Startup Theatre Podcast

In this episode, Troy chats with John-Daniel Trask, or JD, who is the Co-founder & CEO of Raygun. He has been developing software for over 30 years, has produced 14 products, built 4 joint ventures, invests in start-ups, and spends his days leading Raygun and building Lego with his family. Troy and JD chat about his story from knowing he was going to be a successful entrepreneur at 9 years old, building products that have scaled more than most NZ companies and performance culture. JD is not shy in giving his opinions on things and we loved that. He talks honestly and authentically about what he views as a high-performing culture and what he believes employees are really looking for. We hope you enjoy this as much as we did. Please subscribe to help us. About 60% of our audience does not subscribe and the numbers help us greatly.

Mary Haddock-Staniland is the SVP of Global DEIB & People APAC EMEA at EverCommerce a global software company. In this episode, Troy and Mary talk about Mary's journey, transitioning into one of the most remarkable and mana-enhancing wahine we have ever had the privilege of talking with. They cover Mary's personal story, what it is like being a trans woman in New Zealand and now sitting at the exec table of a global software company. Mary has garnered an impressive reputation for championing change and advocating for a more equitable world, sparking positive change, in the corporate world as a highly regarded thought leader and in social spheres as a committed advocate. She joined EverCommerce after Timely was acquired by us back in 2021; Mary held the role of Chief People & Inclusion Officer at Timely, the first people and inclusion role at an executive level to exist in New Zealand. We absolutely loved our chat with Mary and believe that if the world was as empathetic, curious, and kind as this chat... Everything would be so much better. Please subscribe to help us. About 60% of our audience does not subscribe and the numbers help us greatly.

In this episode Troy Hammond talks with Mark Clare from Clare Capital. Please subscribe to help us continue bringing you great podcasts. There has been so many acquisitions over the last few years and we wanted to know when is the best time to bring an investment banker in. Mark gives us a great insight into the M&A process and how you can maximise your opportunities. They discuss a range of topics including:🤝🏻 Mergers & acquisitions📊 Corporate finance advisory💰 Capital raising and many others. Mark is the founder of Clare Capital and works primarily with clients to help them complete transactions. Mark has over 25 years’ commercial and corporate finance experience, with a background in investment banking, strategy, and technology. Mark has completed a multitude of M&A transactions for large entities and private companies. Mark holds an MBA (with distinction) from Victoria University and a Bachelor of Business Studies (Accountancy) from Massey University. Mark is a Certified Member of the Institute of Finance Professionals New Zealand Inc. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as us.

In this episode of We F*@KIN Love Startups, Troy Hammond chats with Kimberley Gilmour who is the Co-Founder and CEO of Sprinklr. We talk about the highs, lows, and comebacks Kimberley has had in tech, where she has had to take time off from heavy life situations. Kimberley is a breath of fresh air in the People Experience space for startups and she and the Sprinklr team, help startups grow. Previously to Sprinklr, Kimberley has worked with some of New Zealand’s most iconic and successful high-growth companies through periods of global expansion and change, including Icebreaker, Vend, 8i, UneeQ, and Groov. She is skilled in developing and embedding proven people processes and practices that fuel growth, strengthen culture, enhance performance, and support well-being.She is passionate about using her experience now to help startups navigate the many and varied challenges and opportunities that arise on the journey, to remove friction and toil, to minimise risk, and help startups and their people thrive. *****DISCLAIMER***** In this episode, Kimberley talks about the suicide of her partner at the time. Suicide is a very sensitive topic to discuss for many and for some it can trigger intense emotions and thoughts. If you or anyone you know are struggling with suicidal thoughts or behaviors, please direct them to a healthcare provider immediately. Please like, share, and subscribe to help us continue sharing the stories of remarkable people like Kimberley. This podcast is dedicated to Angus. Please pour one out for him when watching or listening. We miss you mate.

"Ka mua, ka muri" is a whakatauki that many will know means "walking backwards into the future" - the idea we should look to the past to inform the future. We felt that this podcast with Lee really embodies "walking backwards into the future" as Lee helps the next generation of young Māori and Pasifika understand that the things, they need to be innovators are all told in the stories of their ancestors. In this episode Troy Hammond chats with Lee Timutimu. We chat about Lee's mission to increase both representation and participation of Māori in tech. His personal background kōrero of how he personally got into STEM and what he is doing to help young Māori and Pasifika to enter STEM. Lee is CEO of Arataki Systems - a Māori owned, whānau (family) owned tech company that he founded in 2016. He has 20+ years working in IT and is a Founder & Co-Founder of multiple community initiatives that seek to empower Māori communities in the tech and digital space. Born and raised in Whakatāne, Lee now lives with his whānau in Kirikiriroa (Hamilton). Troy and Lee had a wonderful chat about the great work that Lee is doing and we hope you enjoy this podcast as much as we did shooting it. Please like, share and subscribe to help us continue sharing the stories of remarkable people like Lee.

In this episode, Troy Hammond chats with Rachael Fitzjohn. You will hear them talk about leadership, trust, fuckups, vulnerability, and becoming one of NZ's best tech leaders of people. Her name is Rachael Fitzjohn. Although over the last few years, further to a joke from a workmate and then multiple Rachel's/Rachael's in the team, Rachael became Fitzy! Fitzy works at a company called Cogo. Cogo is a tech start-up that provides carbon footprint management products to allow people and companies to measure, understand and reduce their carbon footprint. Fitzy is the Head of People Experience at Cogo so is responsible for the health, development, and well-being of Cogoers across a variety of markets (they are in the UK, Germany, other parts of Europe, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and...New Zealand). Her passions and values mostly revolve around people (a bit of a relief, especially considering her role title and background!) In all seriousness, though Fitzy feels that what makes her get up in the morning is ensuring that people have a good experience at work and that she is being the real Fitzy She also has a strong desire to coach leaders and be a good leader herself - leadership and the concepts around it have changed so much over the last few years and Fitzy says: "I am here for it!" Please like, follow, and subscribe to the podcast so we can continue to keep bringing you content.

In this episode, Troy Hammond chats with his old boss and good friend Vaughan Fergusson. Vaughan goes deep on the startup journey of a man who founded a company and did not know what he was doing and then sold it for $484m NZD. He is open, honest, vulnerable and talks about his passion for not just Vend, but his charity and how to grow an ecosystem. We touch on how Innovation is the fastest was to transform our economy and many other topics. While this one was longer than our usual, it is a great one and so strap in and hear from someone who does impossible things.  Vaughan Fergusson (previously Rowsell) is the founder of Vend, pioneering cloud technology in retail globally, omni-channel commerce and invented the iPad retail point of sale. Vend is a New Zealand high-growth tech success story contributing significantly to the New Zealand tech eco-system over 12 years. Vend  was sold for $500m in 2021 to LightSpeed and remains the flagship retail product globally. In 2014 he was the founder and trustee of The Pam Fergusson Charitable Trust running initiatives like OMGTech!, Mana Tangata, Voluntari.ly and The Institute of Awesome to teach innovation, creativity and technology to tamariki of all ages and backgrounds, in particular our youth who would not otherwise get the opportunity. Collectively the trust also works with educators across New Zealand empowering them to empower our future innovators. He was EY's Tech Entrepreneur of the Year in 2014, a judge for the 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year programme, and head judge for the 2021-22 programme. Vaughan has been a Trustee, Judge, and Vice-Chair for the New Zealand Hi-tech Trust from 2015 - 2021 and remains as a judge for the 2023 awards. Every year Vaughan does an impossible challenge, something to take him out of his comfort zone, like running 1,000km, learning to sing to get a paid gig in front of 100 people, or cycling around the world in 80 days. Vaughan is a self-described weirdo and has spoken many times on the importance of challenging the status quo, thinking differently and trusting your inner weirdo. He is also a staunch ally for diversity in New Zealand and in the technology and creative sectors. Please like, follow, and subscribe to the podcast so we can continue to keep bringing you content.

In this episode, Troy Hammond talks with Andréa van der Meel. We chat about tech, greenwashing, and how we can make considerate decisions on fashion and be better for the environment and the people producing these products. We chat about Andrea's career founding a tech startup on her own in her 20s. We also chat about how the second time around founding a startup, she joined forces with John Holt of Homes.co.nz and Kiwi Landing pad fame and how they did founder vetting with each other. Andréa van der Meel is dedicated to increasing transparency and accountability in the fashion industry. With over 15 years of experience in the retail sector, her first business, SeekStock, delivered real-time product feedback to retail brands via store staff. Now, Andréa is the Co-Founder and Head of Platform of All Things Considered, a community-driven platform driving impactful change around how we produce and consume our clothing. Andréa put something into the world this year that she wanted to get onto three podcasts as she had never done one before and so she jumped at the chance when we asked her on after hearing about her work. You would never know this was her first podcast. Please help us spread the word about our podcast by liking, subscribing and following us on all our platforms found here. Share with your friends who may be interested. Thank you for coming on Andréa. This chat was really fun and super interesting.

In this episode, Troy Hammond speaks with Danny Smith on the fall of Silicon Valley bank due to the bank run. They go deep into what has happened, why it happened, and what could happen in the future. Danny breaks down the information in an eloquent non-financial talk conversation so that everyone can understand the reasoning behind the 18th largest bank in the US falling down.   Danny is a startup enthusiast with a passion for blending finance, product, commercial, and operations to drive growth. He has worked with a range of industries at Deloitte, in-house finance with Icebreaker, and most recently 8 years with Xero, in a range of finance and non-finance roles.    Today, Danny serves as CFO at Storypark, which is an easy-to-use private online service that helps teachers, parents and families work together to record, share and extend children's learning. Please like, follow, and subscribe to the podcast so we can continue to keep bringing you content. 

In this episode, Troy Hammond speaks with Joel Lieser.  Joel Lieser is the CTO of Trove Money, a child company of Forsyth Barr.   His career has spanned seven states and three countries, where he has held positions from global banks to Silicon Valley technology juggernauts like Netflix, and companies like Nike along with multiple startups along the way.   His passions lie in technology innovation and building teams. In this episode, Joel chats about culture, engineering, the differences between US and NZ, and how he thinks we can help get more people into startups. Joel hones in on his career and how our lives are a culmination of the choices we make against our adjacent possibles It is a really interesting episode and we hope you enjoy watching and or listening as much as we did.  Please join us and subscribe to help us. We want to help New Zealand to support its own when it comes to innovation.   To quote Joel: "Don't let the Tall Poppy Syndrome sidetrack us from supporting Kiwis to change the world."