Full Stack CEO

Yannick Kpodar

The conversations for founders, VCs, and operators who want a 360° view of what it means to build and lead a company in the age of AI. Most podcasts give you one lane (fundraising, GTM, or leadership). The Full Stack CEO Podcast gives you the whole system. Hosted by Yannick Kpodar — 2x VP/CMO turned General Partner at Aventra Capital, with 15 years inside VC-backed SaaS across LinkedIn, PayFit, Amenitiz, and Groupe BPCE. This show is built for founders, investors, and operators who refuse to be blind in any lane. Every episode tackles the real conversations that don't happen in board decks: the GTM bets that worked and the ones that didn't, the fundraising rounds that nearly killed the company, the pivots, the shutdowns, the exits, the IPOs, and everything in between. We cover it all: Go-to-market, ICP design, and sales motionCAC payback, NRR, burn multiple, and runwayFundraising from pre-seed to Series B and beyondHiring, international expansion, and organizational designPivots, shutdowns, IPOs, secondary exits, and acquisitions We interview the people who've actually lived it: exited founders with real scar tissue, active VCs writing checks today, and tier-1 operators who've scaled teams from single-digit ARR to category leadership. No hype. No vanity metrics. No celebrity-CEOs. Why this show, and why now? AI has collapsed product and GTM cycles. Boards are underwriting control, not just charisma. The founders who win in this environment are the ones who can read the whole field (product, GTM, capital, and leadership) as one integrated system. That's what it means to be a Full Stack CEO. And this podcast is your weekly dispatch from the operators and investors building those companies. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. New episodes every week.

Episódios

  1. há 6 dias

    From Zero to Exit: What Acquisitions, ICP Obsession & 20+ Years of B2B SaaS Teach You — Bill Kahlert

    What does it actually look like to build a company from zero to 300 employees, get acquired, start over, hit $1M ARR in under a year, and then spend the next decade helping other founders avoid the mistakes you made? Bill Kahlert — 3x founder, 3x exited, advisor to 24+ B2B SaaS and AI companies through Techstars and Alchemist — joins Yannick Kpodar to share the reality behind the scenes. Bill recently joined Full Stack CEO™ as an Operator Partner to support B2B SaaS & AI CEOs as they scale from pre-seed to Series B. Learn more at www.full-stack-ceo.com. Main Topics: The real story of the Aalayance acquisition: failed first attempt, stock options wiped out by the dot-com crash, and the lockup nobody told him aboutWhy acquisition term sheets always look better on paper, and the earnout trap that leaves founders getting paid nothingHow Bill went from zero to $1M ARR in under a year at Leadfwd.ai The GTM playbook that drove a 70%+ close rateThe #1 mistake Bill sees across every founder he advisesWhat makes Full Stack CEO™ different from the accelerators Timestamps: 00:00 — Introduction of Bill´s career03:02 — From Xerox to Claude Code: watching the internet rise and AI arrive in real time04:04 — The Aalayance acquisition: zero to 300 employees, acquired by HCL05:51 — The dark side of earnouts: how acquirers set KPIs they know you can't hit07:47 — What Bill would tell every founder before signing an acquisition term sheet08:27 — Leadfwd.ai: from zero to $1M ARR in under a year11:36 — The pivot: from inbound to outbound 13:23 — The upsell that became the primary sale and how to recognize when to flip your GTM story16:20 — How they hit a 70%+ close rate17:22 — What Bill sees advising across Techstars, Alchemist, and his portfolio18:09 — The Claude Code illusion: why "just go vibe code it" is disingenuous advice21:41 — Why even founders with $500K in pre-seed still can't define their ICP23:40 — Why Bill joined Full Stack CEO™ Resources & Links: Bill Kahlert on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/billkahlert Full Stack CEO™: Membership: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/ceo-operating-roomPre-Seed: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/pre-seed-trackSeed: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/seed-trackSeries A: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/series-a-track12-Week Labs: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/labsFree Live Training Sessions: https://luma.com/fullstackceo

    26 min
  2. 18 de jun.

    The CEO Playbook for Surviving the Messy Middle — David Ehrlich

    What does a career built on multiple exits, a 12-year CEO run scaling Aktana to 400+ employees across 50 countries, and the technology that became the foundation of AWS Redshift actually look like from the inside? David Ehrlich — serial CEO, board member, Stanford & HBS alum — joins Yannick Kpodar for a raw, unfiltered conversation on what it truly takes to build and lead a company from zero to scale in the age of AI. David recently joined Full Stack CEO™ as an Operator Partner to support B2B SaaS & AI CEOs as they scale from pre-seed to Series B. Learn more at www.full-stack-ceo.com. Main Topics: Why building a company is one of the hardest things a human being can doThe single most important demarcation line every CEO must understand: pre vs. post PMFThe Aktana near-death story: no money, no customers, no product — and the pivot that changed everythingBurn rate discipline: why David coaches founders to resist raising capital for as long as possibleKey metrics by stage — what to watch pre-PMF vs. post-PMF, and why LTV matters more than CAC early onBuilding in the age of AI: the massive opportunity and the moat problem every AI founder must solve Timestamps: 00:00 — Introduction: does David's career look as good on the inside as it does on paper?02:43 — The brutal reality of starting from nothing04:50 — Advice for CEOs at every stage: pre-seed, seed, and Series A06:23 — The one demarcation line that matters: pre vs. post PMF07:06 — How David knew Aktana hit PMF in early 201509:32 — Burn rate deep dive: runway, capital discipline, and the trap of raising too early11:19 — What every Series A investor is actually looking for when they review your cap table12:28 — Metrics by stage: what to look at pre vs. post-PMF16:07 — The pivot that saved Aktana16:33 — Building in the age of AI: what's different in 202619:11 — Why David joined Full Stack CEO™19:44 — CEO longevity: the non-negotiables for staying in the game Resources & Links: David Ehrlich on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjehrlich Full Stack CEO™: Membership: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/ceo-operating-roomPre-Seed: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/pre-seed-trackSeed: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/seed-trackSeries A: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/series-a-trackSeries B: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/series-b-track12-Week Labs: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/labsFree Live Training Sessions: https://luma.com/fullstackceo

    22 min
  3. 12 de jun.

    The Marathon Mindset: Building Your Business at Your Own Pace in a Noisy Market - Indy Sen

    Discover the nuanced journey of Indy Sen, a seasoned marketing leader with experience from Salesforce to Canva, Box, Matterport, Google, WeWork, Mulesoft, and 3 x IPOs. Indy recently joined Full Stack CEO™ as a Operator Partner to support B2B SaaS & AI CEOs as they scale from pre-seed to Series B. Learn more at www.full-stack-ceo.com. Main Topics: The reality behind a successful career: ups, downs, and purposeful movesKey learnings from working at top tech companies and scaling startupsThe importance of culture, product quality, and brand consistencyHow setbacks like layoffs and company failures shape resilienceManaging energy, health, and mindset for sustainable leadershipAdvice for founders in a noisy AI-driven market: pace, focus, and passionIndy’s personal journey through loss, reinvention, and community service Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction to Indy Sen’s career journey and achievements 02:17 - Learning from successes and failures across companies 03:26 - Most formative experiences in marketing at Salesforce and Canva 04:43 - The critical role of product excellence and company culture 05:54 - Culture as an internal brand promise to employees 07:13 - Overcoming challenges: the WeWork and personal setbacks stories 09:17 - Lessons from layoffs and company crises—grace and perspective 10:51 - Managing energy and health in leadership roles 12:15 - The impact of personal loss and life lessons learned 16:54 - The importance of pacing in entrepreneurship 18:29 - The value of supporting startup communities and mentoring 22:22 - Advice for founders: run your race and stay focused amid FOMO 25:31 - Connecting marathon pacing to long-term startup success 26:45 - Indy’s current projects: newsletter, deconstructing marketing playbooks Resources & Links: Indy Sen's Newsletter - The Remarketables - https://www.theremarketables.com/Indy Sen's Website - https://indysen.comLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/indysen/ Full Stack CEO™: Membership: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/ceo-operating-roomPre-Seed: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/pre-seed-trackSeed: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/seed-trackSeries A: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/series-a-trackSeries B: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/series-b-track12-Week Labs: https://www.full-stack-ceo.com/labsFree Live Training Sessions: https://luma.com/fullstackceo

    28 min

Sobre

The conversations for founders, VCs, and operators who want a 360° view of what it means to build and lead a company in the age of AI. Most podcasts give you one lane (fundraising, GTM, or leadership). The Full Stack CEO Podcast gives you the whole system. Hosted by Yannick Kpodar — 2x VP/CMO turned General Partner at Aventra Capital, with 15 years inside VC-backed SaaS across LinkedIn, PayFit, Amenitiz, and Groupe BPCE. This show is built for founders, investors, and operators who refuse to be blind in any lane. Every episode tackles the real conversations that don't happen in board decks: the GTM bets that worked and the ones that didn't, the fundraising rounds that nearly killed the company, the pivots, the shutdowns, the exits, the IPOs, and everything in between. We cover it all: Go-to-market, ICP design, and sales motionCAC payback, NRR, burn multiple, and runwayFundraising from pre-seed to Series B and beyondHiring, international expansion, and organizational designPivots, shutdowns, IPOs, secondary exits, and acquisitions We interview the people who've actually lived it: exited founders with real scar tissue, active VCs writing checks today, and tier-1 operators who've scaled teams from single-digit ARR to category leadership. No hype. No vanity metrics. No celebrity-CEOs. Why this show, and why now? AI has collapsed product and GTM cycles. Boards are underwriting control, not just charisma. The founders who win in this environment are the ones who can read the whole field (product, GTM, capital, and leadership) as one integrated system. That's what it means to be a Full Stack CEO. And this podcast is your weekly dispatch from the operators and investors building those companies. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. New episodes every week.