The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified Investor Stories 456: Inside Visionary Leadership: Platform Leverage, Founder Adaptability, and Market Timing (Rizik, Wang, Wallach)
Jan 29, 2026
Chris Rizik, investor at Renaissance Venture Capital, on building in-house platforms and company-creation in biopharma. D.A. Wallach, general partner at Time BioVentures, praises a founder’s rapid responsiveness and focus. Casber Wang, investor at Sapphire Ventures, recounts Kyle Hanselman’s evolution scaling SMB cybersecurity through MSP distribution and team reshuffles. They focus on visionary leadership, platform leverage, founder adaptability, and market timing.
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Platform-First Biopharma Funds Win Deals
- Biopharma funds now build internal company-creation platforms with labs and PhDs embedded.
- Those platforms produce reputational advantages that win deals even when not the highest bidder.
Institutionalize Exit Support As A Differentiator
- Some funds institutionalize 'exit partner' support as a recurring, scheduled part of company reviews.
- That formalization measurably improves outcomes and becomes a differentiator for the fund.
Huntress: Evolving Strategy For SMB Security
- Casber Wang recounts Kyle Hanselman's long evolution building Huntress for SMB cybersecurity.
- Kyle found distribution via MSPs and repeatedly reshaped his team and strategy to fit market timing.