The VentureFizz Podcast

Welcome to Episode 103 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nigel Eccles, Co-Founder and CEO at Flick. Nigel is a serial entrepreneur with a tremendous track record. If you are a fan of football, you are probably very familiar with the TV ads from his previous company. He’s a Co-Founder and former CEO of FanDuel, one of the leading companies that emerged in the daily fantasy sports category. The company raised over $400M in funding and was acquired Paddy Power Betfair just over a year ago. His latest startup, Flick, is focused on building communities around podcasts. The app allows audiences to engage and communicate on a much deeper level with the content, the creators, and other members of the community. The company has raised over $4M to date. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -The game of Shinty, the coolest stick-and-ball sport you probably haven’t heard of. -Nigel’s decision to take a major risk at an interesting stage of his life and start his first company called Hubdub, the precursor to FanDuel. A deep dive into the history of FanDuel, including the story behind its founding, where the name came from, how it scaled over time, and lots more. -What it was like running a hypergrowth company. -All the details behind his current startup Flick. -Advice on finding a co-founder. -How to build a consumer product, as well as the acquisition strategies behind it. -Plus, a lot more. The VentureFizz Job Board is blowing up! There are so many amazing opportunities to check out across the hottest tech companies in NYC. You’ll find positions at all levels of experience across all job functions like product, engineering, sales, marketing, customer success, UX, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/jobs to start searching. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 102 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed David Delmar Sentíes, Founder of Resilient Coders. Some people wish for change, while others take action. David is in the “take action” category. He calls himself a Workforce Equity Activist, which means he is passionate about both economic opportunity and economic equity. Resilient Coders is a coding bootcamp that trains people of color for careers as software engineers and connects them with jobs. One might think that he has a passion for coding, but that is not the case. Coding is actually the megaphone, as it provides the window of opportunity for his students to pursue a high-growth career building software. Students participate in a 14-week program which teaches them coding skills in various languages like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and more. Lots of companies are employing graduates of Resilient Coders like Wayfair, Wistia, R Studio, Digitas, and many others. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -David’s background and how he got involved in the tech industry. -What it means to be a “Workforce Equity Activist.” -What led David down the path of starting his own coding bootcamp. -All about Resilient Coders, including its mission to use coding to make social change. -Advice on Implementing diversity and inclusion in the workplace. -Plus, a lot more. If you have been enjoying The VentureFizz Podcast, then please leave us a 5-star review on iTunes. The more reviews we have, the more that people will discover these amazing stories about entrepreneurs across the Boston and New York entrepreneurial ecosystems. Thanks in advance—we appreciate it! Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 101 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Alex Iskold, Managing Partner at 2048 Ventures. Alex is a serial entrepreneur with a proven track record of success. Recently, he was the Managing Director for Techstars New York, where he ran the program for five years. Alex is now onto the next chapter in his career. He has launched an early stage venture capital firm called 2048 Ventures with his Partner, Paul Sethi. The firm recently announced a $27M fund which will be used to invest in exceptional first-time entrepreneurs or repeat founders with a first-time founder mindset, which is a term that he explains during our interview. Another important strategy for this firm is the fact that they will be taking a location agnostic approach. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Alex’s background story going back to when he immigrated to the US when he was 19, and his early positions on Wall Street. -His experience as a serial entrepreneur and the companies he founded. -How he got involved in Techstars, and what that experience taught him after running the program, plus some practical advice for getting into this top accelerator. -All the details on 2048 Ventures and what they are targeting for investments. -The questions that entrepreneurs should ask investors. -What is the “magic moment” that a company should be looking for? -The current state of the NY tech scene. -Plus, a lot more. Brex, the corporate credit card for startups, is the sponsor for this week’s podcast. Brex founders Henrique and Pedro built a payments business in Brazil, but kept getting rejected for a corporate credit card when they were in Y Combinator. So they decided to build Brex, with instant online sign-up, no founder liability required and limits 10 to 20 times higher than standard cards. It is a must-have for entrepreneurs. Sign up for Brex at brex.com and get card fees waived by entering the code “fizz” during signup. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 100 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. Today, we are hitting a major milestone: Episode 100!!! There’s no doubt, The VentureFizz Podcast is the top podcast focused on entrepreneurship and tech across Boston & New York. Before I introduce today’s guests, I do want to take a moment to say some “thank yous” to: -Christina Luconi, Chief People Officer at Rapid7, for being my very first guest and being willing to experiment. -All of our guests, for taking the time to share your background and all the amazing advice for others (including myself) to learn from. -Alex Culafi. Alex does lots of different things here at VentureFizz, but it was his knowledge in this world of podcasting that allowed us to start creating this amazing content. -And, of course, you, our audience, for listening to all of these great stories. I hope each interview has maybe provided you with a little bit of inspiration and some helpful tips that you can apply to your own business. Thank you, thank you, and thank you! or this milestone episode, I was excited to interview Wombi Rose and John Wise, the Founders of Lovepop. I first learned about Lovepop through TJ Mahony, who made an investment in the company, and it was one of those companies that immediately made sense. The greeting card industry was in need of disruption and Wombi & John’s background in naval architecture made them uniquely qualified to tackle this market. Lovepop creates beautiful laser-cut pop-up cards, and the company is on a mission to create one billion magical moments. You might have seen Lovepop on ABC’s Shark Tank, when they landed an investment from Kevin O’Leary, who is still very involved in the company today. Since then, Lovepop has done an amazing job of building a successful consumer brand and scaling the company. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Wombi and John’s backgrounds, including how they met in college and reunited at Harvard Business School. -The inspiration behind their product and a deep dive into the history of the company. -How Lovepop’s business was built from the ground up, and lessons learned along the way. -The whole Shark Tank experience and what it has meant for the company. -Advice for founders looking to build a consumer brand. -How the company determines whether a potential hire will be a good fit. -Plus, a lot more. Brex, the corporate credit card for startups, is the sponsor for this week’s podcast. Brex founders Henrique and Pedro built a payments business in Brazil but kept getting rejected for a corporate credit card when they were in Y Combinator. So they decided to build Brex, with instant online sign-up, no founder liability required and limits 10 to 20 times higher than standard cards; it is a must-have for entrepreneurs. Sign up for Brex at brex.com and get card fees waived by entering the code “fizz” during signup. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 99 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Simon Lorenz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Klara. Simon comes from a long family history of medical doctors and it was his time working in a hospital during his teenage years that prompted him to take a different career path. He recognized the inefficiencies and challenges within the healthcare industry and it became his passion. A passion to make a difference by improving the healthcare industry. Klara is a venture-backed company that was founded in 2013 with a mission to transform healthcare communication so that every patient can receive great care. Its HIPAA-compliant messaging platform makes it easy for healthcare providers to communicate with their patients and with each other. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -All the details on Klara and how they are improving the healthcare industry and making it more efficient through their communication platform. -Discovery-based selling and why it is important for your business, especially for landing early adopter customers. -How to know when you have product-market fit. -Figuring out your pricing strategy. -Avoiding the Series A funding crunch. -Plus, a lot more. Every Monday at 10 am, we send out our NY Weekly Tech Buzz email. It is your one email a week to stay connected to all the “must-know” information from the local tech scene. It includes information on companies, jobs, events, deals and more. Go to venturefizz.com/email to sign up. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 98 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Greg Raiz, Chief Innovation Officer at Rightpoint. Greg founded Raizlabs right when the mobile revolution was starting to take shape. The firm worked very closely with lots of companies help build out their app or mobile presence. Companies like Runkeeper, Rue La La, Care.com, and many others. Under his leadership, Raizlabs continued to grow and expand to the point where the company was acquired by Rightpoint in 2017. In his role as Chief Innovation Officer, he is responsible for building the culture of innovation throughout Rightpoint, and working with clients to help them digitally transform their businesses using design and innovation thinking. Here is a fun fact: did you know that Raizlabs had a mobile accelerator and that VentureFizz was part of the first cohort? Even though we weren’t a pure mobile company, Greg was kind enough to let us participate and hang out at their offices for an extended period of time. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Greg’s background before starting Raizlabs including what his time at Microsoft taught him. -The full background story of Raizlabs. -A deep dive into the early years of mobile and how customers’ started to adopt a mobile-first strategy. -The details on Rightpoint and its future growth plans. -Advice for founders trying to build a successful service-based business. -Plus, a lot more. It has been far too long since VentureFizz has hosted our own event. Well, that is finally changing. Last week, we announced a new event which is taking place on May 30th at Acquia’s offices in Boston. For this event, we are turning our popular Lead(H)er series into a live interactive event. You'll get a chance to hear some of the inspirational stories firsthand from an amazing group of women. Tickets are only $10 and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Boston chapter of Women Who Code. You can register on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/venturefizz-leadher-live-tickets-60945087397 Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 97 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Nicholas Horbaczewski, CEO and Founder of The Drone Racing League. Let’s face it, the world of sports is changing. Consumers are looking for options outside of the traditional sports categories like baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. This evolution started to take place several years ago when Xtreme sports started to come into the fold and now eSports has tremendous momentum with a rapidly growing audience. Now, Drone racing is also on the rise and it is a sport that has a history dating back to 2010. It features a high energy racing competition that reminds me of the pod racers from Star Wars Episode 1 meets Formula 1 racing, because it is actually taking place in the physical world. Drone Racing League is the global, professional racing circuit for elite pilots that fly drones at 90+ MPH. Nicholas has a massive vision for the future of this sport and you’ll be able to catch the 4th season this year on NBC, Twitter, and other outlets. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Nicholas’s background and how his experience led him down the path of starting this new sports league. -A dive into the history of drone racing and how The Drone Racing League got started. -Lots of details on how this sports meets tech company operates. -How he got investors, broadcasters, and sponsors involved. -His thoughts on the future of sports and entertainment. -Advice for founders on building a consumer brand. -Plus, a lot more. The tech industry in New York is thriving and the competition for talent is fierce. If you are hiring, you might want to consider adding a BIZZpage subscription on VentureFizz. It is an employment branding and hiring solution that helps keep your company stay at the forefront of the NY tech industry. A subscription includes an employment branding page, unlimited postings to our job board, access to our exclusive content series, and more. Send an email to info@venturefizz.com to learn the additional details. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 96 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Rudina Seseri, Founder and Managing Partner of Glasswing Ventures. Glasswing Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm dedicated to investing in the next generation of AI-powered technology companies. The firm announced its $112 million debut fund last July and Rudina has invested in companies like CHAOSSEARCH, Inrupt, Talla, Zylotech, and others. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Rudina’s inspirational background story and how at the age of 15, she came to the US by herself for school and what that taught her about independence. -Her professional experience and how she got into the world of venture capital. -The story of how Glasswing got started and all the details on the firm. -The current state of AI and other sectors. -Common mistakes entrepreneurs make. -Advice for founders on trying to get early customers. -The current state of diversity in the workplace. -Plus, a lot more. On the first Monday of every month, we publish the latest edition of Career Forward. It is a roll-up of the hottest jobs in the Boston tech scene. This month’s edition features over 120 jobs across all functional areas such as engineering, product, UX, sales, marketing, and more. Go to venturefizz.com/careerforward for more. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Greetings! I’m Alex Culafi, Producer and Editor of The VentureFizz Podcast, and on today’s bonus episode, we’re going to do something a little different. Today, we’re talking about a subject near and dear to my heart: video games and the power of play. I sit down with Susanna Pollack, President of Games for Change in New York, which is a nonprofit organization that empowers game creators to drive real-world change using games and technology. Some of the ways they do that include the game design competition called the Games for Change Student Challenge, interactive arcades produced to show off the best social impact and learning games in the market today, consulting for creators, and more. They also produce the Games for Change Festival in June as well as the recently-announced Games for Change Accelerator, which provides funding, mentoring, go-to-market planning, on-going business development, and continuous support to selected companies. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Susanna’s background and experience, and how she joined Games for Change. -All the details behind Games for Change and what they do. -What Susanna thinks makes video games uniquely qualified to spark change. -Examples of video games large and small that are successfully pro-social. -The details behind the new Games for Change Accelerator. -Some of Susanna’s favorite video games. -Plus, a lot more. Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!

Welcome to Episode 95 of The VentureFizz Podcast, the flagship podcast from the leading authority for jobs & careers in the tech industry. For this episode of our podcast, I interviewed Kristen Caldwell, talent consultant and advisor. I was really excited to speak with Kristen as we talk at length about a topic that I’m very passionate about and have pretty much built my career around: recruiting. Kristen has an impressive background where she has played in key role in building out some of the top companies across both coasts like Yammer, Vine, Uber, and Blue Apron. Today, she is working with founders to help out with their talent acquisition strategy, as well as working as an advisor for firms Thrive Capital and NextView Ventures. In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of topics, like: -Kristen’s background and the story of how she “fell into” recruiting. -The details of her in-house recruiting experience at each company. -The common mistakes entrepreneurs make when hiring. -How Kristen advises brand-new companies on top-of-the-funnel candidate strategy, including how to recruit engineers. -Telling the difference between someone who is good at interviewing versus a good hire. -How to approach diversity and inclusion. -Plus, a lot more. Our BIZZpages are a great way to do a virtual tour of high growth tech companies across the New York tech scene. Each BIZZpage has lots of information about the company, its culture, job openings, team, and more. You’ll find lots of great companies listed like Ordergroove, SevenRooms, Reonomy, Kasisto, Bowery, UiPath, Facebook, DigitalOcean, and so many more. Go to venturefizz.com/bizzpages to start exploring! Lastly, if you like the show, please remember to subscribe to and review us on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!