The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

20VC: Sequoia Partner, Pat Grady on Why Data Is The New Oil, Why We Will See The Return of The Apprenticeship Model in VC & The Defining Characteristics of The Next Generation of Great Software

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Mar 13, 2017

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ANECDOTE

Pat Grady's Path to Sequoia

Pat Grady's interest in venture capital stemmed from his love of math and the non-zero-sum nature of entrepreneurship.
He started at Summit Partners, gaining financial modeling skills, before joining Sequoia, drawn to their focus on company building.

INSIGHT

Tribal Knowledge vs. Operator Experience

While operator experience is valuable, Sequoia emphasizes tribal knowledge accumulated over decades of working with iconic founders.
They value both experienced operators and raw talent molded within their unique culture.

INSIGHT

Accelerating Change Favors Fresh Perspectives

The value of operator experience decays faster in a rapidly changing world.
Fresh perspectives become increasingly important, suggesting a return to the apprenticeship model in VC.

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Pat Grady is a Partner @ Sequoia Capital, one of the world's leading funds with prior investments in the likes of Apple, Google, Whatsapp, Paypal, Stripe and many more. At Sequoia, Pat has made investments in many past guests of this show and the SaaStr podcast including Zoom, Namely and Qualtrics, just to name a few. Prior to Sequoia, Pat spent 3 years with the team at Summit Partners.

In Today's Episode You Will Learn:

1.) How Pat made his way into the world of VC and one of the most famous funds in the world, Sequoia?

2.) How does Pat view the apprenticeship model in VC? How can VCs attempt to develop and convey the founder empathy when they have not been a founder? Do 'career VCs' get the same respect from founders?

3.) What does Pat believe to be the defining characteristics of the next generation of great software? What are the commonalities?

4.) Pat has said before that 'data is the new oil', what makes Pat think this? How does this affect his investment thesis going forward? Are there elements of being 'data long' that make Pat nervous?

5.) How does Pat think the data incumbency advantage can be mitigated? What can startups do to build a moat?

Items Mentioned In Today's Show:

Pat's Fave Book: The Boys In The Boat

Pat's Fave Blog: CB Insights

Pat's Most Recent Investment: Namely

As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Pat on Twitter here!

Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC.

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