The EIS Navigator Brian Moretta, Hardman & Co

In this episode of the EIS Navigator we get a great founder story. Despite not having a medical background, Clare Brenner founded Myogenes which specialises in pharmocogenetic testing. She has a very personal story about her motivation for initially focusing on mental health to begin with, as well as her experiences in starting in a new area.
In the discussion, Clare talks about:
how she found a good area to work onthe initial focus on clozapinewhy she seeks out the best people to work withthe challenges of getting initial fundinghow patient advocacy is playing a rolemaking a business case to convince the NHSmoving into the US marketwhere we are in developing personalised medicine
Clare's story is both inspiring and insightful, as well as being a great follow-on to the previous episode about female founders.
00:45 Clare introduces Myogenes
04:55 establishing proof of concept
06:40 how she found a test
08:30 how does the test work and the importance of working with doctors
11:50 finding the top people
15:00 why she focused on clozapine
18:00 how they developed the test
19:00 founding the company
21:00 marketing into the NHS: establishing cost/benefit and business impact models
25:00 progress with individual health trusts
28:00 the role of patient/family lobbying
29:00 getting funding for preventative medicine
32:30 moving into the US
37:10 where are we in personalised medicine
41:00 prospects for Myogenes
43:45 Favourite questions
Links
Myogenes website - https://www.myogenes.com/
Telephone - 020 8387 1266
Subscribe to the EIS Navigator podcast on most services here: https://the-eis-navigator.captivate.fm/listen

Suggested books and media
The Diary of a CEO by Steven Bartlett

Bio
Clare Brenner,
Founder & CEO, Myogenes
Clare Brenner, CEO & Co-founder Clare began her working career at the BBC, moving from radio to television and then to writing and producing.
Her interest in genetics started in 2010 working for a private hospital and launching their DNA testing programme. She started on her own in 2016 and has dedicated the last six years to becoming expert in the field of genetics and forming her own company Myogenes.

Nick Dimmock founded 350PPM as an incubator for various environmental businesses, but has followed a different path from many incubators. In this episode, he discusses how he developed the 350PPM business model, developing companies more generally and the state of environmental investing.
Amongst other items, Nick discusses:
how he developed 350PPM's business modelthe importance of the right systembalancing doing things for a company versus developing internal capabilitieshandling areas that are capital intensivewhere we are in the demand cycle for environmental investmentshow we generate more interest in themthe need for political support and change
Nick is naturally forthright and brings some strong opinions which make for a very interesting conversation.
01:50 Nick introduces himself
05:00 what 350PPM is and does
07:40 how did the business model develop - developing a system
13:00 doing stuff for a company vs developing internal capability
18:35 what sorts of companies are of interest and why
22:35 capital intensity
27:30 demand for environmental investments
31:45 how do we sustain interest in environmental investments
33:00 need for removal of subsidies
39:40 next steps
41:15 Favourite questions
Links
350PPM website - https://350ppm.co.uk/
Subscribe to the EIS Navigator podcast on most services here: https://the-eis-navigator.captivate.fm/listen
Suggested books and media
What You See is What You Get by Alan Sugar
Billionaire: The Life and Times of Sir James Goldsmith by Ivan Fallon
The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy by Michael Lewis

Bio
Nick Dimmock,
Founder & CEO, 350PPM
Nick has worked in the environmental sector since 2007 and has so far been involved in over 50 environmental projects from Municipal Solid Waste Composting in India, to 1500 MW Hydroelectric projects in Ecuador. Overall, the projects Nick has been involved in have created on-going emission reductions over 9 Million tons of CO2e per annum. From 2017, Nick has been involved with incubating, accelerating and venture...

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) founders rightly focus on their product and market, but sound finances underpin any success. Anthony Nitsos founded fractional CFO business SaaS Gurus after working in a couple of successful exits. He has seen the inside of many SaaS businesses so has lots of experience in developing good practice and seeing the mistakes that founders make. In this episode, we tap into that knowledge.
Amongst other topics, Anthony discusses:
balancing different financial metricssensible gross margin targets and when companies should be hitting themchanges in SaaS valuation multiplesthe value of market expertise in generating successsales cycles and how they differ in B2B and B2Cfinding the right first sales person and who the next recruits should bewhen to bring in a CFO (and its earlier than most think)the value of benchmarkingthe difference between finance and accounting in companieshow to prepare for an exit
Its a great conversation, with Anthony bringing lots of insights from his vast expertise for founders and investors alike.
00:50 Anthony introduces himself
04:45 what financial metrics matter and the difference between venture-backed and bootstrapped businesses
09:45 gross margin - good targets and when you should be hitting them
13:30 how valuation multiples have changed in SaaS
15:45 patterns in CAC and trends in software purchasers
18:05 how to you know you have product/market fit
20:00 difference in sales cycles between B2B and B2C
23:30 the value of market knowledge and how startups are not for on the job training
24:30 why its easier to move from enterprise to SME than vice versa
25:45 how finding the right first sales person is the biggest challenge
31:45 building a sales team
37:00 when to bring in a CFO
39:30 the merits of building finance function when its pre-revenue
42:20 the value of benchmarking
43:15 most companies have problems
45:00 the difference between accounting and finance
49:20 preparing for exits - how acquirers look at finances
56:00 why founders should know what short of exit they want
60:00 favourite questions
Links
SaaS Gurus website - https://saasgurus.io/
Free ebook on "SaaS Secrets for Financial Triumph" - https://saasgurus.io/lab
SaaS Gurus contact page - https://saasgurus.io/contact/

Subscribe to the EIS Navigator podcast on most services here: https://the-eis-navigator.captivate.fm/listen

Suggested books and media
Measure What Matters by John Doerr
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How we fit EIS funds and VCTs in an advice process is something that the tax advantaged industry has got many different answers for. Rob Bell of Finova Money has been using these for clients for many years. In this episode we discuss their place in a financial plan, how he chooses between different products and investor perceptions of the industry.
Amongst other topics, Rob discusses:
how he chooses the right scheme for his clientshow he uses what might go wrong in framing discussions and diversificationthe use of a panelassessing track records and their depththe true term of EIS investmentsthe value of managers having several capital poolswhere SEIS fits into the advice processdifferent uses of generalist and specialist managersthe current state of ESG and impact managersimproving investor perception of venture capital
Its a great conversation with lots of insights from Rob for investors, advisers and fund managers.
01:15 Rob introduces himself
02:15 what is Finova Money
03:00 how he chooses between EIS and VCT for a client
06:50 loss relief and how discussing what might go wrong helps
07:50 thinking about diversification
12:15 product selection and producing a panel
13:20 assessing manager track records
16:50 thoughts on the depth of track records
19:30 the real term of EIS investments
22:50 value of managers having several capital pools
25:30 how SEIS fits into the advice process
28:45 specialist vs generalist managers
31:00 ESG and impact investments
36:10 challenges of recommending new managers
38:35 investor perception of venture capital
44:10 how do we improve investor perception of financial advice
48:15 favourite questions
Links
Finova Money website - http://www.finovamoney.co.uk
Rob Bell on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertbell-financialplanner/

Subscribe to the EIS Navigator podcast on most services here: https://the-eis-navigator.captivate.fm/listen

Suggested books and media
They Ask, You Answer by Marcus Sheridan

Bio
Rob Bell,
Founder & Chartered Financial Planner, Finova Money
Rob is a Chartered Financial Planner and one of the founding directors at Finova Money, an independent financial advice business based in London.
Rob is passionate about helping his clients take control of their finances so they can live with confidence knowing they have a solid financial plan for the future in place. Rob’s clients include business owners and professionals with more complex tax positions who can benefit from looking at a broader range of financial planning options. Outside of work Rob’s interest are getting out into the countryside, Munro bagging and scuba diving.

Manufacturing and operations is an area that has been much neglected by venture capital, but has plenty of issues that can be address. Renan Devillieres of venture builder OSS Ventures focuses on this space, with distinct methods and successful results. In this episode we discuss how he goes about creating successful new businesses, with very good results to date.
In a wide ranging discussion, Renan discusses:
what is venture buildingthe process for finding pain points in factorieshow Renan characterises different operations why there is still so much low hanging fruit in this areawhat sorts of manufacturers are open to changehow to make sure there is enough initial customers and how to work with themworking with different tech stackshow to make sure that companies don't customise for specific clientsmaking the OSS fire itself from each companythe different markets and sales processes he seesfinding the right founders and the skill sets they needthe effect of AIhow the global manufacturing model of the past 30 years is changing now
Its a great conversation with lots of insights from Renan and a must listen for investors and founders who want to build successful businesses.
01:30 Renan introduces himself
02:45 introduction to OSS
04:00 what is venture building?
09:00 finding pain points in factories
13:15 how the regulatory environment can affect go-to-market strategies
17:30 why is there so much low hanging fruit
21:00 how different manufacturers are stuck or open to change
25:30 finding the first customers
29:00 working with clients to build viable solutions without customising too much
32:00 how the OSS team fires itself
37:00 how different software has different sales and decision making processes
41:20 the necessary founder skills
44:15 how AI is affecting manufacturing
49:10 trends in manufacturing and how its all changing now
55:30 favourite questions
Links
OSS Ventures website - https://www.oss.ventures/
Subscribe to the EIS Navigator podcast on most services here: https://the-eis-navigator.captivate.fm/listen

Suggested books and media
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
Empty Planet by Darrell Bricker & John Ibbitson

Bio
Renan Devillières,
CEO OSS Ventures
A graduate of the Ecole Normale Supérieure and the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Renan began his career as a consultant at McKinsey, before becoming an economist at the OECD and then strategic project manager for the Richemont Group. After his various experiences, Renan...

Governance is all too often seen in startup companies as a chore, or necessary evil when it can be a positive and enable success. Dermot Campbell, founder of CEEIO, is trying bring more of the latter to the venture world. In this episode, he discusses how startups can enable good governance without spending too much time on it and make it a means to the right end rather than an end in itself.
Dermot covers a lot of areas, including:
what is governancethe importance of maintaining stakeholder relationshipswhen startups should start introducing governance structureshow governance should lead growthwho should take the lead on board creationthe role of fund managersgood preparation for board meetingsbuilding effective board agendasthe value in identifying riskssetting up risk assessments and how these can lead to key objectiveshow to generate relevant KPIshow to translate a business plan into something usefulgenerating the right boardthe commons mistakes made by foundersthe rise of ESG and how its different in startups from quoted companies
Whether you are a founder looking to put governance into place or an investor helping or wanting a company to do it, this is an essential discussion.
01:00 Dermot introduces himself
02:00 What is SEEIO
03:10 What is governance
04:20 the importance of maintaining stakeholder relationships
05:40 importance of creating a governance framework
06:15 how should new startups approach governance
08:40 when to create the board
09:45 who takes the lead
11:30 role of fund managers
12:30 the work in preparing for board meetings
15:00 don't just sell - value in identify risks
16:30 setting up appropriate risk assessment
20:30 how to use a business plan and use it to generate objectives
22:10 working on KPIs
24:00 building effective board agendas
27:20 generating the right board and founder relationship with them
30:30 role of independent NEDs in startups
32:10 what mistakes do founders make
33:30 value of governance in improving odds for fundraising
35:50 rise of ESG and how investors care about G - G facilitates E & S
42:20 favourite questions
Links
SEEIO website - https://seeio.co.uk/
Dermot on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dermot-campbell-3178a326/

Subscribe to the EIS Navigator podcast on most services here: https://the-eis-navigator.captivate.fm/listen

Suggested books and media
The Go To Market Handbook for B2B SaaS Leaders by Richard Blunder
MEDDICC: The ultimate guide to staying one step ahead in the complex sale by Andy Whyte

Bio
Dermot Campbell
CEO, SEEIO
Dermot Campbell is an experienced fintech leader,...