The VentureFizz Podcast

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!