Joe Stump on Startup Founder Advice on Working With Venture Capitalists

In Chapter 11 of 14 in his 2012 interview, Internet entrepreneur Joe Stump answers "What Were the Main Learning Points From Starting and Selling a Company?"  Through starting and selling SimpleGeo, Stump gets a clear understanding of how the sausage factory works in the VC land. He first learns the Internet startup talent ecosystem - programmers/builders, luminaries/speakers, founders, and investors/venture capitalists - and, in particular, how the game is played at the top of the investing scene.  He turns a founder frustration - how venture capitalists overshare information - into a founder strength. 

Joe Stump is a serial entrepreneur based in Portland, OR. He is CEO and co-founder of Sprint.ly, a product management software company.  Previously he founded SimpleGeo, which was sold to Urban Airship in October 2011.  He advises several startups - including attachments.me and ngmoco:) - as well as VC firm Freestyle Capital.  He earned a BBA in Computer Information Systems (CIS) from Eastern Michigan University. 

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: What were the main learning points from starting and selling a company?

Joe Stump: I don’t even know where to begin. The main learning points that I took away from SimpleGeo, I think, were I got a very clear understanding of how the sausage factory worked in the VC land, right? There are a few layers of sediment in the startup world. There are the implementers, the people that are banging out code, they're writing design, stuff like that. Slightly above them are the luminaries in that area, right? They are the people that go and speak at conferences about the new Java script frameworks that they're writing, and things like that.

One kind of layer above them are the founders. Those are people that go out and have a crazy idea and decide they want to build a company. And then the layer above that are the investors and VC. And you really don’t have any insight into what's going on until you kind of like move your way up. So I got a very clear, terrifying view of what that top layer is and understanding how that works was important to my long-term success. You have to know how the game is played.

Erik Michielsen: How is the game played?

Joe Stump: That game is like Lord of the Flies on steroids. I mean, it is cut throat. You know, people will -- There's so much drama that happens behind that investing scene that nobody sees. There are things like -- you talk to entrepreneurs, other founders. I call being a founder, being a part of the fraternal order of founders. You just don’t know what it's like until you’ve like actually been in it. I've had founders tell me, “I want to raise money from both of these guys but this guy won’t invest if this guy invests.”

I've had other people tell me that investors have called them and threatened them with their livelihood if they don’t do a deal in the way that they want them to do it. Investors gossip non-stop like even if you sign – even if they're a board member and they have a fiduciary responsibility to keep their mouth shut, they’ll gossip all day long. So understanding -- The biggest lesson I took away from that is like you can't trust anybody. But what you can do is leverage that.

Something that I've been doing more recently and the ways that you can kind of leverage that -- I probably shouldn’t be saying this but, is I know that if I go and tell somebody that so and so is doing really well and if I can strategically leak positive information about a company that I've invested in or I'm an adviser in to other people that are like -- and get out ahead of that company.

A good example of something that I might do is in a company that I'm advising in or invested in, I have deep insight into what's going on, right? And I usually have a strategic six to twelve-month window ahead of what they're planning on doing. And if I know that bits of data over here are going to help them six months from now and they're going to need this person or this firm or this capital in six months, I can leverage that gossip in the way that -- and that distrust and basically deploy knowledge ahead of time and just set the stage up ahead of time.

And I think one of the biggest lessons I had that I took away from -- really from all that experience is I love sausage but I hate the sausage factory. I don’t want to know how it's made, right? So I've tried to remove myself from that a little bit. And I think the other lesson that was really hard for me to swallow, you hear about really crappy things happening to good people and what's really frustrating is these people that are doing really crappy things are being exalted. These investors are being exalted on every blog, tech blog and everything as being like -- All they do is help founders. Well, I know for a fact that people that you say help founders have destroyed founders. So, don’t tell me that that’s actually how it happens.

The thing that was really difficult for me to accept was people would say “it's just business”, which is the MBA way of saying, don’t hate the player, hate the game. There are a few players that I legitimately hate because they have strayed way beyond what I think is acceptable human interaction but it has allowed me to embrace the parts of the game in a way that allows me to work with people that probably otherwise I wouldn’t want to, in a way that benefits everybody.

Idan Cohen on How the Army Teaches High Tech Job Skills

In Chapter 10 of 19 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, Boxee co-founder and head of product Idan Cohen answers "How Has Your Military Training Been Most Useful in Developing Your Career?"  Cohen shares how he is recruited into the Israeli Army to help build reconnaissance satellites.  He learns physics and programming working with a senior team and, after transitioning into intelligence, learns life skills by managing teams. 

This is Idan Cohen's Year 1 Capture Your Flag interview.  Cohen is co-founder and head of product at Boxee Inc, an online video software company.  Previous to Boxee, Cohen held telecom software innovation and developer roles at Comverse.  He was a Captain in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and graduated from Tel Aviv University with a Bachelors of Science degree in Geophysics and Art.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: How has your military training been most useful in developing your career?

Idan Cohen:  First of all, it was very important part of my career today because I went into the army and I was recruited to this very small group of kids, extremely smart and extremely weird, everyone else were smart, I was the only—I was probably the odd guy out. It was 6 girls and 2 guys, 2 boys and we were actually building the reconnaissance satellite, the Israeli Army’s reconnaissance satellite, which was just amazing like up to that point, there were engineers probably in their 40’s and 50’s, some of them from the Russian military industry and some of them actually were in NASA before and they were the ones building that satellite and then they decided that—actually maybe 18-year-olds with the right, you know, with the right guidance can do that as well, at least they can write code where needed and, you know, they can be guided into it. 

And they took us and for 6 months they taught us physics, which up to that point I didn’t know anything about physics, I didn’t learn that in high school, and they taught us how to write code, and we were writing kind of code for the satellite itself and code for the ground station. 

And that was extremely interesting, just being in this—in the company of these 40 and 50-year-olds, which were building something huge. And we were just these—a group of 8 and then the next generation was another 8 so we’re kind of 15 kids—it was really 15 kids with about 50—with about a group of 50 50-year-olds, all working on the same thing which was this huge thing that was costing millions and was going to go out in space. It was extremely interesting and for me that definitely got me into software much more ‘cause I had a few years in high school where I wasn’t really writing any code. And it was suddenly brought me back to an interest in actually creating software and how that can be—how can that bring me to create important things. 

And then later I went and I was an officer and I had another 2 years where I was actually doing much more of kind of like intelligence work which was also very interesting because it will suddenly being in charge of other people for the first time, so as a 20-year-old managing, you know, 10 or 15 other 18-year-olds and being their commander and taking care of their needs, and I think that there’s something—the most important thing about the army in Israel which is very different—it’s not—I’m not sure if I would like my kids to go there, or it will be a choice that they could make, but I think that what makes it so important in our people who come out of Israel, in our education and upbringing compared to people for instance who go to college, is just you get a lot of responsibility, as an 18-year-old, it’s not about, you know, someone’s paying for your college, and you can choose if you wanna study or you wanna drink your way through it, here it’s just—yes, you have to do that, but there’s a lot of responsibility with it, and if you’ll take that seriously, you can actually also maybe get, you know, some—you can get some skills and you can get experience, and it can help you for life. And I think that makes it very interesting, so that’s kind of what I came out with, like skills and experience for life.

Why to Travel to Foreign Places

In Chapter 2 of 15 in her 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur Audrey Parker French answers "What Have You Found Most Rewarding About Traveling to New Places?" French not only learns to be more open to new experiences while traveling abroad but also to embrace home more fully after getting a new sense of appreciation for Austin, Texas. 

Audrey Parker French returns to CYF for her Year 3 interview after a one-year sabbatical from work and getting married.  She co-founded CLEAResult, an energy management consulting firm.  In 2010, CLEAResult ranked #144 in the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies.  In late 2010, CLEAResult was sold to General Catalyst Partners.  She graduated from Wake Forest University. 

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What have you found most rewarding about traveling to new places?

Audrey Parker French: I find that traveling to new places and experiencing new things just reminds us all that we can have new eyes when we look at things, a new perspective. And for the 6 weeks abroad that my husband and I enjoyed last fall, just really having the freshness of perspective to see that people’s lives are lived in all different ways, in all different languages, in all different cultures, and it helps free up any of the, you know, everyone does it this way, I have to do it this way kind of things that just run in the background of our minds that we don’t necessarily pay attention to.

It’s just like, well, this is how everybody does it, and when I – when we got the opportunity to travel and look around and see not everybody does this like this, not everybody eats like this or goes to work with the same attitude or for the same purposes or lives the same lifestyle, there’s just – there are so many new things to see and travelling is just an opportunity to have perspective on our own lives and learn anything and everything that we didn’t even know is out there to learn.

You can go to a new place and before you know it, you’re learning things about that place that make it special and unique, and it has you realize the special and unique things where you live, where – it was amazing just to come home. We started seeing our home – our hometown, Austin, Texas with new eyes. And really comparing it to other cities and countries and just saying, “We really have a new appreciation for where we live.” Seeing the quirks and the culture and the flavor and the things that for us are like home for us, and yet they are very different to other cultures. Other people of other places would come here and point out all sorts of things that they thought were different or interesting and to us it’s life -- it feels home, so it brought an expanded perspective to us of how other people live and a new appreciation for how we live here and just the fact that we love where we live and we love the culture and the people, and it really could be – all those things could be very, very different.

Matt Curtis on Taking a Trip to Ireland to Meet Distant Family

In Chapter 2 of 18 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, public affairs and communications strategist Matt Curtis answers "What Did You Learn About Yourself by Traveling Abroad to Meet Distant Family?" Curtis plans a trip to his grandparents' birthplace in Western Ireland - specifically Attymass in County Mayo - to meet distant relatives. The trip allows Curtis to not only meet family and learn about the geography, but also it was about understanding core values and characteristics that remain present in his family today. Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was communications director for Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn. In 2011, Curtis won "Austinite of the Year" in the Austin Under 40 Awards. He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas.

How Family Relationships Change With Age - Matt Curtis

In Chapter 4 of 18 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, public affairs and communications strategist Matt Curtis answers "How Are Your Family Relationships Changing as You Get Older?"  As the rebellious baby of the family, born 10 years after his nearest sibling, Curtis learns to appreciate his parents' decisions more as he gets older, from getting core values by going to church to a general desire to live an honest life.  Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was communications director for Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn.  In 2011, Curtis won "Austinite of the Year" in the Austin Under 40 Awards.  He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas.

How Community Leader Adapts As Responsibilities Grow - Matt Curtis

In Chapter 9 of 18 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, public affairs and communications strategist Matt Curtis answers "How are Your Community Responsibilities Changing?"  Curtis notes that as he gains age and experience he will need to be a more experienced leader and find more strategic ways to support his community.  He notes the importance of doing more sustainable work and more with less.  Matt Curtis is the director of government relations at HomeAway Inc. Previously he was communications director for Austin mayors Lee Leffingwell and Will Wynn.  In 2011, Curtis won "Austinite of the Year" in the Austin Under 40 Awards.  He earned his bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North Texas.

How Childhood Experiences Teach Family Values - Ken Biberaj

In Chapter 2 of 21 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council candidate and public relations executive Ken Biberaj answers "What Childhood Experiences Have Been Most Fundamental in Shaping Who You Are Today?"  Biberaj discusses his Northern Virginia upbringing and how close proximity to family in the neighborhood had a powerful impact on his development.  Ken Biberaj is currently a 2013 Candidate for New York City Council for the West Side of Manhattan.  He is also a public relations executive for the Russian Tea Room restaurant at One Fifty Fifty Seven Corporation, a family business focused on real estate development, investment sales and retail leasing.  Previously he was Florida Research Director for the Kerry-Edwards for President Campaign. He holds a JD from New York Law School, a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) from Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, and a BA in Political Science from American University.

How Family Role Models Teach Work Ethic - Ken Biberaj

In Chapter 9 of 21 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council candidate and public relations executive Ken Biberaj answers "Where Did You Learn Your Work Ethic?"  Biberaj tells the story of his family, starting with his grandfather and his work moving the family out of Albania to the Bronx in New York City.  He shares how this blossomed into his father getting a world class Columbia University education and pursuing a public service career, his uncle running The Russian Tea Room, and the entrepreneurial initiatives of his mother.  Ken Biberaj is currently a 2013 Candidate for New York City Council for the West Side of Manhattan.  He is also a public relations executive for the Russian Tea Room restaurant at One Fifty Fifty Seven Corporation, a family business focused on real estate development, investment sales and retail leasing.  Previously he was Florida Research Director for the Kerry-Edwards for President Campaign. He holds a JD from New York Law School, a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) from Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, and a BA in Political Science from American University. 

The Rewards of Working in a Family Business - Ken Biberaj

In Chapter 12 of 21 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council candidate and public relations executive Ken Biberaj answers "What Have You Found Most Rewarding About Working in a Family Business?"  Biberaj notes how the shared experience working with family has helped him build trust across family generations and put a foundation in place for future generations.  He shares what he has learned from other family business owners and how it plays into the American immigrant experience.  Ken Biberaj is currently a 2013 Candidate for New York City Council for the West Side of Manhattan.  He is also a public relations executive for the Russian Tea Room restaurant at One Fifty Fifty Seven Corporation, a family business focused on real estate development, investment sales and retail leasing.  Previously he was Florida Research Director for the Kerry-Edwards for President Campaign. He holds a JD from New York Law School, a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) from Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, and a BA in Political Science from American University. 

How Marriage Relationship Guides Career Decisions - Ken Biberaj

In Chapter 17 of 21 in his 2012 Capture Your Flag interview, New York City Council candidate and public relations executive Ken Biberaj answers "How Has Getting Married Changed Your Life?"  Biberaj shares how meeting his wife Valerie has been so impactful in his life.  He shares how the relationship has helped understand why he does what he does support him through the process of deciding to run for public office.  Ken Biberaj is currently a 2013 Candidate for New York City Council for the West Side of Manhattan.  He is also a public relations executive for the Russian Tea Room restaurant at One Fifty Fifty Seven Corporation, a family business focused on real estate development, investment sales and retail leasing.  Previously he was Florida Research Director for the Kerry-Edwards for President Campaign. He holds a JD from New York Law School, a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) from Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, and a BA in Political Science from American University. 

How Family Relationships Change With Age - Jason Anello

In Chapter 3 of 20 in his 2012 interview, creative director Jason Anello answers "How Are Your Family Relationships Changing As You Get Older?"  Anello shares how after many years experience in his 20s and 30s, he is no longer perceived as the child.  He notes how the role of parent and child reverses and how he expected it to happen in his 20s when it actually occurred in his 30s after many life events.  Jason Anello is a founding partner and creative director at marketing services agency Manifold Partners.  He is also the co-founder of the Forking Tasty Brooklyn supper club.  Previously, Anello held creative leadership roles at Yahoo! and Ogilvy & Mather.  He graduated from the University at Albany. 

How to Bounce Back From Rejection - Phil McKenzie

In Chapter 14 of 21 in his 2011 interview, Phil McKenzie answers "What Has Been the Most Humbling Experience to Date Building Your Company?"  For McKenzie, the humility comes from letting go of pride of ownership and understanding that rejection is part of business and not every offering is right for potential clients or partners.  McKenzie is the founder of Influencer Conference, an international event series bringing together tastemakers across the arts, entrepreneurship, philanthropy and technology.  He is also managing partner of influencer marketing agency FREE DMC.  Previously he worked in Domestic Equity Trading at Goldman, Sachs, & Co.  He earned his BA from Howard University and MBA from Duke University. 

How Failure Builds Entrepreneur Backbone - Julie Hession

In Chapter 14 of 21 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview, food entrepreneur Julie Hession "What Role Has Failure Played in Shaping Your Career Trajectory?"  Hession notes that while starting a specialty food store modeled after Dean and Deluca ended in failure, it provided a positive learning experience and gave her backbone to start another venture.  The experience makes her more street smart, aggressive and confident.  Julie Hession is the founder of Julie Anne's All Natural Granola Company.  Passionate about food since childhood, Hession has developed her career by food blogging, cooking contests, and starting fine food companies.  Hession earned an MBA in Marketing from Duke University and a BA from UNLV. 

How Diversity Shapes Leadership Development - Kyung Yoon

In Chapter 11 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive Kyung Yoon answers "What Role Has Diversity Played in Shaping Your Leadership Style?"  Yoon notes how growing up as an Asian American, she was very mindful that she may be perceived differently than how she saw herself.  She made it a priority not to be seen as submissive, quiet, and timid, traits typical of Asian women stereotypes. She pushes herself to be more outgoing and outspoken in her work as a Fox News television reporter, incrementally honing leadership skills useful in diverse communities.  Kyung Yoon is the executive director of the Korean American Community Foundation (KACF) in New York City.  An award-winning journalist and documentary film producer, Yoon earned an MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University and a BA in History and Political Science at Wellesley College.

How to Be a More Effective Community Leader - Kyung Yoon

In Chapter 12 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive Kyung Yoon answers "What Does It Mean to Be a Leader in What You Do?"  Through experience, Yoon learns to lead by working with stakeholders and bringing different people together by being a good listener, taking charge, and driving decisions in the context of an organization.  She adds the importance of being accountable and responsive on a consistent basis.  Kyung Yoon is the executive director of the Korean American Community Foundation (KACF) in New York City.  An award-winning journalist and documentary film producer, Yoon earned an MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University and a BA in History and Political Science at Wellesley College.

What Makes Relationships Last a Lifetime - Scott Gold

In Chapter 2 of 20 of his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and writer Scott Gold answers "What Has Your Parents' Marriage Taught You About Building More Lasting Relationships?"  When his parents disagree, they never make personal attacks.  He learns from his parents' ability to create a laughter filled environment and overcome adversity such as home wrecking hurricanes.  Scott Gold is an author and writer based in New York City.  When not writing, Gold moonlights as a bartender at Char no. 4 restaurant in Brooklyn.  He earned a BA in Philosophy from Washington University in St. Louis. 

The Humbling Experience of Working at a Restaurant - Scott Gold

In Chapter 16 of 20 of his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, author and writer Scott Gold answers "How Has Working Restaurant and Service Industry Jobs Shaped Your Character?"  Gold believes everyone in America should be obligated to work in the service - or restaurant - industry for one year.  The experience teaches humility, providing high quality service independent of your feelings about the customer.  Working at a restaurant, Gold finds himself learning something new every day and always trying to improve how he serves customers.  Scott Gold is an author and writer based in New York City.  When not writing, Gold moonlights as a bartender at Char no. 4 restaurant in Brooklyn.  He earned a BA in Philosophy from Washington University in St. Louis. 

How College Experience Builds Character and Shapes Values - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 3 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Did Your College Experience Build Your Character and Shape Your Values?" Hallen, a University of Virginia graduate, notes how it provides challenges meeting different types of both people and intellectual perspectives. Hallen learns that while analytical skills learned in engineering are important, it is also key to learn how to understand problems and phrase solutions from another person's perspective. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.