The Fort #87: Sam Parr - Hiring a CEO, Trends.co, and the Future of Media
Sam Parr, Co-Founder and CEO of The Hustle, joins Chris for round 2 on The FORT. (Listen to Part 1 here) On this episode, Sam explains the process of hiring a new CEO to replace himself, what his role at The Hustle and Trends.co will be going forward, his exodus from San Francisco, the Austin real estate market, the impact of the Trends community and the future of media through the lens of the public's distrust of mainstream news. Enjoy!
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(01:52) - Why did you replace yourself as CEO?
(03:31) - How long between having this realization and actually pulling the trigger?
(03:57) - How many people did you interview along the way?
(04:39) - Starting vs. Scaling
(05:13) - What is the CEO you’re hiring going to do differently than you?
(06:20) - What are your growth expectations from a new CEO?
(07:20) - In those 14 interviews, how many times did you talk to the person you ultimately hired?
(07:41) - Was there a silver bullet that told you this was the one?
(08:18) - Who on your team was involved in the process?
(08:52) - How is the business structured now?
(10:06) - Who reports to who?
(10:56) - What would this person say their expectation is of you?
(12:19) - When will this hire go public?
(12:38) - Can you give any insight as to how you’re paying this person?
(13:33) - How do you describe what Trends is?
(15:12) - What’s your position within this community?
(16:42) - How can people get the most value out of Trends?
(18:16) - Is there anything that comes to mind that you didn’t expect to grow out of Trends?
(19:38) - Are people pitching deals there or are they just meeting online and then making deals outside of it?
(19:51) - The Importance of Facebook Groups & Communities
(21:37) - Are you permanently out of SF?
(22:18) - Would you consider yourself a remote company?
(22:42) - Do you enjoy the new way things are structured?
(23:25) - What’s your opinion on the future of SF?
(26:10) - Austin & Real Estate
(28:59) - Sam’s Spontaneity
(30:30) - Sam's Wife
(34:00) - The Newsletter Industry
(37:20) - How expensive is it to acquire a customer today?
(37:39) - Is there anything that keeps you up at night as to what could make the business fail?
(39:02) - What do you think about the decline of trust in news media as it pertains to your operation?
(47:17) - Are we about to enter a new wave of media?
(48:59) - Is it even possible to build a news station that only puts out good, positive news?
The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts