Kona helps remote teams  fight burnout, build connections, and promote psychological safety with daily mental health checks. Andrew got a degree in Computer Science at UCLA, interned at Apple, and participated in the Techstars LA ‘20 cohort. Andrew and his cofounders recently raised $4 million in funding for Kona. 

“When we were pre, pre seed we would try to form as many of these solution hypotheses as possible and try to disprove them as best as we possibly could. We would go to people. We would play devil’s advocate. We asked things like, ‘Is this really useful for you? Are you actually willing to pay for this.

If they push back on us, when we ask those questions, then we know we’re onto something. We want to try to disprove these hypotheses because when we fail, we learn the most. When we fail, we can then iterate and improve.”

Andrew Zhou

On this episode of Think Like a Founder, Maureen gets Andrew Zhou’s thoughts on…

• The distinction between remote work and working from home
• The importance of giving candid feedback
• How failure, actually, is a gift

Check out more from Andrew Zhou on LinkedIn. Learn more about Kona on their company website.

Missed the last episode? Find Think Like A Founder Season 5 Episode 1 here.

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there. 

Series Producer: Mike Sullivan

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Catherine Hardy and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Róisín Hunt, Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Andrew Zhou, Co-Founder of Kona appeared first on SNP Communications.

Want to hear more from Jaz? Check out Jaz Banga‘s twitter or learn more about his company at Airspace Systems’ website.

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there.

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Jaz Banga, Co-Founder and CEO of Airspace Systems appeared first on SNP Communications.

Nancy Connery is the Founder of Connery Consulting and Co-Founder of OpenComp. Connery Consulting works with rapidly growing tech companies to help scale their people and their culture. OpenComp creates pay strategies, grounded in market accuracy, consistency, fairness, and trust.

Nancy has worked in the Human Resources field for 25 years and she’s passionate about people. Before founding Connery Consulting and OpenComp, she partnered with Marc Benioff to build two key divisions at Oracle Corporation and she was the fifth employee at Salesforce, becoming their founding VP of Human Resources.

My business partner, and I have a rule we ask each other, would you like to drive to Tahoe with this person? And so when you think about hiring and building a company, any company in that way, you want to surround yourself with people that you want to be around, that energize you. – Nancy Connery

On this episode of the Think Like a Founder podcast, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Nancy’s thoughts on…

1. The Tahoe test for building the right team
2. The importance of personal connection
3. The human side of business

Find out more about Nancy’s work at  Connery Consulting and OpenComp’s website. 

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there.

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Nancy Connery, Founder of Connery Consulting and Co-Founder of OpenComp appeared first on SNP Communications.

Treeswift builds robots to sense the world’s most complex environments. Today, their robots operate in forests, monitoring forest health, predicting carbon capture, and improving overall forest management.

In addition to founding Treeswift, Steven is pursuing a PhD in Computer and Information Science (CIS) at the University of Pennsylvania. He focuses on how robotics can be used in agriculture and forestry. He previously worked as a derivatives trader – trading agriculture options, municipal bond ETFs, and equity options.

The startup is not about you leading yourself. It’s about growing that startup, growing that team and the founder is there to kind of bring them up to speed and get them on board and put them in that position and create that ecosystem for them to thrive.  — Steven Chen

On this episode of the Think Like a Founder podcast, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Steven’s thoughts on…

1. The sandbox mentality
2. Carrying your ideas over the valley of death
3. Never wanting to be the best person in the room

If you want to read more from Steven check out Steven Chen’s robotics research on Google Scholar. Learn more about his company at Treeswift’s website. 

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there. 

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Steven Chen, Co-Founder and CEO of Treeswift appeared first on SNP Communications.

Nora Herting is the Founding CEO of ImageThink. ImageThink is a visual strategy firm helping companies innovate through graphics and the principles of design thinking. They use a unique method based on visual theory that stimulates creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving to drive organizational transformations. 

Before founding ImageThink, Nora worked on a collection of 281 portraits titled Face of Brooklyn and an exhibition called Spirit, featuring photographs of cheerleaders. Since then she’s co-authored the best-selling book, Draw Your Big Idea, and created several more photographic bodies of work.

If you’re not scared by what you’re making, then you’re not really pushing into something interesting. So the fear is a sign that you should keep going. – Nora Herting

On this episode of Think Like a Founder, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Nora’s thoughts on…

1. Cave paintings
2. Looking while leaping
3. The art of problem-solving.

Check out more from Nora on her photographic portfolio website. Or head over to ImageThink’s website.

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there. 

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Nora Herting, Founding CEO of ImageThink appeared first on SNP Communications.

Tugce Bulut is the Founder and CEO of Streetbees. Streetbees is a global intelligence platform that pays users to share snapshots of their daily lives, giving insight into consumer behavior. Based in the UK, Streebeets’ mission is to make data analytics more human and capture opinions from across the world.

Before founding Streetbees, Tugce Bulut helped technology and consumer companies grow internationally as a strategy consultant. She specialized in poverty alleviation and global living standards at Cambridge and, “is passionate about the power of data and the positive change it can bring to the world.”

Don’t solve a problem that doesn’t need solving yet. If you’re actually trying to solve everything before you even get started, you will never get started. Sometimes you just gotta jump in and deal with it as the problems come through. – Tugce Bulut

On this episode of the Think Like a Founder podcast, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Tugce’s thoughts on…

1. Wanting to be President of the United States
2. Reinventing your role as a founder
3. Setting your own milestones

Read more from Tugce on her Forbes Business Council member page. Or check out the Streetbees website. 

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there.

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara

The post Podcast with Tugce Bulut, Founder and CEO of Streetbees appeared first on SNP Communications.

Robert Brunner is the Founder of Ammunition Group. Ammunition Group is a design studio dedicated to connecting entrepreneurs and expert designers and transforming ideas into successful products. They’ve worked with companies like Polaroid, Beats by Dre, and Square.

Prior to founding Ammunition Group in 2007, Robert was a partner at Pentagram, a Director of Industrial Design for Apple, and Co-founder of Lunar, a design consultancy firm. Robert’s work is featured in the permanent designs collections in the San Francisco and New York MoMA.

I have a cachet of jokes I give and one is that risk is not a four-letter word. Everyone wants innovation, but it’s directly tied to risk because if you’re innovating, you’re doing something that hasn’t been done before, which is inherently risky. So I often say that the riskiest thing you can do is not take any risks. Because then you just are stagnant. – Robert Brunner

On this episode of the Think Like a Founder podcast, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Robert’s thoughts on…

1. The impact design has on our everyday experiences
2. Creating a team-focused culture
3. How starting a business is a process, not an event

Want to hear more from Robert? Check out his book Do You Matter? How Great Design Will Make People Love Your Company or visit Ammunition’s website.

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there.

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Robert Brunner, Founder of Ammunition Group appeared first on SNP Communications.

Dr. Sara Spangelo is the Co-Founder and CEO of Swarm Technologies. Swarm makes low-cost satellites. With only 10% of the Earth having access to cell and WiFi service, they’re dedicated to reducing barriers for connectivity in remote areas across the entire planet. Prior to founding Swarm Technologies, Dr. Sara Spangelo was a lead systems engineer at Google X and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab. She also worked on small satellites and autonomous aircrafts at the University of Michigan.

We decided to try to come up with the smallest satellite that we could in order to connect devices and people around the globe. Our satellite was literally the size of a credit card. Eventually our satellites grew a bit…It’s about the size of a grilled cheese sandwich. Then we kind of went from there. – Dr. Sara Spangelo

On this episode of the Think Like a Founder podcast, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Sara’s thoughts on…

1. Training to be an astronaut
2. Keeping calm when things get tough
3. Making satellites the size of a grilled cheese sandwich

Read more from Sara and Swarm Technologies on their Medium site.

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there.

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan and Jaselin Drown

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Dr. Sara Spangelo, Co-Founder and CEO of Swarm Technologies appeared first on SNP Communications.

Ann Muria-Ko is the Co-Founding Partner of Floodgate. Floodgate is a seed-stage VC firm that supports founders who defy conventional wisdom, often before others believe in their idea. Ann Miura-Ko has made the New York Times list of the Top 20 Venture Capitalists Worldwide, and was named the “Most Powerful Woman in Startups” by Forbes.

My mom is telling me, ‘you haven’t even finished your PhD, you have an 18 month old daughter, life is too crazy.’ It’s not crazy, you just don’t see what I see. And the more you tell me that I can’t do it, the more I feel like I have to go do it, because if I’m not the one to do it, and I see someone else do it, I won’t be able to live with myself. — Ann Miura-Ko

On this episode of the Think Like A Founder podcast, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Ann Miura-Ko’s thoughts on…

1. Going with your gut 
2. How you can’t test for human potential
3. How the journey is more valuable than the plan

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there. 

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Ann Miura-Ko – Co-Founding Partner of Floodgate appeared first on SNP Communications.

Brit Morin and Anj Temple are Co-Founders of Brit + Co, a digital media company with online classes and products that seek to inspire and educate women. Brit Morin has been awarded multiple accolades, including Forbes 30 Under 30 and Fortune’s Most Promising Entrepreneurs. Co-Founder Anj Temple also serves as an advisor and consultant to several female-founded companies including Consciously, Mighty Kind, Upbring, and Rebel Girls.

Brit I saw a little spark in Brit. I actually remember saying to Dave,  I want to hang out with that girl that we met. I wished all the dudes would talk a little bit less at this dinner so that I could get to know her a little better. – Anj Temple

There was the love at first sight thing that we saw in each other. But I loved that she also seemed like a curious person who was scrappy learning how to do things. That was the start of our beautiful friendship and professional relationship. – Brit Morin

On this episode of Think Like a Founder, SNP’s Co-Founder & CEO, Maureen Taylor gets Brit Morin and Anj Temple’s thoughts on…

1. How they met on a couples’ blind date
2. The yin and the yang of their co-founder relationship 
3. How creativity is an instinct we all have

To see more of Brit and Anj’s work at Brit + Co explore the Brit + Co website.

Think Like A Founder is produced by SNP Communications in San Francisco, California. Visit the Think Like A Founder website to learn more about the podcast and curriculum or connect with Maureen Taylor on LinkedIn to continue the conversation there. 

Series Producer: Róisín Hunt

Sound Design: Marc Ream 

Content and Scripting: Mike Sullivan

Production Coordinator: Natasha Thomas

Thanks also to Selena Persiani-Shell, Jordan Bailey, Matt Johnson, Eli Shell, John Hughes, and Renn Vara.

The post Podcast with Brit Morin and Anj Temple, Co-Founders of Brit + Co appeared first on SNP Communications.