The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Billy Libby Vanessa Larco Nagraj Kashyap Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Marcelino Pantoja of Measurement joins Nick to discuss Founding the 1st VC Index Fund, Rethinking the Future of Capital Deployment, and Advice for Emerging Managers. Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Brian Luerssen Victor Pascucci Jonathan Ebinger Each investor describes the most unusual situation or pitch that they've encountered as an investor. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Santosh Sankar of Dynamo Ventures joins Nick to discuss The Rise of Supply Chain Startups, Why We're Feeling Whiplash, and What the Future Holds for Labor & Data. Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Jonathan Hung Brian Requarth Winter Mead Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

TX Zhuo of Fika Ventures joins Nick to discuss Fika's Playbook for Success, Finding Value Outside of Central Casting, and the Future of Fintech as Banks Get Unbundled. In this episode we cover: TX's Background & Path to VC Fika's Playbook Lessons From Cobra Kai DAO Infrastructure Unbundling the Bank Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Ramy Adeeb of 1984 joins Nick to discuss 2022 Predictions P2: Web 3.0 Dorsey vs. Andreesen, Crypto's Killer App, Omicron's Staying Power, Which FAANG Co. Loses to Anti-Trust First. In this episode we cover: The Web 3 Twitter War What Nick thinks about Crypto's Killer App Omicron and Labor Market Dynamics Inflation Expectations Regulation for Big Tech and Crypto & More! Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Ramy Adeeb of 1984 joins Nick to discuss 2022 Predictions P1: $100M Seed Valuations, Universe vs. Metaverse, Hottest and Coolest Sectors, Sequoia's VC Shakeup. In this episode we cover: Ramy's New $75M Fund Bubbles in Crypto and NFT's Why Ramy is sticking to the Universe Sequoia's New Strategy & More! Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Parker Barrile of Norwest Venture Partners joins Nick to discuss Norwest's New $3B Fund, the Effects of VC Capital Explosion, and Scaling LinkedIn's Product 20x. In this episode we cover: Norwest's Largest Ever Fund The Capital Allocator's Environment How Parker Scaled LinkedIn's Product to $2B Compelling Customer Acquisition Strategies & Much More! Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Emily Paxhia Ben Sun Yanev Suissa Each investor discusses sectors, drivers and/or trends that may have significant impact in the future and are potentially positioned for outsized-returns. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

On this special replay episode, Joanne Wilson joins Nick to discuss predatory investor practices and the dark side of venture, including: On the founder-side, What are some of the activities you've seen from early-stage investors, that are predatory toward founders? What are some of the major differences between investor practices of the mid-90's and today? What actionable measures would you recommend founders take in order to help prevent getting taken advantage of? Moving to the investor-side. What are some of the things that later-stage VCs will do to eliminate or water-out an angel's equity position? What can early-stage angels do to prevent this from happening? How has your approach evolved throughout your investing history to position you and your portfolio companies for success? Generally, what is your take on the gender balance in venture, how has it changed and what specific things are you involved in to help promote the role of women? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special replay, Charles Hudson of Precursor Ventures joins Nick to discuss Getting Smart on a New Market. In this episode we cover: What Charles' experience at SoftTech was like and how he made the transition to founding Precursor. What his continuing role as a Venture Partner at SoftTech entails. How Charles decides to study a new, emerging market and some of the markets that he's analyzed over the years. The three components of his approach to getting smart on a new area. How important timing is and how he considers if the timing is right for a new area. If he assesses markets vertically and looks for the level within the supply chain stack to see where a company is playing and which level within the chain is going to exert the most control over the market. How he breaks down market structure and the critical components therein. The importance of the degree of homogeneity of the customer base within a target market. How he thinks about companies disrupting existing markets and those creating brand new markets. We discuss how there's always a good reason to say no to startups and, more importantly, the key, recurring reasons that come up that cause him to say yes. How do you look at companies addressing industries where the incumbent product offerings are free. Businesses like Slack that were replacing free options Fresh Eyes… You've written about how you don't look at decks before the first meeting w/ an entrepreneur. Can you touch on the key reasons why you take meetings without reviewing the deck? If you are evaluating a startup that is pre-traction – what do you look for and why? In the spirit of continuous improvement… What are your thoughts on how one can learn and improve once they have a job in VC? What startup investor has inspired and influenced you most and why?

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Dharmesh Thakker Amy Nauiokas Jonathan Lehr Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

On this special replay, 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. Guest Update: Jaclyn is now Partner at Foundry Group. Congratulations Jaclyn! 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 investments currently and what are you hearing from other LPs? What's your advice for GPs re. building relationships and momentum w/ LPs during these uncertain times? What's the biggest mistake emerging managers make when fundraising? What do new fund managers underestimate when starting a venture firm? Does it matter how specific a thesis is? Do you need to see a unique, focused and compelling edge or are you just as receptive to a generalist w/ a strong network and track record? What question tends to trip up GPs? What are some of the most important things GPs should ask LPs when raising? What do you think are the most important things GPs and LPs need to be aligned on for a successful relationship? How does the explosion in volume of seed funds affect you approach to selection? How do you think this plays out — most funds fail? Returns more evenly distributed? Power law no longer applies (or is less pronounced)? Fast forward 5 years and let's assume there's been a fundamental shift in early stage Venture. What do you think is the most likely, largest change that's occurred? What advice do you have for young people that aspire to be a VC someday? Not going to ask for favorite GPs but, I will ask, if you could break quarantine to grab a cocktail w/ one GP — who do you choose? ; ) 3 Data Points… You're approached by an emerging VC firm raising fund II. The fund manager did not work for a large, brand-name venture firm before and she has never had an institutional investor. Net TVPI is 1.4, and Net IRR is 35% and it's a 2018 vintage. The catch is you can only ask 3 questions (for 3 additional data points) to make your decision. What 3 questions do you ask?

In this special replay of Episode 154, Ben Narasin of NEA joins Nick to discuss NEA's Investment Process & The Key Ingredients for Startup Success. In this episode we cover: - Why he made the move to NEA - His Investment focus - The investment process the firm and if decisions are made by committee - Ben's Evaluation Process - The key factor that every successful founder possesses - The common red flags that pop up and cause him to say no to strong startups - Why he believes his job is to say no - How he assess opportunities with 100 reasons to say yes and one reason to say no - Ben's evolving approach toward weighing risk factors in startups - How the tech and investing industry has changed over the past decade - How AUM is driving a bifurcation in venture Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Mike Smerklo Spencer Maughan Vanessa Larco Ben Wiener Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Ruth Foxe Blader of Anthemis joins Nick to discuss The Embedded Opportunity in Insurtech, Crypto & Web 3.0 Applications, and the Future of Fintech. In this episode we cover: Ruth's Background and path from English Major to VC What trends she's following in Fintech and Insurtech Opportunities for developing market founders & more! Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor describes the most unusual situation or pitch that they've encountered as an investor. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Russ Heddleston of Dropbox joins Nick to discuss Founding DocSend, Creating a Winning PLG Motion, and Data From 1000's of Pitch Decks. In this episode we cover: Can you tell us a bit about your background and your path to founding DocSend? How did you think about the PLG strategy for DocSend? Why did you release the Seed Fundraising Report? What are the typical numbers like for a seed round? How much are they raising? How many investors are people meeting with? What makes for a successful pitch deck? How to find a good co-founder? Learnings from DocSend and a word of advice to founders. Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Andrew Antonio of Urban Sky and Nate Williams of Union Labs join Nick to discuss Why We Invested in Urban Sky. In this episode we cover: What is Urban Sky? How did Andrew and Nate originally connect? The thesis at Union Labs. What does the future hold for Urban Sky? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Nagraj Kashyap of Softbank joins Nick to discuss The Future of Softbank and Vision Fund 2, Creative Monetization of User Growth, and Why VC's Missed on Zoom. In this episode we cover: Nagraj's Background and Path to VC. How do you think through horizontal, vertical, or geographic expansion and when the right time is to do so? What did other VC's miss about Zoom? How do you evaluate an opportunity? What key things are you looking for in a consumer startup? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Nihal Mehta of Eniac Ventures joins Nick to discuss The Human Rolodex, How the 2021 VC Vintage will Perform, and the Importance of Partnership Dynamics. In this episode we cover: How do you think about active management of relationships over time? Do you have any advice, tricks, or tips? What is something you would have told yourself when you started Eniac? How have you built the team over time and thought about roles, responsibilities, skill sets required, and driving value/outcomes for the firm? What do you look for in a fund manager? Where do 2020 and 2021 Vintage Funds rank? What inspired you to start the 100K Pledge? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Yanev Suissa of SineWave Ventures joins Nick to discuss Public Sector Tech, the Merits of Hyper Concentration, and Why Google is More Frightening than the NSA. In this episode we cover: You've talked about investing "where the Valley, the Fortune 500, and the public sector intersect". How is this different from the typical Valley-based investor? Are there any advantages to working with public sector buyers? Is there legislative risk you take on by selling to an administration? Where do you see the biggest opportunities are coming out of the infrastructure bill? Rapid fire round of questions. Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? David Goldberg Episode 272 Nicole Quinn Episode 279 Spencer Maughan Episode 284 Jonathan Ebinger Episode 302 For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Manan Mehta of Unshackled Ventures joins Nick to discuss Selection at Day 0, Investing in Immigrants, and Navigating Founder-Problem Fit. In this episode we cover: What is investing at Day 0? What unique challenges do you face in backing immigrant founders? How do you approach sourcing and how you do it differently than other firms? What is Founder-Problem Fit? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Tim Guleri Amy Nauiokas Sach Chitnis Guy Perelmuter Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Tony Wilkins of Standing Oaks Venture Partners joins Nick to discuss Identifying Stand-outs at Pre-Seed, Coaching High-Growth Leaders, and Leveling the Playing Field for Underrepresented Founders. In this episode we cover: Are leaders born or made? How do you select for potentially great leaders at the very beginning of their business journey? How do you think about building a strong and healthy culture within a firm? What's the most important thing for an angel investor to know when they start investing? What will it take to level the playing field for founders?

Each investor discusses sectors, drivers and/or trends that may have significant impact in the future and are potentially positioned for outsized-returns. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Ben Wiener Vanessa Larco Victor Pascucci Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Jonathan Lehr of Work-Bench joins Nick to discuss IT and Enterprise Tech Investing, The Realities and Myths of PLG, and The Past and Future of NYC Tech. In this episode we cover: Walk us through your background and path to VC. Tell us a little more about the thesis at Work-Bench. On your website, you mention you invest in "seed and seed II" startups. What is a seed II? What sort of myths are there around PLG companies? How do you advise startups to price their products? Mark Suster recently Tweeted… "If you look at our industry, it's now awash with capital that requires every firm to get very focused on where its edge comes from. If you're not a bulge-bracket VC, choose your positioning wisely"(stage, sector, geography, founder access) … way too many firms are generic". What are your thoughts on the financing environment? You've been a part of the New York tech ecosystem for about a decade now. How has the tech scene evolved over the past 10 years or so? There was a dogma for a while that enterprise startups had to be built in Silicon Valley. Why do you think this is a mistaken belief? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Nikhil Basu Trivedi Alfred Chuang Monique Woodard Ben Sun Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Rob Go of NextView Ventures joins Nick to discuss Reflections From 10 Years at NextView, Dogma vs Discipline, the Importance of Effective Post Money, and Market Sizing Pitfalls. In this episode we cover: Is VC fundamentally changing under our feet? What are other biggest industry shifts that have changed the way you operate at Next View? Most LPs are focused on their fund managers' ownership percentage at entry. Explain what effective post-money at exit is and why that has become a north star from next view? Takeaway #3: There is a Goldilocks zone between too much dogma and lack of discipline. Can you give us an example or two of strategies that were difficult to let go of or move on from? Your favorite saying internally is "anything worth doing is worth doing fast". Yet this is a pretty long cycle business and it takes time for a portfolio to mature and drive returns. What were the key learnings with regards to returns and metrics? How do you know if you're winning if the metrics are a bit of a red herring? Are there any alternative metrics or signals you look for to quantitatively gauge performance? You cited the biggest observable misses for most VC's and it's related to market size -- what's been your observation here and where are investors missing? You suggest that founders and investors should make each other a bit uncomfortable. Why? Does this ever prevent you from winning deals? What's your opinion on competition after a decade of investing? How do you think about the competitive set of investors and how to maintain and edge in sourcing and winning the best deals? Do you have any advice for founders w/regards to fundraising? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Dharmesh Thakker Billy Libby Emily Paxhia Ed Sim Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod).

Jonathan Ebinger of Transform Capital joins Nick to discuss Donating Half Your Carry, Why Open Banking is the Future, and Recruiting Outside the Bay Area. In this episode we cover: Walk us through your background and path to VC Tell us about your experience at Blue Run and why you decided to launch Transform. What is the thesis at Transform? Portfolio construction / stage / check size How did you come up with the model to donate 50% of your carry? What causes are you allocating carry to? What was the biggest challenge in the transition from early stage to late stage venture investing? So you led the Series A in Jackpocket at BlueRun and the later stage Transform. How do you avoid conflicts of interest across both firms? I know you are an active fintech investor -- w/ regards to crypto... what areas are most compelling right now from an investment standpoint? We're in a hot market at the moment -- seeing lots of fund creation, lots of startup formation, and valuations are inflating to 2-3x what they were a few years ago. Is the market overheated and are too many startups getting funded? Is the bay area being threatened in its supremacy? The Economist last week talked about the slowing pace of innovation and rise of mega-companies. What's your take on their position that innovation has slowed -- and what does that mean for venture? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in outsiders. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's Inbox!

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Mike Smerklo Amy Nauiokas Tsune Shirota Vanessa Larco Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod). The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-moran-a738503/), General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website (https://www.newstack.vc/) and LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/11396054/) and be sure to follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/NewStackVC). Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank (http://vc-rank.com/) and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's Inbox!

Eric Sippel of Sippel Farb Family Office joins Nick to discuss Raising from Family Offices, How to Differentiate as an Emerging Fund, and Common Mistakes Made by Established Firms. In this episode we cover: Walk us through your background and path to running Sippel Farb. Before we jump in can you give us some thoughts on Family Offices investing in Venture and how that has changed over the 25 years that you've been doing this? What are the major investment focus areas for the family office? With regards to manager selection... What gets you excited when you review the profile of an emerging fund? Tell us about the 3 S's that you look for. Rounds are moving faster then ever and prices seem to be escalating to 2-3x of what they were just 3 years ago. Many GPs cite their speed of decision-making as a strength -- What is your opinion of quick investment decisions and short DD timelines? At New Stack, we focus on ownership. However, some managers prefer a less concentrated approach with more shots on goal. What are your key learnings regarding portfolio construction over the past few decades and what do you look for in emerging funds? Many LPs look for differentiated strategies for sourcing and winning deals... and put heavy weight on those factors. Where do you stand? When a GP is pitching any family office, not just yours, what should they be mindful of that may be different than when they're pitching an institution? Family Offices are often a bit opaque... it's hard to find them and know what their investment interests are. Do you have advice or suggestions of ways that fund managers can find and connect with families that may be a fit? Have you seen any strategies from GPs that have connected with you in creative and friendly ways? What mistakes do you see "emerged/established" managers making the most? What about emerging managers? There's a great piece on Substack by Nikhil Trivedi that discusses the rise of the Solo GP. What are your thoughts on the rise of angels to super angels to sole capitalists? Do you perceive this as a threat to traditional VC firms? Last year, Different Funds published a report on the rise of capital going to vehicles outside of flagship/committed funds--i.e. SPV's, Syndicates, Rolling Funds, and Opportunity funds. How does an LP navigate all these vehicles? You've worked with a lot of GP's. What sort of bad behavior have you observed that you attempt to screen for now? Are there signals post-investment, after a certain period of time, that indicate to you that a GP or fund is working well. What's your opinion on using follow-on capital to bridge a company to Series A? What advice, that we didn't cover, would you have for GPs out there that are raising a Fund I or Fund II?

Each investor discusses sectors, drivers and/or trends that may have significant impact in the future and are potentially positioned for outsized-returns. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155166/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/TFR_Pod). The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-moran-a738503/), General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website (https://www.newstack.vc/) and LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/11396054/) and be sure to follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/NewStackVC). Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank (http://vc-rank.com/) and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

Victor Pascucci of Energy Capital Ventures joins Nick to discuss The Trillion $ Opportunity in Natural Gas, Building A Strategic LP-Base, and Creating a Strong LPAC. In this episode we cover: Give us an overview of the data and the opportunity within the natural gas sector for tech disruption. What percentage of our energy consumption is natural gas based? Why focus on natural gas? Why is now the right time for a natural gas focused venture fund? Let's talk for a moment about the digital transformation of the natural gas industry. Where can we expect to see the most change going forward? Exploration, development, or production? Any concerns about the volume and quality of dealflow in this specialized sector? What kind of founder do you look for to change this legacy industry? How may these founders differ from the Silicon Valley stereotype? 5 large publicly-traded LPs -- Talk a bit about how you plan to work with the LPs as you make investments, manage the portfolio? How do you avoid the tail wagging the dog? How do you handle a situation where the tech you are investing in is highly disruptive and margin eroding to LPs in the fund? Many talk about the importance of carbon neutrality, yet it's a very opaque and difficult thing to measure. One company's carbon footprint extends beyond just what happens within but all the partners, suppliers, distributors and, at times, customers that they interact with. How can we appropriately assess carbon impact in the pursuit of carbon neutrality? Tell us a bit about learnings and best practices in building an advisory board. I'd suspect that, much like a startup, there is a point where a well-constructed board can really amplify efforts, and a bloated or not well functioning board can kill momentum and progress. How have you structured a board for long term success? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Maren Bannon Sach Chitnis Jonathan Hsu Glenn Rockman Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out. Did you miss our guests full length episodes? Maren Bannon Episode 268 Sach Chitnis Episode 269 Jonathan Hsu Episode 243 Glenn Rockman Episode 282 For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

Seth Levine & Elizabeth MacBride of The New Builders joins Nick to discuss The Decline of Entrepreneurship in America, Systemic Inequity in Supporting Small Businesses, and the "Capital vs. Labor" Debate. In this episode we cover: Why did you write the book? I'd actually like to start w/ Chapter 6, which is a history of entrepreneurship in the US… we can't really do it justice in the interview but can you give us an overview of the history and where we are at today? You cover that entrepreneurship has been declining in the US for the past 40 years and more significantly within the past 15. What are some of the big factors that have led to that decline? Why are entrepreneurship and new business creation so important for the future of our country and society? How does the Silicon Valley version of entrepreneurship differ from the reality of entrepreneurship? What does the real profile of entrepreneurship look like vs. what we see in the data on the tech / venture-funded part of entrepreneurship? What can Main Street entrepreneurs learn from the Silicon Valley model of entrepreneurship? You did a lot of research and pulled together data sets/stats for the book — what were some of the most surprising findings from the data? Can you define the 'capital vs. labor' debate for us and give us your stance on that debate? Is this book a call-to-action… are you trying to encourage more broad-based entrepreneurship? Seth, how do you reconcile your interests and recommendations from the book with your career which is geared toward funding a very small percentage of founders that are focused on building multi-billion dollar outcomes? You address some issues that are systemic to our country -- government policies, economic system, etc. -- How big of a role do you think politics have in shaping entrepreneurship for the future? What advice or final thoughts would you like to share w/ listeners? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Reid Christian David Goldberg McKeever "Mac" Conwell II Neil Sequeira Each investor discusses a portfolio company that did not survive and why it was that they failed. Did you miss our guests' full-length episodes? Reid Christian Episode 259 David Goldberg Episode 272 McKeever "Mac" Conwell II Episode 277 Neil Sequeira Episode 281 For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

Emily Paxhia of Poseidon Asset Management joins Nick to discuss The $61B Cannabis Market, Overcoming Compliance and Regulation, and the Declining Social Stigma Around Cannabis. In this episode we cover: Can you give us an overview of the Cannabis Space -- size, growth, major sub-segments? Which segments are you most interested in? What areas do you not invest in and why? Raising a cannabis fund in 2013... I have to imagine you had to find a certain type of LP for that pitch to land. How hard was that? Regulation can be a break or a gas pedal --how have you or do you assess and underwrite the regulatory and legal risks in the space? To what extent are Cannabis businesses shut out of the existing financial system? Are there any other major differences in sourcing or diligence for a cannabis focused fund vs. your standard VC fund? How many cannabis focused funds are there and is follow-on financing risk significant when you're dealing with a smaller pool of capital providers? In 2018 we saw this massive boom and bust cycle for cannabis and hemp companies. How cyclical is the industry and, aside from consumer consumption behaviors, what macro drivers do you watch closely? There's recently been news that Molson-Coors has launched a CBD-infused drink and several major health and wellness retailers will offer CBD topicals. 5 years from now will all of the major household CPGs have CBD and Cannabis products available? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Dayna Grayson & Rachel Holt Ali Tamaseb Jonathan Hung Vanessa Larco Each investor describes the most unusual situation or pitch that they've encountered as an investor. Did you miss our guest's full-length episodes? Dayna Grayson & Rachel Holt Episode 291 Ali Tamaseb Episode 289 Jonathan Hung Episode 292 Vanessa Larco Episode 295 For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

Winter Mead of Oper8r joins Nick to discuss How to Raise a VC Fund, The YC for Emerging Managers, and Family Office Trends. In this episode we cover: Tell us a little more about Oper8or. Why did you leave Sapphire to start this program? Give us an overview of Oper8or? Walk us through the selection process and what you're looking for. Bring us up to speed on progress-to-date, how you measure success, and what the plan is going forward? You published your first book last year -- "How to Raise a Venture Capital Fund". The target audience for the book is fairly obvious... was the motivation to write the book similar to why you started Oper8r? What are the most common mistakes new fund managers make? How do you think about types of LPs or profiles that fund managers should be targeting? What are the patterns, practices or even tactics of the most successful fundraisers that you've observed? You co-authored a research effort w/ First Republic on Family Office Investors -- what were the key takeaways? What are some of the common reasons that LPs pass that might not be so obvious? What's the biggest difference between winning fund strategies of the early 2010s vs winning fund strategies in the next decade? What factor do you find to be of critical importance that is most often underappreciated by LPs? Currently over 1500 active venture funds... Do you think the market can support this high of a volume of funds? Often, a startup investor may get early positive or negative signals on an investment within the first 18-24 months. As an LP, how long does it take to get a sense whether the decision to invest was good or you might want to have that one back? Why is emerging VC compelling as an sub-asset class of VC? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Monique Woodard Spencer Maughan Paul Martino Ben Casnocha Each investor illustrates a critical lesson learned about startup investing and how it's changed their approach. Did you miss our guest's full length episodes? Monique Woodard Episode 273 Spencer Maughan Episode 284 Paul Martino Episode 275 Ben Casnocha Episode 245 For other great episodes, go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!

Ben Wiener of Jumpspeed Ventures joins Nick to discuss Investing in Jerusalem, Applying Helmer's 7 Powers to VC, and Writing a Business Murder Mystery. In this episode we cover: How difficult was it raising a fund to invest only in Jerusalem-originated startups? What do you say to critics who claim that "focusing only one one geo is too limiting?" Are there specific sectors or types of tech that are uniquely positioned to thrive in Jerusalem? What are the similarities and differences in raising a fund vs. raising funds for a startup? You've spoken before about the mismatch between supply and demand for early stage capital in Jerusalem. Has it been tough finding reliable and persistent follow-on capital for A or B rounds? Since inception ~35% of your investments have been in female-led (female founder/CEO) startups, which is an order of magnitude greater than the 2-3% industry average. Talk about sourcing and what you do on the sourcing side to increase the number of diverse and women led startups you meet with? You recently wrote a Murder Mystery novel. It's a startup fiction based on Hamilton Helmer's 7 Powers. Why did you write a business strategy murder mystery? The book focuses on Addie Morita, a young crime researcher working on a serial killer case with clues buried in Hamilton's 7 Powers. What similarities can be drawn from 7 Powers and from solving a murder? Missed a recent episode? Go to The Full Ratchet blog and catch up! Also, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran, General Partner of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in the exceptions. To learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our Website and LinkedIn and be sure to follow us on Twitter. Are you a founder looking for your next investor? Visit our free tool VC-Rank and tell us about your business. We'll send a list of possible investors right to your email's InBox!