Superclusters - The Emerging LP Podcast

Superclusters by David Zhou
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Superclusters - The Emerging LP Podcast

Superclusters is a podcast designed to help the emerging LP think like an established LP allocating to venture capital as an asset class. Our goal is to answer one question: How do the world's wealthiest institutions and individuals pick VC firms to invest in?

  1. The Case for Concentrated Portfolios | Jeff Rinvelt | Superclusters | S4E2

    2 天前

    The Case for Concentrated Portfolios | Jeff Rinvelt | Superclusters | S4E2

    “The line that sits for me is you got to pick well, you got to coach well, and then you got to finance well – and the financing includes the exit.” – Jeff Rinvelt Jeff Rinvelt is a partner at Renaissance Venture Capital an innovative venture capital fund of funds. Jeff’s diverse background in venture capital and technology and his experience working in various start-up ventures uniquely position him to advise startups. In addition, Jeff is quite active in the Michigan start-up community, volunteering his time to mentor young entrepreneurs, judge pitch competitions, and guest lecture student classes and organizations. Through Jeff’s work on the Fund, his volunteer efforts, and his role as the chair of the Michigan Venture Capital Association’s board of directors, his passion for fostering a productive environment for venture capital investment in the State of Michigan is evident. You can find Jeff on his socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/rinvelt LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rinvelt/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [02:28] When Jeff went from engineering to finance [06:26] An introvert in an extroverted industry [07:42] Jeff's transition from founder to investor [11:06] The need for a fund of funds in Michigan [13:54] Why start a fund of funds instead of joining another fund [15:32] The minimum viable fund size for a fund of funds [21:46] Renaissance's portfolio construction [24:15] Why Renaissance measures GP performance by net IRR [28:18] How does Jeff assess a GP's portfolio construction model? [31:20] Jeff's stance on reserves [34:39] Who is the exit manager? [37:22] Should VCs be public market investors? [42:43] What would Jeff do if he had evergreen capital? [44:01] Do the best GPs in Jeff's portfolio send the deck first or have the meeting first? [45:11] Why is Jeff trying to break your heart? [48:32] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [49:33] If you enjoyed the episode, please do share this episode with ONE other person you think would enjoy it. Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP

    51 分鐘
  2. The GP Data You've Never Collected Before | Kelli Fontaine | Superclusters | S4E1

    11月11日

    The GP Data You've Never Collected Before | Kelli Fontaine | Superclusters | S4E1

    “Neutral references are worse than negative references.” – Kelli Fontaine From investing in great fund managers to data to investor relations, Kelli Fontaine is a partner at Cendana Capital, a fund of funds who’s solely focused on the best pre-seed and seed funds with over 2 billion under management and includes the likes of Forerunner, Founder Collective, Lerer Hippeau, Uncork, Susa Ventures and more. Kelli comes from the world of data, and has been a founder, marketing expert, and an advisor to founders since 2010. You can find Kelli on her socials here: X/Twitter: https://x.com/kells_bells LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellitrent/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [02:11] How Kelli became a figure skater [06:59] Kelli's football fandom [08:47] Picking schools for critical thinking for children [10:55] The difference between likeability and founder-friendliness [13:35] Correcting biases as LPs [15:07] Examples of what makes GPs unique [19:53] What kinds of data was Cendana NOT measuring when Kelli joined? [21:58] What are datapoints that LPs should measure but aren't? [23:45] Startup metrics that LPs should track [26:16] Can you trust the data out there? [32:05] How does one start building a GP dataset from scratch? [37:38] Why does Cendana do 40 reference checks per fund? [39:47] Neutral references are worse than negative references [42:28] The questions Kelli asks founders when diligencing GPs [43:44] How Cendana does monthly calls with all their GPs and large LPs [47:57] How often does Cendana send investor updates? [49:13] The difference between monthly calls and taking an LPAC seat [51:19] Kelli's indelible sports moments to witness [52:37] What makes Kelli laugh? [56:14] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring [57:15] If you enjoyed this episode, it would mean a lot to me if you shared it with one other friend! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP

    58 分鐘
  3. When VC Funds Become Firms, Part 3 | Lisa Cawley, Ben Choi, Jaclyn Freeman Hester | Superclusters

    10月7日

    When VC Funds Become Firms, Part 3 | Lisa Cawley, Ben Choi, Jaclyn Freeman Hester | Superclusters

    “When you bring people in as partners, being generous around compensating them from funds they did not build can help create alignment because they’re not sitting there getting rich off of something that started five years ago and exits in ten years. So they’re kind of on an island because everybody else is in a different economic position and that can be very isolating.” – Jaclyn Freeman Hester We're doing a three-part series with some of our fan favorites over the last three seasons on the LP perspective of succession-planning and VC firm-building. Lisa Cawley is the Managing Director of Screendoor, a highly respected LP of GPs, investing in firm-builders by firm-builders, with a unique model for partnering with allocators to access the emerging manager ecosystem. Ben Choi manages over $3B investments with many of the world’s premier venture capital firms as well as directly in early stage startups. He brings to Next Legacy a distinguished track record spanning over two decades founding and investing in early-stage technology businesses. Jaclyn Freeman Hester is a Partner at Foundry. Jaclyn helped launch Foundry’s partner fund strategy, building the portfolio to nearly 50 managers. Bringing her unique GP + LP perspective, Jaclyn has become a go-to sounding board for emerging VCs. You can find Lisa on her socials here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/31mml/ Screendoor: https://www.screendoor.co/contact You can find Ben on his socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/benjichoi LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bchoi/ You can find Jaclyn on her socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jfreester LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaclyn-freeman-hester-70621126/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [01:55] Lisa on documenting the how and why behind decisions [05:52] Ben on leadership transitions at VC firms [08:08] GP commits by young GPs at established firms [11:56] What makes Kauffman Fellows special [14:33] Should Kauffman sponsor Superclusters? [15:34] A rising tide raises all ships [16:41] Partnerships that choose to stay together [18:21] Jaclyn on leadership transitions at VC firms [25:48] The economics of succession planning [31:28] Lisa on succession planning vs wind-down planning [33:10] Jaclyn on pros & cons of succession planning & committee decisions [41:50] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [42:51] If you liked this 3-part series, do let us know with a like or a comment below! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP Follow Superclusters on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@super.clusters Follow Superclusters on Instagram: https://instagram.com/super.clusters

    44 分鐘
  4. When VC Funds Become Firms, Part 2 | Lisa Cawley, Ben Choi, Jaclyn Freeman Hester | Superclusters

    9月30日

    When VC Funds Become Firms, Part 2 | Lisa Cawley, Ben Choi, Jaclyn Freeman Hester | Superclusters

    “We overcomplicate almost nothing as LPs. And this is a criticism of myself. And I think we oversimplify almost everything. Because by definition, we’re the customer of the end product. [...] LPs watch the movie, but don’t read the book.” – Ben Choi We're doing a three-part series with some of our fan favorites over the last three seasons on the LP perspective of succession-planning and VC firm-building. Lisa Cawley is the Managing Director of Screendoor, a highly respected LP of GPs, investing in firm-builders by firm-builders, with a unique model for partnering with allocators to access the emerging manager ecosystem. Ben Choi manages over $3B investments with many of the world’s premier venture capital firms as well as directly in early stage startups. He brings to Next Legacy a distinguished track record spanning over two decades founding and investing in early-stage technology businesses. Jaclyn Freeman Hester is a Partner at Foundry. Jaclyn helped launch Foundry’s partner fund strategy, building the portfolio to nearly 50 managers. Bringing her unique GP + LP perspective, Jaclyn has become a go-to sounding board for emerging VCs. You can find Lisa on her socials here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/31mml/ Screendoor: https://www.screendoor.co/contact You can find Ben on his socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/benjichoi LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bchoi/ You can find Jaclyn on her socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jfreester LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaclyn-freeman-hester-70621126/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [02:00] Questions Ben asks GPs to see if they're thinking long-term [06:50] Questions Jaclyn asks GPs to assess long-term thinking [09:45] What does leverage look like for a GP? [20:13] The role of AI internally at a firm [21:06] Advice to people looking to take junior VC roles [25:33] Questions Lisa asks GPs to assess long-term thinking [29:19] When does a fund turn into a firm? [31:26] Lisa: What do LPs often oversimplify vs overcomplicate about firm-building? [35:31] Ben's answer to oversimplification vs overcomplication [41:00] What do emerging and established GPs oversimplify and overcomplicate? [45:06] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [46:07] If you can't wait for Part 3 of this conversation, leave us a like or comment! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP Follow Superclusters on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@super.clusters Follow Superclusters on Instagram: https://instagram.com/super.clusters

    47 分鐘
  5. When VC Funds Become Firms, Part 1 | Lisa Cawley, Ben Choi, Jaclyn Freeman Hester | Superclusters

    9月23日

    When VC Funds Become Firms, Part 1 | Lisa Cawley, Ben Choi, Jaclyn Freeman Hester | Superclusters

    “You can map out what your ideal process is, but it’s actually the depth of discussion that the internal team has with one another. [...] You have to define what your vision for the firm is years out, in order to make sure that you’re setting those people up for success and that they have a runway and a growth path and that they feel empowered and they feel like they’re learning and they’re contributing as part of the brand. And so much of what happens there, it does tie back to culture [...] There’s this amazing, amazing commercial that Michael Phelps did, [...] and the tagline behind it was ‘It’s what you do in the dark that puts you in the light.’” – Lisa Cawley Lisa Cawley is the Managing Director of Screendoor, a highly respected LP of GPs, investing in firm-builders by firm-builders, with a unique model for partnering with allocators to access the emerging manager ecosystem. Ben Choi manages over $3B investments with many of the world’s premier venture capital firms as well as directly in early stage startups. He brings to Next Legacy a distinguished track record spanning over two decades founding and investing in early-stage technology businesses. Jaclyn Freeman Hester is a Partner at Foundry. Jaclyn helped launch Foundry’s partner fund strategy, building the portfolio to nearly 50 managers. Bringing her unique GP + LP perspective, Jaclyn has become a go-to sounding board for emerging VCs. You can find Lisa on her socials here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/31mml/ Screendoor: https://www.screendoor.co/contact You can find Ben on his socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/benjichoi LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bchoi/ You can find Jaclyn on her socials here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jfreester LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaclyn-freeman-hester-70621126/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [02:03] The job that goes unseen by others at a VC firm [09:01] The psychology of curiosity [11:12] The story of Charlie Munger and Robert Cialdini [14:17] Lisa's perspective on the intangibles of firm-building [17:41] Heidi Roizen and why glassblowing builds relationships [21:09] The people you surround yourself with [23:06] Jaclyn's perspective on the intangibles [26:23] Examples of how to communicate strategy drift [27:34] Ben's perspective on the intangibles [33:19] The metric many LPs don't use but should use to evaluate GPs [36:16] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [37:17] If you enjoyed Part 1, and want to see Part 2 and 3 sooner, leave a like or a comment! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP

    38 分鐘
  6. How to Build an Emerging Manager Community | Rick Zullo | Superclusters | S3PSE1

    9月9日

    How to Build an Emerging Manager Community | Rick Zullo | Superclusters | S3PSE1

    Rick Zullo is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Equal Ventures. which invests into the future of four verticals: climate, insurance, retail, and supply chain, and boasts a portfolio including the likes of Threeflow, Leap, Smarthop, Ghost, Starday, David Energy, Leap, Odyssey, Vquip or Texture, just to name a few — many of which Rick serves on the board of. Prior to co-founding Equal Ventures, Rick was an investor at Lightbank, an early-stage venture fund based in Chicago, where he led investments in companies like Riskmatch (acquired by Vertafore), Vettery (acquired by Adecco), Neumob (acquired by CloudFlare), Expel and Catalytic amongst others. Prior to Lightbank, Rick worked with investment firms Foundation Capital, Bowery Capital, and Lightview Capital, investing in technology companies across the capital spectrum from seed-stage to buy-out and began his career as a strategy consultant at Deloitte Consulting. Rick received an MBA with Honors from Columbia Business School and graduated from the University of Richmond where he studied Economics and Leadership Studies. You can find Rick on his socials here: X/Twitter: https://x.com/Rick_Zullo LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickzullo/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [00:42] Rick's book and how Rick thinks about his habit of writing [05:45] How Rick became a VC [11:36] The speed Rick listens to audiobooks [12:38] How Sendbird closed their first customer [14:20] Is networking a feature or a bug in VC? [17:59] Rick's three hat framework [26:07] Growing up with a stutter and weak knees [35:58] Going from getting a job in VC to starting a firm [46:42] What motivated Rick despite how hard it was to raise Fund I [57:16] What makes EMC different from other emerging manager communities? [1:04:03] How does Rick help people become vulnerable at EMC? [1:15:25] What's broken with venture [1:18:50] Rick's hot take on funds of funds [1:22:04] "Seed stage is the worst stage to be investing into" [1:27:54] Asymmetric insight and asymmetric value add [1:33:00] How to pick board members as a founder when VC currently has high turnover [1:39:54] What should people know about Rick that he isn't already known for? [1:42:55] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [1:43:55] If you enjoyed this GP episode, do let me know in the comments or in DMs! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP

    1 小時 45 分鐘
  7. How to Get Access into Top Tier Funds | Felipe Valencia | Superclusters | S3E9

    8月26日

    How to Get Access into Top Tier Funds | Felipe Valencia | Superclusters | S3E9

    Felipe Valencia is one of the co-founders of Veronorte, a venture capital investment firm based out of Colombia. In the first decade, Veronorte focused on managing Corporate Venture Programs for some of the largest Corporations in Latam. These days, they’re diving into a Fund of Funds investment strategy in the Venture Capital space. For the last 12 years, Veronorte has invested in over 25 startups across the U.S., India, Europe, Mexico, and Colombia, and in more than 12 Venture Capital funds, primarily in the U.S. With over 20 years of experience under his belt, Felipe has dabbled in various fields like robotics, the internet, international trade, and infrastructure project management. Felipe graduated summa cum laude with a Mechanical Engineering degree from EAFIT University. He also holds a Master’s in Web Communication from the European Institute of Design in Rome and an MBA from the University of Chicago, where he focused on entrepreneurship and finance. Felipe’s journey has taken him all over the world: He worked for AVG – Robotics in Los Angeles, did research and development in Mechatronics at Siemens in Germany, and was the Commercial and Strategic Director of Indexcol in Colombia. He also served as the Commercial Attaché at the Colombian Embassy in China and led the Proexport office there. Most recently, he was involved in business development at Pierson Capital in Beijing and managed infrastructure projects in Mexico. You can find Felipe on his socials here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/felipevalencia/ Veronorte: https://veronorte.com/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [02:54] Felipe's teenage years under a life of terror [10:01] How Medellin has changed over the years [13:12] Tales from Felipe's travels across 10 cities in 4 continents [17:53] How did Felipe made his foray into VC? [22:46] How did Felipe meet his co-founding partner Camilo? [26:31] How Felipe pitched a VC fund without a track record [39:16] How did Felipe and Camilo think about compensation in Fund I? [47:40] How did Veronorte transition from a VC fund to a fund of funds? [55:14] The Monte Carlo simulation of fund of funds strategies [1:03:04] How much better does a venture fund need to do than public markets? [1:05:46] How did Veronorte get into top tier established funds? [1:12:00] What coffee brand did Felipe bring on his visits to the US? [1:13:38] How did Veronorte close Latam family offices in their fund of funds? [1:17:04] How does Veronorte communicate with their LPs? [1:23:58] The difference between an emerging firm and a frontier firm [1:28:55] Portfolio construction at Veronorte [1:34:50] What podcasts does Felipe listen to? [1:38:19] Felipe's advice for the wanderlust [1:43:39] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [1:44:39] If you enjoyed this episode, albeit longer, please do leave a like and share it with one friend who'd enjoy this episode! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP

    1 小時 46 分鐘
  8. Why Trust is Built from the Small Things | Ben Ehrlich | Superclusters | S3E8

    8月19日

    Why Trust is Built from the Small Things | Ben Ehrlich | Superclusters | S3E8

    “If you want to build trust with someone [on your team], if they screw up, you have to be okay with them screwing up because you put them in the situation.” – Ben Ehrlich Ben Ehrlich is the founder and General Partner of First Momentum Capital, where he helps seed a new generation of venture capital firms. He is also the Director of Strategy at the Long Term Stock Exhange. Previously Ben worked across the venture ecosystem supporting companies in the Canadian Technology Accelerator, OutCast Communications and Cribspot (YC 15). In his free time Ben takes his Irish setter doodle hiking and enjoys watching the University of Michigan football team (mostly) win. You can find Ben on his socials here: Twitter: https://x.com/benjaminehrlich LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamin-ehrlich-43b75498/ And huge thanks to this episode's sponsor, Alchemist Accelerator: https://alchemistaccelerator.com/superclusters OUTLINE: [00:00] Intro [03:43] The origins of the Out of the Crisis podcast [06:54] Ben's advice for rookie podcasters [08:35] How did Ben first meet Eric Ries? [11:46] The play-by-play for Ben's interview with LTSE [13:36] What do decisions and conversations look like at LTSE? [16:23] Building trust among team members [18:29] How does Ben build trust with GPs? [25:14] How did First Momentum Capital start? [30:42] What was the pitch to close First Momentum's first fund? [33:54] How does Ben underwrite Fund I managers? [36:42] How does Ben measure a GP's future deal flow (as opposed to today's)? [45:40] What does a "No" from Ben look like? [57:50] Thoughts on fund governance [1:05:57] What is the role of serendipity in Ben's life? [1:08:17] Commisso Bakery in Toronto [1:10:35] Thank you to Alchemist Accelerator for sponsoring! [1:11:35] If you enjoyed the episode, I'd appreciate it if you could share it with one friend! Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content: For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclusters Follow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.com Follow Superclusters on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperclustersLP Follow Superclusters on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@super.clusters Follow Superclusters on Instagram: https://instagram.com/super.clusters

    1 小時 13 分鐘
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Superclusters is a podcast designed to help the emerging LP think like an established LP allocating to venture capital as an asset class. Our goal is to answer one question: How do the world's wealthiest institutions and individuals pick VC firms to invest in?

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