#AskAVC with Ryan Floyd

Digital transformation might easily be one of the most hyped terms in the IT industry in the past couple of years. Separating myth from reality could be easier said than done. After all, it's something that many companies have invested millions of dollars in - and the results are not always there. Is digital transformation was truly dead on arrival? Find out in the second part of my interview with Tim Crawford, one of the Top 100 Most Influential Chief Information Technology Officers (#4), and the host of the CIO In The Know (CIOitk) podcast.

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

In the latest episode of the #AskAVC podcast, I "sat down" with Tim Crawford, one of the Top 100 Most Influential Chief Information Technology Officers (#4), and the host of the CIO In The Know (CIOitk) podcast. For SaaS founders, dealing with repercussions of the ongoing global pandemic while selling into the enterprise, this interview offers invaluable insights into the minds of modern CIOs. How CIOs make purchasing decisions these days? How can you as a founder "play offense" in the current environment - and help your customers to do the same? What is the difference between selling your product to a traditional vs. a transformational CIO? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

Being a first-time founder & CEO presents a unique set of challenges. Thinking you might be able to avoid mistakes altogether is, of course, unrealistic - even geniuses have flaws! It doesn't mean, however, that tried-and-true advice is not available to you - and some of it might just make or break your business. In the latest episode of the #AskAVC podcast, I talk to Anshu Sharma, a founder of Skyflow, who both worked under the reign of a first-time CEO, as well as a first-time CEO himself. How to build a team of co-founders to complement your strengths and weaknesses? How role models can help you navigate the challenging daily reality of being a leader of a startup? How to make the right decisions about investors you will be working with? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

The past few weeks have been crazy for everyone in the world, not just me - hence, the pause I took with putting out the new episodes. Now I am back with the latest from my makeshift studio in the dining room. In this episode, I reflect on how the ongoing pandemic changed things for the entire venture capital ecosystem - both from an investor, as well as an entrepreneur's standpoint. How the next couple of quarters might look like? Is it possible to get funding right now? Is this downturn any different from the 2008 meltdown and the dot-com bubble burst? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

Remote teams are all the rage these days, especially in the tech industry. You get to hire the best people everywhere, and maybe even realize cost savings through salary arbitrage. However, as this trend is still relatively new, there is a lot you need to know if you'd like to leverage it for your business. In this episode of #AskAVC podcast, I talk to Anshu Sharma, a founder of Skyflow, who also has many years of experience in managing and acquiring remote teams in companies like Oracle and Salesforce. What's the difference between remote and fully distributed teams? How to manage employees across various time zones? What are the cultural and technical challenges presented by having a remote workforce? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

Did you know that the average tenure of a VP of sales across businesses is 18 months? Imagine all the time and money spent on finding this person, investing in them building a team - only to have it all go out of the window a couple of months later. In the latest episode of the #AskAVC podcast, I share 3 ingredients critical for successful VP of sales hiring. Do you have to be good at sales yourself as a founder? How good your product needs to be before you can really scale sales? What do you need to know about your customers before you hire your first VP of sales? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

Finding an investor and securing their commitment is just the beginning of the journey. If you are a first-time founder, negotiating a term sheet can be a daunting task. In this episode, I will walk you through the key terms and techniques to make sure that the deal will be closed successfully. Why knowing the basic difference between pre-money and post-money valuation is not enough? What to do if you are being asked to pay your investor's expenses? What does your company's governance structure have to do with your future? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more! 

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

In the latest episode of the #AskAVC podcast, I give entrepreneurs advice on researching potential investors in their business. Due diligence is the mutual process! How to get to know your future partners? How to "test drive" an investor with thoughtful questions? How to look for clues in an investor's past? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

In the latest episode of #AskAVC podcast, I and Dominique Levin, co-CEO of Winning by Design that helps B2B companies grow by turning sales into a science, talk about common pitfalls and the successful strategies for customer onboarding. Turns out, onboarding customers is not just a technical challenge! What role customer expectations play in the successful onboarding process? How to make sure that the kick-off meeting will go well? Why it's important to share your best practices with customers? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - plus an extra proven technique to increase your customer retention rate!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.

In the previous episode of #AskAVC podcast, I and Dominique Levin, co-CEO of Winning by Design that helps B2B companies grow by turning sales into a science, did a deep dive on how to generate more B2B sales leads. As we learned, however, not all leads are created equal - and you must optimize your lead generation strategy to ensure good conversion rates at each stage of the sales funnel. What is the difference between good and bad customers? How to build an ideal customer profile? How to prioritize between different leads? How to keep selling even after you closed a deal? Listen to the episode to get answers to all these questions - and much more!

Disclaimer: This podcast is based on the #AskAVC YouTube channel (youtube.com/askavc) - hence, the occasional visual references.