The Founder Formula

Latest Episodes:

Executing Someone Else's Ideas Inspires a 25 year old Intern to Launch a Start-up May 05, 2020

Show notes

After graduating from Cornell University, Tim's first gig was executing the ideas of others. He soon realized the Data Science and Insight work he was doing wasn't solving the pain point that was creating usable data.

The solution didn't exist. It needed to be created – and he knew how to do it.

Thus, the launch of a new start-up and a founder's journey.

Tim Delisle started his company at just 25 years old. He did his first pitch between college classes, and rather than using a power point or whiteboard, he used a notebook and some sharpies from his backpack.

On this episode of The Founder Formula, we sat down with Tim to discuss:

- Finding his co-founder at a Hackathon

- Building culture by cooking and eating together

- Not knowing any VC's when he started

- 3 keys stages: Seed Stage, Series A, and large growth rounds

- Translating gut instincts into clear communication

Listen to this and all of The Founder Formula episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

From Guitar Hero to Oculus VR: Surviving a Start-Up Apr 22, 2020

Show notes

What happens when you get the chance to sit down with someone who was the co-founder of Oculus VR, and was one of the chief IP leads for the famed Activision franchise Guitar Hero?

Someone who has made a career out of innovation and knows what it takes to succeed in the startup world? You drop everything and have that conversation.

On the Season 2 kick off episode of The Founder Formula, we sat down with Jack McCauley to talk about:

- The story of the development of Oculus

- The soft skills needed to survive in a startup environment

- Advice for folks who want to hang on to their IP

- So, so much more

Listen to this and all of The Founder Formula episodes at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

The Design Sprint. Why You Need It. Nov 26, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Jake Knapp, Designer, Advisor, & New York Times Best Selling Author, and someone who cut his teeth on Microsoft Encarta.

Who remembers Microsoft Encarta?

Show of hands.

For those of you under the age of 30, it was essentially Wikipedia on a CD-ROM. You'd buy it, and then at the end of the year, it would get updated and you'd have to buy it again.

On this episode we talked about:

The theory behind The Sprint

What he took away from Google and Microsoft

Success stories from companies that have embraced The Sprint.

How to write a book on the side while still being amazing at your job.

Listen to this and all of the Founder Formula episodes at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

A Great and Terrible Idea: Founding a Company With High School Buddies Nov 19, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Benjamin Hindman, Co-Founder of D2iQ (formerly Mesosphere).

After founding a company with buddies from high school, would you undertake a CEO search and an entire company rebrand? If you did, here's what you'd learn:

Why founding a company with high school buddies is a great and terrible idea
What it's like to search for a CEO
The process of rebranding

Listen to this and all of The Founder Formula episodes at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

Embracing Design Partners Rather Than Beta Testers Nov 12, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Nir Polak, Cofounder and CEO at Exabeam.

Founders of tech solutions should sign design partners. Not beta testers.

What we talked about:

Design partners and how they're superior to beta testers
Benefits of refining your product market fit early in your to market process
Creating a heat map of scaling communications
Finding investors

Find this episode and more Founder Formula at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

3 Traits of People You Want to Found a Company With Nov 05, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Elik Eizenberg, Founder & CTO at BigPanda. On this episode, he speaks with us about his enduring love for data algorithms.

The more you think about founding a company, the more you don't want to do it. At some point, you'll have to stop analyzing all the reasons not to and get started.

What we talked about:

Why analysis will keep you from founding your company
The kind of people you want to found a company with
Elik's process of finding his target market
Starting with mockups
Why "Panda"

To hear this episode and more like it, subscribe to The Founder Formula on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or tune in on our website.

3 Ways to Prove to VCs That You're a Billion-Dollar Company Oct 29, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Jyoti Bansal, serial entrepreneur, tech visionary, and co-founder of Harness. As an entrepreneur, the hardest part about taking a chance on an idea often isn't when the idea doesn't work out. It's when it does work out. Jyoti was kind enough to fill us in on what it takes to prove your startup plan is worth a billion dollars.

In this episode, we cover:

Being a first-time founder
The toll entrepreneurship can have on families
Solidifying a convincing pitch for VCs

To hear this episode and more like it, subscribe to The Founder Formula on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or tune in on our website.

The Myth of Entrepreneurship with Hayes Drumwright Oct 22, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Hayes Drumwright, founder or co-founder of multiple startups ranging from tech to the nonprofit space, including a few passion projects. He sits down to discuss with us his formula for being a serial entrepreneur.

Hayes has a new wine company as a passion project called memento mori--which is latin for "remember you will die." It is a great metaphor for how he views life and entrepreneurship. Their company is a call for customers to remember to live. On the other hand, they also want to honor the struggles of their customers. Memento Mori, as a company wants their customers to do two things: be vulnerable and be brave.

For Hayes, entrepreneurship is tough because you are making a bet on yourself, and when you start a company you force a lot of people to also bet on you. He also shares what he believes is the myth of entrepreneurship: most people think you need an amazing idea in order to achieve a lot of success. But in reality all you really need is an unbelievable level of commitment to do it better than anybody else.

The 2 Most Important Characteristics for Starting a Company Oct 15, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Raja Mukerji, Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer at ExtraHop Networks.

There is only one purpose of any company: to provide VALUE to its users. In order to do that, you need a maniacal focus on the customer right from the outset of founding a company.

In this episode, Raja shares his thoughts on:

Showing up in Gartner's upper-right hand quadrant.
The 2 most important characteristics you need to start a company.
The biggest myth about startups.
Why it's important for your investors to appreciate the "Art of the Possible."

From 2003 Google to the Smartphone for Enterprise Data Oct 08, 2019

Show notes

Today's guest is Mohit Aron, who was employee #600 at Google. When he left, four years later, Google had 30,000 employees. He worked there during a romantic era.

It was an amazing ride. He joined Google in early 2003.

Now Mohit is CEO and Founder of Cohesity.

He gave us incredible insight into: