Nikhil Basu Trivedi of joins Nick to discuss Agglomerators vs. Specialists, the Rise of the Solo-Capitalist, and the Importance of Founder-Investor Fit+. In this episode, we cover: Why did you decide to leave Shasta? What's the plan moving forward? The Rise of Solo Capitalists You wrote a great piece on the rise of this behavior, ‘The Rise of the Solo Capitalists’. What do you think has caused the rise in single GP funds? What are the main benefits to both investor and entrepreneur with this mod...
Aug 31, 2020•42 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Oren Klaff Tamara Steffens Leo Polovets Byron Deeter Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out.
Aug 29, 2020•13 min
Ben Casnocha of Village Global joins Nick to discuss Backing from Bezos, Zuckerberg, and Gates; Lessons from Reid Hoffman; and Building a Network-centric Venture Firm. In this episode, we cover: - How have things changed for the firm since the pandemic broke? - You've raised from some very big names in tech -- Zuckerberg, Hoffman, Gates, Bezos, Greene, Blakely and many more. How exactly did the formation of Village and fundraise from these notable tech leaders come together? - Village has a uniq...
Aug 25, 2020•45 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: -Beezer Clarkson -Alex Osterwalder -Patrick Gallagher -Steve Blank Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed.
Aug 23, 2020•9 min
- You recently published research on the expansion of 175 US companies into Europe. I’d like to discuss a number of points from the piece, but first off… what prompted you to do this research and write the piece? - Part of the report is about timing… ie. when is the right time is for a b2b SaaS company to make the leap and expand into Europe. Talk us through your findings and conclusion w/ regard to timing. - In preparation to make that jump, you recently talked about the challenges for “globali...
Aug 18, 2020•46 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Leah Solivan Kane Hsieh Richard Kerby James Currier Each investor describes the most unusual situation or pitch that they've encountered as an investor. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Aug 13, 2020•10 min
Jonathan Hsu of Tribe Capital joins Nick to discuss how to Acquire Data, Build Abstractions and Do Research. In this episode, we cover: Walk us through your background and path to VC What’s the thesis at Tribe Capital? How do you define PMF? Could you explain what the 8 Ball diligence framework is? When is a deal too early -- how much data (or over what time continuum do you need data) in order for the model to assess appropriately? Just for evaluation or also sourcing? Can you apply this tool t...
Aug 10, 2020•46 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Courtney Reum Mark Suster Sarah Tavel Jason Calacanis Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Aug 06, 2020•13 min
Check Warner of Ada Ventures joins Nick to discuss Structural Disadvantages in Venture, Investing in the "Overlooked," and Open-Sourcing the VC Fund Raise and Investment Playbook. In this episode, we cover: Background / Path to Venture The thesis at Ada Ventures Is it tough getting the up-rounds from Tier 1 VCs when the profile of the founders doesn't look like the standard, obvious profile that's been funded for the past couple of decades? You look for founders and markets that have been mis-pr...
Aug 04, 2020•37 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Ramy Adeeb Somesh Dash Jeremy Neilson Minnie Ingersoll Each investor discusses sectors, drivers and/or trends that may have significant impact in the future and are potentially positioned for outsized-returns. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jul 30, 2020•12 min
Niki Pezeshki of Felicis Ventures joins Nick to discuss Finding Markets with Long-Term Tailwinds; Macro Impacts on Venture; and Robust vs. Fragile Data. In this episode, we cover: Background and path to venture. Thesis at Felicis and your focus there? How has the pandemic affected your approach to investment? You’ve mentioned that you look for market tailwinds, especially tailwinds that will be lasting. Right now, we’re seeing a number of shifts that will have lasting effects -- which are you wa...
Jul 27, 2020•48 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: M.G. Siegler Grace Isford John Vrionis Ash Rust Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes / for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jul 23, 2020•9 min
Henrique Dubugras of Brex joins Nick to discuss the Blazing Fast Path to $B+; Binary Outcomes; The Fintech Revolution; and A New Approach to Employee Comp. In this episode, we cover: Background -- path that led to Brex? Origin story for Brex Tag-line / One sentence overview What's so different about Brex? Why is more than just a credit card? How has the pandemic affected the business thus far? What do you offer that no one else does? Who do you consider to be competition? What is the moat here -...
Jul 20, 2020•40 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Ryan Gembala Scott Dorsey Elizabeth Yin Jeff Fluhr Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jul 16, 2020•13 min
Gigi Levy-Weiss of NFX joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss What's Next in Gaming; The True Essence of Product-Market-Fit; & Investing with an Emphasis on Retention and Engagement. In this episode, we cover: Background and path to venture. The thesis and your focus at NFX? Did you invest in Houseparty when it was Meerkat? You've written about your thoughts on PMF... How do you assess whether a company has real product market fit? What advice would you have for those sti...
Jul 13, 2020•52 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Scott Kupor Melody Koh Tom Tunguz Jim Douglass Each investor describes the most unusual situation or pitch that they've encountered as an investor. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jul 09, 2020•11 min
Jaclyn Hester of Foundry Group joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss GP and LP Alignment, Challenges for Emerging Fund Managers, and How the Explosion in Seed Fund Volume Plays Out. In this episode, we cover: Tell us about your background and path to VC. For those who don't know, talk about the approach at Foundry with both the LP and GP model. Foundry traditionally had no apprenticeship model and no junior investors... were you the first? Pandemic... Are you making inve...
Jul 06, 2020•54 min
Nick Rishwain and Hannah Konitshek of The LegalTechLive Podcast interview Nick to discuss Advice for Founders -- Reaching out to VCs, Pitching over Zoom, and Closing Capital Amidst a Pandemic. In this episode we cover: How have valuations been impacted from the pandemic? How long will lower valuations persist? Are VCs actively doing deals right now? What's the most common mistake that founders make when approaching you for funding? How much information would you prefer a founder share with you u...
Jul 04, 2020•41 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Alex Osterwalder Beezer Clarkson Michael Cardamone Leo Polovets Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatche t for updates and more information....
Jul 02, 2020•14 min
Shawn Carolan of Menlo Ventures joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss the Four Fundamentals of Investing; the Future of Micro Mobility; and Hunting Consumer Unicorns. In this episode, we cover: Tell us about your background and path to venture. What's the thesis at Menlo Ventures? Can you explain the "Four Fundamentals" framework for investing and give us a brief description of each? What are you looking for in terms of unit economics? You like to invest in technologies ...
Jun 29, 2020•46 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Patrick Gallagher Sarah Tavel Byron Deeter Jim Kim Each investor discusses sectors, drivers and/or trends that may have significant impact in the future and are potentially positioned for outsized-returns. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jun 27, 2020•14 min
Tamara Steffens of M12 joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Why Corporate VC Gets a Bad Wrap; Microsoft's Fresh Approach to CVC; and Key Insights to Acquire Mass Users. In this episode, we cover: Background and path to venture. Overview of the thesis at M12. Investments since COVID? Changes in strategy, markets of interest. CVC has the reputation of being very slow, not leading deals, imposing restrictive terms, and thinking only about broader success of their parent co...
Jun 25, 2020•50 min
Brian Hollins of BLCK VC joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Breaking into VC; Excelling at Goldman Sachs; and the Origin of BLCK VC. In this episode, we cover: Background and path to venture? What was the most surprising thing about venture that you only realized after working in it for awhile? So you've got this great job in venture... Why'd you decide to go back to HBS? Tell us about the origin story of BLCK VC? What are some of the specific activities and programs ...
Jun 22, 2020•53 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Minnie Ingersoll Adeyemi Ajao Richard Kerby David Horowitz Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jun 20, 2020•7 min
Kane Hsieh of Root Ventures joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Investment Decision in Backstory/Path to Venture Tell us about the the thesis at Root and your focus areas. Any unique outcomes or behaviors you are observing as a result of the pandemic? What's your investment position on 3D printing... bullish or bearish? I used to work in the industrial automation area... developed two different products there and saw limitless opportunities but also many challenges. Fr...
Jun 18, 2020•53 min
James Currier of NFX joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Network Effects; 9 Days Until a Funding Decision; Software as the Foundation for the Modern VC firm; and the Future of Social Media. In this episode, we cover: Background and path to venture Thesis: Overview of the thesis and your specific focus at the firm Pandemic: Unique outcomes or behaviors you are observing as a result of the pandemic? Overview of Software: You're a huge inspiration to me... I love that you...
Jun 15, 2020•46 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Leah Solivan Oren Klaff Jason Whitney Darren Bechtel Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jun 13, 2020•11 min
Ramy Adeeb of 1984 Ventures joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Why Facebook Should be Broken Up; SV Hype vs Returns; Amara's Law; and VC's Track Record Predicting Trends. In this episode, we cover: Backstory/Path to Venture Tell us more about what was it like working with Vinod. Is there anything he taught you in specific that was most influential? And how about Pierre? How has the crisis impacted the way you invest as well as your thesis? Have you seen an adjustment,...
Jun 11, 2020•1 hr 5 min
David Rabie of Tovala joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Finding PMF, Raising Series B, & Navigating a Startup Amidst the Pandemic. In this episode, we cover: I was just checking and we had you on the show back in March of 2016... that was over 4 years ago, pre-launch, during your Kickstarter campaign. So crazy how much time has passed. Can you refresh us on the origin story of Tovala... We've invested in the pre-seed, seed, Series A and now Series B round... and we'r...
Jun 08, 2020•47 min
On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Grace Isford Somesh Dash Steve Blank Mark Suster To listen more, please visit http://fullratchet.net/podcast-episodes/ for all of our other episodes. Also, follow us on twitter @TheFullRatchet for updates and more information....
Jun 06, 2020•11 min
