TMBA 648: What Can Entrepreneurs Learn From PE Businesses, And Vice Versa?
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Today’s show challenges bootstrapped entrepreneurs to think about lessons they can draw from high-income private equity funded business, especially about structured forward planning and accounting. But it also covers what PE companies could learn from the other side of the tracks.
This week’s guest is Jason Long, a valued member of the DC community. He's well known for being wonderfully open to sharing the highs and lows of his long experience of founding agencies, creating Software as a Service businesses and, most recently, from accepting a job as a ‘turnaround CEO’ for a private equity group.
He talks to Dan about why the devastating effects on his agency of the 2008 financial crash caused him to diversify his portfolio, and the pros and cons of that decision. Plus why working with a multimillion PE firm has enhanced his experience both as a leader and entrepreneur:
“This is a team that had been passed from CEO to CEO, from leader to leader, who just had failed them over and over and over again .. And so when I came in, I said, ‘I’m not gonna fire anybody’ .. And I brought in a lot of methods to make sure that there was transparency from the top level all the way down to the frontline workers .. so everybody felt like they were knowledgeable about where the company was going. And I felt like that made a huge difference in the trust”.
Listen to this week's show and learn:
How the 2008 crash affected Jason's future business strategy 5'45"
Way having a good distribution channel is so important 11'05"
What becoming the CEO of a PE funded company has taught Jason 30'29"
The power of getting to grips with detailed financial projections 36'51"
Mentioned in the episode:
Before the Exit – Our New Book
Partner With Us
The Dynamite Circle
Dynamite Jobs
Post a Remote Job
Dynamite Deals
Tropical MBA on YouTube
Dynamite Jobs – Remote Recruiting Sales Page
Jason Long
Tangent Solutions
J H Media Group
Calendar Bridge
Traction by Gino Wickman
Peter Murphy Lewis
Enjoyed this podcast? Check out these:
TMBA543: Taking the Entrepreneurial Leap
TMBA383: Brent Beshore and the 50 Year Private Equity Plan
TMBA619: Does Your Business Need an “Operating System”?
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Thanks for listening to our show! We'll be back next Thursday morning 8AM EST.
Cheers,
Dan & Ian