The Unapologetic Capitalist 365w6i

A CEO’s job is to build long term value in their company. Yet many CEOs fail. Having the right CEO to lead a company is critical to a venture’s success. The wrong CEO can be disastrous. Learn to spot the red flags, and ask the right questions to understand who the best CEO is to lead your venture towards exceptional long term value. CEO case example: American Apparel CEO ousting overview The 4 archetypes of CEOs: Naked Emperor CEO: Typically rule by fear, and need ‘yes men’ around them. Tend to rest on their laurels. Fear change and innovation and highly vulnerable to ‘scoundrels’ or competitive opportunists Firefighter CEO: Put forth an inordinate amount of effort on tactical ‘fires’ in front of them and often neglect the greater forest. Dinosaur CEO: Older CEOs who have been content with their earlier successes and haven’t seen any value in staying on the forefront of their industry or investing in innovation. They have long since become ‘extinct’/obsolete in their industry and excuse their lack of current results or leadership with their ‘good intentions.’ Benevolent Dictator: What every good CEO and leader should strive to be. An effective leader who prioritizes the long term value and needs of the venture above any short term or individual want. Benevolent Dictator CEO founders — These CEO’s have a ion for product, but to what end? Good business decisions must be made devoid of ion. Young ones lack experience, and can be hindered by their own hubris. CEO hires — Leading a public company is a fundamentally different type of company to run than a private one. Key CEO questions: Are you making excuses or taking responsibility? How much does experience matter? How much does management skill matter? Company needs are different at different times: A public company is a different beast and generally best run by a different person than when it was a private one. The average company that goes public is on its 3rd CEO by the time they go public. Many CEOs fail at their core job of adding long term value to their venture. Most people think their bosses suck, so when staring a company, they think they can do it better. And, why not? You might think you are pretty smart, and what the hell do those older folks know anyway. They are old and out of touch, but experience still counts, and it is the smart person who knows what they don’t know so that they can hire it. Key to a good CEO is prior assessment as whether or not they are the right person to be at the helm. A good hire must be more than a short term PR move. The post TheUC 040: Who is the Best CEO for Your Venture? appeared first on The Unapologetic Capitalist.

CEO John Kawola of Harvest Automation discusses the challenges of selling innovation to a traditional marketplace that is generally slow to adopt new technologies. John Kawola talks about the need to invest in building face-to-face relationships with the customer and utilizing ‘old school’ sales techniques such as product education and trials to convert sales. Selling innovation is key to generating long term venture value. Introduction of Show Topic: How High Growth Ventures Can Bridge the Chasm from Today to The Next Major Milestone Toward Building A Venture of Significant Long Term Value – Highlighting Harvest Automation with John Kawola and Discussing Selling Innovation Brief Recap of Venture Series Making Prudent and Informed Decisions Given Time & Resources…Knowing True Costs (hard costs and opportunity costs) Key Challenges for Ventures: Gaining Critical Mass of Customers…the Right Customers Getting Adoption of New Innovation from Notoriously Slow Industries (e.g. Health Care and Agriculture) Inventory Management…Balance of Investment in Inventory & Operations versus Investment in Sales and Business Development Brief Review of Previous Shows & Lead into Harvest Automation – CEO John Kawola and Selling Innovation Introduction of Harvest Automation Overview of Opportunity…Give market size & growth potential of the pie that Harvest Automation is looking to take a slice Story of how/why Harvest Automation was founded Story John Kawola’s role in company Current Status of Harvest Automation…Give metrics (if willing) to indicate current status such as revenue size, number of consumers, funding history Next Major Milestone for Harvest Automation Key Challenge(s) for Growing Harvest Automation Selling Innovation in an Industry that is Generally Reticent to Innovation Balancing Product Evolution with Building Long Term Consumers Early stage customers who are willing to be part of the product evolution process Mass market customers who aren’t generally tolerant of any tweaks or changes to the product and experience…Who are these customers for Harvest Automation? Measuring Success Metrics…what are they and are they aligned with investor’s expectations? Timing…what are the expectations? How realistic are these expectations? The post TheUC 039: Selling Innovation with CEO John Kawola of Harvest Automation appeared first on The Unapologetic Capitalist.

Building Product and Brand Awareness with Cheryl Rosner, CEO Stayful.com Building brand awareness is key to venture success. Stayful CEO Cheryl Rosner discusses the challenges of building product and brand awareness amongst multiple customer groups.  The show includes an in-depth conversation exploring the evolution of creating brand awareness with early adopting customers who are integrally involved in product development to mass market customers who want a perfect product at a low cost. Introduction of Show Topic: How High Growth Ventures Can Bridge the Chasm from Today to The Next Major Milestone Toward Building A Venture of Significant Long Term Value – Highlighting Building Brand Awareness with Stayful CEO Cheryl Rosner Brief Recap of Venture Series Making Prudent and Informed Decisions Given Time & Resources…Knowing True Costs (hard costs and opportunity costs) Key Challenges for Ventures: Gaining Critical Mass of Customers…the Right Customers Getting Adoption of New Innovation from Notoriously Slow Industries (e.g. Health Care and Agriculture)Inventory Management…Balance of Investment in Inventory & Operations versus Investment in Sales and Business Development Brief Review of Firelight & Lead into Stayful Introduction of Stayful Overview of Opportunity…Give market size & growth potential of the pie that Stayful is looking to take a slice Story of how/why Stayful was founded Story of CEO…include background that brought Cheryl to found Stayful and take role as the CEO Current Status of Stayful…discuss metrics to indicate current status and brand awareness of Stayful, number of consumers, number of participating boutique hotels, funding history Next Major Milestone for Stayful: Tackling Brand Awareness Key Challenge(s) for Growing Stayful Gaining Key Brand Awareness Leveraging brand awareness & adoption of boutique hotel customer w/ consumer who is going to bid for the booking Balancing Product Evolution with Building Loyal Consumer Brand Awareness Early stage customers who are willing to be part of the product evolution process Mass market customers who aren’t generally tolerant of any tweaks or changes to the product and experience Measuring Success of Brand Awareness Metrics…how do you measure successful brand awareness? How do you aligned brand awareness with investor’s expectations? Timing…how quickly can you realistically build meaningful brand awareness? Wrap Up The post The UC 038: Building Brand Awareness with Stayful CEO Cheryl Rosner appeared first on The Unapologetic Capitalist.

An excellent product launch is critical for venture success. Robert Frisch, CEO of Firelight Camps, discusses the key challenges of preparing for a product launch. Firelight is bringing ‘glamping’ (a high end camping experience) to unique hotel properties and vineyards. The UC and Robert discuss the product launch of an innovative product in the traditional hospitality market space. Key product launch challenges include identifying valuable core customers, gaining market traction, and finding economies of scale in a capital intensive product. Introduction of Show Topic: How High Growth Ventures Can Bridge the Chasm from Today to The Next Major Milestone Toward Building A Venture of High Growth – Highlighting Firelight Camps with CEO Robert Frisch Brief Recap of Venture Series Discussion of 3 Key Impediments Toward Achieving Key Milestones in a Growing Venture Setting the Right Milestones Having Clarity of the Ventures Current Status Setting the Appropriate Next Milestone Given Status Being Disciplined Not to Skip Steps Understanding Realistic Resources and Timing Making Prudent and Informed Decisions…Knowing True Costs (hard costs and opportunity costs) Key Challenges for Ventures: Gaining Critical Mass of Customers During Product Launch Getting Adoption of New Innovation from Notoriously Slow Industries (e.g. Hospitality,Health Care, and Agriculture) Inventory Management…Balance of Investment in Inventory & Operations versus Investment in Sales and Business Development for Optimal Product Launch Introduction & Profile of Firelight Camps Overview of Opportunity Story of Firelight Camps Story of CEO Current Status of Firelight Camps and Their Product Launch Key Challenge for Growing Firelight Camps Post Product Launch Discussion of Strategy to Balance Investment in Capacity & Business Development & Brand Building…Growing Business While Ensuring Economies of Scale Wrap Up   The post TheUC 037: Preparing for Product Launch with CEO Robert Frisch of Firelight Camps appeared first on The Unapologetic Capitalist.

CEO Jordan Schindler of Nüfabrx discusses bringing his venture to the next major milestone by balancing investment in sales and inventory management. The discussion hits the 3 key impediments towards achieving the critical milestones in a high growth venture and discusses solutions for building a venture of significant value. Nufabrx Overview: This venture has created a new way to ister essential oils, medications, vitamins and cosmeceuticals. Their approach embeds medications into any fabric, which releases actives into the skin on —yet not into the wash during laundering of the fabric. The first product, the Nufabrx pillowcase, is made of bamboo and infused with clinically proven natural remedies to treat acne. Introduction of Show Topic: How High Growth Ventures Can Bridge the Gap from Today to The Next Major Milestone Toward Building A Venture of Great Value – Highlighting Nüfabrx with CEO Jordan Schindler Brief Recap of Last Show Discussion of 3 Key Impediments Toward Achieving Key Milestones in a Growing Venture Setting the Right Milestones Having Clarity of the Ventures Current Status Setting the Appropriate Next Milestone Given Status Being Disciplined Not to Skip Steps Understanding Realistic Resources and Timing Making Prudent and Informed Decisions…Knowing True Costs (hard costs and opportunity costs) Key Challenges for Ventures: Gaining Critical Mass of Customers Getting Adoption of New Innovation from Notoriously Slow Industries (e.g. Health Care and Agriculture) Inventory Management…Balance of Investment in Inventory & Operations versus Investment in Sales and Business Development Introduction & Profile of Venture Nüfabrx Overview of Opportunity Story of Venture Story of CEO Current Status of Venture Key Challenge for Growing Venture Nüfabrx Discussion of Venture Strategy to Balance Investment in Inventory & Business Development Transitioning Venture from Smaller Customers to Large Ones Wrap Up The post TheUC 036: CEO Jordan Schindler Discusses Growing His Venture Nufabrx appeared first on The Unapologetic Capitalist.