The Diligent Observer Podcast

 John Jeffers brings 32 years of energy industry expertise spanning leadership roles at ExxonMobil, Schlumberger, and Southwestern Energy to our conversation. Since 2020, he has channeled his extensive corporate experience into angel investing, startup mentorship, and co-founding Revolution Turbine Technologies, focusing on waste energy recovery and natural gas decarbonization solutions. During our conversation, he discusses: His transition from working in oil and gas to angel investingThe role of subsidies and unit economics in clean energyThe potential of waste heat recovery technologiesThe future of hydrogen as a fuel and potential methods of productionStrategies for evaluating investment opportunities in clean energyThe significance of understanding both customer needs and operational integration when evaluating a new technologyThe necessity for adaptability and strategic pivots Connect with JohnLinkedIn | WebsiteStuff We ReferenceExxonMobilSchlumbergerSouthwestern EnergySWAN Impact NetworkRice Alliance Clean Energy AcceleratorDartmouth CollegeRice UniversitySMU Cox School of BusinessPitchBookInflation Reduction ActImperium TechnologiesGreentown Labs HoustonSkyven TechnologiesKanin EnergyJanice TranRice Energy Tech Venture ForumKolomaBreakthrough Energy VenturesKnow someone who would enjoy this episode? Share it with them! P.S. Your feedback is important to me. Also, it tells the algorithms to pay more attention, which helps me out a lot. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the "like" button or leave a comment with your thoughts. Want more? Get essential angel intel straight to your inbox every week with The Diligent Observer Newsletter. Check out the entire show library and follow via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Connect with Andrew LinkedIn | X | Angel Ops E-Book All opinions are personal and may not reflect the views of The Diligent Observer. Not investment advice.

Geoffrey Cheng is the Investment Manager for Comcast SportsTech. Before working at Comcast SportsTech, he was lucky enough to work alongside entrepreneurs and management teams from seed stage to growth stage. He's been one of the first employees at a startup, worked at a media investment advisory firm (where he worked on deals impacting over $750M in total assets), and spent time with dozens of startups as investor, advisor, and ad-hoc fundraising guru.During our conversation, he discusses: The transition from computational biology to investment managementBuilding key partnerships and strategy at Comcast SportsTechThe essence of impact in his career approachDifferentiating factors in sports and media investmentsImportance of establishing key partnerships in the sports industryCurrent trends like the intersection of gaming and sportsAdvice for angel investors in sports-related dealsThe cultural influence of sports and mediaConnect with GeoffreyLinkedIn | Website Stuff We ReferenceTrillerTiktokComcastPremier LeaguePGA TourNASCARUniversity of Notre DameNFLNBAFIFASalesforceRyan Reynolds buys WrexhamFerguson | Michael BrownAzureAmazonArsenalChelseaSkyPeacockCall of DutyFortniteRobloxKnow someone who would enjoy this episode? Share it with them! P.S. Your feedback is important to me. Also, it tells the algorithms to pay more attention, which helps me out a lot. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the "like" button or leave a comment with your thoughts. Want more? Get essential angel intel straight to your inbox every week with The Diligent Observer Newsletter. Check out the entire show library and follow via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Connect with Andrew LinkedIn | X | Angel Ops E-Book All opinions are personal and may not reflect the views of The Diligent Observer. Not investment advice.

John Samore III is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner with over 25 years of experience in forensic accounting, fraud investigations, and litigation. He has worked with Big 4 firms and other professional service firms, collaborating with companies across various industries.John specializes in financial, managerial, and operational due diligence for M&A transactions, including quality of earnings and working capital analysis. He has also performed internal audits, control testing, SOX compliance, and policy recommendations. His experience spans government entities, nonprofits, and public and private companies in industries such as banking, healthcare, media, retail, real estate, manufacturing, agriculture, and more.During our conversation, he discusses: The importance of separating emotions from business decisionsKey takeaways from his experience dealing with financial crimes and fraud casesWhy quality of earnings is important for early-stage investmentsTypical mistakes angel investors and entrepreneurs makePractical questions that angels should consider asking before committing to a dealRisk assessment and when to engage professionals for due diligenceConnect with JohnLinkedIn | WebsiteStuff We ReferenceMedicareGAAPShark TankKnow someone who would enjoy this episode? Share it with them! P.S. Your feedback is important to me. Also, it tells the algorithms to pay more attention, which helps me out a lot. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the "like" button or leave a comment with your thoughts. Want more? Get essential angel intel straight to your inbox every week with The Diligent Observer Newsletter. Check out the entire show library and follow via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Connect with Andrew LinkedIn | X | Angel Ops E-Book All opinions are personal and may not reflect the views of The Diligent Observer. Not investment advice.

Eric Alfuth is an investor and advisor with over 20 years of experience. He is the managing partner of the early-stage VC Caymont Ventures, and he serves as a board member and advisor to multiple emerging companies. He also serves as President of the Houston Angel Network, one of the largest and most active angel networks in the country.Prior to forming Caymont Eric helped launch and sell two energy companies, a public exit and a private sale. Before his entrepreneurial journey, Eric led a high yield credit hedge fund and managed a $4 billion international fund for AIG Investments. He began his career as an equity research analyst with Prudential Securities for a #1 ranked Institutional Investor team.Eric holds two degrees from Texas A&M University and a Masters degree from Harvard University.During our conversation, he discusses: The impact of quitting a day job to start a company Advice to new angel investors The importance of developing a macro thesisSupporting founders beyond providing capital The significance of having a strong advisory board Examples of successful thesis-driven investments Trends and sectors he is watching like personalized medicine and EdTechThe collaborative nature of the angel investing communityConnect with EricLinkedIn | Newsletter | Website | WebsiteStuff We ReferenceFidelityGood Morning AmericaReebokNikeName, Image, Likeness (NIL)OpenAI Board DramaEnronTheranosKnow someone who would enjoy this episode? Share it with them! P.S. Your feedback is important to me. Also, it tells the algorithms to pay more attention, which helps me out a lot. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the "like" button or leave a comment with your thoughts. Want more? Get essential angel intel straight to your inbox every week with The Diligent Observer Newsletter. Check out the entire show library and follow via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Connect with Andrew LinkedIn | X | Angel Ops E-Book All opinions are personal and may not reflect the views of The Diligent Observer. Not investment advice.

Matt Gore was a BCG consultant and startup founder with the Saturn Five Venture Studio. Along the way, he got hooked on crafting stories that help founders raise money. Now he manages OPTIO, a firm that specializes in crafting pitch decks. OPTIO pitch decks have helped founders raise over $2 Billion dollars in capital from top firms like A16Z. He is a partner in several service businesses, an angel investor, and leads the Aggie Venture Fund, a student VC fund at Texas A&M. During our conversation, he talks about: • The story of his transition from consulting to founding a pitch deck firm• Why pitch decks are a proxy for startup quality• What many investors miss about “technical” founders• The importance of founder-startup fit• Why most angels should stick to index funds• Winning the winners by becoming a true value-add investor• Building a network for unique deal flowConnect with MattX | LinkedIn | WebsiteStuff We Reference• Aggie Venture Fund• Evan Loomis• Quickbooks• Nike• Andreessen Horowitz• Acquired PodcastKnow someone who would enjoy this episode? Share it with them! P.S. Your feedback is important to me. Also, it tells the algorithms to pay more attention, which helps me out a lot. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the "like" button or leave a comment with your thoughts. Want more? Get essential angel intel straight to your inbox every week with The Diligent Observer Newsletter. Check out the entire show library and follow via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Connect with Andrew LinkedIn | X | Angel Ops E-Book All opinions are personal and may not reflect the views of The Diligent Observer. Not investment advice.