Colleen Cutcliffe, co-founder and CEO of Pendulum Therapeutics, is leading the charge on helping humanity live better, healthier, and longer lives. She does this through her study of the microbiome – what other scientists and doctors now know drives nearly every avenue of our bodies (think: cognition, aging, metabolism,  Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s). By creating a product that has the efficacy of a drug but safety of a probiotic, Pendulum Therapeutics has become the next generation health company with an entirely new thing – a medical probiotic. Pendulum is backed by Mayo Clinic, Meritech Capital, Sequoia Capital, Khosla Ventures and True Ventures, to name a few.

Colleen's impressive background includes a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Microbiology from Johns Hopkins University, but she shares that her role as a mother is what ultimately led her to co-found Pendulum Therapeutics. Listen in to hear Colleen’s favorite sports moment (her bit on sports is phenomenal!), to learn what “leaky gut” is and how to fix it, and how to discover if you are aging healthy or not.

Jonathan Harris has had a bit of the Midas touch when it comes to hardware technology businesses. Major roles at GoPro, Roku, and Jawbone prior to Molekule all made it apparent that Jonathan knew the industry and knew what a winner looked like. Yet, he is quick to acknowledge that Molekule represents a lot of firsts for him. Jonathan spoke of his past companies, an iconic trio, as "nice to haves." What separates Molekule, in his mind, is its lofty mission: to provide clean air to everyone, everywhere.   When you hear Jonathan talk about leadership at Molekule, it begins to make sense why he was tapped in the summer of 2021 as the growth CEO for this rapidly growing company. Among his most important lessons: always listening - to customers, to employees, and to the market. Despite being only a few quarters into the job, Jonathan speaks with a long-term focus. Tune in to hear what he means by "capping the pyramid" as one key to building enduring organizations and products. Other topics include how to hire (and fire), how to present problems to colleagues, and how to build accountability into an organization. Enjoy.

Hannah Gordon did not grow up in a football obsessed family - her grandad once asked her why people always found linemen to be so "offensive." Despite the lack of early grooming, Hannah has become one of the top power brokers in the NFL as the Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel of the San Francisco 49ers.    Hannah's conversation with Ryan Nece covers many hot NFL topics such as diversity & equity, cannabis, and gambling. She also shares some of her thoughts on work life balance (a term she frustratedly points out is most commonly applied to women) and team building. She says every team member needs work ethic, intelligence, and integrity, but that one of these stands above the rest as the most important. Check out this week's conversation to learn which trait she thinks is the single biggest must-have for any great teammate, in sports or in business.

Aydin was an unlikely candidate to build one of the fastest growing venture funds of the last decade. Almost entirely a product person at iconic companies like Google, Aydin has parlayed a $4M angel investing start into a platform that just raised an impressive $900M fund. His conversation with Next Play Partner Hunter Hillenmeyer takes a deep dive into their path to success.    He names empathy for founders as a bedrock conviction that has allowed Felicis to invest an some of today’s most iconic tech companies. Their formula: risk taking & conviction while playing to their unique strengths as a firm. Aydin is also the first guest on the pod to recommend a book written by an athlete. Listen now to see whose book he “can’t wait to read for a third time" with his kids.

Ross Tucker's childhood dream was to write for Sports Illustrated. When he got the chance to do just that after a successful career in the NFL, Ross earned the chance to be very purposeful about his next steps in media. The result is a career that spans podcasting, play by play, radio, and even his own recruiting business. Just don't call it work.   Ross is a rare example of a superfan turned insider who retains the perspective of how lucky someone is to get paid to do something they love. Ross's conversation with Next Play's Hunter Hillenmeyer covers his sports career, his business career, and how a bias towards action can take you far in life.

Founder, investor, and now champion for under-resourced entrepreneurs through Google for Startups. These are a few of the many hats worn by Jewel Burks Solomon. Jewel's conversation with Next Play founder Ryan Nece goes deep on her breadth of experience. This 3x Google employee talks about what she's learned in her several roles at the company, how they have helped her in her subsequent roles, and what she is trying to accomplish now.    Jewel shares some great insight on topics such as the evolving role of HBCUs in the tech world, Atlanta as a center of industry, and what people should be trying to get out of an internship. Hint: her first stint at Google started as an intern. Tune in for a great perspective on the plight of a diverse entrepreneur who has paved the way for many more to follow in her very large footsteps!

There aren't many 32 year olds in VC with stronger pedigree than Nikhil Basu Trivedi. He moved to Silicon Valley at the age of 13 and worked his way up through the ranks at Insight Partners and Shasta Ventures, where he refined his craft and revealed a knack for finding and winning competitive deals with great founders. This podcast is a must-listen for anyone considering starting their own VC fund. Nikhil has just started Footwork with his partner, Mike Smith, anchored by many of the best investors in the world.    Nikhil shares their roadmap for Footwork. Why now? What stage companies should they invest in? What industries? What core values should drive the firm? The conversation offers insights both for how to get started on laying out the framework for a new fund, but it also reveals the level of thought and planning required to "build a firm, not a fund." We're betting on Footwork becoming one of the next great names in Silicon Valley lore. Check out this conversation with Nikhil Basu Trivedi to see if you agree.

Next Play has many athletes as members of our unique community. Usually their story adds up. Where and how they grew up makes their path to stardom in football or basketball seem plausible. Such is not the case with Blaine Scully. How does a multi-sport star in California high school sports go on to become one of the United States' most decorated rugby stars ever? And, no, rugby was not one of his sports in high school.    In this episode of Next Play Perspectives, Blaine takes us on his journey to finding the game of rugby and shows us how nichier sports like this in America tend to draw participants with an intrinsic love of the game. Blaine's rugby journey took him all over the globe. He is now in the first inning of his second career, starting a family, and exploring where his next intrinsic passions lie.

Greg Sands has his fingerprints all over the Silicon Valley we know today. As the first head of product at Netscape, Greg helped build the foundation of the original internet boom. As a partner at Sutter Hill and now Founder of Costanoa, Greg continues to work with founders to build industry defining platforms.    His conversation with Ryan Nece covers the gamut. What is Greg most excited about from an investing perspective today? What motivates him, or people in general, to show up and give great effort every day? You'll hear Greg use the word "values" about a dozen times in this interview. Hear him explain what values mean to his firm, to his family, and to all the people he works with.