International Entrepreneurship
The unique challenges and opportunities faced by entrepreneurs who start businesses in foreign countries, including cultural adaptation and market entry.
11 episodes
Business Model First, Product Second: Thirty Years of Building Smarter | Steve Subar, Ep 40
Steve Subar, serial entrepreneur and inventor of MatFresher, discusses his business-model-first approach to building companies. After 30+ years founding and exiting ventures including Open Kernel Labs (acquired by General Dynamics), Subar explains how he validated product-market fit for MatFresher—an automated yoga mat cleaning machine—by manually cleaning mats at studios before building the product. He emphasizes innovating business models alongside technology, the importance of experience over information, and why wisdom beats rapid iteration.
Rewriting the Rules: Growth, AI, Community, and the Meaning of Wealth | Virginie Glaenzer, Ep 35
Virginia Glaenzer, fractional CMO and author, shares her journey from moving to Silicon Valley in 1998 with four suitcases to building tech companies during the dot-com era. She discusses how AI is reshaping work, why communities should be built into brand DNA rather than added as tactics, and introduces her 'economy of abundance' framework that challenges scarcity-based business models by asking 'how much is enough?'
Phishing, AI Scams, and the Ever-Intensifying Cybersecurity War | Antonio Pagano, Ep 23
Antonio Pagano, CTO and co-founder of Symbol Security and founder of Wano, discusses the evolution of cybersecurity threats—particularly AI-enhanced phishing attacks—and the human vulnerabilities that remain the weakest link in security. He shares insights from running two companies across continents, bootstrapping Symbol Security for six years, and building Wano's 45-person development team in Colombia while maintaining work-life balance and continuous learning.
Family Values, Ukrainian Excellence: Creating the Ideal Workplace | Adam Lehde, Ep 20
Adam Lehde, co-founder of Happen Technologies, discusses building a hybrid software development company that partners US-based strategy with Ukrainian engineering talent. He shares his journey from mobile developer to entrepreneur, the cultural advantages of working with Ukrainian developers, and his philosophy of building a family-first company culture supported by community practices like F3 fitness groups.
A Born Entrepreneur on Startups, Product Blueprints, and Global Scaling | Ghazenfer Mansoor, Ep 18
Ghazenfer Mansoor, founder of Technology Divers, discusses his journey from Pakistan to building a global software development company. He explains his 'blueprint methodology' for converting napkin sketches into production-ready applications, the challenges of managing distributed teams across continents, and how AI tools are transforming both software development and client operations. Mansoor emphasizes the importance of entrepreneur peer groups and shares insights on mobile app development trends.
Mastering UK-US Market Entry from Either Side of the Pond | Marc McCarthy, Ep 13
Marc McCarthy, founder of Pro Consult IQ, discusses the complexities of B2B software expansion between UK and US markets. He covers cultural sales differences, regulatory considerations across US states, the importance of hiring locally, and strategic decisions around partnerships versus direct market entry. McCarthy emphasizes that shared language creates false assumptions about ease of expansion, and successful cross-Atlantic growth requires understanding time zones, legal frameworks, pricing strategies, and customer expectations that differ significantly between markets.
Machine Learning at MIT to Entrepreneurial Growth and Fundraising Success | David Morczinek, Ep 08
David Morczinek, CEO of Airworks, discusses his journey from aerospace engineering at Airbus to founding a geospatial AI company at MIT. He explains how Airworks analyzes aerial data from drones, satellites, and aircraft to automate infrastructure mapping, the pivot from pure AI to AI-plus-services when customers weren't ready for full automation, and navigating multiple funding rounds from seed to private equity while maintaining work-life balance.
Cultivating Resilience Through Adaptation, Partnership and Growth | Christy Johnson, Ep 07
Christy Johnson, performance engineering lead at VIP Ventures, discusses her unconventional path from microfinance in Costa Rica to steel manufacturing to venture capital. She shares lessons from seven years as CEO of a portfolio company, the importance of culture in remote teams, and VIP's hands-on approach to helping founders through focused strategy, investor symposiums, and operational coaching.
A Journey Through Valuations, Ventures, Visions and Vodka | Mike Blake, Ep 06
Mike Blake, founder of High Score Strategies, discusses business valuation methodology, the changing landscape of patent protection, and his journey from venture capital to running a valuation consultancy from Portugal. He shares insights on helping founders navigate term sheets, the limitations of valuation in early-stage negotiations, and the story of launching Atlanta's Startup Lounge networking events that helped build the city's entrepreneurial ecosystem.
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