My friend and partner Scott Kirk and I had a great conversation with RJ Lumba at GrowthCap about the exciting Tech investing platform we're building at Bain Capital. We had a lot of fun talking through our respective careers and how we partner with our teams to support and build world class software companies. Proud to partner with Scott and the rest of the team here at Bain Capital - thanks again for having us RJ and for making the conversation so engaging!
“Tech leaders can be a bottleneck to their company’s growth if they don’t let go of some activities.” – Eric Weiss
This quote is from a great conversation I had with Eric Weiss about how tech companies can build amazing products, engage their customers, find the right product-market fit, raise capital, and scale their businesses quickly.
Listen to our conversation at: https://lnkd.in/gnU3A-kJ
Watch me squirm as I make this video, feeling like an idiot as others watch.
Good shout from Prateek Sanjay, who said that most founders won't be strategically driven to join our 5-Day Value Creation challenge.
So, here is a quick video response: founders who join will be more informed, intentional, and, therefore, investable.
Investors want to back ambitious deep tech companies but too many times the storytelling of the founder stops them from investing.
I hear from these investors when they're looking to help their portfolio companies going out to raise their next round. They know the story is confusing, convoluted, and a complicated mess.
And they know that's not good enough in today's environment.
What makes deep tech storytelling so challenging?
Deep Tech by it's very nature is complicated and feels far away. That's why the dreamers and visionaries gravitate towards it.
What I've seen in my work with dozens of these companies now is that there tends to be two different situations at play.
1. The idea might be somewhat abstract and hard to visualize.
2. The idea might be easy to understand but hard to believe it's possible.
When you're a deep tech founder (or deep tech fund manager) always keep in mind an important balance with your communication.
The more abstract the idea, the simpler your story needs to be.
The more unbelievable the idea, the more tangible your story needs to be.
Most of my founder work these days is with deep tech companies. This phase approach in the graphic helps solve the complicated and far away problem.
We set up a journey for the investor where there are more immediate and tangible stops along the journey. This helps them have confidence to see how they will gauge if the company is making progress.
Investors don't want to fund the next Theranos.
You can't make it seem like they just need to trust you for 10 years and keep sending money into the black hole.
At it's core Deep Tech is about world building that's done in stages with tangible checkpoints along the way.
Working with these founders has me more excited than ever about the future.
We're building the stories that are making these companies inevitable.
#deeptech#storytelling#founders#venturecapital
I’ve been digging into our C2V portfolio, looking at companies that’ve embraced thought leadership and its impact on their scaling journey.
They’re shaping conversations, attracting top talent, and generating leads faster.
It’s not just about throwing content at the wall. Here’s what makes the difference:
- Varying thought leadership through speaking events, publications, podcasts, and social media.
- Authenticity & Value: They offer unique insights, solutions, and actionable advice, not just self-promotion.
- Audience Focus: They understand their target audience’s pain points and tailor content to address them.
- Consistency & Momentum: They build a strong online presence through regular engagement and high-quality content.
Investing in thought leadership is not a luxury, it’s a strategic growth driver. It builds brand awareness, attracts talent, and positions your company as an industry authority.
Actionable Steps:
1. Identify your unique voice and expertise.
2. Choose content formats that resonate with your target audience.
3. Be consistent and authentic in your engagement.
Remember, thought leadership isn’t a one-time effort, it’s an ongoing journey. By actively engaging and providing valuable insights, you can turn your voice into a powerful tool for scaling your business and attracting investors like us.
#founders#foundersjourney#startup
In deep tech, you usually need to forget about following the crowd. VCs focused on the deeptech sector need expertise, good instincts, and the courage to forget about the hype.
#vc#founder#deeptech#venturecapital
Headhunter & Managing Director | Partnering The Best Talent Globally 🌍 | Global Recruitment for Go-To-Market hires in the Tech ecosystem☁️| Tech Recruitment | Technology Headhunter 🤝
I'm excited for #NYTechWeek to host our event, "Data-Powered Growth Strategy During Economic Shifts"!
Why do you care? Well, think about a few changes from the last few years:
• AI put unprecedented power in the hands of people, corporations and governments.
• Labor markets have evolved, rewriting the rules of what's normal in the workplace.
• Inflation, interest rates, and other economic headwinds are changing our definition of business risk.
• We're still making sense of all the societal ripple effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘺. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘣𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘢 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘺.
We'll talk about:
• cutting-edge methods to identify and seize growth opportunities in new markets
• how to anticipate and overcome the challenges of market expansion
• tales of resilience, resourcefulness, and triumph to help you tackle new opportunities
Our panelists:
• John L.: Co-founder of cela, a globally recognized expert in startup accelerators.
• Elizabeth Ruikka: Sr. Director of Growth Marketing at Classy (a GoFundMe company).
• Arben Perkolaj: sales leader and Managing Director, CPG at Pinterest.
Don't miss this opportunity to gain invaluable insights and connect with industry leaders who have mastered the art of market expansion. Registration link in comments!
📅 Date: Wednesday, June 5th, 8:30am-10:30am
📍 Location: Times Square
This panel is brought to you by TriNet, The Bright Arc and Mission Flywheel.
2023 has been massive. And it’s ending on a high 🚀
It started with curiosity 🧠
My curiosity led me to nail the science of revenue-led growth with the GrowthX Immersion. Over the course of 5 weeks, I learnt the A → Z of growth frameworks for top internet products.
Then, we applied 🔨
I was put into a group of like-minded growth crazy folks in Team Keka HR. I didn’t know it then, but it changed my trajectory. Over the next 3 weeks, we built a real-world applicable growth strategy for Keka HR
Finally, showtime ⭐
Our growth strategy was solid, it got us into the Top 3 teams that pitched at the GX Demo Day. It was the experience of a lifetime. Presenting to a crowd of startup operators, leaders and founders while answering questions that grilled us.
But, I couldn’t have done it without Gupil BhutaniGautam Shah, CFASanjo K MathewKathan DesaiAgam MalviyaSanu KrishnanBhavin MehtaAkash Pavan✨
As 2023 concludes, One of the things I have treasured this year is the General Slack channel. Absolute gold. It's like this buzzing corner where we all geek out on real-world problems, throw ideas around, and come up with killer solutions. It's not your typical forum—it's a treasure of shared stories and lessons. I find myself standing at a new threshold. The bar has been raised, and the learnings from this year will undoubtedly shape my trajectory in the years to come.
2023 was a bar-raiser.
2024 will be exponential.
Watch GrowthX unwrapped here: https://lnkd.in/dZa_UuBR