Eugene Cho’s Post

We had a chat with Eric Rosenblum on CLIMB about what makes first-time founders stand out. Eric pointed out that it's not just about personal wins. What really shows a founder's strength is their knack for bringing out the best in their team. It goes beyond just collecting awards or climbing the career ladder fast. True leadership, especially in the unpredictable startup world, is about rallying a team around a shared goal. This skill, which is hard to see and often missed, is what Rosenblum and the Foothill Ventures team look for in the founders they back. But how do you spot this ability to boost a team's performance in a founder? It's more of a subtle skill, focusing more on how a team works together and the founder's leadership approach rather than hard numbers. The key message is deep: In startups, where nothing is certain, real success comes not just from one person's talent but from enhancing the whole team's performance. Listen to the full episode: https://cutt.ly/5wMpCCyH

If you missed our Building Billion Dollar Products event last week featuring Matt Kaplan, it is published on VentureFizz today: https://lnkd.in/eus3YAn9 Matt is one of the top product leaders in the tech industry having been the SVP Product / CPO at companies like Toast, Acquia, LogMeIn, and startups. Needless to say, he had a lot to share! We covered: 0:00 - Intro 3:30 - Matt’s background 4:46 - Working with Founders 7:30 - Role of a Product Leader when working with founders 9:24 - Advice for having a successful relationship with founders 13:29 - Navigating uncertainty 16:31 - Working with leaders from cross functional teams 22:57 - How to push back 24:33 - Strategy for building a Multi-Product Strategy 29:45 - Core elements of an effective product strategy 33:09 - Importance of being the Chief Storyteller 36:56 - Opportunity in vertical SaaS 41:38 - Advice on building your career to an executive product leadership role 49:30 - Figuring out chemistry with founders while interviewing 56:21 - Hiring for domain versus

This guy has been called the Product OG here in the product management communities! But there’s so much more about him. 2023 has been a year for Graham Kennedy to exercise his agility, adaptability and dedication. Whether it's leading a team, strategizing OKRs or troubleshooting unforeseen roadblocks - he keeps his cool, showing inspiring resilience & dexterity. I am inspired by watching him and his contribution to the startup communities in Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, UAE, Egypt and Japan. He has cultivated a nurturing ecosystem for budding entrepreneurs, offering mentorship, sharing knowledge & building networks. 2023 has been a tough year for many in product management communities! Graham, like many we know, was hit by the wave of layoffs late last year. However, hats off to Graham, the Product OG, for hustling for a year of wonderful opportunities that have taken us to places that we could never have dreamed of! There’s a season for everything and the tide’s turning for product management! I am so blessed to be on this journey with him witnessing him making impactful changes and building successful startups. #leadership #resilience #pivot #productmanagement #startupcommunity #entrepreneurship

As you can see by my profile, I'm no stranger to wearing hats! But as a Founder you are often asked to wear 10 different hats at once.... In our new guide for early stage founders called The Head Start, Bain Capital Ventures helps founders who wear a lot of hats find their way in disciplines that might be new to them, like brand and comms, fundraising, managing a board, hiring and more. One of my favorite pieces is by our very own Leslie Crowe (Article link in the comments), who drops some gems around hiring your first leadership team as a founder. Some of the key takeaways: As a founder, Hiring your leadership team usually means hiring people who have more functional expertise than you do. - Do your research: Talk with functional leaders with great reputations (even if you know you can’t recruit them). Often times that can lead to referrals or someone that can even do an interview for you in order to get a second opinion. - You don’t need someone in each function that can scale for the next 10 years. Hire the person in each vertical with the skills to be excellent over the next 18 - 24 months and may have the potential to scale to the next phase. That profile may look a lot different for each functional area. So many more tips in the article and many more spread throughout the other topics covered in the guide. #hiring #recruiting #venturecapital #growth #leadership

I've had the privilege of spending time with quite a few hyper-successful founders (unicorn or near-unicorn, big exits) and have noticed a surprising commonality between all of them: They're calm. Despite their ambition, their intensity, their focus, all the demand on them...they make it feel like they have all the time in the world. It's like they've mastered bullet time* I don't know all the reasons for this, but I have a hypothesis: It's because they know what's important (to them), and they only do that. Everything else is discarded. How are you busier and more frazzled than a unicorn CEO? Not because you're more important... but because you don't know what's important to you, or you are not ruthless enough in allocating your time only to those things. *That's a reference to The Matrix for all you Zoomers out there.

I can’t believe it’s been 12 months today… Since I started working with my good mate Eddie again! And I’m super proud of what we have achieved in this last year together, we’ve; 🥇 Pivoted GoFounder to become THE accountability service for founders. 🚀 Helped to launch several businesses 💷 Saved people 10’s of thousands of pounds by helping to validate (or not in these cases) business ideas which, well… we’re going to be launched using heart over head! 🤝 Hired two new awesome accountability coaches, Dale Sims & Steve Taylor 🌍 Worked with founders from across the world 🇦🇪🇬🇧 🇦🇺 🇪🇸 🇦🇹 🇯🇲 🇸🇪   ⭐️ Helped countless founders do incredible things with their business, such as; 📈 Going from taking 7k p/m to 7k per week.   💰 Launching new products and services in a matter of weeks, generating revenue streams of 20k pa. 🍾 More founders than ever before recording record months in terms of profit. 🙌 Helped founders secure 80k of investment And the best part... this is just the beginning… 🌱

Think BIG,start small and grow BIG

Key personal takeaway from the below Google Next session: 1. Leaders need to respond to female founders when they reach out on LinkedIn 2. Embrace diversity because when we don’t embrace different perspectives we are missing out on potentially great ideas 3. Be human, be kind, be yourself Amazing panelists & moderator

What are the Challenges of Being a Startup CEO? (Re)Catch the insightful session featuring Stephen Lurie and Alexandre Depres, CEO of LoneScale, as they dive deep into the ups and downs of startup leadership in a challenging marketplace. Gain firsthand knowledge from their experiences and learn how to tackle obstacles with confidence! 💡 What You'll Learn: Strategies to overcome market challenges and stay ahead of the competition. Essential skills for startup CEOs to navigate uncertainties and make impactful decisions. Proven methods to build a resilient business model and adapt to evolving trends. Thanks Alexandre for sharing your story to inspire others 🚀 #B2BRocks #SaaS #Growth #CEO 🎬 https://lnkd.in/et9iPPgu

Meet WILD #boardmember Matt Ward, Head of Growth at XCD Partners and a true innovator in the tech world! 🔥 Some highlights from our recent Q&A series: 🚀 Originally from Birmingham, Matt's journey has been nothing short of inspiring. From navigating acquisitions to supporting startups, he's all about pushing boundaries and creating impactful solutions. 🔍 What's his secret sauce? Matt's career isn't a straight line—it's a mix of curiosity, problem-solving, and a passion for making a difference. Whether it's shaking things up in Yorkshire or fueling growth at XCD partners, he's all about driving change. 🌱 So, what keeps Matt going? Surrounding himself with bright minds, a good laugh, and the joy of seeing others succeed! It's all about that positive energy and collective effort. 👥 Why he joined WILD? For Matt, it's all about the people—the diverse minds coming together to tackle big challenges and make a difference in our community. 🌈 And let's talk diversity and inclusion. It's not just about being morally right—it's smart business. Matt knows that true innovation comes from embracing different perspectives and building for everyone. 💡 What's his advice to future leaders? Stay curious, dive in, and trust yourself. These principles have been Matt's guiding light, helping him navigate the twists and turns of his career journey. ✨Want to read the blog in full and learn more about Matt 👉https://lnkd.in/eW2Sp7rk #MeettheTeam #WILD #Diversity #Inclusion #Blog #Q&A #Read