[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":805},["ShallowReactive",2],{"podcast-shekhar-kirani":3},{"podcast":4,"podcasts":251,"podcastContent":804,"podcastOgImg":247},{"metadata":5,"sys":8,"fields":29},{"tags":6,"concepts":7},[],[],{"space":9,"id":14,"type":15,"createdAt":16,"updatedAt":17,"environment":18,"publishedVersion":22,"revision":23,"contentType":24,"locale":28},{"sys":10},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"Link","Space","a7hvy8sclsq6","2yDZTKtRT8L3KBqxWRp1Oe","Entry","2021-07-08T09:05:13.595Z","2022-06-22T06:56:43.031Z",{"sys":19},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},"master","Environment",33,7,{"sys":25},{"type":11,"linkType":26,"id":27},"ContentType","podcast","en-US",{"slug":30,"seoTitle":31,"seoDescription":32,"category":33,"contentType":35,"episodeNumber":37,"speakerName":38,"speakerDesignation":39,"speakerImageHero":40,"speakerImage":64,"podcastTitle":82,"podcastDescription":32,"podcastAudio":83,"podcastDuration":101,"podcastContent":102,"podcastVersion":249},"shekhar-kirani","Navigating the ‘Haziness’ of Early Stage Startups with Shekhar Kirani","Shekhar Kirani currently a partner at Accel, shares his secret to juggling different startup contexts and some of the many lessons he has learned over the years. He demystifies the haziness in startups and speaks about the traits he looks for in early-stage companies.",[34],"Revenue Operations",[36],"Podcasts","Episode 02","Shekhar Kirani","Partner at Accel",{"metadata":41,"sys":44,"fields":54},{"tags":42,"concepts":43},[],[],{"space":45,"id":47,"type":48,"createdAt":49,"updatedAt":49,"environment":50,"publishedVersion":52,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":46},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"1YvCa6EQKDCOzuJSGiUrjE","Asset","2021-07-08T09:01:20.567Z",{"sys":51},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},3,1,{"title":55,"file":56},"shekhar-kirani-hero",{"url":57,"details":58,"fileName":62,"contentType":63},"\u002F\u002Fimages.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F1YvCa6EQKDCOzuJSGiUrjE\u002Fe922a8025c183dccf91bc1e4137fd2bd\u002Fshekhar-kirani-hero.png",{"size":59,"image":60},515608,{"width":61,"height":61},650,"shekhar-kirani-hero.png","image\u002Fpng",{"metadata":65,"sys":68,"fields":75},{"tags":66,"concepts":67},[],[],{"space":69,"id":71,"type":48,"createdAt":72,"updatedAt":72,"environment":73,"publishedVersion":52,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":70},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"2E8ixnZXNgDZBzWhVm8iY8","2021-07-08T09:01:54.753Z",{"sys":74},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},{"title":30,"file":76},{"url":77,"details":78,"fileName":81,"contentType":63},"\u002F\u002Fimages.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F2E8ixnZXNgDZBzWhVm8iY8\u002Fcdb21cd58a558933c978fee1503ceb5d\u002Fshekhar-kirani.png",{"size":79,"image":80},539624,{"width":61,"height":61},"shekhar-kirani.png","Navigating the ‘Haziness’ of Early Stage Startups",{"metadata":84,"sys":87,"fields":94},{"tags":85,"concepts":86},[],[],{"space":88,"id":90,"type":48,"createdAt":91,"updatedAt":91,"environment":92,"publishedVersion":52,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":89},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"2HAuKRaxqyGBQVaXjfrudG","2021-07-08T09:03:50.963Z",{"sys":93},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},{"title":30,"file":95},{"url":96,"details":97,"fileName":99,"contentType":100},"\u002F\u002Fdownloads.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F2HAuKRaxqyGBQVaXjfrudG\u002Fb1804068d69a74818b542eb7deb1a7f0\u002Fshekhar-kirani.mp3",{"size":98},47653624,"shekhar-kirani.mp3","audio\u002Fmpeg","34 mins",{"data":103,"content":104,"nodeType":248},{},[105,114,118,125,128,131,134,143,146,241],{"data":106,"content":107,"nodeType":113},{},[108],{"data":109,"marks":110,"value":111,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Vikram’s very special guest on the podcast today is someone he has worked for many years and currently a partner at Accel, Shekhar Kirani. With over 25 years of experience in business and tech leadership roles across several startups and large companies in the US, Shekhar specializes in investing in early-stage software and mobile startups that help enterprises. During his extensive career, he has led investments in ANSR, BrowserStack, CareStack, Cogoport, FalconX, Freshworks, and Zenoti, and he also played a crucial role in the seed stage funding of Chargebee.","text","paragraph",{"data":115,"content":116,"nodeType":117},{},[],"hr",{"data":119,"content":120,"nodeType":113},{},[121],{"data":122,"marks":123,"value":124,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Shekhar begins by sharing his secret to juggling different startup contexts, the roles he played before becoming an investor, and some of the many lessons he has learned over the years, including the importance of onboarding, understanding the customer first, and the traits he looks for in early-stage companies. He also provides some advice regarding dealing with early-stage ‘haziness’ and a glimpse into his prediction framework, thoughts around social consciousness from startups and technologies, and the product for which he sees the greatest need these days. Gifted with intellect, experience, and eloquence, Shekhar Kirani’s insights are supremely valuable and will both educate and inspire listeners here today.",{"data":126,"content":127,"nodeType":117},{},[],{"data":129,"content":130,"nodeType":117},{},[],{"data":132,"content":133,"nodeType":117},{},[],{"data":135,"content":136,"nodeType":113},{},[137],{"data":138,"marks":139,"value":142,"nodeType":112},{},[140],{"type":141},"bold","The Finer Details of This Episode:",{"data":144,"content":145,"nodeType":117},{},[],{"data":147,"content":148,"nodeType":240},{},[149,160,170,180,190,200,210,220,230],{"data":150,"content":151,"nodeType":159},{},[152],{"data":153,"content":154,"nodeType":113},{},[155],{"data":156,"marks":157,"value":158,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Shekhar’s secret to juggling different startup contexts","list-item",{"data":161,"content":162,"nodeType":159},{},[163],{"data":164,"content":165,"nodeType":113},{},[166],{"data":167,"marks":168,"value":169,"nodeType":112},{},[],"The roles he held before becoming an investor",{"data":171,"content":172,"nodeType":159},{},[173],{"data":174,"content":175,"nodeType":113},{},[176],{"data":177,"marks":178,"value":179,"nodeType":112},{},[],"His example of the importance of onboarding",{"data":181,"content":182,"nodeType":159},{},[183],{"data":184,"content":185,"nodeType":113},{},[186],{"data":187,"marks":188,"value":189,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Thinking about and understanding customers first",{"data":191,"content":192,"nodeType":159},{},[193],{"data":194,"content":195,"nodeType":113},{},[196],{"data":197,"marks":198,"value":199,"nodeType":112},{},[],"The traits Shekhar looks for in early-stage companies",{"data":201,"content":202,"nodeType":159},{},[203],{"data":204,"content":205,"nodeType":113},{},[206],{"data":207,"marks":208,"value":209,"nodeType":112},{},[],"His advice in dealing with early-stage ‘haziness.’",{"data":211,"content":212,"nodeType":159},{},[213],{"data":214,"content":215,"nodeType":113},{},[216],{"data":217,"marks":218,"value":219,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Shekhar’s prediction framework",{"data":221,"content":222,"nodeType":159},{},[223],{"data":224,"content":225,"nodeType":113},{},[226],{"data":227,"marks":228,"value":229,"nodeType":112},{},[],"His thoughts around social consciousness from startups and technologies",{"data":231,"content":232,"nodeType":159},{},[233],{"data":234,"content":235,"nodeType":113},{},[236],{"data":237,"marks":238,"value":239,"nodeType":112},{},[],"The product Shekhar sees the most need for these days","unordered-list",{"data":242,"content":243,"nodeType":113},{},[244],{"data":245,"marks":246,"value":247,"nodeType":112},{},[],"","document",[250],"V1",[252,420,638],{"metadata":253,"sys":256,"fields":266},{"tags":254,"concepts":255},[],[],{"space":257,"id":259,"type":15,"createdAt":260,"updatedAt":260,"environment":261,"publishedVersion":263,"revision":53,"contentType":264,"locale":28},{"sys":258},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"6P6FhoFNM9GPLatf0Zp3WL","2022-09-29T09:19:20.118Z",{"sys":262},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},16,{"sys":265},{"type":11,"linkType":26,"id":27},{"slug":267,"seoTitle":268,"seoDescription":269,"category":270,"episodeNumber":272,"speakerName":273,"speakerDesignation":274,"speakerImageHero":275,"speakerImage":275,"podcastTitle":268,"podcastDescription":269,"podcastAudio":297,"podcastDuration":314,"podcastContent":315,"podcastVersion":418},"jodi-mcdermott","Strategic Planning, Growth, and Product Management","A data-driven product executive with more than 20 years of experience in digital technology, analytics, and product management, Jodi McDermott discusses such topics as agile development, strategic planning, product growth, and the importance of prioritizing specific activities to achieve business outcomes. ",[271],"Champions of Change","Episode 08","Jodi McDermott","Chief Product Officer at Dude Solutions",{"metadata":276,"sys":279,"fields":287},{"tags":277,"concepts":278},[],[],{"space":280,"id":282,"type":48,"createdAt":283,"updatedAt":283,"environment":284,"publishedVersion":286,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":281},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"57tz1b6wKTWrDzsWkL2GdJ","2022-09-29T09:12:49.405Z",{"sys":285},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},4,{"title":288,"description":247,"file":289},"Strategic Planning, Growth, and Product Management with Jodi McDermott",{"url":290,"details":291,"fileName":295,"contentType":296},"\u002F\u002Fimages.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F57tz1b6wKTWrDzsWkL2GdJ\u002F0e71f6ff7317c8abe67b61d047aee0d7\u002FJodi_McDermott.jpeg",{"size":292,"image":293},10017,{"width":294,"height":294},200,"Jodi McDermott.jpeg","image\u002Fjpeg",{"metadata":298,"sys":301,"fields":308},{"tags":299,"concepts":300},[],[],{"space":302,"id":304,"type":48,"createdAt":305,"updatedAt":305,"environment":306,"publishedVersion":286,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":303},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"1BdeinMcAAf85xUnueyq9g","2022-09-29T09:16:23.284Z",{"sys":307},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},{"title":288,"description":247,"file":309},{"url":310,"details":311,"fileName":313,"contentType":100},"\u002F\u002Fdownloads.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F1BdeinMcAAf85xUnueyq9g\u002F7d148012ca8424d84a2a847d721777fc\u002Fcb-jodi-mcdermott.mp3",{"size":312},53986866,"cb-jodi-mcdermott.mp3","37:29",{"data":316,"content":317,"nodeType":248},{},[318,325,332,340,347,354,361,368,375,382,389,397,404,411],{"data":319,"content":320,"nodeType":113},{},[321],{"data":322,"marks":323,"value":324,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Jodi McDermott, Chief Product Officer at Dude Solutions, is Vikram’s guest on the podcast this week. A data-driven product executive with more than 20 years of experience in digital technology, analytics, and product management, Jodi has worked with companies such as Gartner, comScore, Inc, and SHL during her illustrious career. She brings this vast amount of experience and knowledge to her conversation with Vikram here today.",{"data":326,"content":327,"nodeType":113},{},[328],{"data":329,"marks":330,"value":331,"nodeType":112},{},[],"During the interview, Jodi discusses such topics as agile development, strategic planning, product growth, and the importance of prioritizing specific activities to achieve business outcomes. She then looks at how to ensure client satisfaction and upsell a client, financial concepts like budgeting, the impact of COVID-19 on her business, and how building strong relationships with people are critical. Jodi and Vikram finish by discussing how different business functions need to come together while crafting a product strategy. Listen in today to learn all about strategic planning, growth, and product management from this truly outstanding leader in the field.",{"data":333,"content":334,"nodeType":113},{},[335],{"data":336,"marks":337,"value":339,"nodeType":112},{},[338],{"type":141},"The Finer Details of This Episode",{"data":341,"content":342,"nodeType":113},{},[343],{"data":344,"marks":345,"value":346,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -Questions you need to ask during the strategic planning process",{"data":348,"content":349,"nodeType":113},{},[350],{"data":351,"marks":352,"value":353,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -The importance of conducting research and listening to your customers",{"data":355,"content":356,"nodeType":113},{},[357],{"data":358,"marks":359,"value":360,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -How to find a product-market fit",{"data":362,"content":363,"nodeType":113},{},[364],{"data":365,"marks":366,"value":367,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -The things that go into the product growth phase",{"data":369,"content":370,"nodeType":113},{},[371],{"data":372,"marks":373,"value":374,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -The importance of empathy during a crisis",{"data":376,"content":377,"nodeType":113},{},[378],{"data":379,"marks":380,"value":381,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -Aspects to consider during a merger or an acquisition",{"data":383,"content":384,"nodeType":113},{},[385],{"data":386,"marks":387,"value":388,"nodeType":112},{},[],"   -Involving your team members in the strategic planning process",{"data":390,"content":391,"nodeType":113},{},[392],{"data":393,"marks":394,"value":396,"nodeType":112},{},[395],{"type":141},"Quotes",{"data":398,"content":399,"nodeType":113},{},[400],{"data":401,"marks":402,"value":403,"nodeType":112},{},[],"“And you know, one of the things I strongly believe in is that it is a privilege to be in the product organization. People are trusting you with a lot of information, and that you will take all of that information and reduce it down to making the best decisions of priorities of what’s going to have the best impacts with the clients.’’",{"data":405,"content":406,"nodeType":113},{},[407],{"data":408,"marks":409,"value":410,"nodeType":112},{},[],"“And it’s really about evangelizing and getting out there and helping people understand ‘Here’s the vision for where we’re going, and what we want to bring together over the course of the next, you know, three to five years.’’’",{"data":412,"content":413,"nodeType":113},{},[414],{"data":415,"marks":416,"value":417,"nodeType":112},{},[],"“And your support team being delighted, you know, talking to clients and users on a regular basis that need help, you bring people along because they understand that product can be an enabler. It can also be inhibiting if things aren’t going well.’’",[419],"V2",{"metadata":421,"sys":424,"fields":434},{"tags":422,"concepts":423},[],[],{"space":425,"id":427,"type":15,"createdAt":428,"updatedAt":428,"environment":429,"publishedVersion":431,"revision":53,"contentType":432,"locale":28},{"sys":426},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"5LGHcsu5b8huMvDtVStTzE","2022-09-15T10:10:21.554Z",{"sys":430},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},39,{"sys":433},{"type":11,"linkType":26,"id":27},{"slug":435,"seoTitle":436,"seoDescription":437,"category":438,"episodeNumber":439,"speakerName":440,"speakerDesignation":441,"speakerImageHero":442,"speakerImage":442,"podcastTitle":436,"podcastDescription":437,"podcastAudio":463,"podcastDuration":480,"podcastContent":481,"podcastVersion":637},"shelly-perry","Navigating growth during a slowdown: A playbook for scale-ups","As someone who lives and breathes growth challenges, Shelly Perry reflects on prior recessions, and the differences between them and shares her key learnings about the impact of recessions on businesses and their people. ",[271],"Episode 7","Shelly Perry","CEO & Managing Director at Scalelogix Ventures",{"metadata":443,"sys":446,"fields":454},{"tags":444,"concepts":445},[],[],{"space":447,"id":449,"type":48,"createdAt":450,"updatedAt":450,"environment":451,"publishedVersion":453,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":448},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"5MYrkGbMOLCIOegwSpXJ0i","2022-09-15T08:59:10.578Z",{"sys":452},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},5,{"title":455,"description":247,"file":456},"Navigating growth during a slowdown: A playbook for scale-ups | Shelly Perry",{"url":457,"details":458,"fileName":462,"contentType":296},"\u002F\u002Fimages.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F5MYrkGbMOLCIOegwSpXJ0i\u002Fdbcf4e98df9459e7259da72658136b62\u002FShelly.jpeg",{"size":459,"image":460},36062,{"width":461,"height":461},400,"Shelly.jpeg",{"metadata":464,"sys":467,"fields":474},{"tags":465,"concepts":466},[],[],{"space":468,"id":470,"type":48,"createdAt":471,"updatedAt":471,"environment":472,"publishedVersion":453,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":469},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"3R9A531qb30PnvdEiO9JlE","2022-09-15T09:01:59.967Z",{"sys":473},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},{"title":455,"description":247,"file":475},{"url":476,"details":477,"fileName":479,"contentType":100},"\u002F\u002Fdownloads.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F3R9A531qb30PnvdEiO9JlE\u002F98140e4ffd0642e9902d8b81f18c9606\u002FShellyS2.mp3",{"size":478},24812146,"ShellyS2.mp3","25:50",{"data":482,"content":483,"nodeType":248},{},[484,491,498,505,591,603,610,617,624,631],{"data":485,"content":486,"nodeType":113},{},[487],{"data":488,"marks":489,"value":490,"nodeType":112},{},[],"In today's episode, Vikram welcomes Shelley Perry, the CEO and Managing Director at Scalelogix Ventures, which is a company focused on guiding scaler founders and leaders to navigate their growth stage. As someone who lives and breathes growth challenges, Shelley has a lot of wisdom to share in terms of playing the scale game, making smart bets, and coming out of a crisis stronger. Vikram and Shelley start the conversation by reflecting on prior recessions and the main differences between them. Then, Shelley goes on to share her key learnings about the impact of recessions on businesses. According to her, there are some significant opportunities to pursue during these slowdowns, both for businesses and their people.",{"data":492,"content":493,"nodeType":113},{},[494],{"data":495,"marks":496,"value":497,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Next, Shelley shares an interesting analogy that she calls 'the messy middle' in which she compares business scaling to those complex teenage years when you want to be both an adult and a child. But as she points out, when it comes to scaling a startup, you have to first spend some time being a child in order to develop the business properly. Then, once it’s up and running, you can finally be an adult. Then, Shelley shares some key takeaways regarding startup scale and growth. She says that if you want to grow your company, you should listen to what the data tells you and learn from it as much as possible. Finally, she suggests laying out all the puzzle pieces, making a conscious choice of your next business moves, and always keeping your finger on the pulse on your business.",{"data":499,"content":500,"nodeType":113},{},[501],{"data":502,"marks":503,"value":142,"nodeType":112},{},[504],{"type":141},{"data":506,"content":507,"nodeType":240},{},[508,518,528,538,548,558,568,578],{"data":509,"content":510,"nodeType":159},{},[511],{"data":512,"content":513,"nodeType":113},{},[514],{"data":515,"marks":516,"value":517,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Looking at the recession through different lenses\n",{"data":519,"content":520,"nodeType":159},{},[521],{"data":522,"content":523,"nodeType":113},{},[524],{"data":525,"marks":526,"value":527,"nodeType":112},{},[],"What we can learn from prior recessions\n",{"data":529,"content":530,"nodeType":159},{},[531],{"data":532,"content":533,"nodeType":113},{},[534],{"data":535,"marks":536,"value":537,"nodeType":112},{},[],"The messy middle analogy\n",{"data":539,"content":540,"nodeType":159},{},[541],{"data":542,"content":543,"nodeType":113},{},[544],{"data":545,"marks":546,"value":547,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Scaling a startup by looking at what the data tells us\n",{"data":549,"content":550,"nodeType":159},{},[551],{"data":552,"content":553,"nodeType":113},{},[554],{"data":555,"marks":556,"value":557,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Having constructive conversations during tough times\n",{"data":559,"content":560,"nodeType":159},{},[561],{"data":562,"content":563,"nodeType":113},{},[564],{"data":565,"marks":566,"value":567,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Understanding that everything in your business is tightly connected\n",{"data":569,"content":570,"nodeType":159},{},[571],{"data":572,"content":573,"nodeType":113},{},[574],{"data":575,"marks":576,"value":577,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Letting go of the old to make room for something new",{"data":579,"content":580,"nodeType":159},{},[581,584],{"data":582,"content":583,"nodeType":117},{},[],{"data":585,"content":586,"nodeType":113},{},[587],{"data":588,"marks":589,"value":590,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Laying out puzzle pieces and making conscious business choices",{"data":592,"content":593,"nodeType":113},{},[594,598],{"data":595,"marks":596,"value":597,"nodeType":112},{},[],"\n",{"data":599,"marks":600,"value":602,"nodeType":112},{},[601],{"type":141},"Quotes:",{"data":604,"content":605,"nodeType":113},{},[606],{"data":607,"marks":608,"value":609,"nodeType":112},{},[],"\"First, I love a good challenge, and I think that even high growth is a challenge, right? It's stress. And now we look at this, we take a situation and say this recession is bad, versus saying there are opportunities and everything.\"",{"data":611,"content":612,"nodeType":113},{},[613],{"data":614,"marks":615,"value":616,"nodeType":112},{},[],"“I think that's what we can learn from the last recessions and not look at it so much as doom and gloom, but an opportunity because it certainly is an opportunity. We have to change our lens. And we have to slow down to speed up.\"",{"data":618,"content":619,"nodeType":113},{},[620],{"data":621,"marks":622,"value":623,"nodeType":112},{},[],"\"I think that what the best way that I can give an analogy is that as you're scaling up you have to kind of spend a little bit more time being the child, develop some things, a little bit less time being the adult and during the last decade of boom we will push through this and be an adult.”",{"data":625,"content":626,"nodeType":113},{},[627],{"data":628,"marks":629,"value":630,"nodeType":112},{},[],"\"All of us can make our best guesses, we can make our best educational guesses on what the historic data is telling us, what the market's telling us. But in the end, we cannot predict what we don't know. And I always want to start a scaler to look at the data, because it's a confirmation of the hypothesis they made for where they were going to put the resources.”",{"data":632,"content":633,"nodeType":113},{},[634],{"data":635,"marks":636,"value":597,"nodeType":112},{},[],[419],{"metadata":639,"sys":642,"fields":652},{"tags":640,"concepts":641},[],[],{"space":643,"id":645,"type":15,"createdAt":646,"updatedAt":646,"environment":647,"publishedVersion":649,"revision":53,"contentType":650,"locale":28},{"sys":644},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"VgjP35yW9SsCYLQRRLi94","2022-09-05T07:45:04.972Z",{"sys":648},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},30,{"sys":651},{"type":11,"linkType":26,"id":27},{"slug":653,"seoTitle":654,"seoDescription":655,"seoImage":656,"category":675,"subCategory":676,"episodeNumber":678,"speakerName":679,"speakerDesignation":680,"speakerImageHero":656,"speakerImage":656,"podcastTitle":654,"podcastDescription":655,"podcastAudio":681,"podcastDuration":699,"podcastContent":700,"podcastVersion":803},"james-solomons","Building Organizational Resilience with James Solomons","James Solomons, an entrepreneur, renowned speaker, business leader, and enthusiastic podcast host talks about his extraordinary career journey, becoming a cyber-resilient CFO and shaping the evolution of his organization. ",{"metadata":657,"sys":660,"fields":667},{"tags":658,"concepts":659},[],[],{"space":661,"id":663,"type":48,"createdAt":664,"updatedAt":664,"environment":665,"publishedVersion":453,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":662},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"3kGSnTcHSIQqX3QSz1SzTl","2022-09-05T06:43:28.537Z",{"sys":666},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},{"title":654,"description":247,"file":668},{"url":669,"details":670,"fileName":674,"contentType":296},"\u002F\u002Fimages.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F3kGSnTcHSIQqX3QSz1SzTl\u002Fc65c05fd4cbe5a33201e3e4551fb16f4\u002FJames_Solomons.jpeg",{"size":671,"image":672},5959,{"width":673,"height":673},225,"James Solomons.jpeg",[271],[677],"Finance Operations > Accounting","Episode 06","James Solomons","Global CFO and co-COO of Xref",{"metadata":682,"sys":685,"fields":693},{"tags":683,"concepts":684},[],[],{"space":686,"id":688,"type":48,"createdAt":689,"updatedAt":689,"environment":690,"publishedVersion":692,"revision":53,"locale":28},{"sys":687},{"type":11,"linkType":12,"id":13},"2iWi3GLqy6H0hHAXOiOm5a","2022-09-05T06:46:50.823Z",{"sys":691},{"id":20,"type":11,"linkType":21},6,{"title":654,"description":247,"file":694},{"url":695,"details":696,"fileName":698,"contentType":100},"\u002F\u002Fdownloads.ctfassets.net\u002Fa7hvy8sclsq6\u002F2iWi3GLqy6H0hHAXOiOm5a\u002F0fdc937b71fcb9bd42e36e6e998b07ad\u002FCB-S02-E06-James-Audio.mp3",{"size":697},29632574,"CB-S02-E06-James-Audio.mp3","41:09",{"data":701,"content":702,"nodeType":248},{},[703,710,717,724,797],{"data":704,"content":705,"nodeType":113},{},[706],{"data":707,"marks":708,"value":709,"nodeType":112},{},[],"On the podcast today, Vikram welcomes James Solomons, an entrepreneur, renowned speaker, business leader, and enthusiastic podcast host. James currently serves as the CFO and C0-CEO of Xref, a global reference checking and identity verification platform that empowers organizations worldwide to make great people decisions. James has spent most of his time in public practice, evolving from a tax accountant to a CFO, and today, he shares with us this remarkable career journey and the importance of the evolution of CFOs and organizations as a whole.",{"data":711,"content":712,"nodeType":113},{},[713],{"data":714,"marks":715,"value":716,"nodeType":112},{},[],"James begins by discussing the origin of Xref, how Xref eases the hiring process in the workforce, and the transformation of his career, starting out as a tax accountant but growing to become a CFO. He also reviews the rules he follows as a CFO, and explains one of his favorite phrases, “Humanize the numbers”, which essentially means breaking down numbers in languages that teams aside from finance can clearly understand. Being a hiring company, the great resignation affected Xref significantly and James shares some of the changes that he had to make as the CFO in response. The show rounds off as James advises those in the workforce to always invest in referenceable relationships.",{"data":718,"content":719,"nodeType":113},{},[720],{"data":721,"marks":722,"value":142,"nodeType":112},{},[723],{"type":141},{"data":725,"content":726,"nodeType":240},{},[727,737,747,757,767,777,787],{"data":728,"content":729,"nodeType":159},{},[730],{"data":731,"content":732,"nodeType":113},{},[733],{"data":734,"marks":735,"value":736,"nodeType":112},{},[],"The story of Xref",{"data":738,"content":739,"nodeType":159},{},[740],{"data":741,"content":742,"nodeType":113},{},[743],{"data":744,"marks":745,"value":746,"nodeType":112},{},[],"James’ career journey",{"data":748,"content":749,"nodeType":159},{},[750],{"data":751,"content":752,"nodeType":113},{},[753],{"data":754,"marks":755,"value":756,"nodeType":112},{},[],"His evolution from accountant to CFO",{"data":758,"content":759,"nodeType":159},{},[760],{"data":761,"content":762,"nodeType":113},{},[763],{"data":764,"marks":765,"value":766,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Becoming a cyber-resilient CFO",{"data":768,"content":769,"nodeType":159},{},[770],{"data":771,"content":772,"nodeType":113},{},[773],{"data":774,"marks":775,"value":776,"nodeType":112},{},[],"The impact of the great resignation on James and Xref",{"data":778,"content":779,"nodeType":159},{},[780],{"data":781,"content":782,"nodeType":113},{},[783],{"data":784,"marks":785,"value":786,"nodeType":112},{},[],"James’ interesting statistics",{"data":788,"content":789,"nodeType":159},{},[790],{"data":791,"content":792,"nodeType":113},{},[793],{"data":794,"marks":795,"value":796,"nodeType":112},{},[],"Investing in referenceable relationships",{"data":798,"content":799,"nodeType":113},{},[800],{"data":801,"marks":802,"value":247,"nodeType":112},{},[],[419],"\u003Cp>Vikram’s very special guest on the podcast today is someone he has worked for many years and currently a partner at Accel, Shekhar Kirani. With over 25 years of experience in business and tech leadership roles across several startups and large companies in the US, Shekhar specializes in investing in early-stage software and mobile startups that help enterprises. During his extensive career, he has led investments in ANSR, BrowserStack, CareStack, Cogoport, FalconX, Freshworks, and Zenoti, and he also played a crucial role in the seed stage funding of Chargebee.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Chr\u002F>\u003Cp>Shekhar begins by sharing his secret to juggling different startup contexts, the roles he played before becoming an investor, and some of the many lessons he has learned over the years, including the importance of onboarding, understanding the customer first, and the traits he looks for in early-stage companies. He also provides some advice regarding dealing with early-stage ‘haziness’ and a glimpse into his prediction framework, thoughts around social consciousness from startups and technologies, and the product for which he sees the greatest need these days. Gifted with intellect, experience, and eloquence, Shekhar Kirani’s insights are supremely valuable and will both educate and inspire listeners here today.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Chr\u002F>\u003Chr\u002F>\u003Chr\u002F>\u003Cp>\u003Cb>The Finer Details of This Episode:\u003C\u002Fb>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Chr\u002F>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>Shekhar’s secret to juggling different startup contexts\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>The roles he held before becoming an investor\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>His example of the importance of onboarding\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>Thinking about and understanding customers first\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>The traits Shekhar looks for in early-stage companies\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>His advice in dealing with early-stage ‘haziness.’\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>Shekhar’s prediction framework\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>His thoughts around social consciousness from startups and technologies\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cp>The product Shekhar sees the most need for these days\u003C\u002Fp>\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>",1792502790019]