a lot about its early days, how they built a world-class culture, experimental marketing, and what it was like going public -His current role as CEO of Lola.com, and the future outlook of the company -His thoughts on the Boston tech and angel investment scene -Plus, a lot more
Today’s podcast is sponsored by Yesware, an inbox productivity platform that transforms the way you send emails. With features such as campaigns, email tracking, and templates, Yesware removes barriers to productivity and empowers teams to make smarter decisions, faster.
Yesware is hiring! Be sure to check out http://bit.ly/yeswareishiring for more info on their culture and job openings.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 38 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For the latest episode of our podcast, I interviewed Michael Cardamone, Managing Director & General Partner at Acceleprise, a SaaS-focused accelerator with programs in New York City, San Francisco, and Melbourne, Australia.
Michael was an early employee on the business development team at Box and more recently led business development and partner marketing at AcademixDirect.
In addition to his current role at Acceleprise, Michael is an active angel investor and personally advises a number of startups.
In this episode, we cover:
-Michael's background and his experience with the family business -What it was like working as an early member of the Box team -The details on Acceleprise -Lots of great advice for founders, like how they should approach sales and their pricing strategy -Plus, a lot more
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 37 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Paul English, who is one of the top entrepreneurs in the tech industry.
Several of Paul’s companies have been acquired, but he is probably best known as the Co-Founder and CTO of KAYAK, which went public and was acquired by Priceline for $1.8B. Paul’s current company, Lola.com, is a disruptive online travel service focused on serving the needs of business travelers.
In this episode, we cover:
-Paul’s background, and his earlier companies -The founding of KAYAK and its acquisition -The details on Lola.com -His thoughts and tips on hiring -What it was like having a book written about him -His charitable work -Plus, a lot more!
Ok - quick side note! This interview is actually Part 1 of a two-part podcast mini-series, as this interview was held shortly after the announcement of Mike Volpe joining the Lola.com team as CEO (and Paul moving into the role of CTO).
So in addition to today's interview with Paul you’ll want to check back next week because we are going to have an interview with Mike Volpe, which is his first podcast interview since taking on the role as CEO.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 36 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode, I interviewed Eric Paley, Managing Partner at Founder Collective, a seed stage investment firm in the Boston area.
This year, Eric was ranked #11 for the Forbes Midas list, which is a ranking of the top VC in the industry. And yes… there’s no doubt, he definitely has the golden touch. His early investments include Uber, The Trade Desk, Cruise Automation, Formlabs, and more.
Prior to launching Founder Collective with his partners David Frankel and Micah Rosenbloom, he was a co-founder (along with Micah) at a company called Brontes Technologies that was acquired by 3M.
In this episode, we cover:
-Eric’s background and his journey into entrepreneurship. -The background story about Brontes and how they disrupted an untapped industry. -The formation of Founder Collective. -The story behind his investment in Uber. -Why he loves making investments that are "non-obvious” or “non-glamorous.“ -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 35 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this second New York podcast, I interviewed Alex Douzet, who is Co-Founder and CEO of Ollie, a company that is disrupting the pet food industry with a next-generation pet wellness brand.
Prior to Ollie, Alex was Co-Founder and CEO for The Ladders, which brought an innovative business model to the online job search market and during his time there, its member base grew to over 10 million users.
Not only is Alex a serial entrepreneur, but he is also a 6X Ironman Triathlon finisher.
In this episode, we cover:
-How training and competing in an Ironman compares to founding and running a startup -Lessons learned from raising venture funding and building The Ladders -The aha moment that led him down the path of starting a company in unfamiliar industry -Ollie’s business model and their progress to date -His hiring secrets -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 34 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For the 34th episode of our podcast, I interviewed Kent Bennett, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.
Kent’s career path into venture capital wasn’t typical. He was actually a Hollywood screenwriter before attending Harvard Business School and pursuing a career in venture.
He now has 10 years of experience as a venture capitalist and has made investments in lots of high profile companies like Blue Apron, Toast (which just announced $115M in new funding at a $1.4B valuation), MealPal, Renoviso, and others.
In this episode, we cover:
-His experience as a screenwriter in Hollywood -How he got into venture capital -His investment criteria, and how to get on his radar -What to expect during your first meeting with him -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 33 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Rick Grinnell, Founder and Managing Partner of Glasswing Ventures.
Glasswing, which is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on investing in next-generation AI startups, just announced its $112M debut fund.
Rick has a proven track record of success in the venture capital industry where many of his investments have led to an exit. His investment in EqualLogic led to an acquisition by Dell for $1.4B, which at the time, was the largest cash transaction of a venture-backed company.
In this episode, we cover:
-How music led him down the path to a career in the tech industry, and how he transitioned into venture capital -The story behind EqualLogic and the massive acquisition -The launch of Glasswing Ventures -The details around his area of focus in terms of making investments -Advice for founders who are looking to raise venture capital -Plus a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 32 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of your most-trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
As you may have heard, we recently expanded VentureFizz to New York City, which is really exciting! So, it obviously makes sense for us to expand our podcast there too.
Welcome to the 32nd episode (and 1st in New York) of our podcast! For this episode, my guest is Graham Brown, who is a partner at Lerer Hippeau, which is the most active early-stage firm in New York. Their portfolio includes many successful companies and names you’ll recognize like Casper, Warby Parker, BuzzFeed, and many others.
The firm recently announced its sixth fund at $122 million, so I was really excited to interview Graham and get all the details.
In this episode, we cover:
-Graham’s background and his career path -The history of Lerer Hippeau and its new fund -His particular areas of focus in terms of making investments -Advice for founders, who are looking to raise venture capital -Perspectives on the NYC Tech ecosystem -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 31 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode, I interviewed Armen Zildjian, the VP of Sales at Drift, which one of the fastest growing companies in the area.
I don’t know if his last name looks familiar, but if your sales team has a gong in the office, odds are it has his last name on it, as he is part of the Zildjian family tree - the famous maker of cymbals that are played by pretty much every major drummer out there, from the Rolling Stones to the Foo Fighters.
Armen has created his own legacy in the tech industry by having built up sales organizations at companies like LogMeIn, GrabCAD, and Dyn - which all had an exit, either an IPO or an acquisition.
Based on this common theme of success, I was really excited to chat with him about his expertise around building out high performing sales organizations for tech companies.
In this episode, we cover:
-Armen’s experience building out sales at each company. -Drift and how they are creating the category of conversational marketing. -The unique structure of the sales team at Drift and what he looks for when hiring sales people for his team. -Advice for founders who are setting up sales and when they should bring in a VP of Sales. -Plus, a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 30 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode, I interviewed Julia Austin, who wears many different hats these days. She is a Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School, Board Member, angel investor, and advisor to several emerging tech companies.
Julia saw her career skyrocket upon joining Akamai in the early days of the company, where she eventually became VP of Engineering. From there, she went on to hold leadership roles at VMware and was recently the CTO at DigitalOcean.
Julia is the definition of someone who knows how to pay-it-forward in terms of her involvement in the Boston tech ecosystem.
In this episode, we cover lots of topi:
-Julia’s background and the evolution of her career. -What it takes to become a great product manager. -Best practices around hiring and how the first employees define your culture. -The criteria she looks for when she is making investments. -Plus, a lot more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 29 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
This episode, I interviewed David Friend, who is the Co-Founder and CEO of Wasabi.
Here’s a fun fact. You know the legendary synthesizer sound to "Baba O’Riley" by The Who?
Well, that legendary sound was created by David’s first company, ARP Instruments, which provided synthesizer technology to The Who, Led Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder, The Beach Boys and many others. The company was ultimately sold to CBS.
As you will find out, exits are a common theme throughout our discussion.
David and his business partner, Jeff Flowers, have started five companies together, all of which have been acquired or in the case of Carbonite, that company went public in 2011 and currently has a market cap over $1B.
The duo’s current company, Wasabi, is taking on the cloud storage giants like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft by offering faster storage at a fraction of the price.
In this episode, we cover:
-David’s entrepreneurial journey through many successful companies -The details on Wasabi and why they aren’t afraid to compete against the giants -Why he keeps building companies, plus the secret to staying young -And of course, a lot of useful advice for entrepreneurs!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 28 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
This episode, I interviewed George Colony, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Forrester Research.
George originally started Forrester out of his basement, and the company has gone on to become one of the world’s most influential market research and advisory firms. Forrester went public in 1996, and is still traded on the Nasdaq today.
These days, George is also involved as the founder of a new startup called Your Call Football, which is modernizing the game of football by giving fans the chance to influence a live sporting event in a real-time competitive gaming experience. Your Call Football actually just completed a very successful inaugural season.
In this episode, we cover: -George’s participation in the World Economic Forum in Davos -The story of Forrester -How an interview with former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue led to the a-ha moment of Your Call Football -All the details on getting a new football league set up for its inaugural season, plus the future of the company and technology -And of course, lots of useful advice for entrepreneurs!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 27 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
This episode, I interviewed Jeet Singh, who is the Co-Founder and CEO of Redstar Ventures, a startup foundry that incubates new businesses.
Jeet was also a Co-Founder and CEO of ATG, a massively successful company in the Boston tech scene. The eCommerce software company went public in 1999, and was later acquired by Oracle for $1B.
Not only is Jeet a successful founder of tech companies, but he is also a passionate musician and has a band called The Singhs.
In this episode, we cover:
-Alpha Delpha Phi (Fi) - the legendary MIT fraternity where he met Joe Chung, his Co-Founder and other industries luminaries like Brad Feld and Colin Angle -The story of ATG -How giving up $1M in revenue was a catalyst for scaling the company -The Redstar model and their portfolio companies including the most recent one called Money Experience -Plus, lots of useful advice for entrepreneurs!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!
Welcome to Episode 26 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
It’s actually hard to believe that I haven’t interviewed an investor yet… but that is changing today! My guest is TJ Mahony, who is a Partner at Accomplice - one of Boston’s most active venture capital firms.
Before joining Accomplice as an investor, TJ was CEO & Co-Founder of FlipKey, which was acquired by TripAdvisor. Prior to FlipKey, he was part of the core team of amazing people that helped build Compete to become a successful business that was ultimately acquired.
TJ is what I consider a product-minded investor, as he is able to add value to entrepreneurs in so many ways. TJ is also the type of guy who is always willing to help people out by giving advice or making connections & intros.
Each time I’ve met with him, you leave the meeting full of energy and lots of new ideas swirling in your head, which is why I was really excited to interview him.
In this episode, we cover:
-The story of his basketball career at Macalester College, and how he was just 2 points away from a major milestone -The story of FlipKey, where he shares an embarrassing story about a meeting at Steven Kaufer’s house, who is the CEO & Co-Founder of TripAdvisor… it’s a classic. -How he got into angel investing and venture capital -Advice for founders on building teams -And a whole lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Accomplice on Twitter @Accomplices and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 25 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For today’s episode, I interviewed Jay Habegger, who is the CEO and Co-Founder of ownerIQ, a second-party data marketplace. This venture-backed Boston company has over 800 retailers and product brand marketers using the ownerIQ platform to maximize their data asset.
Jay is a serial entrepreneur, whose last company BitPipe was acquired by TechTarget in 2004. His career has been focused in the tech industry from the outset, having worked for a company that was building the foundation of the Internet in the early 1990s.
In this episode, we cover topics like:
-The journey through his career -The story behind ownerIQ -Advice for founders who are raising capital -Hiring and building out teams -And more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow ownerIQ on Twitter @ownerIQ and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 24 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For the 24th episode of our podcast, I interviewed Sue Graham Johnston, the President of 128 Technology in Burlington.
I have to admit, one the best things about doing this podcast is the opportunity to dig deep into the background of our guests. When I’m doing research on each person, there’s always something that comes up that helps take the story to the next level.
Well in the case of Sue, as I was doing my research on Google, I was blown away to see a connection to an amazing story that made headlines across the world for a great charity, that being the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Sue and her husband were two of the key people that helped grant a wish for a boy named Miles Scott, who ended up being Batkid for the day in San Francisco and fight crime alongside Batman, who was played by Sue’s husband EJ, to rescue the damsel in distress, who was played by (you guessed it) Sue Graham Johnston.
It is truly an amazing and heartwarming story that we talk about at length. She also shares the details on how they’ve played a role in crashing the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s website not once, but twice.
We also talk about:
-Her professional accomplishments, of which there are many. -What she learned at Oracle in terms of operational leadership. -128 Technology - why she joined and what the company does. -Her passion for very important issues, like addressing the pipeline issue of women in STEM roles and working to fix the gender pay gap.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow 128 Technology on Twitter @128technology and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 23 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For the 23rd episode of our podcast, I interviewed Ellie Mirman, the CMO at Crayon in Boston.
Ellie was one of the early, early employees at HubSpot, as she joined the company right after they raised their Series A round of funding and were only about 10-15 employees. She saw the full lifecycle of the company in terms of their growth to an IPO and wore lots of different hats along the way.
Since HubSpot, she was the VP of Marketing at Toast for a little over two years and is now the CMO at Crayon, a market and competitive intelligence platform company that just raised $5M in venture funding.
In this episode, we cover topics like:
-Those fun videos HubSpot was making during the early days of the company (the Alanis Morrissette one was classic) -Why she loves joining early stage companies -The current state of the marketing industry -Career advice for marketers looking to become a CMO -And a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Crayon on Twitter @Crayon and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 22 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
Let's face it: in order for a tech ecosystem to thrive, you need people who are not only successful entrepreneurs, but also know how to pay it forward for the next generation.
For the 22nd episode of our podcast, I interviewed Andy Palmer, who is the CEO & Co-Founder of Tamr in Cambridge.
Andy is the definition of what it means to pay it forward. A serial successful entrepreneur in his own right, and he is also a very active angel investor with close to 60 of his own investments (not to mention being an LP in other local funds, and mentoring lots of founders along the way).
In this episode, we cover topics like:
-How rugby relates to startups -The details behind Vertica, a very successful company that was acquired by HP -Why you shouldn't raise capital in the early days of your company -The common mistakes entrepreneurs make when pitching an idea -And lots more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Tamr on Twitter @Tamr_Inc and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 21 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
This time, I want to start with a question: How do the worlds of professional hockey and business relate to each other?
Well, you're about to find out, as I interview my first former professional athlete for the podcast. His name is Mike McKee and he is the CEO at ObserveIT, a company that is rapidly growing in Boston’s massive security cluster.
Mike played professional hockey for the Quebec Nordiques before the franchise relocated to Colorado and became the Avalanche. Upon entering the business world, he graduated from Harvard Business School and later became an executive at PTC and Rapid7 before joining ObserveIT as CEO.
In this episode, we cover topics like:
-What playing professional hockey taught him about the business world, and of adversity -How he charted his way through lots of different roles, to the point of landing a CEO position at a venture-backed company -His “hire slow” philosophy, and why he talks people out of jobs -And so much more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow ObserveIT on Twitter @ObserveIT and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 20 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Howard Kogan, CEO of WordStream.
WordStream is a venture-backed SaaS company and a thought leader in the world of Pay-Per-Click (PPC) marketing. They develop online advertising software and provide managed services to help businesses and agencies grow through paid search and paid social.
Howard is an expert at growing and scaling companies as an executive, and his track record speaks for itself. The last two companies he was apart of—Communispace and Molecular—were both acquired.
In this episode, we cover lots of topics like:
-The journey through his career -Building the foundation to allow your company to scale -When you should hire a COO -What companies might be thinking about when it comes to an acquisition -And a lot more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow WordStream on Twitter @WordStream and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 19 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Jody Rose - President of the New England Venture Capital Association (NEVCA).
If you are not familiar with the NEVCA, they are one of the most important organizations that supports entrepreneurship and innovation for the region, and they do so across two pillar industries (tech and life sciences).
While a lot of my previous interviews have focused on the entrepreneurial journey of building a company, in this episode we chat a lot about the challenges surrounding our industry and how several of the NEVCA programs and policy initiatives are making an impact across important topics like:
-Diversity & inclusion -Retaining our student population -Non-competes -Increasing the investment activity with female entrepreneurs -And a lot more!
Then, of course, we talk about the biggest celebration of the year… the NEVY Awards, happening on May 9th at the House of Blues Boston! If you are buying tickets (which you should) use our code VENTUREFIZZ for a 15% discount. I hope to see you there!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow NEVCA on Twitter @NewEnglandVC and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 18 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Charles Teague, Founder & CEO of Lose It!
If you are not familiar with Lose It!, it is a very successful consumer company in Boston with over 35 million downloads. Since then, the company has helped people lose over 70 million pounds, which is extraordinary!
In this podcast, we cover a lot of ground:
-His professional journey, which includes being part of Allaire and going public, as well as starting his own company that was acquired by Microsoft -How the first generation iPhone changed everything for him -The story of Lose It!, and how it was founded
Then, we surface lots of important advice for entrepreneurs, like:
-The benefits of running a capital-efficient company -How they managed to convert users to their premium model -And so much more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Lose It! on Twitter @loseit and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 17 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
For this episode of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Ellen Rubin, Co-Founder & CEO of ClearSky Data.
Ellen is a serial entrepreneur. She has been a co-founder of three companies and was an early employee at Netezza, a company that went public and was later acquired by IBM for approximately $1.7B.
In this podcast, we cover a ton of great topics, like the Netezza journey from stealth to IPO, how CloudSwitch (a prior company) was an early pioneer of cloud computing for enterprise, and the story behind ClearSky Data.
We also surface some great advice for entrepreneurs, like how to validate your idea in the market, how to land your first early adopter customers, and lots more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow ClearSky Data on Twitter @ClearSkyData and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 16 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined Sean Ford, Chief Marketing Officer at LogMeIn
Sean has built a name for himself as one of the top marketing executives in the software industry, where he is now leading a massive marketing function for a company that is generating north of $1 billion in revenue.
We cover so much great info in this episode, like how he built a career that led him down the path to being a Chief Marketing Officer at a publicly traded company, a peek under the hood of LogMeIn's marketing function, the difference between a VP of Marketing and a CMO, and lots more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow LogMeIn on Twitter @LogMeIn and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 15 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined Julie Yoo, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Kyruus.
Kyruus is a healthcare tech company that is ultimately solving some critical issues when it comes to not only getting the right doctor or specialist but helping to improve the access to these experts so you can get treated sooner. The company has 120 employees, and has raised over $60M in funding from Highland Capital, Venrock, McKesson, and others.
In this podcast, we cover lots of topics, like the early days of her career at Endeca, how Moneyball was an inspiration behind Kyruus, advice for women raising venture capital, and lots more!
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Kyruus on Twitter @Kyruus and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 14 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined Brian Manning, who is the VP & Head of Growth at PatientPing, a healthcare technology company in Boston.
He built out successful businesses at Zocdoc and NextJump, and he’s focused on doing the same at PatientPing, a company backed by leading VCs like First Round Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, F-Prime Capital, and others.
In our interview, you’ll hear about Brian’s background, his ability to succeed in a role usually handled by multiple people, his thoughts on creating a growth strategy, and lots more.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow PatientPing on Twitter @PatientPing and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 13 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Izzy Azeri and Dan Belcher, Co-Founders of mabl.
Izzy and Dan are serial entrepreneurs whose last company, Stackdriver, was acquired by Google in just 21 months from their Series A financing.
Their new company, mabl, is disrupting the software testing industry using a machine intelligence approach, and they just announced their $10M Series A funding led by CRV.
As you’ll hear from our discussion, Izzy and Dan are pros in terms of identifying markets that are ripe for disruption, and if you think about it, the world of testing has not been touched in several years.
We cover their backgrounds, Stackdriver, and their newest company mabl, plus lots of other great topics like their hiring practices and why keeping a flat organization has been incredibly effective at both companies.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow mabl on Twitter @mablhq and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Episode 12 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Chad Laurans, Founder & CEO of SimpliSafe.
If you are not familiar with the company, SimpliSafe is disrupting the home security market, and recently launched the third generation of their products at CES in Las Vegas.
Chad has such an interesting story, and he shares a ton of the details on how he built the company (which was bootstrapped for a very long time), so there is a lot to learn from his story and success.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow SimpliSafe on Twitter @SimpliSafe and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Bruce Zambrowicz, Sr. Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Acquia. They discuss Bruce's impressive history in recruitment, the sheer importance of employee referral programs, and Acquia's secret weapon to get top talent.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Acquia on Twitter @acquia and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Sam Zales, Chief Operating Officer at CarGurus. They discuss the ups & downs of building a company in the dot-com bubble, defining the key roles that a startup should initially hire for, and CarGurus’ humble, contagious culture of winning.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Sam Zales on Twitter @zalessam, CarGurus @CarGurus & @cargurusculture, and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Seth Matheson, Director of Talent Acquisition at Toast. They discuss Toast's unique recruitment style, the core values that make a job candidate 'Toasty,' and how the company uses clubs to enhance its culture.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Seth Matheson on Twitter @smath99 and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Brian Gilbert, Director of Talent Acquisition at iRobot. They discuss iRobot's mission of empowerment, the company’s contributions to STEM education, and how iRobot has built their top-shelf employment brand.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow iRobot on Twitter @iRobot and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Carlie Smith, Director of Talent at Circle. They discuss what it's like working as part of the talent team at a venture capital firm, working with early-stage founders on hiring, and building Circle's employment brand.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Carlie Smith on Twitter @carliejsmith and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Mike Brown, VP of Talent at SHYFT Analytics. They discuss tips for hiring engineers, building an employment brand, and the importance of retention to your overall strategy.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Mike Hebert on Twitter @mpbrownie1 and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Mike Hebert, Head of Talent Acquisition at edX. They discuss tips for hiring engineers, building an employment brand, and the importance of retention to your overall strategy.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Mike Hebert on Twitter @MhebertGlo and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Jennifer Paxton, Director of Talent at LevelUp. They discuss the traits that make a good recruiter, building a talent pipeline, and the LevelUp hiring process.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Jennifer Paxton on Twitter @Married_2_IT and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Keith Pescosolido, Director of Recruiting at Drift. They discuss Keith's journey, the Drift hiring process, and how to best position yourself for success.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Keith Pescosolido on Twitter @Kpesky3 and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Chris McMahon, VP of People and Culture at Turbonomic. They discuss the Turbonomic hiring process, overcoming recruitment challenges, and the importance of a follow-up email.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Chris McMahon on Twitter @Chris_McMahon1 and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.
Welcome to Season 1 of Career Inspiration by VentureFizz (now The VentureFizz Podcast), the flagship podcast of Boston's most trusted source for startup and tech jobs, news, and insights!
On this episode, VentureFizz Founder Keith Cline is joined by Christina Luconi, Chief People Officer at Rapid7. They discuss the importance of diversity, how to get a job at Rapid7, and what it was like going public.
Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice! And make sure to follow Christina Luconi on Twitter @peopleinnovator and VentureFizz @VentureFizz.