Tag Archives: Startup Superhero

Startup Superhero Video Series! – This Week Featuring Preccelerator Mentor Sue Funkhouser on “Navigating Corporate Culture”

Stubbs Alstartup superhero series derton & Markiles and the Preccelerator Program are proud to announce the launch of their Startup Superhero Video Series – featuring SA&M Attorneys, Preccelerator Mentors, and entrepreneurs on topics specific to entrepreneurship and lessons learned throughout the journey.

This week we’re featuring Preccelerator Mentor Sue Funkhouser on “Navigating Corporate Culture.”

Sue Funkhouser is a management consultant and coach at Pinwheel Performance.  For 15 years, she has helped companies from Fortune 500, Startups and Non-Profits to improve organizational performance. Sue’s passion is helping founders grow their companies by developing leaders, teams and company culture. She mentors entrepreneurs and facilitates team and culture workshops at the SAM Preccelerator and Cross Campus. Sue also speaks to groups such as Young President’s Organization and has authored an e-booklet, Steering Company Culture during Growth. Connect with her on Twitter and Linked-In.


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Speaker: Sue Funkhouser

Moderator: Heidi Hubbeling

Sue: My background is that I for the last 12 years have been working with company’s leaders on their own leadership style, team effectiveness, and looking at the organization because culture is an organization as a whole. I have Master’s degree from Pepperdine University, the business school and that really taught me how to look at organization through a system’s lens and how does everything work together and that is how I approach my own work.

Heidi: You ‘ve been really beneficial to a lot of companies and we know that corporate culture can be a trigger for great success for a company long term or can be a trigger for failure. It’s one of those foundational items that these startup companies need to know, so why is corporate culture so important?

Sue: It’s your competitive advantage and it’s been proven in the marketplace. There’s research that shows that if you have an effective, greater company culture, you will get greater financial returns. You can look up Money Magazine’s research that shows that there is a 23% financial more return based on having a healthy effect of culture. There’s others if you want to know. Besides the financial research, it is something that can’t be replicated, something that can’t be duplicated not one culture is the same as the next. Your products and your capabilities can be copied, but your company’s culture can’t. The last thing is it acts as a magnet, you want to attract your people so if you have a healthy company culture you’re going to attract your top people as well as retain them.

Heidi: One of things that is a bedrock in company culture is the value systems of the company. How do you work with organization’ to develop your value system?

Sue: Its always helpful to provide a framework for people to look at so, I developed an acronym called WE ARE. Imagine a license plate called WE ARE and its we embody, so what is as a group we embody, and then articulate your values, reinforce your values and evaluate. I want to say one thing about the “we embody” so you have a culture no matter what and you want to find out as a collective what is most important here. I ask founders to please never take a piece of paper with words on it and say, “oh we are this, this and this” ask questions and stories about when have you made the most difficult decisions and what’s been most important. What have you weighed? That’s a way to draw that out. I have processes for each part of the we are, but I think that’s an important way to what do you embody? How do you articulate that value? How do you enforce it? Then later how do you evaluate it?

Heidi: Very important for companies building out that foundation for the long-term strategy of their company. I think that is a very powerful tool. What is some advice you give to companies wanting to build high performing teams?

Sue: One of the things, that I first like to talk to founders about is to understand that teams develop, much like individuals do. There are normal developmental stages for teams. Sometimes, they complain it’s like “this, this, this”, but its natural. Teams form and the they’ll storm and they must settle down and work on how they norm with each other and then they to perform. I remember I was working with a leader and they were prescribing this stuff and I explained that they were just storming. They’re trying to figure out how to work together and you need that if you’re going to get them to perform. That’s the first thing I tell people is to just know that its normal and you need it. Another thing I have found that a lot of people think its interpersonal. That all the problems are personal. As soon as we start working around what is your purpose or mission, what are the role clarities? What are the expectations of each other? A lot of that strife goes away.

Heidi: As a company grows, what do founders struggle with most?

Sue: There’s a lot to struggle. One common theme is about letting go. In a couple of ways, first in kind of a cognitive sense, leaders as they grow, have to let go of control and they have to move from being a technician to a strategist. I was talking to late David Goldberg, the former CEO of Survey Monkey and he said in his first venture when they went from 20 to 50 employees the hardest thing was to let go of the reigns. That’s one thing. The most heart wrenching thing that employers find is that they must let go of their early employees. What happens is as a company grows, some employees can’t scale their capabilities. You may try to develop them and move them around and eventually they just can’t or for a scaling company they don’t fit they’re just not interested in. It is so heart wrenching, every founder I talk to mentions that a person has been with them since day 1, but the fact of the matter is that if you do not let them go, there’s going to be some repercussions. One example, I was working with a company in New York and the CEO, heart of Gold, but when I interviewed his team they mentioned that for two years they had been shuffling people around every single department. The high performers said they didn’t have time to babysit, they’re getting in the way and he just had to cut it. It impedes performance and from what edmunds.com has told me is that you know in your gut. It’s hard but, you have got to do what is right for the company. What I advise people to do is how they let their early people go is do it in a way that shows that you care. You do care! Call-up your buddies and say, “I know this person they’re really good at this, would you meet with that person because you might know someone or you might have an opportunity”. Then go with that person and say “here is a list of 5 people that I have talked to, they’re ready for you and ready to take your call”.

Heidi: Very difficult, but very impactful advice, I think that’s a tough situation when that company gets to that stage of growth. The way that you respond, also affects your company culture overall and it’s a testament.

Sue: Those stories will ripple.

Heidi: You’ve been a mentor of the program for a couple of years now, what is the biggest give back to you, what do you enjoy most!

Sue: I love coming in here and thank you for having me. I just met with this new company whom I have never met before and we were supposed to meet for 20 minutes and we met for like an hour and half. I mean it was fabulous! What I love is that I learn so much. I get to meet with hot entrepreneurs that want to unleash stuff in the world and I get to learn about the new technology, I get my things opened. Just our interactions and the ability in such a short-time even though we expanded it to have fun, to get to know each other, but to have an impact and help them prepare for something, it so great. Thank you so much.

Management Consultant & Coach
Pinwheel Performance
sue@pinwheelperformance.com

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To learn more about the Preccelerator Program, contact Heidi Hubbeling at hhubbeling@stubbsalderton.com

 

Preccelerator Program Presents: Startup Superhero Series with Michael Schneider, Founder of Service and Mobile Roadie

Startup

 

What is a Startup Superhero? Join us as Michael Schneider, founder of Service and Mobile Roadie, is interviewed by Matt Swider, Senior Mobile Editor of TechRadar, on the highs and lows of entrepreneurship, stories from his time with Mobile Roadie, one of the world’s most successful mobile app platforms, and his adventure into founding Service, a platform that compensates travelers for delayed or canceled flights.

Register

When:

Thursday, June 29, 2017
5:30-6:15pm – Networking
6:15-7:30pm – Fireside Chat with Michael Schneider

Where:

SAM Preccelerator Program
1453 3rd Street Promenade, Suite 300
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Who:

Michael Schneider, CEO & Founder – Service

Startup

Michael Schneider is the founder and CEO of Service, a company that gets travelers compensation anytime their flight is delayed or cancelled. The idea for Service was born when Schneider realized that in today’s digital world customers can get almost anything, from a car, food, or a place to stay, on-demand, yet they are still required to waste an irreplaceable asset – their time – dealing with customer service issues. Schneider started small – he tracked down people complaining of flight disruptions on Twitter and offered to help get them compensation. Today, Service handles thousands of claims per month, and is saving the average frequent traveler over $600/year. Prior to Service, Schneider was the co-founder and CEO of Mobile Roadie, one of the world’s most successful mobile app platforms, with clients such as Disney, the World Economic Forum, Madonna and the Rolling Stones. Schneider is active in the Los Angeles tech community, having served on the board of the Young Entrepreneurs Organization, advising the Southern California Entrepreneurship Academy and speaking regularly at his alma mater – the University of Southern California
Fast Facts
● At the age of 15, Schneider founded Video Game Central, where he sold new and used video games online at the advent of the digital age
● A serial entrepreneur, Schneider has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Los Angeles County SBA “Young Entrepreneur of the Year” award, and was named one of the “Top 20 in their 20s” by the Los Angeles Business Journal

Moderator

Matt Swider, Senior Mobile Editor – TechRadar

Startup

Matt Swider is the Senior Mobile Editor of TechRadar.com, covering smartphones, wearables and car tech. He began writing about gadgets when we started his own video game news and reviews website at 14 back in 1999. He holds a Journalism degree from Pennsylvania State University.
Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP is a business law firm with robust corporate, public securities, mergers and acquisitions, entertainment, intellectual property, brand protection and business litigation practice groups focusing on the representation of, among others, venture backed emerging growth companies, middle market public companies, large technology companies, entertainment and digital media companies, investors, venture capital funds, investment bankers and underwriters. The firm’s clients represent the full spectrum of Southern California business with a concentration in the technology, entertainment, videogame, apparel and medical device sectors. Our mission is to provide technically excellent legal services in a consistent, highly-responsive and service-oriented manner with an entrepreneurial and practical business perspective. These principles are the hallmarks of our Firm. For more information, visit www.stubbsalderton.com.

We love tech! We’re unashamedly geeky about it. So we’ll tell you what we think in a fair, unbiased way. That’s what we’re about. We’re able to promise this because TechRadar is the largest UK-based consumer technology news and reviews site (and now rapidly growing in the US and Australia), our editorial independence backed by the weight of technology publisher Future plus objective test data from the TechRadar Labs. Our experienced writers who operate from our offices in London, Bath, San Francisco, New York and Sydney operate under Future’s 20 year old policy of a cast-iron guarantee of editorial independence.

TechRadar will tell you about the coolest new stuff. We’ll work hard to bring you original quotes and exclusive access. We’ll review it more thoroughly and carefully than anyone else. We’ll explain how it works and why you buy it (or not). Then it’s up to you. Add your own comments and opinions. Review gear for yourself. There’s no monopoly on the truth here – tell us what you think. Visit www.techradar.com

Startup Superhero Series with Kimberly Brooks – Dot-Com Entrepreneur, Artist and Tech Wizard at Lightray

Join Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP
for this exclusive event!

 

Startup Superhero

What is a Startup Superhero? Join us as Kimberly Brooks, Founder and Chief Strategist of Lightray, is interviewed by Kevin DeBre, Partner at Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP, on the highs and lows of entrepreneurship, stories from her Dot-Com adventures, and how entrepreneurship has changed for her today.

When:
Thursday, February 23, 2017
5:30-6:15pm – Networking
6:15-7:30pm – Fireside Chat with Kimberly Brooks

Where:
SAM Preccelerator Program
1453 3rd Street Promenade, Suite 300
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Kimberly Brooks

Kimberly Brooks is a Contemporary American Painter, Innovator, Technologist. She has had numerous solo exhibitions in the United States and has been showcased in juried exhibitions, including curators from Mira Schor, Chris Burden, The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Museum of Modern Art, California Institute of the Arts, and Los Angeles County Museum of Art. As founding arts editor at the Huffington Post, Brooks grew the section to 22M unique monthly readers/month. She also founded the Science Section and Art Meets Science. In 1996, Brooks founded of Lightray, a web development incubator and design lab which works with numerous companies around the world: www.lightray.com. Website www.kimberlybrooks.com

Moderator 

Kevin DeBre Kevin D. DeBré is the chair of the Firm’s Intellectual Property & Technology Transactions Practice Group. Kevin advises entrepreneurs and companies that use intellectual property to build their businesses. Kevin has particular expertise in structuring and negotiating technology commercialization and patent licenses, strategic alliances, research and development collaborations, trademark licensing and brand merchandising agreements and manufacturing, distribution and marketing arrangements. He also counsels clients on compliance with data security and privacy laws and regulations. Kevin is a business lawyer, a registered patent lawyer and a former engineer.

Stubbs Alderton & Markiles Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP is a business law firm with robust corporate, public securities, mergers and acquisitions, entertainment, intellectual property, brand protection and business litigation practice groups focusing on the representation of, among others, venture backed emerging growth companies, middle market public companies, large technology companies, entertainment and digital media companies, investors, venture capital funds, investment bankers and underwriters. The firm’s clients represent the full spectrum of Southern California business with a concentration in the technology, entertainment, videogame, apparel and medical device sectors. Our mission is to provide technically excellent legal services in a consistent, highly-responsive and service-oriented manner with an entrepreneurial and practical business perspective. These principles are the hallmarks of our Firm. For more information, visit www.stubbsalderton.com

SAM Preccelerator Program Presents: Startup Superhero Series with Adam Nazar of ACD (f/k/a AutoClaims Direct)

Please join Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP and CohnReznick LLP for this special invitation-only speaker session and networking event!

What is a startup superhero? Join us as Adam Nazar, Founder and CTO of ACD (f/k/a AutoClaims Direct), is interviewed by Matt Swider, US Mobile Editor for TechRadar, on the highs and lows of entrepreneurship and what it feels like to create a brand used by thousands of people.

When:
Thursday, February 18, 2016
5:30-6:15pm – Networking
6:15-8:00pm – Fireside Chat with Adam Nazar

Location:
Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP
1453 3rd Street Promenade, Suite 300
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Register!

SPEAKERS

Matt Swider is the Mobile Editor of TechRadar.com, covering smartphones, wearables and car tech. He began writing about gadgets when we started his own video game news and reviews website at 14 back in 1999. He holds a Journalism degree from Pennsylvania State University.

Adam Nazar is a founder and CTO of ACD (f/k/a Autoclaims Direct), which under his tenure has grown into one of the largest claims technology & service companies in the industry with over 1,000 employees and contractors. ACD has been named to Inc. Magazines’ list of fastest growing private companies, the Deloitte’s Technology Fast-500, and the Red Herring Top 100 North America among others.  Adam has spent over 15 years serving as a CTO, investor, board member, and advisor to many Southern California companies. He is still an avid programmer and has developed software and technology solutions for numerous industries leading to successful private companies and multiple acquisitions.

A native of San Diego, Nazar got his start developing software at the age of 16 where he worked for HealthLine Systems on one of the first web-based management systems in the Health Care industry. At 19, Adam became a developer during the early formation of The Content Project, which became Schematic/POSSIBLE, a leading global creative agency. Nazar went on to co-found ACD at age 20 and became actively involved in the Los Angeles startup & tech community.  Adam holds a BS in Computer Engineering and Computer Science, and an MS in Computer Science, as well as an MBA from the University of Southern California, where he has also served as a part-time faculty member in the Viterbi School of Engineering.

 

About Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP

Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP is a business law firm with robust corporate, public securities, mergers and acquisitions, entertainment, intellectual property, brand protection and business litigation practice groups focusing on the representation of, among others, venture backed emerging growth companies, middle market public companies, large technology companies, entertainment and digital media companies, investors, venture capital funds, investment bankers and underwriters. The firm’s clients represent the full spectrum of Southern California business with a concentration in the technology, entertainment, videogame, apparel and medical device sectors. Our mission is to provide technically excellent legal services in a consistent, highly-responsive and service-oriented manner with an entrepreneurial and practical business perspective. These principles are the hallmarks of our Firm. For more information, visit www.stubbsalderton.com.

About CohnReznick

CohnReznick LLP is one of the top accounting, tax, and advisory firms in the United States, combining the resources and technical expertise of a national firm with the hands-on, entrepreneurial approach that today’s dynamic business environment demands. Headquartered in New York, NY, and with offices nationwide, CohnReznick serves a large number of diverse industries and offers specialized services for middle market and Fortune 1000 companies, private equity and financial services firms, government contractors, government agencies, and not-for-profit organizations. The Firm, with origins dating back to 1919, has more than 2,700 employees including nearly 300 partners and is a member of Nexia International, a global network of independent accountancy, tax, and business advisors. For more information, visit www.cohnreznick.com.