Like every industry, tech has had its ups and downs. 

A bubble that burst in 2001. Regrowth. Consolidation. Facebook-ization. Uber-ization. And now a venture market like we’ve never seen, with record-high valuations and funding rounds that were once inconceivable. 

So what exactly is going on? 

Tony Willis, Sebastian Kayll & Matt C’de Baca have some theories. Their boutique executive recruiting firm, Renaissance Leadership, has been helping grow some of the industry’s biggest players since 2003. If anybody has any clue what’s going on — and what’s next — it’s them.   

Listen to the interview to find out what we learned. 

Highlights include: 

-What are the challenges of hiring executives in the middle of a funding bubble?  

-What context should we be bringing to this historical moment in tech? 

-Are we at the top of the bubble? Is that a bad thing? 

-What should startups be looking for in an executive recruiting partner?

-How has the pandemic created demand for new and innovative Head of People positions? 

[Guest / Host bios] 

Guest: Matt C’de Baca is the Managing Partner, North America at Renaissance Leadership. He joined the company in 2015 and is based on Menlo Park. 

Sebastian Kayll is a Managing Partner & Co-founder at Renaissance Leadership and is based in the company’s Marlow office in the UK. He founded Renoir Partners in 2001, which would go on to become Renaissance. 

Tony Willis is the Executive Chairman of Renaissance Partners and is based in the company’s Marlow office in the UK. 

Host: Louis Beryl is the founder and CEO of Rocketplace. A 3x founder, investor, and board member, Louis began his tech career as a partner at Andreessen Horowitz. When he’s not building businesses (or talking about them!) Louis enjoys cooking for his family and talking at length about it to anyone who will listen. 

Find the Renaissance Leadership team on Rocketplace: https://rocketplace.com/profile/renaissance-leadership