Fast Frontiers
Refinery Ventures
Subscribe
An exploration of how innovation frontiers are emerging in surprising places.
Stay up to date with Fast Frontiers by subscribing to our newsletter!
Available episodes
Newest first
Oldest first
6 days ago
S2 Ep 9: Bruce Vojak
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Bruce Vojak, researcher, author, and managing director of Breakthrough Innovation Advisors. We're going to dive into some of Bruce's learnings that came out of his writing, Serial Innovators. Bruce and his coauthors immerse themselves in the problems of a people view of innovation, rather than a process and structure or cultural view of innovation. We're also going to dive into the concept of VUCA, V-U-C-A, which stands for volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous, a term that came out of the military. It's a concept that is invaluable to help you navigate and excel, even in the middle of chaos.
Feb 23, 2021
S2 Ep 8: Kevin Maney
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Kevin Maney, advisor of Category Design and co-author of Play Bigger. In this episode, we're going to dive into the learnings that came out of writing Play Bigger, a book that I recommend to all of our startups. Kevin talks about how to define and own a category, as well as the timeline of successful companies that ultimately go public. So what is category design? While most companies start out with a product idea, Kevin tells us successful companies start out by designing the need and the category. So this involves asking a really simple question. What problems do you really want to solve? Spend the time defining the problem, finding that category and defining it, and aligning your team to help drive the process. If you set that North Star early, you have a better chance of attracting customers and convincing others that your journey is worth it. Ultimately you can become a category king.
Feb 16, 2021
S2 Ep 7: Mackey Craven
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Mackey Craven, partner at OpenView. In this episode, we'll dive into Mackey's exploration mindset and how his academic experience impacted his work in venture capital. And the biggest theme that I want you to take away from this today is the concept made famous by Jeff Bezos called disagree and commit. It's something that's used often among partners in venture firms. Not everybody agrees with an investment idea, but once the investment's made everybody is pulling in the same direction. This is a concept that is very useful and helpful in any organizational setting, so I hope you can find some things to take away from this discussion.
Feb 9, 2021
S2 Ep 6: Michelle McBane
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Michelle McBane, managing director of StandUp Ventures in Toronto, Canada. In this episode, we're going to dive into the origin of StandUp Ventures, which was formed to address the issue that, without many female founders around, there's a belief that you can't be what you can't see. We're also going to talk about what makes the Toronto and Canadian ecosystems different and unique in terms of the economic benefits with R&D tax credits, and the growing density of talent and engagement among corporations and universities.
Feb 2, 2021
S2 Ep 5: Baiju Shah
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Baiju Shah, Senior Fellow for Innovation at the Cleveland Foundation, where he focuses on catalyzing strategic initiatives for the region, including serving as the leader of the Cleveland Innovation Project. We're going to dive into what Baiju sees as the gaps in the Midwest and how he's working to combat these through his work with the Cleveland Innovation Project, which includes setting expectations and identifying opportunities to bring high growth and innovation to the region through three sectors of focus, next-generation healthcare, smart manufacturing, and water technologies.
Jan 26, 2021
S2 Ep 4: Noor Sweid
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Noor Sweid, Founder and General Partner at Global Ventures in Dubai. Noor has a very impressive background having founded, scaled, exited, and taken a company public in various ventures. Her passion is solving big problems and opening up opportunities to venture capital for entrepreneurs throughout the Middle East region. Her fund, Global Ventures, was founded in 2018 and focuses on enterprise B2B and digital health. They closed their first fund in April 2020 of $50 million to invest in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Jan 19, 2021
S2 Ep 2: Victor Gutwein
Today we're bringing you my conversation with Victor Gutwein, Founder and Managing Partner at M25 in Chicago, Illinois. In this episode, we're going to dive into three different areas. One is Victor's motivation for creating M25, which was really addressing a gap in the Midwest landscape regarding access to capital, particularly pre-seed, seed and later seed stages. Second, we'll look at their access and activity across the region, which includes investments in 24 cities and the snowball effect that happens once you make an investment in a city and a community and how that spreads. And finally, the many ways that M25 is fostering community with Midwest founders, with their summit conferences, their midweststartups.com for boomerang talent and Club 25.
Jan 19, 2021
S2 Ep 3: Steve Walchek
Today we’re bringing you my conversation with Steve Walchek, Chief Innovation Officer at FIS. In this episode, we dive into his experience with technology and entrepreneurship in various capacities from founder to product manager, to business development and everything in between. Then we discuss the commitment to Innovation by FIS and the team Steve is leading as they look to meet the customer's needs of today and tomorrow and service both of them well. Finally, we take a fun look ahead to 20 years in the future at what Steve sees regarding frictionless payments and commerce.
Jan 19, 2021
S2 Ep 1: Wendy Lea
Today's conversation is with friend, Wendy Lea, digital innovation strategist, ecosystem development guru, and currently the CEO of Energize Colorado. Wendy has a lot of learnings to share with us and unique experiences. These were formed by her intention and direction in life to be independent, self-reliant, and self-directed. Wendy shares her great stories of lessons she's learned working for, as she calls them, "Big CO's" and small businesses that experienced big growth, which led her to ultimately become startup CEO and eventually successful angel investor.
Dec 22, 2020
14 - Jason Warner
In this episode we’re bringing you my conversation with Jason Warner, CTO of GitHub.
Dec 22, 2020
15 - Scott Dorsey
In this episode, we’re bringing you my conversation with Scott Dorsey, Co-founder and managing partner at High Alpha, a venture studio in Indianapolis, and Former CEO and co-founder of ExactTarget which was acquired by Salesforce in 2013 for over $2.5B
Nov 17, 2020
13 - Yuval Brisker
In this episode we cover:
* Yuval’s interesting path to his technology career
* Starting TOA Technologies in Cleveland, OH
* What he’s working on now. First Mezu and now, Alviere
Resources & People Mentioned
* TOA Technologies acquired by Oracle in 2014
* Irad Carmi
* Jonathan Murray and Mike Stubler at Draper Triangle in Pittsburgh
* Mezu
Connect with Yuval
* Connect with Yuval on LinkedIn
* Alviere Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast Frontiers
Nov 10, 2020
12 - Chris Rizik
In this episode we cover:
* Building Renaissance and the great programming with UnDemo Day and HotList as ways to expose top VCs to the startup talent in the midwest
* The Fund of Funds model and how every MSA could benefit, including the impact they can have on a city/state/region
Resources & People Mentioned
* Rick Snyder and Avalon Investments
* SoulTracks
* Exits: TomoTherapy and Esperion
* Business Leaders for Michigan
* UnDemo Day
* HotList
* Cintrifuse
* HX Fund in Houston
* Duo Security
* Larry Page graduated from the University of Michigan and started Google
* Venture Funds: NEA, Revolution Ventures, Arboretum Ventures, Plymouth Ventures, RPM Ventures, Beringea Ventures, eLab Ventures, Material Impact Fund
* Bloomscape
* Dan Gilbert
* NVCA (National Venture Capital Association) recent Chair of Board of Directors, Jan Garfinkle
* TechTown, Wayne State University accelerator program
* Orbion, spin up company from Michigan Technological Univ…
Nov 3, 2020
11 - Joe Marks
In this episode we’re bringing you my conversation with Joe Marks, Executive Director of the Center for Machine Learning and Healthcare at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh
In this episode we cover:
* Growing up in Ireland and his path to coming to the US/Harvard for college
* His work in applied computing and research labs in multiple industries
* Joe’s work at CMU - at the intersection of big companies, university and government research to produce fast moving startups that can get venture investment
Resources & People Mentioned
* Olympic event of Hammer Throwing
* Bolt, Beranek and Newman (BBN) where the ARPANET was built that became the internet
* DARPA (Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency)
* Ray Tomlinson, put the @ sign in email addresses
* The Battle of 73 Easting
* Bob Johansen, author of Leaders Make the Future
* Digital Equipment Corporation
* Mitsubishi Electric
* Disney Research
* Center is funded by
* UPMC, integrated healt…
Oct 27, 2020
10 - Chad Summe
In this episode we cover:
* Chad’s experience working at Quotient - a Silicon Valley based company with their largest office in Cincinnati
* Supply Chain or “Supply Way” in the Cincinnati area - Chad’s work on the board of CVG airport and the potential that we can capitalize on in the area around supply chain, logistics and advanced manufacturing
Resources & People Mentioned
* Acquisition of Ahalogy
* Quotient won Best Places to Work award in 2017
* Board of Northern Kentucky International Airport
* Amazon’s Prime Air hub and DHL’s Americas hub
* Pete Blackshaw at Cintrifuse
* Local Universities: Miami, NKU and University of Cincinnati
* REDI and Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce
Connect with Chad
* Connect with Chad on LinkedIn
* Quotient Technologies Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast Frontiers
Oct 20, 2020
09 - Vic Gatto
In this episode we’re bringing you my conversation with Vic Gatto, CEO and Founder of Jumpstart in Nashville, TN.
In this episode we cover:
* Vic and Tim’s parallel experiences of putting in the time and learning the venture business
* Starting Jumpstart in Nashville, capitalizing on the healthcare hub and the advantage of being in middle America
* Working together with his partner, Marcus Whitney to bring their different backgrounds and perspectives to the table and tackle systemic racism in the startup world
Resources & People Mentioned
* Massey Burch and Blue Chip Venture Company
* Vic’s partner at Jumpstart, Marcus Whitney
* Andreessen Horowitz
* ScriptDrop, prescription delivery
Connect with Vic
* Connect with Vic on LinkedIn
* Jumpstart Foundry Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast Frontiers
Oct 13, 2020
08 - Bob Meese
In this episode we cover:
Resources & People Mentioned
* Duolingo Investors: Kleiner Perkins, Union Square, NEA, Drive Capital, General Atlantic, Ashton Kutcher’s A-Grade Investments, Tim Ferriss
* Google Play - the App store for Android
* Dave Mahwinney, Executive Director at Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship at CMU
* Andy Rubin, co-founder and CEO of Android
* Duolingo co-founders: Luis von Ahn and Severin Hacker
* Andrew Moore (CMU and google)
* Luis previously founded reCAPTCHA that was acquired by Google in 2009
* Carnegie Mellon University
* Duolingo English Test
Connect with Bob
* Connect with Bob on LinkedIn
* Duolingo Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast Frontiers
Oct 6, 2020
07 - Tim Holcomb
In this episode we’re bringing you my conversation with Tim Holcomb, Professor and Director of the John W. Altman Institute for Entrepreneurship at Miami University.
In this episode we cover:
* Tim’s first career as an entrepreneur and his path to Miami University
* His work at the Center for Entrepreneurship at Miami
* Capitalizing on their alumni base
* His bet on the next Fast Frontier: Data
Resources & People Mentioned
* John W. Altman Institute for Entrepreneurship at Miami University
* Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship at Florida State University
* Telecom Global Solutions acquired by Flex (Flextronics)
* Helping venture-funded companies: ReliaQuest, Oros, Cerkl
* Miami Faculty member: Jim Friedman
* StartupCincy
* Michael Markesbery and Rithvik Venna of Oros
* The Brandery
* In 2016, Money Magazine ranked Miami University No. 3 for producing the most Fortune 500 CEOs (behind Stanford and Princeton)
* PitchBook
* RedHawk Venture…
Sep 29, 2020
06 - Nick Moran
In this episode, we’re bringing you my conversation Nick Moran, Founder and General Partner of New Stack Ventures and the Founder of the first venture capital podcast, The Full Ratchet.
In this episode we cover:
* How New Stack approaches working with portfolio companies
* The human element is super important, at the end of the day, it’s people that build businesses and build value
* Investing in the middle of the country - with mission driven leaders
Resources & People Mentioned
* Danaher Corporation
* M25
* Jonathan Ellis at Sandalphon Capital
* Sarah Tavel, General Partner at Benchmark Capital
* Cintrifuse
* Eric Paley at Founder Collective
Connect with Nick
* Follow Nick on Twitter: @TheFullRatchet
* Connect with Nick on LinkedIn
* New Stack Ventures Website
* The Full Ratchet Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast…
Sep 22, 2020
05 - Anant Madabhushi
In this episode, we’re bringing you my conversation Dr. Anant Madabhusi, Professor of biomedical engineering at Case Western Reserve University and Director for the center for computational imaging and personalized diagnostics
In this episode we cover:
* Anant’s distinguished background - patents, peer-reviewed articles and the multidisciplinary lab he has created
* The unique medical research ecosystem in Cleveland, OH
* The collaboration across departments, working together towards a common goal and making a real impact on the future
Resources & People Mentioned
* Dr. Alberto Montero, Director of Breast Cancer Program at UH
* Dr. Joseph Willis, Vice Chairman of Pathology at UH
* Dr. Lee Ponsky, Chair of Urology and Director of Urologic Oncology Center at UH
* Dr. Vikas Gulani, Chair of Radiology at Michigan institute of Imaging Technology and Translation
* Tata Memorial Cancer Center in Mumbai
* Baiju Shah, Senior Fellow for Innovation at the Cleveland Found…
Sep 15, 2020
04 - Tim Guleri
In this episode we cover:
* Finding early-stage companies across the country and being the bridge to Silicon Valley
* Having a great idea is different than building a successful company
* Three things necessary to build a great company: the capital, the people, and the playbook
Resources & People Mentioned
* Scopus Technologies, went public in 1995
* Octane Software, aquired by E.piphany
* Two Sierra portfolio companies that went public under Tim, Sourcefire and MakeMyTrip
* Cintrifuse in Cincinnati, OH
* Renaissance Venture Capital in Ann Arbor, Michigan
* Shared portfolio company of Sierra and Refinery, Astronomer in Cincinnati, OH
* Treasure Data in Tokyo, Founded by Kaz, sold to SoftBank’s ARM group
* VC research databases: Pitchbook, Crunchbase
* Michael Driscoll, CEO - known by Tim and Scott Yara from Greenplum
* Sierra’s CXO Advisory Board
* Tim’s motoring adventure in Endurance Rally, 2019 - Peking to Paris
Connect with Tim Guleri
* Foll…
Sep 8, 2020
03 - Ian Hathaway
In this episode we cover:
* Personal connections to championing entrepreneurs
* The role of city government and economic development in attracting and understanding what startups need to thrive and build an ecosystem
* Understanding the stages and locations of VC funding across the country
* The future of work post-COVID
Resources & People Mentioned
* Ian’s new book - The Startup Community Way: Evolving an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
* Techstars
* Cintrifuse
* Richard Florida
* Eric Ries’ book - The Lean Startup
* Kauffman Foundation
* Scott Dorsey started High Alpha after ExactTarget was acquired by Salesforce
Connect with Ian
* Follow Ian on Twitter: @IanHathaway
* Connect with Ian on LinkedIn
* Ian Hathaway Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast Frontiers
Sep 8, 2020
02 - David Cohen
In this episode we cover:
* Building bridges and relationships not just for capital, but across the spectrum
* Delevoping ecosystems in surprising places like Buffalo, NY
* Long term view - developing an ecosystem takes time, which leaders and entrepreneurs in the community are going to be here in 20 years?
* Launching companies and raising capital in a recession
Resources & People Mentioned
* Techstars
* Co-Founders of Techstars with David Cohen: David Brown, Jared Polis and Brad Feld
* Give First
* Adam Grant’s book - Give and Take
* Brad Feld’s book - Startup Communities: Building and Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Your City
* Jesse Marble - The Botchcast Podcast
* Cintrifuse
* SendGrid - started in LA, incubated in Boulder, grew offices in Denver and San Francisco (aquired by Twilio)
* WELL Health
* Tasso
* Chowbotics
* University of Waterloo outside Toronto, Canada
* ConnXus in Cincinnati (aquired by Coupa)
Connect with David
* Connect wi…
Sep 8, 2020
01 - Shashank Saxena
In this episode we cover:
* Working at Kroger Digital
* Founding VNDLY and raising capital
* Understanding the market and simplifying the message
* Are you earning or buying revenue?
* Knowing your levers so you don’t burn out of runway
* Location: Cincinnati, is that a disadvantage or an advantage?
Resources & People Mentioned
* Kroger
* Battery Ventures
* Hyde Park Venture Partners
* EPIC Ventures
* Insight Partners
* Bowery Capital
* Narayana Surabhi
* Workday
* Cintrifuse in Cincinnati
* Duo Security in Ann Arbor (acquired by Cisco)
* Exact Target in Indianapolis (acquired by Salesforces)
Connect with Shashank
* Connect with Shashank on LinkedIn
* VNDLY Website
Connect with Tim
* Follow Refinery Ventures on Twitter: @RefineryVC
* Connect with Tim on LinkedIn
* Follow Refinery Ventures on LinkedIn
Subscribe to Fast Frontiers