FounderMail 7th Edition: Optionality and The Importance of Early Startup Relationships
👋 Hey there! I’m Ilan. This is FounderMail, your monthly dose of startup insights that helps founders hire top talent, raise capital, and stay informed. This month’s edition of FounderMail is brought to you in partnership with Commit. Ready? Let’s go!
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Unstacked Startups is building a community of tech founders, early employees, leaders, and VCs uncovering the 'secret sauce' to startup growth. We want to share the insights with you through real conversations on our podcast (subscribe on YouTube or Spotify) live events, and our newsletter FounderMail.
In This Edition:
Shower Thoughts: Build and Leverage Your Network
What’s Got Our Attention
Unstacked Podcast: Optionality & Opportunity
The MVP Play with Elizabeth Adams, Co-Founder of Ello
Unstacked Perspectives: Empathy, Trust & Honest Communication
Shower Thoughts
Soak up insights from our network’s top investors, founders and tech influencers.
“Having strong partnerships is so much more influential than we could have imagined..I think if you're running your partner strategy right, they should become an extension of your business, members of your team, all working together to get the job done.” - Greg Hong, Founder of Reserve (acquired by Resy)
Hard work + long hours = success.
At least, that's what we're often told. But in reality, most often than not, the success of a technology company stems from nurturing key foundational relationships, perhaps even more so than simply focusing on the technology itself.
So, hard work + early relationships = success?
Build and leverage your network.
Early users/clients - Stay close to the end users as they could be your biggest drivers of success. Dropbox owes much of its success to early adopters who evangelized the cloud storage solution. Their testimonials and feature requests shaped the product roadmap. Early users may just become your most influential ambassadors.
Talent - Whether closely or loosely, these relationships may prove invaluable in the long run. Be it hiring, investing, or building a new business. Early connections have historically shaped the success of entire tech ecosystems, as seen with the 'PayPal Mafia.'
TL;DR: There’s infinite value in the relationships formed in the first few years of building a business with critical shareholders, like early adopters and founding talent. They can reveal your network's true value and its ripple effects.
What’s Got Our Attention
The latest startup news and research you can’t afford to miss.
This guide to 'co-founder dating' can help secure your ideal startup partner
Finding the perfect fundraising moment is like finding the perfect porridge temperature, here’s how to find your Goldilocks Fundraising Period
Some co-founders are going to couples therapy to learn how to navigate conflict
Unstacked Startups Podcast Recap
Check out our favorite insights from a recent episode of the Unstacked Startups Podcast. Every episode, Unstacked host, Ilan Saks, chats with startup founders, early employees, leaders, and VCs to uncover the 'secret sauce' of startup growth.
Chris Arsenault
A trailblazer in the tech industry with a remarkable track record spanning over two decades, Chris Arsenault, the Co-Founder & CEO of Inovia Capital, knows firsthand the pivotal role early connections play when building successful ventures.
People are at the core of everything, from building and investing in companies to driving innovation. Ultimately, it's the collective efforts and contributions of individuals that shape the startup journey.
Key Lessons
Once you’ve got an investor, you’re partners—like it or not—you're gonna be building together. So share perceptions or disagreements with the vision early on.
Relationships provide optionality, enabling flexibility and adaptation as your startup evolves.
Entrepreneurs can face time-consuming demands from stakeholders, especially when trust is declining. It's crucial to manage these expectations, allowing some room for mistakes while also setting clear boundaries to maintain focus on strategic priorities.
The MVP Play
Unlocking the playbooks of startup MVPs, one question at a time.
Checking into the game? For this edition, we chatted with Dr. Elizabeth Adams the Co-Founder & Chief Experience Officer (CXO) of Ello, the Goodwater Capital backed Series A startup developing an AI reading coach for children.
MOTIVATION
Why are you building Ello and what’s the driving force behind your willingness to endure the challenges of founding a startup?
My motivation for building Ello was deeply personal. I witnessed my 5 year-old daughter, Lili, struggle with reading during COVID-19 distance learning. Existing literacy products simply didn't provide the personalized, evidence-based instruction she needed–and they weren’t fun or easy for kids to use.
Not only my daughter, but children across the country and the globe deserve equitable access to 1:1 reading support.
The urgency of this need bolsters our co-founding team!
VENTURE
What advice do you have for founders to ensure a good fit between them and potential VC partners?
Look for VC partners that:
Share values and belief in your mission.
Have relevant expertise and a deep understanding of your problem.
Have a strong network and can support you through the ups and downs.
Trust your instincts and choose partners you can build a long-term collaborative relationship with.
A good VC will be a thought partner, not just a source of capital. They will be an invaluable ally in your quest to create meaningful impact while building a successful company.
PEOPLE
How do you identify truly bar-raising talent?
Identifying bar-raising talent is a multifaceted process and goes beyond assessing skills alone. At Ello we seek individuals who have the necessary technical expertise, a deep passion for our mission, and a drive to excel.
The Play
Unstacked’s cheat code for early stage founders.
In the Game of Startups, you win with strategy and an exceptional council. Your relationships and allies will steer you on the right path. We call this group, ‘The Knights of the Startup Table’.
Identify 5-7 people that can formally and informally act as thought partners.
Ensure diversity of thought (different industries, backgrounds, expertise)
Schedule bi-annual, quarterly or monthly meetups.
Or maybe you want to build an imaginary council of past and present leaders/experts (Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich) and with AI, this is more possible than ever.
Unstacked Perspectives
Unstacked host, Ilan Saks, is on a mission to basically give everyone a Harvard MBA, one lesson at a time.
Forget everything you know about traditional success metrics in business. Today, the real competitive edge in venture capital, tech, and startups isn’t found in deal flow or pipeline size—it’s in the strength of trust, empathy, and communication.
In a world where relationships reign supreme, being the most trusted is far more valuable than being the first.
StackedSP CEO, Ilan Saks, recently sat down with venture capitalist, Maya Bakhai, Founder and General Partner at Spice Capital, on the Unstacked Startups podcast. Together they got into the heart of entrepreneurship, exploring the synergies of human relationships and business.
How We Can Help You Grow Your Startup
Need help hiring elite talent? We’ve built the talent firm for startups.
Raising Capital? Drop us a line, we’d love to discuss what you’re building and how we can help.
Are you an engineer considering your next gig? Check the open startup roles in our network. Plus, we’ve got your free access to Commit’s AI Career Agent on iOS or Android to have an AI agent find your next job.