Alex is the co-founder of two tech companies. His first company, Onosys – was a comprehensive, enterprise-level digital ordering platform for restaurant chains. Note that Alex started Onosys in 2008, so he was on the bleeding edge of the digital revolution for restaurants. Onosys raised angel capital from Zapis Capital, a family office that is a great partner to early stage founders, before they sold to Living Social in 2012. Alex’s second company was Scout RFP, an innovative e-sourcing solution for companies across all industries, which he started in 2014 With Scout, Alex and his co-founders raised $60M from funds like NEA, Menlo Ventures, and Scale Venture Partners. Scout was acquired by Workday in 2019 for $540M.

In this episode, we get into:

When he knew he wanted to become an entrepreneur

The ambition to drive his own destiny

The biggest piece of advice he would give to an entrepreneur

How your big idea will be rough before you get it right

His unique approach to early market discovery

What founders can learn from an interview vs. a survey

The moment listening to the customer changed his revenue model

Why it is critical to ask customer what they have vs. what they use  

The benefit of establishing relationships with investors early

How to effectively build relationships

The importance of being open and honest from the start

What investors are looking for in the early days

Why co-founders need to have the uncomfortable conversations upfront

Why founders shouldn't worry about an exit strategy

How and when to bring in strategic investors

How to decide which city is the best location to build your business