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

20VC: Hubspot Co-Founder Dharmesh Shah on The 3 Risks All Startups Face, Angel Investing Rules; No Founder Meetings and No Due Diligence, SMB vs Enterprise; Lessons on Pricing, Distribution and Why You Should Resist Going Enterprise

22 snips
Jun 13, 2022
Dharmesh Shah, co-founder and CTO of HubSpot, shares his journey from bootstrapping Pyramid Digital Solutions to building a billion-dollar CRM powerhouse. He discusses the three core risks every startup faces and stresses the importance of nurturing a strong company culture, treating it like a product. Dharmesh also reveals his unorthodox approach to angel investing, which avoids traditional meetings and due diligence. He emphasizes the need for market validation and strategic pricing for both SMBs and enterprises, ensuring startups stay focused on their core mission.
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ANECDOTE

Co-founder matchmaking

  • Dharmesh Shah's wife played matchmaker, introducing him to his HubSpot co-founder, Brian Halligan, despite thinking they wouldn't connect.
  • They bonded over their shared passion for SMBs, leading to HubSpot's creation, despite Shah's promise to avoid startups.
INSIGHT

Transparency and Humility in Leadership

  • Dharmesh Shah's leadership style emphasizes transparency and humility.
  • He believes in openly sharing thoughts while actively listening and acknowledging that he doesn't have all the answers.
ADVICE

Identifying High Achievers with Low Egos

  • To identify individuals with low ego and high accomplishment, observe how they attribute credit.
  • High achievers with low egos share credit, shoulder responsibility for failures, and avoid blame-shifting.
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