57 - фейловые инвестиции и родственники вместо алгоритма с Сашей Сазоновым, Competera

Product&Growth Show

#Бизнес #Growth Show #ProductGrowth Show In

18:09

HR is no longer just about managing people—it’s about shaping the future of work. Jens Baier, BCG’s HR transformation expert, discusses how AI and shifting employee expectations are forcing companies to rethink talent strategies. From re-recruiting to upskilling employees, HR must adapt to a rapidly changing landscape. Learn More: Jens Baier: https://on.bcg.com/41ca7Gv BCG on People Strategy: https://on.bcg.com/3QtAjro Decoding Global Talent: https://on.bcg.com/4gUC4IT…

4 года назад 45:00

MP3•Главная эпизода

В 57-м выпуске Product&Growth мы пообщались с Сашей Сазоновым, со-основателем компании Competera. Что обсудили? - Что такое Competera? Откуда появилась идея? Как сформировали первую команду? - Кто был первый инвестор? Как вообще происходил поиск первых денег? Что у вас было на первом этапе? - Построение enterprise B2B продукта в Украине: продажи, продакт-менеджмент, маркетинг. Что самое сложное? - Парсеры и зависимость от платформ. Как вообще строить продукт, который построен на парсерах? - Переезд в Штаты. Зачем и как переехал? - Рекомендации слушателям: книги, фильмы и подкасты

96 эпизодов

57 - фейловые инвестиции и родственники вместо алгоритма с Сашей Сазоновым, Competera

Product&Growth Show

21 subscribers

published 4 года назад

MP3•Главная эпизода

96 эпизодов

#Бизнес #Growth Show #ProductGrowth Show In

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1
96 - From Google to Mate Academy, VC-Backed Expansion for EdTechs with Roman Apostol 52:47

10 дней назад52:47

52:47

Last week, we sat down with Roman Apostol, co-founder of Mate Academy, to talk about business expansion, transitioning from a big corporation to a startup, and staying resilient. Here’s what we covered: - How did you transition from working at Google and Preply to joining Mate Academy? - What is the Income Share Agreement (ISA) model, and how does it work at Mate Academy? - Why did you decide to leave Google and move to Kyiv to work on Mate Academy? - How did you scale Mate Academy from a small offline bootcamp to a global online platform? - What were the biggest challenges in raising venture capital, and what objections did investors have? - How do you balance operational scalability with maintaining quality in EdTech? - What was the strategy behind expanding into new markets like Poland and Brazil? - How do you differentiate Mate Academy from other coding bootcamps and online education platforms? - What impact has the war in Ukraine had on running a business, and how do you maintain resilience? - What books, podcasts, or insights have influenced your approach to leadership and scaling a startup?…

1
95 - From Product to Portfolio: Operator's Guide in Navigating Equity & Angel Investing with Mike Oliinyk, Montonio 46:56

22 дня назад46:56

46:56

Last weekend, we sat down with Mike to discuss his impressive product career (ex-Uber, Wise, Wolt) and talk about his experience in angel investing in early-stage startups. Here's what we discussed: - How Mike has chosen companies in his product career - Picking a first product role today - Job-hopping and when to leave a role quickly - Did Mike expect Wise and Volt to grow so big? - Wolt’s acquisition by DoorDash and post-merger changes - Negotiating equity vs. salary in startup roles - Growing a product career in a slowing market - Why more operators become angel investors - Mike’s worst investment and key lessons - How Mike evaluates startups before investing Follow Mike on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeproduct/…

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94 - from ops led to product led, a non-traditional YC process, visualisation with Siddhi Mittal, co-founder at yhangry 39:10

5 weeks назад39:10

39:10

Last week I had a chance to chat to Siddhi Mittal, a co-founder at yhangry (YC W22). Here is what we discussed: - Transitioning from a high six-figure trading job to entrepreneurship - A non-traditional YC process - Transitioning from an ops-led to a product-led organization - Startup stagnation as a near-death experience - Why generic advice never works - Running fundraising as a discovery process - Why the B2B2C angle is important for raising funds as a marketplace business - How AI changes marketplace businesses - The power of visualization for founders Siddhi on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/siddhimittal23/…

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93 - What Makes Companies Grow and The Rise of Micro-Influencing With Ruslan Nazarenko, ScaleAI 45:13

10 weeks назад45:13

45:13

- What makes companies grow? - The importance of a common language in growth cultures - A deep dive into Uber’s leaked documents - How does the growth role differ from company to company? - How to build a growth culture? - All things being equal, why does one company grow faster than another? - Can we state that companies with a strong culture actually grow faster? - Differences between European and U.S. growth cultures - What kind of impact do companies like Scale leave on individuals? - How to get hired as a growth manager - Practical tips and tricks for getting noticed by hiring managers - The rise of micro-influencing in tech Links: Pavlo on Substack: https://pavlopedenko.substack.com/ Ross on Substack: https://rossongrowth.substack.com/…

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92 - Diaspora Founders, Benefits of FAANG Experience, and Pattern Matching in VC with Borys Musielak, SMOK VC 54:02

12 weeks назад54:02

54:02

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting with SMOK's Borys Musielak. We discussed early-stage funding, the unique strengths of CEE diaspora founders, and how FAANG experience can be both an advantage and a challenge for entrepreneurs. Tune in to learn more! What did we cover? - What does SMOK VC do? - Why focus on CEE diaspora founders? - What’s the difference between CEE founders and U.S. founders? - Why doesn’t FAANG always produce good startup material? - How much of SMOK’s deal flow comes from LinkedIn? - What’s the most ridiculous pitch Borys has heard? - Why is pattern matching important in VC? - How can someone get into VC? - Does founder-led growth actually exist? - What was the biggest opportunity Borys missed? - What is SMOK VC’s request for startups? - What advice does Borys have for all early-stage founders?…

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91 - How to Become an AI PM, Moats in AI with Guillaume Boniface-Chang (ex-Synthesia, ex-Google) 39:55

13 weeks назад39:55

39:55

Last week, we sat down with Guillaume Boniface-Chang, formerly of Synthesia and Google Search, to discuss the role of a Product Manager in AI-first companies, moats in AI, and more. Topics covered: - Synthesia: From Building New Technology to Finding Product-Market Fit - What Differentiates AI PMs from Conventional Software PMs? The Role of a Research PM - Synthesia’s Product Process - What’s the Moat in AI? - Why Positioning Is Important - Why Scaling Compute Isn’t the Answer to LLM Challenges - How to Stay on Top of the AI Hype - Why Leave Google to Join a Startup? - Why Developing a Personal Thesis Is Important for PMs - How to Become an AI Product Manager - Advice for Junior PMs Follow Guillaume: Twitter: https://x.com/guillaume_boni Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guillaume-bonifacechang/…

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90 - Thinking visually, building marketplaces, and turning spreadsheets into products with Jonathan Hey, former CPO of ZenEducate 55:58

15 weeks назад55:58

55:58

Last week I had a chance to chat with Jonathan Hey, former CPO at ZenEducate. What we discussed: - Is writing books more exciting than building products? - Where does Jono’s love for sketching come from? - How can PMs learn sketching to communicate their ideas more efficiently? - The power of explaining ideas visually - ZenEducate and the problem they are trying to solve - Why building empathy matters, regardless of your domain - How has ZenEducate’s product organization evolved? - How do you build a product strategy for a growing startup? - How do you balance what your investors want with what your customers want? - How will AI disrupt edtech? - Pasha is bragging about his experience trying to use AI avatars. - The hardest problem Jono has had to solve at ZenEducate - Why building what a spreadsheet does is not a trivial task Jonathan on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonohey/ Jonathan's book: https://sketchplanations.com/…

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89 - How to Build an Edtech Unicorn in 2024 with Rhys Spence, Brighteye Ventures 43:07

17 weeks назад43:07

43:07

In episode 89, we talked to Rhys Spence, Head of Research at Brighteye Ventures, one of the most active edtech VC firms in Europe and the UK. Here’s what we discussed: - Hyperfocusing on a specific market might lead you to unicorn status; going to the U.S. is not the only path to success. - How did Byju’s downturn impact edtech VCs? - Why is building a unicorn in K-12 so challenging? - Why are edtech funds broadening their investment theses? - What sets VC-backed companies apart? - Brighteye’s most successful investments - Edtech companies to watch - Defining momentum in edtech - How do VCs determine if your team is capable? - Why are generalists so hard to evaluate? - Where is edtech headed from 2024 onward? - Where edtech meets fintech - The role of communities in edtech…

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88 - Building Africa’s Largest Fintech from London with Parminder Mann, VP of Product at Flutterwave 57:17

18 weeks назад57:17

57:17

This time, I had the pleasure of chatting with Parminder Mann, VP of Product and Design at Flutterwave, Africa’s largest startup. Flutterwave is essentially what you’d get if Stripe and Wise combined forces and decided to focus on Africa. Topics Covered: - The problem Flutterwave is solving - Flutterwave’s target countries - Product playbook used by Flutterwave’s product organization - A breakdown of Flutterwave’s latest product launch - Setting up metrics for new fintech features - The importance of regulatory requirements - Challenges PMs face in moving into fintech - Solving for both sides of transactions in fintech - The role of stablecoins in Africa - Church WhatsApp groups vs. fintechs - Prioritization playbook at Flutterwave - Building for Africa from London - Embracing the problem you’re solving - Product career advice from Parminder Links: Pavlo Pedenko on Substack: https://pavlopedenko.substack.com/ Parminder Mann on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parminder-mann-12878013/…

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87 – Brand in Marketplaces, Internationalization with Danny Martinez, Hiring Humans (ex-Airbnb). 49:37

19 weeks назад49:37

49:37

In episode 87, we sat down with Danny Martinez (formerly of Airbnb and eBay) to chat about building and scaling marketplaces. - Starting with marketplaces, from finance to eBay, all the way to Airbnb. - Why is Airbnb’s business model underappreciated? - Lessons learned at Airbnb and the power of its brand. - Creating emotional connections in marketplace businesses. - A playbook for internationalizing marketplaces. - Hiring strategies for international expansion. - Transitioning into fractional roles. - Figuring out your personal positioning. - A framework for assessing investment opportunities. Links from Pavlo: Pavlo's Substack: https://pavlopedenko.substack.com/ Pavlo's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pavlo-pedenko-7a02061b/ Links from Danny: Newsletter: https://hiringhumans.substack.com/ Playbook for expansion: https://www.everythingmarketplaces.com/post/marketplace-expansion-marketing-considerations…

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86 - Scaling hyper-local marketplaces with Dima Rasnovsky, Glovo 42:23

22 weeks назад42:23

42:23

In the 86th episode of Product & Growth, we spoke with Dima Rasnovsky, Regional General Manager at Glovo. What we discussed: - Scaling the food delivery business across markets - Glovo’s playbooks for launching new cities and hiring the first couriers - How global economic trends change food delivery customers’ expectations - Trends in drone delivery - Trends in qCommerce - Hiring local teams: how to source and interview effectively - Is it the end of superapps? - Socio-demographic reasons behind unbundling - Dima’s book recommendations Dima on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmitryrasnovsky/ Pavlo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pavlo-pedenko-7a02061b/ Yaroslav on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yaroslav-stepanenko/…

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85 – Super-apps, Building Products at Careem, and Venture Capital in MENA with Rayan Dawud, Cercli 52:41

25 weeks назад52:41

52:41

In the 85th episode of Product & Growth, we spoke with Rayan Dawud, Product & Operations at Cercli (YC S23). What we discussed: - The differences between the tech ecosystems in MENA and the UK - Building new products at Careem, the Middle East’s super-app - How Careem differentiates itself from Uber - Product culture at Careem - From operator to VC and back – the highs and lows of a VC career - Raising venture capital in MENA - Building products at Cercli, a new YC-funded fintech Rayan recommended reading The Socratic Method by Ward Farnsworth…

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84 - Network Effects, FOMO in VC and AI Hype with Sameer Singh, Speedinvest 43:53

32 weeks назад43:53

43:53

In the 84th episode of Product&Growth, we talked to Sameer Singh, Venture Partner at Speedinvest. Sameer's blog: https://breadcrumb.vc/ What we talked about: - Definition of network effects and companies who have them - How to define metrics for network effects products - FOMO in VC - Defensibility and economies of scale in AI - How to evaluate and measure network effects - How to scale network effects - Why investors should leave problem solving to founders Sameer's recommendations: 1. Josh Breinlinger - https://acrowdedspace.com/ 2. Bill Gurley - https://abovethecrowd.com/ 3. Jeff Jordan - https://a16z.com/author/jeff-jordan/ 4. Lenny - https://www.lennyrachitsky.com/ 5. James Currier's NFX Manual - https://www.nfx.com/post/network-effects-manual…

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83 - київський Стенфорд, 150 відмов від інвесторів, віральність у TikTok з Женею Засуцьким, Obimy 55:23

1 year назад55:23

55:23

В 83-му випуску Product&Growth Show ми поговорили з Женею Засуцьким, засновником та CEO додатку Obimy. Про що говорили: 1. Розробка MVP на аутсорсі. 2. Півоти та ітерації. 3. Фандрейзинг у 2023 - помилки та результати. 4. Як зворотній зв'язок інвесторів впливає на продукт. 5. Як шукати і наймати команду. 6. Гіпотези, які не вигоріли. 7. Що спільного між Yo! та Obimy.…

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82 - від Типового Івано-Франківська до Web3/AI стартапу з Ніком Гавриляком, assisterr 1:06:07

1 year назад1:06:07