Forage’s Post

***PLEASE READ*** In the wake of Brex’s recent restructuring, which led to the layoff of numerous talented sales professionals, I am reminded of my own past experiences. Once in their shoes, I too felt lost and full of questions during such a transitional phase. This personal connection deepens my commitment to helping SDRs who were impacted on my team. I want to introduce you to these remarkable individuals, each with unique strengths: Macy Morgan A fearless, coachable, and driven performer. Starting her career on a high note, she hit quota for 5 consecutive months, demonstrating exceptional talent. John Santos: Brings a blend of skill, maturity, and experience as a Sales Development Representative. His insights significantly enhance team performance. Michelle Buzbee : Our ‘culture queen,’ Michelle led our morale programs, infusing positivity and cohesion into our workplace. Hassan Moiz: Known for his humanity and coachability, Hassan has been a source of inspiration and growth for our team. Felix Yagudaev: Showcasing remarkable growth and hard work, Felix’s dedication to continuous improvement has been truly inspirational. These professionals are not only skilled and adaptable but have also been key contributors to my success at Brex. I am dedicated to supporting them in finding new roles where they can continue to thrive. If your company is hiring or if you are aware of opportunities that could benefit from top-tier sales talent, I would be honored to facilitate an introduction. Your support in helping these talented individuals during a pivotal moment in their careers would mean a great deal.

Waiting to launch that new product? or waiting to perfect that new idea? Just Take the First Step! 🚀 Imagine standing at the edge of an exciting new adventure, like starting a project, launching a product or turning your idea into reality. It might feel a bit like looking at a big staircase, not knowing where each step leads. But guess what? You have something incredible within you – the courage to take that very first step. Let me share a part of my own journey with you. I'm the Head of Retail Products and Propositions at Invest Bank, and I've been on this journey for about eight exciting months. Before this, I was at the FinTech division of noon e-commerce, where I did something I had never done before, and when opportunities came knocking, I wasn't sure how to make it happen, but I decided to be brave and say yes. In the following year, I faced challenges, made mistakes, learned, unlearned, and relearned. And you know what? I was part of multiple success stories! Now, in my current role, I'm a Banker, building and launching financial products. Once again, I didn't have all the answers, but I was brave enough to accept the challenge and say yes. Fast forward eight months, and I am already part of multiple small wins, which is helping us achieve our larger goal. This journey of believing in yourself, even when you're not sure, and saying yes to opportunities, reminds me of the wise words of Martin Luther King Jr.: "Start with faith. You don't need to know everything; just start." So, to all the dreamers and doers out there, if you have an idea that's been waiting, or a project/product you've been perfecting, remember this: You don't need to have all the steps figured out before you begin. Just like taking the first step on a staircase, taking the first step towards your dream is what truly matters. Every step you take, no matter how small, brings you closer to your goal. It's a journey of growth, learning, and amazing discoveries. So take that step, embrace the journey, and believe in your own power to make things happen. #BelieveInYourself #TakeTheFirstStep #YouCanDoIt #Inspiration #BraveBeginnings #KeepLearning

We started SOFi Products five years ago. Just one year into business, the pandemic hit and everything paused. We still manufactured products and supported food service businesses in their operations. But like most businesses, we took a big hit. There was a lot of uncertainty and restrictions, and the food service industry was mainly on pause. Most customers stopped ordering from March of that year until about October because they were closed or partially open. It was a tough time for a startup that relies on consistent cash flow. But there was a silver lining. At the end of 2020, we got into Walmart retail (2,500 stores) — a huge milestone for us then. Building on that momentum, we started growing (again) and gaining the larger customers we have today. Since then, we’ve expanded our presence to 47 US states. Jordan and I couldn’t have predicted that we would face a once-in-a-lifetime event just one year into business… But the pandemic taught us the importance of resilience and believing in our vision.

Excited about the momentum the Sixth Street Growth team is bringing into 2024.   Last year, during a complicated environment, our team followed through on forging exciting new partnerships: Keyfactor, Logile, Inc., Stayntouch, Stripe, Volante Technologies, 1upHealth, Inc., while also making repeat investments into our previous partnerships: Fullsteam, Kyriba, ReliaQuest, SumUp. Thank you to all these leadership teams and Boards for choosing us as a partner.    Each of these businesses boasts what we’re looking for: impressive organic growth; a highly defensive business model; a customer-first perspective resulting in high revenue retention; and a shared responsibility between leadership, Board and investors to allocate company capital in a way that’s accretive to long-term value creation.    Obstacles for growth companies persist: navigating ZIRP valuations, tighter corporate budgets, and “conditions” (i.e., bid/ask spreads) keeping a lid on IPOs.   But our flexible capital plus the creativity of our collaborative and experienced team makes me optimistic about what Sixth Street Growth and our partners are going to achieve in 2024.  

Real life stories from top UK & European operators --> Hustle Badger has been interviewing! 💐 🌻 Joe Tinston gave us a masterclass on executing, communicating and delivering business strategy via product. ➡ Bloom & Wild, onefinestay, eBay 🍭 Todd Green talked to us about growth at scale, creating frequency and building high performance teams ➡ King 📰 Lindsey Jayne shared stories from fast growing organisations, remaining laser focused on results, and building structured, testable hypotheses ➡ Financial Times, Monzo Bank, Yoco, FARFETCH 👚 Ed Biden talked about the importance of talking to people when it comes to developing hypotheses and a strategy, and how to get insights from internal stakeholders and external clients ➡ Hustle Badger, Job&Talent, Depop, Rocket Internet SE 🍣 Mirela Mus talked about spotting macro trends, the criticality of those in her own journey and building effective teams ➡ Product People For all of that and more, go here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eJS8GsxQ

Please review the following post to see if you can offer any guidance

This goes to a re-post from a couple weeks back. 'Sandbagging' & the post-poning of sales in Q4 to improve budget opportunities &/ or fiscal & performance results are practices that deserve negative scrutiny, especially when it comes to bonuses. Add the practice of firing or laying off staff in Q4 to better results. This is not Capitalism (even at its worst) but 'Corporatism' and as such the actions are not addressed by Governments, either through public policy, the Legislature, or the Judiciary. The rise in co-dependency of large corporations & Government is alarming.

Talk about #positivity It’s not what happens to you that matters But how you interpret what happens to you. If you maintain positivity in challenging situations your mind will help work out a positive solution, and vice versa. Stay #positive

What a perfect way to kick off a job search and gather together industry colleagues. Put yourself out there! #layoffs #layoff #laidoff #metalayoffs #amazonlayoffs #linkedinlayoffs #resume #resumetips #interview #interviewtips #unemployed #funemployed #careercoaching #resumecoach

Today, aperture.co celebrates its 5th birthday! 🎉 It hasn’t always been smooth sailing—2023 was a particularly tough year for anyone in fintech—but as we reflect on our journey since 2019, we’ve accomplished quite a bit: 🚀 We’ve collaborated with 14 fintech companies, helping them achieve an average annual revenue growth of over 300%. 💰 We’ve invested nearly CHF 10 million in early-stage growth companies. 🔍 We’ve conducted M&A activities, undertaken market due diligence, and launched several embedded finance businesses. 🌍 We expanded our operations across Europe, the US, and the Middle East. 📈 We broadened our services to cover strategy consulting, investment services, and all aspects of marketing. 👥 We’ve built an incredible team of 28 highly committed and talented people. And yet, it feels like day one! Our business model and impact continue to grow, and we’re just getting started... Thanks to all the fintechs who’ve trusted us with their GTM, all the businesses we’ve supported with corporate development, and all the investors who funded us and invested alongside us. But most of all, thanks to the Aperturians (past and present) who deliver massive value every single day, proving that heroics can scale!