Welcome to another insightful episode of The 7 in 7 Show with Zack Ellison, where we explore the cutting edge of venture capital and innovation with the world’s leading investors.

Episodes #14A of Season 2 feature Ken Hall, a Partner at Orlando-based DeepWork Capital, where he supports the firm in sourcing and executing investments, fund operations, portfolio management, and more.

Prior to DeepWork, Ken worked for IBM in New York City, where he held numerous roles for IBM in Corporate Development and Corporate Venture Capital and supported some of the company's most innovative brands, including IBM Watson, IBM Blockchain, Watson Health, Hybrid Cloud, and IBM Automation. He gained additional venture capital investment experience as a former advisor to 1843 Capital and various family offices, where he supported over a dozen early-stage investments ranging from industrial products to autonomous vehicles and cryptocurrency banks.

Ken is currently the Chairman of Startups for the Orlando Tech Community, where he leads initiatives to help early-stage companies throughout Central Florida. He is a frequent guest speaker at Rollins College, Stetson University, and University of Central Florida and is an advisor and mentor to numerous startup accelerator programs and organizations, including Endeavor Miami, Techstars Miami, leAD Lake Nona, and Plug & Play.

Ken completed his undergraduate studies summa cum laude and the top of his class at the College of Business of the University of New Haven. He received his MBA with top honors from Boston University. In his free time, Ken enjoys finding new restaurants, trying to be "less awful" at golf, and exploring all that Florida has to offer while still being a die-hard Boston sports fan.

In this episode, Zack and Ken discuss:

1. Investment Strategies in Emerging Technologies: Exploring sectors like biotech, life sciences, and enterprise software, and their impact on venture capital.

2. Founder Quality and Resilience in Startups: Why a founder's obsession and persistence are critical at the earliest stages of a startup.

3. Capital Efficiency & Scalable Business Models: Insights into building scalable startups and leveraging capital efficiency for sustainable growth.

4. Valuation Sensitivity and Market Dynamics: How market conditions affect valuation and the importance of strategic entry and exit points in venture capital.

5. The Role of Humility and Confidence in Founders: Balancing confidence and humility to build strong, trustworthy relationships with investors and teams.

6. Current Venture Market Trends and the Future: Analyzing the current state of the venture capital market and what the future holds for early-stage funding.

7. Venture Debt and Diversified Investment Strategies: Understanding the role of venture debt in providing safer access to innovation and its benefits for investors.

Guest Information:

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kencasehall/

- Website: https://www.deepworkcapital.com/

Host Information:

- LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/zackellison/

- Website: ⁠ https://www.arivc.com/

Show Information:

- Website: ⁠https://7in7show.com/

- Apple Podcasts: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/7-in-7-show-with-zack-ellison/id1681652927 ⁠

- Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/0f2NGukm1OcZYCgVbiwlZX

- YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@7in7show

- Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/7in7show/

- TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@7in7show

- Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/7in7show

- Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/7in7show

DISCLAIMER: https://7in7show.com/disclaimer/

Welcome to another insightful episode of The 7 in 7 Show with Zack Ellison, where we explore the cutting edge of venture capital and innovation with the world’s leading investors.

Episodes #14A of Season 2 feature Ken Hall, a Partner at Orlando-based DeepWork Capital, where he supports the firm in sourcing and executing investments, fund operations, portfolio management, and more.

Prior to DeepWork, Ken worked for IBM in New York City, where he held numerous roles for IBM in Corporate Development and Corporate Venture Capital and supported some of the company's most innovative brands, including IBM Watson, IBM Blockchain, Watson Health, Hybrid Cloud, and IBM Automation. He gained additional venture capital investment experience as a former advisor to 1843 Capital and various family offices, where he supported over a dozen early-stage investments ranging from industrial products to autonomous vehicles and cryptocurrency banks.

Ken is currently the Chairman of Startups for the Orlando Tech Community, where he leads initiatives to help early-stage companies throughout Central Florida. He is a frequent guest speaker at Rollins College, Stetson University, and University of Central Florida and is an advisor and mentor to numerous startup accelerator programs and organizations, including Endeavor Miami, Techstars Miami, leAD Lake Nona, and Plug & Play.

Ken completed his undergraduate studies summa cum laude and the top of his class at the College of Business of the University of New Haven. He received his MBA with top honors from Boston University. In his free time, Ken enjoys finding new restaurants, trying to be "less awful" at golf, and exploring all that Florida has to offer while still being a die-hard Boston sports fan.

In this episode, Zack and Ken discuss:

1. Investment Strategies in Emerging Technologies: Exploring sectors like biotech, life sciences, and enterprise software, and their impact on venture capital.

2. Founder Quality and Resilience in Startups: Why a founder's obsession and persistence are critical at the earliest stages of a startup.

3. Capital Efficiency & Scalable Business Models: Insights into building scalable startups and leveraging capital efficiency for sustainable growth.

4. Valuation Sensitivity and Market Dynamics: How market conditions affect valuation and the importance of strategic entry and exit points in venture capital.

5. The Role of Humility and Confidence in Founders: Balancing confidence and humility to build strong, trustworthy relationships with investors and teams.

6. Current Venture Market Trends and the Future: Analyzing the current state of the venture capital market and what the future holds for early-stage funding.

7. Venture Debt and Diversified Investment Strategies: Understanding the role of venture debt in providing safer access to innovation and its benefits for investors.

Guest Information:

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kencasehall/

- Website: https://www.deepworkcapital.com/

Host Information:

- LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/zackellison/

- Website: ⁠ https://www.arivc.com/

Show Information:

- Website: ⁠https://7in7show.com/

- Apple Podcasts: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/7-in-7-show-with-zack-ellison/id1681652927 ⁠

- Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/0f2NGukm1OcZYCgVbiwlZX

- YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@7in7show

- Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/7in7show/

- TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@7in7show

- Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/7in7show

- Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/7in7show

DISCLAIMER: https://7in7show.com/disclaimer/

Welcome to another episode of The 7 in 7 Show with Zack Ellison, which features full length interviews with the world’s leading investors in innovation.

Episode #13A of Season 2 features Scott Kelly, CEO of Black Dog Venture Partners, Host of VC Fast Pitch, and Strategic Advisor to TCA Southeast.

Scott Kelly is a 30-year fundraising, marketing, sales, training and publicity veteran. Scott has raised hundreds of millions of dollars in capital for disruptive companies, garnered national media coverage for hundreds of regional and national brands and generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenues for the companies he has represented.

He has also trained over 1,000 salespeople and has taught marketing at the university level in the United States and Europe.

In this episode, Zack Ellison and Scott Kelly discuss:

1. Importance of Team in Early-Stage Investing: Emphasis on evaluating the team behind a startup as a critical factor for investment decisions.

2. Market Research and Problem Identification: The necessity for entrepreneurs to thoroughly research their market and identify real, scalable problems.

3. Investment Processes and Principles: Key principles for early-stage investing, including the importance of team, technology, IP, and market potential.

4. Pitching and Fundraising Effectively: Tips for making successful pitches, including clarity, storytelling, knowing your numbers, building relationships, and understanding investor expectations.

5. Role of AI in Investment and Business: Discussion on the impact of AI and machine learning on businesses and the importance of having AI expertise in investment teams.

6. Venture Debt: An overview of venture debt, its benefits, and how it complements equity financing for later-stage startups.

7. Global and Sectoral Trends in Innovation: Insights into emerging markets and sectors, including AI, decentralization, and global innovation hubs.

Guest Information:

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blackdogceo/

- Website: https://blackdogventurepartners.com/

Host Information:

- LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/zackellison/

- Website: ⁠ https://www.arivc.com/

Show Information:

- Website: ⁠https://7in7show.com/

- Apple Podcasts: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/7-in-7-show-with-zack-ellison/id1681652927 ⁠

- Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/0f2NGukm1OcZYCgVbiwlZX

- YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@7in7show

- Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/7in7show/

- TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@7in7show

- Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/7in7show

- Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/7in7show

DISCLAIMER: https://7in7show.com/disclaimer/