Kruze Consulting's Founders and Friends Podcast for Startups
278 episodes - English - Latest episode: 7 days ago - ★★★★★ - 18 ratingsTop startup founders, venture capitalists, and advisors interviewed by Scott Orn of Kruze Consulting, the accounting firm to VC funded startups. Hear from startup founders about how they began their startup journeys, where they had challenges and the strategies that help them scale their businesses. VC’s discuss what they look for in a startup and their current technology investment thesis. And technology recruiters, attorneys, real estate professionals and startup lenders share tactics that founders can use to win in today’s competitive market.
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Episodes
Sumeet Howe of Hover on Startup Product Management
September 04, 2018 19:11 - 22 minutes - 31.3 MBSumeet Howe of [Hover] (https://hover.to/) stops by to talk Startup Product Management and share her career path. Hover's 3D Models of houses is revolutionary and Sumeet has helped bridge the gap between Hover customers like Home Depot and the Engineering team. Hover has just raised a large round and it's fun to listen to the company's success through Sumeet's story.
Jennifer Saxton of Tot Squad - On Demand Cleaning for Baby Gear
July 11, 2018 17:45 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MBJennifer Saxton of Tot Squad (https://thetotsquad.com/) talks about her on demand cleaning for baby gear. Jen started the company out of Kellogg where she foresaw a huge cohort of milennial moms needing on demand cleaning services. She also discusses raising capital and being an expecting mom herself.
Ryan Shaening Pokrasso of SPZ Legal on Startup Legal Best Practices
June 27, 2018 13:13 - 32 minutes - 30 MBRyan Shaening Pokrasso of SPZ Legal stops by to walk us through Startup Legal Best Practices. Ryan talks about how to get your fundraising documents set up correctly, how to review contracts and how to coply with some of the new privacy requirements. Ryan also tells the story of founding his own firm SPZ Legal.
Patrick Johnson of Silicon Valley Bank on Startup Banking & Venture Debt
May 29, 2018 19:53 - 34 minutes - 31.7 MBPatrick Johnson of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB - https://www.svb.com/) stops by to talk about Startup Banking, Venture Debt, and the other ways SVB partners with founders and investors to support innovation and entrepreneurship. SVB is the leading startup bank and offers a suite of banking, venture debt, market insights and a host of other services to startups. Patrick is a former entrepreneur and management consultant who joined SVB and is one of the banks top startup outreach managers. A Kruze...
Blake Oliver of FloQast on Cloud Accounting & Close Management Software
May 14, 2018 17:17 - 32 minutes - 29.4 MBBlake Oliver of FloQast (https://floqast.com/) stops by to discuss the latest trends in Cloud Accounting. Before joining FloQast, Blake owned and operated a cloud accounting practice in Southern California. Now Blake has joined FloQast, a leader in Close Management Software for Accountants. Blake discusses how FloQast can automate and organized the monthly close. Finally, Blake has an excellent Cloud Accounting newsletter at http://newsletter.floqast.com/.
Maren Kate Donovan of Recruit on Scaling Startup Recruiting
May 08, 2018 13:32 - 33 minutes - 30.4 MBMaren Kate Donovan of Recruit (https://thisisrecruit.com) explains how to scale your startup's recruiting efforts. We also go over frequent recruiting mistakes and best practices. Kruze Consulting uses Recruit and is a huge fan!!!
Matt Gunnin of Esports One - Computer Vision Powered Esports Audience Experience
May 02, 2018 11:55 - 32 minutes - 30 MBMatt Gunnin of Esports One (https://www.esports.one/) explains the Esports phenomenon and how his company's computer vision powered audience experience makes it that much more enjoyable for viewing. Esports One allows the audience to track the pros and even learn from them. After taping the podcast, Esports One released its new Twitch Extension.
Startup Expert: Dan Croak of Thoughtbot
April 12, 2018 19:45 - 42 minutes - 38.8 MBIn this episode, Dan talks about how Thougthbot grew nationally, their philosophy on investing in team members, why they build new software services that make them more efficient and their approach to content marketing - most importantly the Thoughtbot Playbook.
Kevin Busque of Guideline - Simple & Affordable 401k's for Startups
April 09, 2018 19:41 - 26 minutes - 24.8 MBKevin Busque of Guideline 401k (https://www.guideline.com) drops by to talk Startup 401k's. Kevin talks about his experience being in charge of TaskRabbit 401k and realizing the 401k system could be improved dramatically. Guideline is built from the ground up and handles all of its own record keeping & compliance. This approach strips out an entire layer of fees through automation. Guideline delivers high-quality service at low price points.
Beth Stevens of Opendoor - Legal & Compliance at a Fast Growing Startup
April 02, 2018 16:32 - 35 minutes - 33 MBBeth Stevens of Opendoor (https://www.opendoor.com/) comes by to talk about her experiences running Legal & Compliance at a Fast Growing Startup. Before joining Opendoor, Beth ran Legal & Compliance at Earnest and did the same for Sidecar. Beth has a wealth of operational knowledge. She always shares her philosophy and tactics to make sure women & minorities get equal time and equal opportunities at startups. Beth is not your lawyer and she is not giving you legal advice. Please consult an a...
Shruti Merchant of HubHaus on Pioneering Long-Term Home Sharing
March 16, 2018 19:24 - 23 minutes - 21.9 MBShruti Merchant of HubHaus (https://thehubhaus.com/) is pioneering long-term home sharing. HubHaus members share a large house and use the platform to connect with potential roomates, easily pay rent and split bills. The community is designed for young professionals who want more from their housing than just a place to sleep. A week after taping the podcast, Shruti announced a $10M investment from Social Capital, General Catalyst, and other angel investors. :)
Aaron Tyler of TriplePoint on Venture Debt for Startups
March 05, 2018 13:53 - 31 minutes - 29.3 MBAaron Tyler, Managing Director at TriplePoint Capital (http://www.triplepointcapital.com/), discusses Venture Debt for Startups. Aaron covers the East Coast for Triplepoint but does deals nationally. Aaron has worked in Venture Capital or Venture Debt for 15+ years. Aaron shares how startups can best leverage venture debt to extend their runway and hit key milestones that create a valuation inflection point.
Evan Meagher of Logikcull on Instant Discovery for Modern Legal Teams
February 16, 2018 17:11 - 47 minutes - 44 MBEvan Meagher, VP of Finance at Logikcull(https://logikcull.com) and another 2nd-time guest (!), stops by to discuss SaaS Startup life. Evan helps run Logikcull which has become a major player in the Legal Discovery software market. In fact, Logikcull just closed a $25M round and is poised for even faster growth.
Eli Ceryak of Cushman & Wakefield - The 2018 Startup Real Estate Outlook
January 30, 2018 13:58 - 33 minutes - 31.2 MBEli Ceryak of Cushman & Wakefield, our first 2 time guest on Founders and Friends (!), stops by to discuss the 2018 Startup Real Estate Outlook. Eli has done a fantastic job for Kruze Consulting finding two offices in San Francisco already and has also helped locate our new San Jose office. Eli is one of the best Startup Real Estate Brokers in San Francisco and has some great advice and predictions in this podcast.
Rob Sadow of Scoop - Improve your Commute with Co-Worker Carpools
January 08, 2018 18:05 - 26 minutes - 24 MBRob Sadow of Scoop (https://www.takescoop.com/) talks about how Scoop makes commuting fun and easy. Scoop allows company team members to share rides to and from work through an easy-to-operate app. Scoop has become a widely offered perq in the Bay Area and Seattle.
Lee Firestone of OpenReel - Creating High-End Video with Remote Capture & Editing
January 08, 2018 18:02 - 22 minutes - 20.9 MBLee Firestone of OpenReel (https://www.openreel.com/) makes creating video easy for businesses through OpenReel's remote capture technology. Kruze Consulting uses OpenReel and absolutely loves it. You can see our OpenReel video library at youtube.com/kruzeconsulting.
Ben Munoz of Nadine West - Personalized & Affordable Monthly Outfit Subscription
January 02, 2018 19:46 - 19 minutes - 17.6 MBBen Munoz of Nadine West (https://www.nadinewest.com/) discusses the entrepeneurial journey - from sleeping in his offie and renitng out his apartment to help fund Nadine West - to a successful subscription commerce business that is profitable and growing rapidly.
Michael Piacente of Hitch Partners - The Best Executive Search Firm for Security Professionals
December 15, 2017 18:40 - 29 minutes - 26.6 MBMichael Piacente discusses his firm, Hitch Partners (https://www.hitchpartners.com), the leading Executive Search Firm for Security Professionals. Michael talks about the explosion in demand for Executives in Security and the downside companies face when they haven't invested properly in securing their IT Operations. Michael is a long time recruiting expert and shares tons of Best Practices for Recruiting as well.
Matt Miller of Embroker - A Better Way for Startups to Get Insurance
December 06, 2017 14:41 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MBMatt Miller of Embroker (https://www.embroker.com/) comes by to discuss his companies efforts to automate insurance for startups. Embroker is an online service that lets startup fill out an online form and get quotes for all kinds of insurance. Kruze Consulting is a large channel partner and big believer in Embroker's mission of making it easier for startups to get insurance.
Chuck Pettid of Republic on Crowdfunding Equity Investments into Startups
November 30, 2017 17:57 - 26 minutes - 24.6 MBChuck Pettid discusses Republic's (https://republic.co) unique brand of crowdfunding equity investments for startups. Chuck runs Republic's Deal Team which means he leads origination and then vets all Republic equity crowdfunding campaigns. Every deal on Republic is vetted with professional due diligence, making it a more attractive place to invest in startups. In the interview, we talk about Republic's explosive growth and the company's future.
Josh Lowy of Hugo - Software that Rescues and Leverages Your Meeting Insights
October 24, 2017 14:08 - 28 minutes - 25.9 MBJosh Lowy discusses Hugo's software (https://www.hugo.ai) which makes documenting meeting insights easy and sharing with your team even easier. Hugo lets the team "be in the Know without being in the Room." Go to Hugo.ai and use the discount code "KRUZE" to get 6 months of Hugo for free!
Will Hawthorne of Code Advisors on M&A for Startups
September 27, 2017 00:36 - 42 minutes - 38.6 MBWill Hawthorne of Code Advisors (www.codeadvisors.com) discusses M&A for Startups. Will explains how a startup can create leverage with multiple buyers, the importance of reliable financials and accounting and important deal points every Startup CEO should know.
Leslie Sagalowicz Barber of Intuit Discusses Quickbooks Online Accounting Software & QB Community
September 07, 2017 20:45 - 31 minutes - 29.3 MBLeslie Sagalowicz Barber of Intuit's Quickbooks discusses Quickbook's excellent online software package including the newly launched QB Community (https://qbcommunity.com/). Kruze Consulting has 150+ clients on Quickbooks Online and loves the service. QBO makes our clients' lives simpler and Kruze Consulting faster & more efficient. With the launch of QB Community, Intuit has made life even better for startups and small business owners. Now they can ask their peers accounting, finance and e...
Kaushik Ranchod - Helping Startups Navigate the H1B Visa Process
August 21, 2017 23:41 - 27 minutes - 24.9 MBKaushik Ranchod of the Ranchod Law Group (www.ranchodlaw.com) stopped by to outline the H1B Visa Process for Startups. Kaushik walks us through all the deadlines and best immigration practices. The Ranchod Law Group has an excellent track record with Kruze Consulting's team members and is recommended to all of Kruze's clients.
Zack Blum of Fleetsmith - Secure Cloud-Based Mac Computer Management
August 14, 2017 16:28 - 32 minutes - 30 MBZack Blum joins us to discuss Fleetsmith's (www.fleetsmith.com) new Cloud Based Mac Management Software. Zack talks about coming up with the idea while at Wikia, meeting his future co-founder Jesse Endahl at Dropbox and building the software at night and weekends for a whole year before raising venture funding.
Raphael Crawford-Marks of Bonusly - Reimagining Employee Recognition
August 07, 2017 22:34 - 29 minutes - 27.1 MBRaphael Crawford-Marks has built a next generation employee recognition service called Bonusly (https://bonus.ly/). The Service's integration with Slack makes it quick and easy to reward co-workers for a job well done. Bonusly has become one of Kruze Consulting's most popular tools.
Reilly Brennan of Trucks VC - The Best Seed VC in Transportation
July 25, 2017 19:10 - 44 minutes - 41.1 MBReilly Brennan of Trucks VC (http://trucks.vc) invited us over to discuss early stage transportation startups. Reilly is a seed Venture Capitalist in the sector and also a Lecturer at Stanford. HIs passion is helping founders build their dream companies.
Devon Tivona of Pana - Combining a Travel App & In-App Virtual Assistant to Solve Travel Problems
June 28, 2017 17:06 - 33 minutes - 30.5 MBDevon Tivona of Pana (https://pana.com) discusses how Pana combines mobile app technology and virtual travel assistants to make travel easy. Although Pana is for business travel, I used it on a recent vacation and loved it. Recently Pana added features for corporate recruiters to make coordinating candidate travel simple.
Sarah Schaaf of Headnote on Modernizing Legal Payments for Law Firms
May 31, 2017 17:56 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBSarah Schaaf of Headnote (https://headnote.com/) retraces her journey from Google Lawyer to legal industry startup founder. Headnote makes billing and collections easy for lawyers. It's a huge pain point for lawyers and the company has already handled over $1M in its very short life. We discuss the value of an incubator (NFX) and how it helped Headnote's team pivot to the right idea. Finally, we talk about working with your spouse and how rewarding and challenging that can be.
Jesse Freese of Sequoia Consulting on the PEO Approach to Startup Benefits
May 24, 2017 15:35 - 25 minutes - 23.1 MBJesse Freese of Sequoia Consulting Group discusses the PEO approach for employee benefits at startups. Sequoia is a highly regarded, full-service Benefits and Risk Management provider that delivers payroll, benefits and other compliance needs. Rapidly growing startups often turn to Sequoia’s PEO solution, Sequoia One, to help scale benefits and people management.
Jeron Paul of Capshare on Cap Table Management for Startups
May 18, 2017 15:45 - 33 minutes - 30.7 MBJeron Paul of Capshare (https://www.capshare.com/) stops by to talk about Cap Table Management for Startups. Capshare is the leading software provider for Cap Table Management. It allows startups to escape unreliable excel reports and bring their Cap Table into the cloud.
Laurie Lumenti-Garty of Square One on the Startup Banking Toolkit
May 17, 2017 04:45 - 29 minutes - 27 MBLaurie Lumenti-Garty of Square One Bank (www.square1bank.com) joins Founders & Friends to explain the services that every startup should receive from its bank. Square One focuses entirely on startups and does an excellent job. Laurie walks through Cash Management, Venture Debt and other financial services that are helpful to startups. Laurie & Square One have been great partners of Kruze Consulting and we recommend them to our clients.
Peter Lai of Emburse on Taking Control of Your Business Expenses
May 03, 2017 20:53 - 29 minutes - 27.3 MBPeter Lai joins Founders & Friends to discuss his new company, Emburse (https://www.emburse.com/). Peter is a serial entrepreneur and sold his last company to Box. He shares his tips on attacking new markets, grinding out the product / market fit stage of a startup and explains how he came up with the idea for Emburse. Kruze Consulting recommends Emburse virtual cards and expense management and it was fantastic to have Peter on the podcast.
Mike Lederman of Bridge Bank on Banking the Best Startups in Silicon Valley
April 24, 2017 17:42 - 26 minutes - 24.6 MBMike Lederman runs the West Coast Region for Bridge Bank (https://www.westernalliancebancorporation.com/bridge-bank-home), one of the premier banks that serves startups. Mike explains venture debt and the other services that Bridge Bank provides to its startup clients. Bridge Bank is a division of Western Alliance Bank, member FDIC.
Ronjini Joshua of The Silver Telegram on How to Do Startup PR
April 11, 2017 03:07 - 25 minutes - 23.1 MBRonjini Joshua is the founder of The Silver Telegram (http://thesilvertelegram.com/), a PR agency for startups and crowdfunding campaigns. She walks us through the best practices for Startup PR, how to get the most out of your PR Agency and a few "what not to do" stories. :)
James Schramko of SuperFastBusiness - Building Productive Business & Personal Effectiveness Habits
March 27, 2017 18:22 - 41 minutes - 38.3 MBJames Schramko of SuperFastBusiness (www.superfastbusiness.com) discusses building productive habits both personally and professionally. James has founded multiple successful businesses on the web and now focuses on SuperFastBusiness, an Executive Coaching service with international clientele. James' podcast is excellent and a must listen (http://www.superfastbusiness.com/tag/podcast/)
Rene Lacerte of Bill.com - Powerful Business Payments Made Easy
March 04, 2017 20:24 - 21 minutes - 20.1 MBRene Lacerte is Founder & CEO of Bill.com (https://www.bill.com/), the leading online business payment provider and one of Kruze Consulting's favorite software tools. Rene discusses how growing up in an entrepreneurial family shaped him, the insights that led him to start Bill.com, the culture of customer service at Bill.com and where Bill.com is going next.
Tye DeGrange of Round Barn Labs - Startup Growth Marketing
March 03, 2017 16:46 - 33 minutes - 31.2 MBTye DeGrange of Round Barn Labs (http://www.roundbarnlabs.com/)talks startup growth marketing. Tye takes a data driven approach to marketing. It's all about performance for Round Barn Labs. We talk tactics including the power of Influencer Marketing.
Peggy Chang of ActivityHero - Online Booking for Children Activities
February 19, 2017 21:51 - 28 minutes - 26.4 MBPeggy Chang explains of ActivityHero (https://www.activityhero.com) explains how she came up with the idea of building a one-stop shop website to find and book kids camps and classes. Peggy lived the problem and after a growing frustration, she decided to do something about it and ActivityHero was born. Now parents across the US can easily book and find information on camps and activities for children.
Vincent Turner of Uno Home Loans - Fintech in Australia & the US
February 13, 2017 17:20 - 34 minutes - 31.7 MBVincent Turner of Uno Home Loans (https://unohomeloans.com.au) is a Fintech pioneer in Australia & the US. Vincent's latest company, Uno Home Loans, is dramatically simplifying the Australian mortgage process by making it completely digital. The company is growing rapidly and is backed by some of the largest institutions in Australian Finance. In the podcast we discuss the evolution of Fintech, some of the lessons Vincent learned at his last two companies and how he has applied them to Uno.
Mark MacLeod of SurePath Capital - Startup Fundraising
February 06, 2017 02:55 - 44 minutes - 41 MBMark MacLeod founded SurePath Capital (http://www.surepathcapital.com/) after serving as Startup CFO for Shopify and Freshbooks. Mark was also a VC at Canada's Real Ventures. Mark started SurePath to help startup founders fundraise more effectively and even help sell their companies. Mark talks about the metrics a startup needs to raise money, how much money to raise and the difference in fundraising approaches between a Seed & Series A Stage Companies and Later Stage Companies.
Augie Rakow of Orrick - Legal Tips for Venture Backed Startups
January 29, 2017 23:09 - 32 minutes - 29.5 MBAugie Rakow of Orrick (https://www.orrick.com/People/0/B/7/Augie-Rakow) is one of the best startup lawyers in the Valley. He stopped by to share tips how he got into law in the first place, why he loves venture backed startups and his best advice for Founders building their startup dream.
Steve Gillan of Azure Capital Partners - A VC Firm Investing in Post Seed Startups
January 23, 2017 03:54 - 41 minutes - 37.8 MBSteve Gillan of Azure Capital Partners (http://www.azurecap.com/steve-gillan/) discusses his firm's strategy of investing in Post Seed Stage Startups. Steve shares what he looks for in startups including metrics like Life Time Value of the Customer and Customer Acquisition Cost. Steve also shares some great stories from his day as an Operating CFO at two successful startups.
Healy Jones of ForUsAll - 401k's for Startups
January 15, 2017 22:23 - 37 minutes - 34.2 MBHealy Jones of ForUsAll (https://www.forusall.com/) discusses Startup 401k's, including why startups should offer them and how to make them cost effective for employers and employees. ForUsAll is the leading 401k provider for startups and Kruze Consulting is a huge fan.
Josh Reeves of Gusto - Building People First Payroll
January 10, 2017 17:02 - 15 minutes - 14 MBJosh Reeves of Gusto (https://gusto.com/) shares his vision and people first values. Gusto is the premier payroll system for startups and a huge Kruze Consulting partner. The company has added Insurance Benefits, 401k and Employee Onboarding & Management in recent months and early feedback from the Kruze Consulting client base is excellent.
Haje Jan Kamps of TechCrunch - How to Get Your Startup Covered
January 05, 2017 22:14 - 42 minutes - 39.3 MBHaje Jan Kamps of TechCrunch comes by to explain How to Get Your Startup Covered (https://medium.com/@Haje/how-to-get-your-startup-covered-in-the-news-7c7e89c63abf#.cwo4elq1t). Haje also talks about his love of photography and how a simple crowdfunding campaign turned him into an entrepreneur. Haje can be found on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Haje) and TechCrunch (https://techcrunch.com/author/haje-jan-kamps/).
Matt Ziser of Tobi on Running eCommerce Operations
December 30, 2016 20:49 - 32 minutes - 29.7 MBMatt Ziser of Tobi (http://www.tobi.com/) stopped by to talk about running Operations at a fast growing eCommerce startup. Tobi is an online retailer that compares to Forever 21. The company has successfully bootstrapped into a large eCommerce business. Matt does a great job talking about the challenges and opportunities in eCommerce.
Jacob Colker of Lighter Capital - Startup Loans
December 19, 2016 17:33 - 29 minutes - 26.8 MBJacob Colker of Lighter Capital (https://www.lightercapital.com) discusses startup funding and how to minimize dilution through Lighter Capital's startup loans. Lighter does not take equity like traditional venture lenders and has minimal covenants compared to traditional startup bank loans.
Ed Aten of Merchbar on Building the Leading Music Merchandise eCommerce
December 16, 2016 20:40 - 34 minutes - 31.5 MBEd Aten of Merchar (https://www.merchbar.com)shares his experiences building the leading ecommerce site for all things music merchandise. Merchbar has been featured in the iTunes Appstore 20+ times because it greatly simplifies buying your favorite bands t-shirts, albums and other gear.
Aaron Moskowitz - Enterprise SEO Executive on Startup SEO Best Practices
December 14, 2016 22:02 - 35 minutes - 33.1 MBAaron Moskowitz, an Enterprise SEO Executive, stops by to share his best Startup SEO Tips. Aaron has tons of experience in online marketing and SEO. He also shares what not to do so your startup won't end up in the penalty box. :)