[Venture Capital Series] How Important Are Core Values When Investing in a Company? With David Mann & Derrick Smith of The Firefly Group LLC

David Mann and Derrick Smith are Partners at The Firefly Group. They invest in growth-oriented, lower middle market companies that include US-based companies with EBITDA of at least a million dollars. 

Before co-founding The Firefly Group, David Mann co-founded Spring Mill Venture Partners, a venture capital firm. He previously worked with ServiceMaster Ventures and served as a founding member of the ServiceMaster home Service Center. David began his career as an Officer of the US Navy. He got his MBA from Harvard and is an Adjunct Faculty at the Indiana University, Kelley School of Business. 

Derrick Smith led the launch of a family office where he served as managing director before co-founding The Firefly Group. He began his career with CHV Capital, the healthcare venture capital arm of the Indiana University Health. He also helped start and led Indiana University's Health International and Management Company while at CHV Capital. He earned his MBA from Indiana University, Kelley School of Business, and serves as an executive business advisor at Rise Sports Advisors. 

In this episode…

As an entrepreneur, your business's geography, EBITDA, operating profile, and industry can potentially attract many venture capitalists. But if you want a strategic growth partner who will bring more than just money to your business, you have to have your core values identified and you need to be applying them in each step of your company’s growth.

According to David Mann and Derrick Smith, your core values may be the reason an investor will pass on your company. It’s such a crucial and fundamental part of your company culture and it’s worth investing time in. But why is it so important and how can you flesh one out to help direct your company’s growth?

Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz as he hosts David Mann and Derrick Smith, Partners at The Firefly Group, to talk about core values and the role they play in attracting potential investors in your company. They’ll be discussing Firefly Group's investment criteria, the story of how they invested in EOS Worldwide, and how David and Derrick assess key hires for their company. Stay tuned.