Why great operators can make for great venture capitalists
Venture capital is one of the most prominent types of capital out there. But it isn’t necessarily a great fit for every business.
We’re joined by Barnaby Marshall, partner and investor at Icehouse Ventures, to talk VC, when it is good, when it is not helpful, and also to chat about his path into the space. Barnaby has invested in and supported great companies like Dawn Aerospace, Basis Tracksuit, and Ideally - and is part of Brand Fund - which is where host Simon Pound got to see him at work up close. But he is also an entrepreneur and active business grower. Before VC he was a co-owner at I Love Ugly and part of its incredible growth journey, and today he is also an owner at New Ground Coffee.
We chat about how this experience helps him help spot great business and help great founders, and what kind of companies would benefit from venture capital partnership.
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52:36
How Keep the Change changes lives
Being good with money is not easy. The whole credit, consumer, and hedonistic world are built to try to get people to spend too much on things they don’t need, for short term gain. The actual tips for how to be better with money are quite simple. Spend less than you earn, save a good percentage even when you don’t earn a lot, stay away from expensive debt, invest in upskilling and invest for the long-term as compounding benefits are your friend.
However simple these ideas might seem actually connecting with people and getting them to believe they can make the change can be the hardest thing. Luke Kemeys is one of the new breed of financial influencers who is able to make these messages connect by sharing his story, by making the content relevant and by turning up time and time again to land the messages and habits.
His media brand Keep the Change educates, informs and entertains through podcasts, courses, events and his regular newsletter. His approach sees the free content deliver heaps of value, and this creates a pipeline of business for his accountancy practice. His work has helped countless people get out of debt and into good positions, and he joins the podcast to chat his approach to money, how he learnt to practice good habits and how sharing great content can lead to business success.
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46:29
Doing better at business by doing better
In theory every business has the potential to bake doing good into how it makes money. But very few do.
Brianne West has shown with first Ethique, and now Incrediballs, that with intentional action you can make a brand, business, product and movement for change, where everything you sell means you create a net positive for the world. Brianne joins us to share how she does this, and how the opportunity is there for everyone else to too! Incrediballs is her new venture, nearing launch for the effervescent tablets that you drop in water for the soft drink experience and taste, without the plastic bottles, transported water or massive sugar load. We can’t wait to see the impact these can have on the world’s biggest plastic pollution market. If you are interested in learning more about how to design your business to create positive impact with everything you do check out Brianne’s free courses and materials at Business, but Better.
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51:31
Why people leaders make great CEOs
People leaders are often the quietly most vital parts of a business.
Great people leaders are like a cross between HR and an executional chief operating officer - someone who takes the business strategy and breaks it down into what everyone needs to do, and then helps every manager in a business stay accountable. There are no great companies without great people policy and execution, and people leaders need to understand culture, strategy, how people tick and how to create high performance environments- all the kind of things that also make for a great CEO. So why don’t we see more CEOs coming from chief people officer backgrounds?
This episode on the pod we talk to Olivia Dyet, founder and CEO at recruitment startup Empathix and Pene Barton, CEO at Crimson Global Academy. Both these leaders came from leading people operations, and both are at the front of what great looks like in terms of AI execution and implementation both on how they work and how their teams operate. We have a great chat about how this could be a huge opportunity for more diverse leadership with so many amazing women in people and operations, how we may need to redefine what a technical leaders is in the age of AI and about the practical toolbox of AI tools everyone should be using today.
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55:22
How to build a community of 10,000 marketers
Building community can be one of the most important parts of building a brand and business.
When people talk about businesses and customers, we are really talking about a community of people. What does it take to become a valuable and useful member of a community, rather than just a business selling into a community? What are the benefits? And how do you set out to give enough value that people want to do things with you and for you?
These are all questions today’s guest is an expert in. Chanel Clark is a marketing leader who decided she needed community around her to help her grow in her role, leading marketing for Ārepa, a functional FMCG brand with a mission to help make brains better. When Chanel started The Marketing Club she thought she might get 30 people. As of April 2025, they have 10,000 members across AU and NZ.
Chanel joins the pod to talk what it takes to build such a community, and how listening to that community is the key to success.
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Think business is boring? This podcast proves it's anything but. Join Simon Pound as he talks to everyone from accidental entrepreneurs to industry leaders about their business journeys and what propelled them to where they are today. Made in partnership with Deel.
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