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Raiser's Edge
Some entrepreneurs fly through fundraising; sailing through VC meetings, converting at high rates, getting to term sheets quickly and successfully. Other founders struggle; wading through hundreds of meetings and calls, reading thousands of online pitch guides, and still only producing a mediocre fundraising round. The very best founders seem to know cheat codes that the rest of the herd just lack, and this quickly creates capital advantage for their companies, allowing them to own their markets and achieve dominance in their industries. So what are these secrets that separate the best from the rest?
It turns out a lot of what these top raisers do is replicable - it’s just not easy to find on the internet or by asking advice from average peers. Raiser’s Edge bridges that very gap, sharing the strategies and philosophies that have separated industry leaders from the pack in order to transform mediocre raisers to excellent ones. Through interviews with outstanding founders who have themselves succeeded in the VC fundraising process, not only will listeners learn how to successfully fund their start-ups, but they will also learn how to raise strong rounds even in down markets, take advantage of VC funding and tailwinds, and impress investors in order to earn outsize capital. Most importantly, listeners will find out how the most skillful CEOs make it through the biggest challenges so that they can increase their own chances of surviving the challenges to come.
Each episode of Raiser’s Edge will interview a founder about the critical fundraising junctures in their company’s growth stage, highlighting stories in which they navigated investor concerns, challenging timelines, and emerging obstacles to raise and deploy funds successfully. By taking a closer look at these entrepreneurs’ paths to success, we’ll also shed a light on their moments of near-failure, self-doubt, and tough calls, and the way these challenges have transformed them into stronger leaders and fundraisers along the way. Through an entertaining, easy-to-follow interview format, this podcast hopes to demystify the fundraising process and serve as an intimate glimpse into the secrets of today’s business all-stars in order to inspire and teach the all-stars to come.
Raiser's Edge
How Honesty and Humility are the Real Hacks with Russ Fradin
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How do top founders actually raise venture capital—and what do investors really look for?
In this episode of Raiser’s Edge, host Ben Elowitz sits down with serial entrepreneur Russ Fradin (Larridin, Adify, Dynamic Signal) for a candid, unfiltered conversation about the realities of startup fundraising and building a venture-backed company that lasts.
With decades of experience, over $1B raised, and board seats across multiple high-growth startups, Russ shares the fundraising lessons founders can’t afford to learn the hard way.
They break down:
- How to prepare for investor conversations (and avoid the most common founder mistakes)
- Red flags and green flags when choosing VCs
- Why FOMO-driven fundraising backfires
- How honesty, humility, and self-awareness change your outcomes
- What separates the founders who raise successfully from those who stall out
Russ offers practical, plainspoken advice for navigating the emotional roller coaster of raising capital—and staying focused on building a business worth investing in.