Startup Success: A Podcast for Founders & Investors

From the football field to the board room, our guest is a former Super Bowl winning NFL player who now sits as a Managing Partner at Next Play Capital , a minority owned investment platform focused on investing in top-tier venture funds and venture backed companies with a focus on championing minority voices. Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker, Ryan Nece , has a unique perspective towards iden...

Moving to Silicon Valley in 1998, our guest has served his time in the trenches of startup land. With several successful startups behind him, including the successful sale of E-Nor, now he’s dedicated to sharing his knowledge and experience so other founders don’t suffer the “same wounds and scars.” Feras Alhlou is a highly sought-after mentor, advisor, and consultant to startups. He has also rece...

In the early stages of a startup, much is riding on the strengths of the founding team. There is critical importance on creating a marketing function, placing members in the correct function, and generating the most accurate buyer persona. Without, and you’ve got a monster of a business on your hands. Jeff Reynolds is the president of Reynolds + Myers as well as an investor, acclaimed writer of "...

In this episode, Alejandro Lozano , Founding Principal at Newtype Ventures , delves into the current market conditions and what founders can expect to see around fundraising: lower valuations, less favorable terms, and other ramifications. Alejandro shares advice on how founders can use these changing conditions to their advantage. We discuss: How to fundraise and approach VCs in this market What...

You may not know this but the government issues all sorts of grants and funding for startups in many sectors — sectors and products that would surprise you. This non-dilutive funding is an excellent option for many founders because the government does not take equity or intellectual property, and they can play a strong role in technology adoption. In this episode, Kevin Cammack , CEO at Aegis Cree...

If you’ve gone through it, you know—there’s a lot of issues with the fundraising experience. And if you haven’t gone through it, you likely have a lot of questions about what you should do, who you should talk to, and how to get it all right. Jason Furtado , Founder of Shoobx , has answers. After countless conversations with founders, lawyers, and investors, he has a 360-degree view of the fundrai...

The downturn that has dominated the new cycle doesn’t bring a lot of positivity and can have investors and founders feeling nervous. However, the financial flux doesn’t need to be a negative. Sean Jacobsohn , Partner at Norwest Venture Partners, sees the positives within the changing market and how it can benefit companies with less competitors in a niche space. In this special episode, Burkland’s...

We’ve heard the news, we’ve seen prices going up, watched volatility in the markets and tracked other economic indicators. Chances are, there is a downturn and possibly a recession on our horizon. That doesn’t mean it’s time to panic. There are simple, actionable steps you can take now to prepare your startup to get through a downturn and build the best possible outcome for the future. In this spe...

No matter what industry you’re in, one thing is true of every startup: They need funding. While venture capital may be the first thing that comes to mind, another powerful method for getting founders funded is angel investing. And whether you’re a founder yourself or an investor looking to broaden your portfolio, angel investing is not to be overlooked. Today, we’re speaking with Haley Bryant , GM...

David Cowan , Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners , believes in a proactive investment approach. Unlike other VCs, David doesn’t let the deal flow dictate where to invest. Instead, like other partners at Bessemer Venture Partner, he delves into research, attends conferences, and talks to experts on the bleeding edge of innovation to identify where there are new opportunities to make a difference...

The startup journey is full of ups and downs, and to navigate them, founders need to have grit and resilience. Joshua Wöhle led one start up, Super Awesome , to a succes sful acquisition by Epic Games and is the CEO and Co-Founder of another, Mindstone Learning . He shares how to navigate growth issues, the challenges of being a founder and why continuous learning is an important part any successf...

Employees want more. In this new era of work, people are looking for transformation—to contribute to work that is bigger than themselves—and to keep them, employers must create a culture that clearly defines the mission and purpose of the company. Gabrielle Bosché , Co-Founder of The Purpose Company and President of The Millennial Solution, helps people discover their purpose. She talks about the...

Unless you’ve been through the startup journey before, it's difficult to know how, and just as importantly, when to acquire capital. With the right amount of capital from the right investor at the right time, you can significantly influence your company's growth. Carlos Antequera , and his firm, Novel Capital, help entrepre neurs solve that riddle. In this episode, Carlos shares how his early star...

What will the future of work for startups look like? Increasingly, the workforce will be made up of freelancers. In fact, it’s predicted that 60% will be freelancing by the end of 2023. To succeed in this new era of work, startups will need to foster a flexible workforce DNA—or risk becoming obsolete. Shahar Erez, Co-Founder & CEO at Stoke Talent, shares how startups should establish a freelan...

As a startup scales, there’s a difficult transition that entrepreneurs must make—from founder to CEO. Not making that adjustment can spell trouble for both the leader and the company as a whole. Educating us on how to navigate that transition is Alex Frommeyer , Founder & CEO of Beam Dental . He explains how early struggles led him to realize he needed to become a better leader and shares the...

A lot has changed in the consumer startup market over the last couple of years. For one, SaaS enterprise investors who had dipped their toes into the consumer space are now starting to back away. But venture funding isn’t the only way to grow a consumer brand and startup. In this episode, we’re joined by two experts in the consumer startup space, Alexa Binns, Partner at Halogen Ventures, and Marc...

In 2021 no single industry received more investment than financial services and most predict that 2022 will be another banner investment year for the Fintech sector. To guide you through the opportunities and challenges, special guest host Steve Lord,Burkland’s Fintech Practice Lead, welcomes Travis Hedge, Co-Founder at Vouch Insurance (YC S19). The two discuss the Fintech startup sector, how the...

When you’re in the throes of startup life, it can be tempting to assume you know it all and go it alone. But according to Neil Sequeira, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Defy, that’s a one-way ticket to ruin. As a startup founder, you have incredible resources at your disposal to obtain some much needed advice and perspective—from investors, from mentors, and from other founders and other com...

Before Alek Koenig launched Settle, he wanted to be sure of two things: Was he solving an actual problem and was he the right person to solve it? Those two questions were key to ensuring product-market fit and founder-market fit, and ultimately, key to finding investors. It turns out Settle is solving a major pain point for startups in desperate need of working capital, and with his extensive back...

Not too long ago, companies in deep tech and healthcare were often overlooked for funding in favor of companies focused on consumer products and business innovation. Lu Zhang, Founder & Managing Partner of Fusion Fund, has worked to change that. As a solo founder of a medical device company, she has a unique perspective on how to lead a deep tech/healthcare company to a successful exit. Specia...

The founder is the only thing that matters in investing. That’s according to Jack Greco, Founder at Cupule Ventures. Located in Buffalo, New York, he is one of the most active angel investors in the state. Jack has been using his vast resources to invest in companies focused on making the world a better place in some way. For him, the decision always comes down to the character and creativity of t...

While CMO of another startup, Angela Ferrante struck upon an exciting idea born from a common pain point: Was there a way to make B2B testimonial content more engaging by using high-quality video customer interviews? She took that classic lightbulb moment and spun it into the highly successful startup Laudable (YC S21). In this episode, she’s sharing her hard-earned wisdom with us. She offers valu...

Recently, it was reported that cyber criminals are monitoring deal flow announcements and targeting affiliated startups. Moreover, according to stats, 50% of successful cyber attacks target small businesses. Needless to say, cybersecurity needs to be a top priority for startups these days. Brian Fritton, CEO & Founder at Havoc Shield, joins the show to talk about what you should be doing to pr...

Most startup founders share a potent passion and an infectious enthusiasm for whatever their project is about. It’s that drive that propels them and their business forward. But at a certain point, running a business requires more than simply passion and love. It requires strategic planning and business development—and that’s when today’s guest usually enters the picture. Glenn McMahon, Managing Di...

The most challenging aspect of fundraising is telling a story around the numbers. Most founders excel at communicating their passion and communicating the need their product is solving for, but it’s communicating the financials and the business dynamics—the FP&A—that often trip them up. Wouldn't it be nice if there was a software platform that could help you out with this? David Greenbaum thou...