Future of Tech The Future of Software Evaluation, Godard Abel, CEO, G2
Intro:
Business leaders can reasonably feel overwhelmed, at times, with the volume of software solutions in the world that may or may not be helpful to their companies.
On this episode of Future of Tech, Godard Abel, the Co-founder and CEO of G2, explains how G2 has created a marketplace where business leaders can check out useful software reviews.
Godard also shares lessons he learned along his entrepreneurial path, including learning a practice to increase his consciousness and to allow himself to feel and process his emotions.
Enjoy this episode!
Main Takeaways:
- G2’s Place in the Market: Godard describes G2: “At G2, we’re aiming to build the place you go for software. When we founded the company in 2012, we called it a Yelp for business software.” G2’s goal is to create a space for credible, helpful reviews of software solutions. Godard chats about how this service helps efficiently crowdsource software reviews and that this ends up being constructive for B2B software sellers and buyers.
- Working on Multiple Projects: It’s easy to marvel at how entrepreneurs like Godard can work on multiple projects simultaneously. Godard demystifies his ability to do so. He talks about how he does not manage every project; in truth, he is part of a team of entrepreneurs who take on different roles on projects.
- Becoming a Better Leader: Born from overcoming earlier business stresses, Godard shares how he sought out a coach that helped teach him consciousness and mindfulness techniques and how to experience and process his feelings. He has found that these strategies have helped him manage stress and become a better leader.
- Advice for Entrepreneurs: Godard offers that budding entrepreneurs should hone in on their intention rather than going overly broad. He also points to the power of passion for seeing one through inevitable challenges that come with building a new business.
Key Quotes:
[00:30] “At G2, we’re aiming to build the place you go for software. When we founded the company in 2012, we called it a Yelp for business software. And the idea is as software is eating the world, G2 is a buffet where you can find over a hundred thousand different business apps. And I think the amazing thing about our industry [is that] there's been so much innovation, but, entrepreneurs, software entrepreneurs have built purpose-built applications for every business function [and] every industry, and G2 is the one place you can go to find all those apps.”
[12:03] “I think we focus on our culture and [at] G2 we've defined our ‘peak culture’ and ‘PEAK’ is a mnemonic that stands for ‘performance, entrepreneurship, authenticity, and kindness.’ And so we really want to have a ‘peak culture.’”
[30:49] “And I think what I advise startups is to go very narrow at the beginning. And I think a lot of startup pitches are like, ‘Oh, I have a huge TAM. I'm going to sell to everybody.’ I actually think that's exactly the wrong answer. Pick up very much a niche, because there's already a hundred thousand software apps. So I think pick one use case, one industry, [and] do that better than anyone. And just at the beginning, just focus — Make sure your first five, 10 customers are really successful [by] solving that one problem better than anyone else and then scale from there.”
[34:22] “I don't think you can control your emotions. I think… more, it's like, feel your emotions [and} accept them. So for me, it's more accepting what is, and actually becoming more aware of your feelings.”
[41:19] “I do think all the great entrepreneurs, they have some greater purpose and greater vision that they're kind of metaphorically willing to die for. And so I think that that's really important is that you have that for your vision for your company, so that you will keep going [and] you will persevere. And I do believe with that, ultimately you can usually find a way to succeed.”