On the twelfth episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Jenny Fielding. Jenny is the Co-founder and Managing Partner at Everywhere Ventures, a global pre-seed fund backed by 500 founders and operators. She joins us to discuss how founders can build a fundraising process, from high-level strategy to tips for creating a strong data room.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Jenny

• Why most founders don’t have a true fundraising process (and how to build one)
• The dangers of taking casual investor meetings when you’re not fundraising
• How to balance “always being ready” with clear periods of active fundraising
• How to prepare emotionally and tactically before launching a raise
• How to use progressive disclosure when fundraising 

On the eleventh episode of Thrive Through Connection, we welcome Evan Walden, the CEO and Founder of Getro, powering branded job boards and talent networks for venture capital funds, startup accelerators, professional communities, and governments across the world. Evan joins us to discuss how founders and VCs can tap into their networks to fuel relationships and growth.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Evan

• What led to Evan starting Getro
• The power of connections and community
• Lessons from Techstars and their “Give First” mentality 
• Hard-earned lessons about fundraising, focus, and being a founder 

On the first episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Laurel Hess, the CEO and Founder of hampr. Hampr is an on-demand laundry service that will pick up your laundry and return it fresh and folded, right to your front door, within 24 hours. Laurel has raised over $10M for hampr across multiple rounds. She joins us to share her journey and the importance of building genuine relationships with investors.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Laurel 

• Why having the right people on your cap table matters
• Tactics for backchanneling and finding warm investor intros
• The key questions she asks during investor conversations
• How she nurtures investors who initially say “no”
• Her approach to managing and interpreting investor feedback

On the third episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Leo Polovets, the General Partner at Humba Ventures and Co-founder of Susa Ventures. Humba Ventures invests in early-stage deep tech startups and is part of the broader Susa Ventures network. Leo joins us to talk about his journey from operator to supporting over 100 companies as an investor at both Humba and Susa.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Leo 

• Why Leo and Susa Started Small 
• How Seed Stage Companies Can Prepare for a Series A
• The Importance of Building Relationships Before a Fundraise
• How Investor Updates Can Create Traction
• Why Storytelling is Crucial to Raising Capital

On the tenth episode of the Thrive Through Connection podcast, we welcome Lesley Ross and Jonathan Lowenhar of Enjoy the Work, a San Francisco-based startup advisory firm serving startup founders and CEOs worldwide. Jonathan and Lesley join us to discuss how great founders can turn into great CEOs. 

What You Can Expect to Learn from Lesley & Jonathan

• The difference between being a founder and being a CEO
• How founders can purposefully train to become great CEOs
• How best-in-class leaders make the transition
• How to maintain control of your board

On the ninth episode of the Thrive Through Connection podcast, we welcome Hunter Walk. Hunter is a Partner and Co-founder at Homebrew, a seed-stage venture capital firm backing mission-driven founders. He joins us to discuss emerging trends in the venture space since Homebrew’s founding in 2013.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Hunter

• How seed-stage investing has changed in the last 12 years
• What’s driving the rise of secondaries in venture
• Why Hunter believes secondaries are here to stay
• How founders can think about secondaries for their business
• Why Hunter helped launch Screendoor to invest in VC funds

On the eighth episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Andrew Dumont. Andrew is the Founder and CEO of Curious, a long-term holding company that buys and grows software companies with empathy. Andrew joins us to discuss the economics of venture capital and what it means for founders starting companies today. 

What You Can Expect to Learn from Andrew

• How the power law shapes venture capital
• Why many great businesses can’t raise their next round
• Alternative paths for founders post-venture
• How Curious supports sustainable software companies

On the seventh episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Jonah Midanik of Forum Ventures. Jonah is the Managing Partner at Forum Ventures, the leading early-stage fund, program, and community for B2B SaaS startups. Jonah joins Mike, the CEO and Founder of Visible, to discuss how early-stage founders can best run a fundraising process. 

What You Can Expect to Learn from Jonah

• How pre-seed founders can build a fundraising process
• Why the person at a firm matters more than the organization 
• How to leverage storytelling to raise capital 
• Why leading with your strengths is a key storytelling tactic 

Want more stories like this? Head to the Thrive Through Connection Hub for every past and upcoming episode. 

On the sixth episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Kristian Andersen of High Alpha. Kristian is a co-founder and partner at High Alpha, an Indianapolis-based venture capital firm that helps founders and the companies they lead reach their full potential. Kristian joins us to discuss how best-in-class leaders use storytelling to sharpen all facets of their business. 

What You Can Expect to Learn from Kristian

• The responsibilities and roles of a CEO
• The similarities between selling and storytelling
• Why the ability to tell stories across an institution is a competitive advantage
• What he looks for when it comes to a pitch meeting and deck 
• How founders should think about benchmarking their business

On the fifth episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Kyle Poyar, the founder of Tremont and Growth Unhinged. Tremont is an early growth equity firm based in Boston. Kyle joins us to break down his career supporting companies at OpenView, how SaaS companies should think about benchmarks, and the future of SaaS investing.

On the fourth episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Max Yoder, the Founder of Lessonly and author of Do Better Work. Lessonly was an Indianapolis-based company that grew to over 300 employees and $30 million in annual recurring revenue before being acquired by Seismic in 2021. Max joins us to share the lessons he learned from scaling Lessonly and writing Do Better Work.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Max 

• How the mission and vision for Lessonly came to life
• How mentors helped shape decision-making and strategy in the early days
• The advantages of having a strong network
• What it means to lead with vulnerability
• The importance of aligning with investors and partners

On the second episode of the Thrive Through Connection Podcast, we welcome Brett Brohl, Managing Partner at Bread & Butter Ventures, an early-stage venture firm based in Minnesota. Brett joins us to dive deep into all things founder fundraising, sharing tactical advice on everything from cold outreach to evaluating if an investor is a true culture fit.

What You Can Expect to Learn from Brett 

• Why Finding a Cultural Fit With Investors is Essential 
• Why the Best Communicators are Often the Best Performing Companies
• What it Means to Treat Fundraising Like a Sales Funnel
• How to Maintain Momentum in a Fundraise
• The Most Overlooked and Overrated Deck Slides