Execution is King Great North Ventures

This is the second of a two-part deep dive where we cover the most common concerns startup founders run into, with Great North Ventures’s in-house legal expert. Mike Schulte is Principal at Great North Ventures, and holds a JD/MBA from St. Thomas University.
In this episode, we talk about fundraising, liquidation preferences, SAFE notes, and board structure. 
Who does Mike see executing? Brian Schoenborn, Attorney and Shareholder at Moss & Barnett, P.A.; and Dave Winkler, Shareholder at Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O.; and Darren King, General Partner at Unbridled Ventures.

This is the first of a two-part deep dive where we cover the most common concerns startup founders run into, with Great North Ventures’s in-house legal expert. Mike Schulte is Principal at Great North Ventures, and holds a JD/MBA from St. Thomas University.
In this episode, we talk about picking a name, choosing between an LLC and a C-corp for incorporating your company, and the benefits of 1202 Qualified Small Business Stock. 
Listen to the next episode where we dive into fundraising!

In this episode, we talk about management styles and goal setting, and uncover some gems about granting equity and hiring from our guest, Orazio Buzza, Founder and CEO of Fooda.
Orazio has taken the startup ride from early on through exit twice already, before founding Fooda. Fooda is a food technology platform that connects restaurants to people while at work, has received $45M in funding, and currently has 250 employees in 20 cities. 
He has a great take on goal setting that keeps people accountable, brings transparency to the entire organization, and keeps the team moving in the same direction. 
Orazio's milestone approach to managing growth (vs. a calendar-based approach), makes sure that expenses don't outpace revenue as Fooda scales to new locations. 
Who does Orazio see executing? John Bauschard, at Darwin AI.

In this episode, we talk about early-stage scaling. What it looks like, how to think about it, and what it takes to generate growth.
We are joined by Eric Martell, Founder of Pear Commerce. Eric is a former founder of EatStreet, and a former Managing Director and Venture Partner at gener8tor. 
With a background as a founder and as an investor and startup mentor, Eric has a lot of perspective on early-stage growth. He talks about what it takes to succeed: being obsessed with solving a problem (not with the solution), getting traction by creative means, and good old-fashioned hustle.
He also shares how to land VC money: by demonstrating the aforementioned traction, hustle, and creativity; being willing to swing for the fences by taking risks; and understanding that the math that drives VCs means your business needs to be capable of reaching a tremendous valuation.
Who does Eric see executing? Adam Choe, a former Managing Director at Gener8tor, current VC, and professor at University of St. Thomas.

In this episode, Josef and Rob talk about the Metaverse, and how important it is for founders and investors to learn about it.  They are joined by Tipatat Chennavasin, General Manager and Co-Founder of The Venture Reality Fund. Tipatat is a former founder, creative innovator, and VR/AR developer. His background in Metaverse runs deep, including the gaming industry, the first VR/AR-focused incubator, and his six-year old venture fund. He talks about the developing Metaverse, the idea of "the third place", and the economic opportunity presented. Tipatat paints a picture of what the future will bring, and explains where the opportunity will lie for founders (and investors).
Who does Tipatat see executing? Jadu, a company that creates and sells utilitarian NFTs- virtual items that can be used in the Metaverse. 

In this episode, Rob and Josef talk about the newly launched venture studio project that's a social app for trading card collectors. 
They are joined by Atif Siddiqi, Founder and CEO of Branch. Atif is a former EIR of Idealab, a venture studio that has generated multiple unicorns. Branch came out of Atif's time at Idealab, and has grown substantially after relocating to Minneapolis. Branch helps businesses modernize their payment methods to empower working Americans. Atif shares the insight that led to Branch's successful pivot, and gives operating and fundraising advice.
Who does Atif see executing? Marc Lore.