Best Iseries Podcasts (2025)

1
Koii - The blockchain project built for media - Al Morris, Koii Network 28:33

2+ y ago28:33

28:33

About Al Morris Al is a chief architect and co-founder of Koii network. Koii was born in 2020 to widen the possibilities for the future of Web3. Al loves teaching, which made him start Blockchain Institute Chicago. The main goal of the institute is to help educate the public about the use of blockchain technology. SHOW NOTES: 0:00 | Introduction to…

1
The Ugly Side of Unintentional Growth with Mark Rickmeier, TXI 46:51

3y ago46:51

46:51

About Mark Rickmeier Mark is the CEO at TXI - a product innovation firm. He believes in creating rich employee and customer experiences. But, not everything scales well. Even good intentions don’t necessarily scale well. In the pandemic, TXI tried to deliver cooked meals to all members of the team. That didn’t scale well. Mark shares lessons he lea…

1
Premature Scaling: Why It Kills Startups and How to Avoid It - Ron Benegbi, Uplinq 39:21

3y ago39:21

39:21

Follow Aram Melkoumov on Linkedin for highlight clips and DMs. Ron runs a tight ship at Uplinq and he shares how and why he does so. This interview also explores why growing a startup for the sake of an exit is a bad strategy, why you should want to hold cash in this economy, how to hire people that make a genuine impact in your growth, and the dif…

1
What Most People Don’t Tell You About Exiting Your Company - Mark Achler & Mert Hilmi Iseri 47:01

3y ago47:01

47:01

Follow Aram Melkoumov on Linkedin for highlight clips and DMs. How much do you really know about exiting a company? Most people know very little, simply because there’s very little out there about the hush-hush world of mergers and acquisitions. That’s until today’s guests co-wrote their book Exit Right. About Mert Hilmi Iseri Mert is the co-author…

1
Transitioning from a Pro Service Company to SaaS one - Jordi Torras, Inbenta 40:50

3y ago40:50

40:50

Follow Aram Melkoumov on Linkedin for highlight clips. Highlights: - Building a Minimal sellable product (MSP) and going international - How Jordi deals with the paradigm of large customers and requests for introducing features in the product roadmap - Finding a French version of himself - origin of Jordi’s company Inbenta About Jordi Jordi is the …

1
Celtic House VC talks hiring, raising money and failed businesses, Jonathan Graff 50:00

3+ y ago50:00

50:00

Conversation highlights: - How Jonathan’s $60,000 MRR company failed after acquisition process went sideways - Hiring your leadership team as a founder: what to look for - What qualities founders need to have to raise money About Jonathan Jonathan Graff is the Venture Partner at Celtic House Venture Partners, a Canadian venture capital firm that ha…

1
Building Products For The Gig Economy - The New Norm - Scott Absher, ShiftPixy 39:31

3+ y ago39:31

39:31

The pandemic has disrupted the workforce twice. Once when it made remote working normal and another time when it empowered workers to be more autonomous and powerful. Scott Absher, the CEO at ShiftPixy talks about what happens now. About Scott Scott Absher is the CEO at ShiftPixy - a company focused on streamlining the gig economy to unleash new po…

1
Five Key Traits that Successful Entrepreneurs Share - Jeff Dennis, Counsel, Fasken Law 42:16

3+ y ago42:16

42:16

Winning attitudes that show up again and again among the most effective entrepreneurs, include: - They are lifelong learners, perpetually curious. - They don’t feel the need to be the smartest person in the room. - They’re able to listen to feedback, seek out information and learn from others. - They’re good at delegating and helping people reach t…

1
The Best VC Pitches Gets Right to the Point - Nick Adams, Differential Ventures 31:21

3+ y ago31:21

31:21

Approach VCs that have an interest or expertise in your market sector. Create pitch decks that are tight, disciplined and get right to the selling points. Nick shares thoughts about how to ride the entrepreneurial tide without getting lost in a sea of competitors. As a wrap up with take a quick look at what’s on the horizon for Differential Venture…

1
Startup growth principles and talent strategy - Anuj Adhiya, Underscore VC 41:36

3+ y ago41:36

41:36

Follow me on Linkedin for podcast updates, new episodes and highlight clips. Highlights: - A powerful way to connect and network with tech entrepreneurs who deliver daily value - How hire the right people based on your company growth stage - When is a good/right time to bring your first marketer onboard About Anuj Anuj Adhiya is the author of the b…

1
From a Bootstrapped startup to having 5 financing rounds and an IPO - Mike Evans, Fixer 50:07

3+ y ago50:07

50:07

Highlights: - Principles and metrics on when to pivot or not (apart from the gut feeling) - How Mike started GrubHub and grew it to IPO - How Mike raised 5 million dollars for his new company Fixer About Mike Mike Evans is an author and Founder of Fixer and GrubHub. Before Fixer, he earned a pile of degrees in MIT, where he also accrued a massive a…

1
Over-mentoring founders, how to exit your business - Stephen Forte, Fresco Capital 45:58

3+ y ago45:58

45:58

Highlights: - How to prepare your company for an exit - When is the right time to exit your business - If you’re being acquired how not to sell your business too low - VC role may not be a good fit to you - reasons why About Stephen Stephen is a managing partner at Fresco Capital. He was Chief Strategy Officer of Telerik, a leading vendor of develo…

1
Passion Drives Your Startup Success - Bram Warshafsky, Shelfgram 38:15

3+ y ago38:15

38:15

Follow me on Linkedin for similar content and personal updates. Highlights: - 2 moments when Bram was considering walking away from a startup - How to get employees to work on what they really want - 1000 small pivots - what’s that and how it works - Don’t set long term goals About Bram Bram Warshafsky is the Founder of Shelfgram, a tech start-up t…

1
Entrepreneurship is a mental game - Mike Smerklo, Next Coast Ventures 31:28

3+ y ago31:28

31:28

Follow me on Linkedin for podcast updates, new episodes and highlight clips. Highlights: - How much mindset matters in running your business - What to look for in a good mentor - How Mike met Bill Campbell - Self-awareness - fundamental block for your success About Mike Mike Smerklo has worked 100 hour weeks at Lehman Brothers, a job that he hated.…

1
Start your startup marketing from day one, with Mike Williams, CEO @ Jetstream Digital 39:51

3+ y ago39:51

39:51

Follow me on Linkedin for similar content and personal updates. Highlights: Why you need to start marketing before you build a product At what point do you abandon opportunities? How do you find traction? How to not get destroyed by your business mentally About Mike Mike is the CEO and Co-founder of Jetstream and a Facilitator of the Alacrity Acade…

1
Overnight success that took me 30 years (with Founder and Owner of Danby Appliances, Jim Estill) 46:20

4y ago46:20

46:20

Conversation highlights: Jim’s philosophy on failing and doing market research How Jim bought Danby Appliances What to look for in hiring Wealth philosophy - you don’t need that much money About Jim Estill: Jim is a Canadian technology entrepreneur, executive, and philanthropist. He started his first computer distribution business from the trunk of…

1
CEO of ACTO on product market fit, defining core values and funding (with Parth Khanna) 50:45

4y ago50:45

50:45

Parth takes us through his entrepreneurial path and obstacles he had to overcome while building his business. We talk about product market fit, figuring out your company values, scaling and fundraising. Key talking points: - Product market fit - what to look out for - What kind of mindset you need to secure funding and build relationships with inve…

1
Raising Capital 101: Breakdown of the key principles from Scott Case, CEO @ Upside 51:06

4y ago51:06

51:06

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. I’m speaking with technologist, inventor, and entrepreneur Scott Case. Scott is well-known as the founding CTO of Priceline.com. Currently, he is the Co-founder and CEO of Upside.com, where he is reinventing business travel for millions of people each year. He is also the host …

1
The right way to build your brand online from scratch (with Nelio Leone from UrbanMonks) 24:46

4y ago24:46

24:46

Key talking points: - How Nelio hacked his way into marketing while being on vacation - Key considerations for founders to build their brands on social media - What elements make social posts hyper-successful About Nelio: Nelio has been a growth marketer for nearly a decade, and he has a passion for building edgy brands with digital flair. He is th…

1
Growing your startup with freelancers (ft. Growth Mentor CEO, Foti Panagiotakopoulos) 40:14

4y ago40:14

40:14

Foti is an accomplished founder with an extensive background in full stack growth marketing. He has over a decade of experience developing and marketing businesses. In this episode, we’re speaking with Foti about getting your product off the ground and growing your startup, as well as the benefits of outsourcing, and why a strong team might not be …

1
Delivering customer satisfaction, every time (with Marcus Cauchi) 41:38

4y ago41:38

41:38

On today’s episode of the Off the Record series, our guest is Chief Revenue Officer, Marcus Cauchi. Marcus collaborates with ambitious founders and CEOs of disruptive technology companies in the £10-£50m turnover range to increase revenue quickly and effectively. He is also co-Author of Making Channel Sales Work, founder of Sales: A Force For Good …

1
Launching a company without a developer (with Bethany Stachenfeld from Sendspark) 47:07

4y ago47:07

47:07

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. A New Jersey native and business graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, Bethany joined Venture For America after college. She led marketing for start-ups, Filestack and VidGrid before shifting gears to pursue her own entrepreneurial aspirations to co-found Sendspark in…

1
PR stunts, word-of-mouth marketing and making your brand memorable (with Saul Colt) 46:11

4y ago46:11

46:11

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Key talking points: - PR stunts and making your brand unforgettable - Advice on building your brand through influence and not audience - Importance of word-of-mouth marketing About Saul: Saul Colt is the Founder and Creative Director at The Idea Integration Company. In his care…

1
Increasing your revenue via building relationships & marketing (with Sam Jacobs from Pavilion) 53:12

4y ago53:12

53:12

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Key talking points: What you need to be a customer centric organisation Early adopters vs product market fit Managing high churn rates Ways to engage your engineers About Sam: Sam is the Founder of Pavilion (former Revenue Collective) and also hosts the Sales Hacker Podcast. Pr…

1
AirborneApp CEO Lee Gladish on the realities of committing your time as a founder 51:54

4y ago51:54

51:54

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Lee gives his insight into how you can identify a realistic launch date for your product to avoid overspending on your development. Airborne App is a Sales Engagement application, purpose built for marketing agencies. Users can manage multi-channel sequences via email, phone, a…

1
The road to leadership and sales career (with Christina Brady from Sales Assembly) 48:53

4y ago48:53

48:53

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add us on Linkedin here. Key talking points: - How to sell your product to customers on a sales call - Qualities of a good leader and how to be truly great in any role - Running productive one-on-one meetings with your employees Check out how Sales assembly works: https://www.salesassembly.com/ About C…

1
How to succeed as an entrepreneur and build your community (with Swish Goswami from Trufan) 48:28

4y ago48:28

48:28

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add us on Linkedin here. Key talking points: - Swish’s career journey as an entrepreneur - How to build your brand and community effectively through social media - Prioritizing what’s important as an entrepreneur and managing your time About Swish: Gen Z entrepreneur and venture capitalist Swish Goswam…

1
Honest lessons to new founders from a “deadly CEO” (with Art Shaikh) 48:28

4y ago48:28

48:28

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Discover Art’s views on the importance of building a strong team of “passionate people”, who can become “true assassins” for your company. We also talk about taking the reins of responsibility as a founder, and what that role actually means. As well as the value in continuously…

1
Unstack CEO on Successful Fundraising and Hiring Top Talent (with Grant Deken) 46:46

4y ago46:46

46:46

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Key talking points: How Grant approached fundraising process What Grant was looking for to make his best hires Challenges and failures of building Unstack community What Grant would do if his company went bankrupt About Grant Grant started his entrepreneurial career delivering …

1
Lessons from bootstrapping a company to $160K MRR in 16 months (with Stephen Hakami) 51:45

4y ago51:45

51:45

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Key talking points: - How Stephen quit his job to start his first company - Wiza could potentially replace zoominfo for B2B companies - why/how - Relevance vs context of your sales/marketing emails - Stephen’s views on bootstrapping vs taking capital - Saying no to new shiny op…

1
Rachel Zimmer on co-founder dynamics, going through an exit and coaching entrepreneurs 41:40

4y ago41:40

41:40

Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. When starting a company and looking for a co-founder consider these 2 scenarios. I’ve got an idea, come join me as a “co-founder”, but really more like an employee. It’s my business that you happen to come join. Feeling excited? 2. Here’s a a huge issue in the industry and this…

1
How venture capital can increase diversity where it matters most (with Nasir Qadree, Zeal Capital Partners) 37:24

4y ago37:24

37:24

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. What investors often don’t talk about is how we can help underrepresented founders and particularly women entrepreneurs get a fair chunk of the plate. if entrepreneurs are truly going to be the change agents of the globe then VC industry have to include e…

1
Amali Tower, Climate Refugees 35:15

4y ago35:15

35:15

This episode features humanitarian and human rights advocate, Amali Tower, Founder & Executive Director of Climate Refugees, a non-profit centered on climate justice and everything in between, from induced displacement, migration, food insecurity, and regional conflicts. Amali has worked over 17 years in human rights and to promote the protection o…

1
Founder’s mental health: secrets of staying in the game (with Jayesh Parmar) 41:30

4y ago41:30

41:30

Jayesh’s three rules of a startup. Don’t run out of money Don’t run out of money Don’t run out of money. Talking points: - A story about how Jayesh got sued while being acquired by Eventbrite - How to get through ups and downs of running your business - Work/life balance and how find what works for you - World’s sexiest tongue scraper - Jayesh’s ne…

1
How startup CEOs should approach press and avoid biggest PR misconceptions (with Nicole Rodrigues) 27:41

4y ago27:41

27:41

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Talking points: Biggest misconceptions of how to run PR for tech CEOs How CEOs should approach PR if you have a limited number of followers How do you get on inc.com or Forbes What early stage CEOs should start doing PR-wise tomorrow You started a brand n…

1
Dragons' Den's Bruce Croxon on scaling a company 24/7, work/life balance, and self-awareness 44:08

4y ago44:08

44:08

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Talking points: - A story of a pitch Bruce had on Dragon’s Den that wasn’t solving a real problem - Biggest lesson to VCs and entrepreneurs on hiring people - Bruce’s philosophy on work/life balance - Self-awareness breakthrough Bruce had in his early 20s…

1
6 honest reflections on being an early-stage startup founder with Brennan McEachran, CEO @ Soapbox 43:38

4+ y ago43:38

43:38

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Founders, what type of work gives your irreplaceable people energy? It’s one thing that is often overlooked. But, it can be a growth loop in itself. Your highest paid people work harder and longer if you give them work they desire. Also, consider this. Do…

1
Stephanie O'Quigley 30:30

4+ y ago30:30

30:30

Fiona and Carolina chat with Stephanie O'Quigley, award-winning blogger and host of the wellness, health, and lifestyle podcast, The Wall. She is also the extraordinary Public Relations Manager for Spotlight Oral Care, the Irish healthcare brand of vegan-cruelty-free-and-sustainable oral care products that can now be found at Ulta, Target, CVS, and…

1
I hit the lowest point of my life and was almost out of business in 2020 (with the CEO of Crowdlinker Aram Melkoumov) 55:26

4+ y ago55:26

55:26

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here There is no book, e-book, MBA that would replace practical experience. I did my degree in entrepreneurship and after graduation launched my first e-commerce startup. I’ve learned more in those three years than I did in my whole education life. The only way…

1
What was it like to raise $53 million to scale Talent.com (with Co-CEO, Lucas Martinez) 43:19

4+ y ago43:19

43:19

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Main talking points: - What was it like psychologically to go through a $58 million dollar raise - How Lucas manages the company along two other Co-CEOs - What Lucas thinks about the process of going IPO in the future - Mindset of Canadians and Swiss peop…

1
Mert Iseri, SwipeSense 40:25

4+ y ago40:25

40:25

Fiona & Carolina sit down with our longtime client and friend, Mert Iseri, CEO of SwipeSense. Listen to his experience growing up in Istanbul, Turkey, and the life-changing moment that made him make the 180 degree turn on his plans abroad in order to move to the U.S., and in the end, propelling him to found the life-saving healthcare company, Swipe…

1
How I scaled my business after raising $73.7M of funding: lessons from Maple CEO, Dr. Brett Belchetz 42:01

4+ y ago42:01

42:01

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Episode Description: Choose your investors very very wisely. Biggest check and valuation are not the best guiding principles. Think about it. When you are getting ready to exit your company in 10, 15 years, the 5-10% difference in valuation won’t be massi…

1
Key success criteria for scaling your startup and raising money as an early stage founder (with Craig Zingerline, CPO at Sandboxx) 41:53

4+ y ago41:53

41:53

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Episode Description: Admin and operational side of things in a start-up are almost never talked about. But of course, it’s nowhere near as thrilling as all these stories in TechCrunch. Big founders, big exit. Good looking pay check. The realty is that the…

1
Walle Mafolasire, Givelify 44:03

4+ y ago44:03

44:03

Fiona and Carolina chat with Walle Mafolasire, CEO and Founder of Givelify, a donation management app that helps connect non-profit and faith-based organizations directly with their members and donors. Global changes in technology, lifestyle, and even the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, have all transformed the way we give. In an increasingly c…

1
Why raising money is not always the answer: advice from a bootstrapped CEO (with Ilya Brotzky, CEO at Vanhack) 39:21

4+ y ago39:21

39:21

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Episode Description “Don’t chase the investor, chase the customer. You’ll have a more compelling story to tell”. Key talking points: Why entrepreneurs need to chase a business model and then investment, not the other way around How Vanhack started as a co…

1
How the CEO of EnergyX raised the money and distributed it (with Nishaant Sangaavi, EnergyX) 38:34

4+ y ago38:34

38:34

Before you take off... Want to see future episode highlights? You can add me on Linkedin here. Episode Description As a founder, ask yourself - “can I live with these terms?”. Everything comes with the terms and cost and it’s the ability to understand what you are willing to bear (and what not) is what matters. Here are the main talking points: How…

1
The Illusion of Startup Valuations: advice from a VC (with Lu Zhang from Fusion Fund) 40:44

4+ y ago40:44

40:44

Your next raise doesn’t have to depend on your runway. If fact, it’s better if it doesn’t. Instead, getting to your next milestone is a much stronger reason to structure another round and raise. You can tell the right story and show VCs motivation for raising again. Compare that with “I’m running out of cash, help” narrative when you have 3-4 month…

1
Why startup founders must take time to pause (Jillian Manus, Managing Partner at Structure Capital) 40:52

4+ y ago40:52

40:52

“It’s a cardinal rule - you never want someone to buy your product, you want someone to own your product. And why (!) would they want to own your product?” - Jillian Manus Main talking points: Concept of pausing and why it’s something that propels you forward How Jillian structures businesses right now: pause, pivot, propel Jillian’s thoughts on me…

1
Technical VC shares decision making frameworks on how to spend your startup money wisely (Troy Henikoff, MATH Venture Partners) 38:07

4+ y ago38:07

38:07

As a founder, are you optimizing for greed or fear? Each of use inevitably does one or the other. In the first case, “I want the least dilution so I’m going to fundraise in increments”. The latter is “damn, what if I can’t raise again? Let’s get as much cash in the bank as a we can”. Here are the main talking points: why raising the money is not al…

1
Martin Atkins 44:29

4+ y ago44:29

44:29

Not everyone has a coffee named after them but “WAKE THE F*CK OUT OF BED” is positively perfect for someone like the one and only - Martin Atkins. He’s been shaking up the music business for nearly 40 years. From his legendary Public Image Ltd and Killing Joke days, to founding the punk and industrial supergroup Pigface, Martin knows a thing or two…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Iseries Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen