My conversation today is with my close friend Brent Beshore. Brent is a private equity investor who owns and interacts with many small businesses, which have been hit especially hard by COVID. We discuss the various impacts that COVID has had and may have on both small business and the private equity investing community. Brent also proposes some policy actions which he thinks may help those most in need. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:13 – (First question) – What Brent sees as the current landscape for small businesses
3:25 – The real problem for small businesses right now
6:02 – How long can small businesses survive these freezes
9:14 – Ideas to help businesses stay afloat during a global shutdown
11:01 – The cost of restarting businesses on the other side of this
13:41 – Policies that could help
14:30 – government co-paying some business expenses
16:05 – Suspending payroll taxes
16:17 – The small business bond
18:00 – Wider latitude for banks
20:03 – How effective would Brent’s ideas actually be at lessening the pain
22:41 – A look at how things look in the private equity complex
25:39 – What are the potential opportunities out there
29:24 – What is a balance sheet product
32:00 – How this is personally impacting Brent
34:20 – How this is personally impacting Patrick
35:45 – Importance of relationships for personal health
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this morning is Dan Rasmussen of Verdad Capital. Like me, Dan and his firm focus on quantitative research. Just a month before the COVID crisis hit markets, they completely and published a study on investing during periods of market crisis, which is the topic of this conversation. We discuss what works and what doesn’t during and after acute periods of panic in markets. I think you’ll find it extremely informative. Because Dan’s firm and my own share many beliefs about investing and conduct similar flavors of research, I try to offer devil’s advocate questions throughout. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:54 – (First question) – What he sees in the markets today given the atmosphere right now
4:26 – An overview of their study: Crisis Investing: How to Maximize Return During Market Panics
8:38 – How things get more predictable during crisis
11:15 – The length of these crises and assets they focused on
12:40 – What happens to bonds and credit during these times
15:50 – Geography of crises
18:14 – How does this impact the philosophy of just index investing
20:40 – Positioning of value in this market
27:50 – Lessons from other crises
32:21 – Importance of a blended factor approach
35:44 – Role of momentum
38:10 – What else he is paying attention to during this crisis
Learn More
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My guests today are Bill Gurley and Chetan Puttagunta, both partners at benchmark capital. We review the early stage investing world in the face of coronavirus in a very timely conversation, which is one that will remain valuable once this crisis is done. We discuss enterprise and consumer, funding and growth, and the entrepreneurial spirit in the face of a crisis. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:44 – (First question) – Landscape for venture capital ecosystem
6:47 – The experience in 2009 and the entrepreneurs that tend to rise to the top
8:24 – The relationship between early stage companies and public investors
10:45 – How this crisis impacts enterprise businesses vs the broader corporate sector
14:46 – Advice for early stage companies in a period like this
18:23 – What Chetan was doing during the last downturn and what he learned during it
20:27 – Early stage vs late stage companies in this environment
22:57 – On the Road to Recap
23:00 – Benefits of being small in a period like this
25:22 – How portfolio companies are responding and pivoting during this period
29:33 – Best practices for remote companies
31:39 – Themes that stand out during this period
34:51 – Closing thoughts
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest in this flash podcast is Bryan Krug of Artisan partners. We discuss what has happened so far in the corporate high yield and investment-grade credit markets, and the loan market. We compare today’s environment to the financial crisis and other past crises with lots of nuances that I hope will be helpful to bond and equity investors. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:08 – (First question) – An overview of what he covers in the corporate credit markets
1:52 – How things have changed in the last couple of weeks
3:56 – Composition of the high yield market
7:07 – Major sectors of the high yield market outside of energy
8:39 – How do they price the risk in securities right now
11:21 – How do they handicap a great unknown
13:00 – Risk for broader contagion in the overall credit markets
14:49 – What’s the downside potential here
16:31 – Potential for upside
18:33 – How does he view companies that are drawing down on their entire line of credit
19:44 – An overview of the loan market
20:42 – What warning signs equity investors should be watching for in the bond markets
21:57 – What do credit spreads look like today compared to before this crisis
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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This week, I’ll be recording and immediately releasing a series of conversations on business and market reactions to the spread of coronavirus. The conversations will be on oil and gas, corporate credit, and the reaction within the venture capital community. Today’s conversation is with Matt Smith, Ian Singer, and Kobi Platt of Deep Basin Capital. We are investors in Deep Basin, and they were past guests on the podcast. We discuss the new price war in the oil markets and the impact it might have on equities and especially on U.S. oil producers. Please enjoy.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:59 – (First question) – An overview of the global oil market and demand
3:37 – Supply and demand shocks we’ve seen lately
6:22 – What happened this weekend with Russia and Saudi Arabia and why the outcome was so shocking
9:45 – The knock-on effects of this activity on equities
14:24 – Impact on US energy production
18:29 – What other industries will feel the effect of reduced production in the US
20:35 – Defining a price war and how victory is defined
27:53 – Saudi Arabia’s calculus in this energy fight.
31:11 – How does all of this change what factors they use to analyze companies
35:43 – What it actually looks like within the commodities markets to trade energy
40:01 – What uncertainty is most intriguing to each of them
43:00 – The long-term interest in investing in the energy sector
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Peter Zeihan, the author of a new book, the Disunited Nations. Peter was an extremely popular guest on the show last year and after reading his new book, I knew we had a lot to discuss in round 2. In this conversation, we discuss two ways of ruling the world, the coming American disinterest in global affairs, and which country are poised to do well int eh future. We explore military and non-military technologies, political changes, and up and coming alliances like that between the United States and Mexico. As with last time, peter packs more information into an hour than just about anybody. Please enjoy our conversation.
This episode is brought to by Koyfin.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:57 – (First question) – What makes for a successful country
6:02 – Five first-tier countries that are well positioned
7:14 – Ruling the world, US carrot model vs British stick model
9:39 – How other countries will use these models in the future
12:59 – The surprising reliance of Iran and Russia on the US
15:24– Key points of his research on the Middle East
18:36 – Advice for how those operating in the US should think about future business investments
23:05 – The future of manufacturing partnerships with the US and the focus on Mexico
27:30 – What Coronavirus has taught us about the world economy
30:01 – What the primaries and election are teaching us
35:09 – What role does Africa play in the future
38:36 – Strong and weak players in Europe and how Brexit has impacted things
44:41 – The future for nuclear power
46:27 – The outlook for South America
50:42 – The trends and future in military technology
55:03 – Non-military technology that will have a major impact
58:26 – Skills young people should focus on for the future
1:00:07 – Coronavirus as a dress rehearsal for large scale disruptions to the world
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Jeff Lawson, the Founder, and CEO of Twilio. Twilio is a 15-billion-dollar company offering a cloud communications platform to its customers. Twilio is used by customers like Lyft, Twitch, and Yelp to make communications in their products easy. Jeff and I talk about why it pays to be a platform, how to be a platform, and how to sculpt a company culture. This is a must-listen for anyone building a business whether it’s a tech business or not.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:18 – (First Question) – Company vowels and draw the owl
5:26 – Significance of API’s
12:14 – How non-software businesses can transition into the space
17:50 - Agile way of working at ING Belgium (video)
18:38 – How they strategize their product build
23:27 – The idea of asking your developer and why it’s so important to them
33:02 – How they codified their business culture
45:12 – Parting advice for people building platforms
48:13 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jeff
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Niko Canner is the founder of Incandescent where he and his team help the leaders of large companies in the areas of strategy and innovation. He was also the founder of Katzenbach Partners and a member of Bridgewater’s management committee. Niko is a fantastic writer, and I highly recommend you check out his blog “On Human Enterprise,” which has posts on many of the most interesting aspects of business and personal purpose. This conversation was inspired by many of those posts. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:17 – (First Question) – The story of Doctor V
3:24 – Aravind and the Choice of Great Achievement
4:00 – Becoming the perfect instrument
6:05 – What is Niko planning to be the perfect instrument of
8:18 – How should individuals think about finding what they can be the perfect instrument of
8:59 – Brett Victor – Inventing on Principle
10:59 – How do businesses apply this principle
13:20 – Making choices easier
16:43 – Era’s to a company and when it’s time to start a new one
19:52 – How can business culture be cultivated and useful
22:53 – Cultures at the tail end of a distribution
24:33 – Can hierarchy be fluid, or does it need to be a dedicated corporate structure
27:47 – My Unlikeliest Favorite Business Book
28:03 – The Millionaire Real Estate Agent: It's Not About the Money...It's About Being the Best You Can Be!
30:46 – The Red Test and how it can be used by businesses
36:54 - Ten Principles for How to Run a Company
42:25 – Dealing with the sponsor owner brief in the software world
45:24 – How does one choose customers
46:32 – Bill Hubbard passage – A Theory for Practice: Architecture in Three Discourses
49:09 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Niko
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
For the 100th episode, I’ve brought back my good friend Brent Beshore. Brent was the 10th guest on the podcast, after we met because of a mutual interest in capital allocation. I quickly learned that Brent was one of the most unique and thoughtful investors around. He was an entrepreneur from the moment he left school, trying many different things before finding a fit buying smaller business with the intention of owning them forever.
What amazes me about Brent is his encyclopedic understanding of business and the nuances of different business models and deal structures. This comes from reps. He and his team have looked at about 12,000 deals over the years, at every kind of business that you could imagine. I’ve been with him when he goes through this process and it’s fun to hear what makes certain businesses stand out from others, which is largely the topic of this conversation.
You all know transparency is key for me, so it’s important to know that my family and I are investors in a fund called permanent equity, run by Brent and his firm Adventure.es.
To commemorate this milestone episode, I can think of no one better than Brent, because he exemplifies what has made this podcast so fun for me: learning from other people who are willing to share what they themselves have learned through fun, blood, sweat, and tears. Please enjoy our conversation, and thank you so much for coming along on this journey. I can’t tell you how much it means to me.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
2:02 - (First Question) – How does he think about optimizing risk in terms of the capital stack when looking at deals
5:27 – What conditions would they add debt down the road after investing in a company
6:52 – What business sectors are most intriguing for Morgan to invest in right now
6:57 – Trent Griffin Podcast
9:34 – Why no HVAC businesses if it’s such an attractive sector
13:56 – thoughts on rolling up similar businesses and horizontal scale
16:04 – Another industry Brent would focus on
18:02 – Difference between property management in larger cities vs smaller metro areas
18:51 – What role does profit margin play when Brent is evaluating a business
22:46 – The appeal of a hyper cyclical business
22:52 – Brent Beshore Podcast Episode
27:27 – Favorite counter cyclical business
28:14 – How they judge assets, tangible vs intangible assets
33:58 – How does he think about wage inflation when considering the cost of a business
37:21 – His fascination with pet crematoriums
38:57 – History of the permanent equity fund and the changes by having a larger pool of capital
43:48 – Pitching investors on a new structure for the business
46:14 – How will this business model scale
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is a good friend and a business mentor of mine. Chetan Puttagunta is a general partner at Benchmark Capital and has a remarkable track record of investing in early-stage software businesses, including several like Mulesoft, MongoDB, and Elastic that went on to be public companies.
Chetan has been my key guide for understanding the world of enterprise software as we at O’Shaughnessy Asset Management have built an investing platform called Canvas. His advice has been critical to our early success. In this episode, we explore the history of software and software investing, and go into the details on how to build and grow new software businesses. We discuss product, sales and marketing, recruiting, scaling, and everything in between.
Please enjoy this great conversation with one of my favorite business and investing thinkers.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:34 – (First Question) – How Chetan found MongoDB and decided to invest in it
8:01 – The evolution of databases in the growth of technology
16:19 – Market penetration of this space and what investors should be thinking about
21:46 – Advice how companies can build software effectively
25:12 – Tactics to effectively implement empathy led product building
30:33 – Companies asking users what to build vs telling users what they want
34:26 – The need for the right capital, and patient capital in particular
37:55 – Creating the perfect customer experience
44:37 – Common reasons they don’t invest in a company
48:48 – Lessons on scaling, especially in sales and marketing
52:47 – Best recruiting pipeline strategies
59:56 – Pitfalls of unit economic traps
1:00:23 – The Dangerous Seduction of the Lifetime Value (LTV) Formula
1:01:34– The Hierarchy of Engagement
1:02:18 – What has changed for Chetan in his time working with the team at Benchmark
1:06:009 – Later stage life cycle business considerations and Amazon’s AWS
1:13:29 – The business model of open-source software
1:15:54 – Being default open
1:17:53 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Chetan
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest today is Rebecca Kaden, a partner at famed venture firm union square ventures. USV is known for thesis-driven investing, which is the topic of our conversation. Rebecca walks us through the evolution of USV’s thesis into its third generation, and from there we explore many of the most interesting and exciting areas of business, technology, and learning. Please enjoy our conversation
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:11 – (First Question) – An overview of Union Square Ventures Thesis 3.0
7:49 – Core changes that can help any community
9:59 – Ways to fix the broken education system
13:41 – Gap between job preparedness and the education system
14:44 – Companies creating education systems to prepare people for careers in their field
18:49 – Most unique technological solution for people to educate themselves
22:00 – Ways to improve access to capital
26:49 – The distribution problem in capital markets
28:19 – How does she assess an early-stage company and its team’s ability to assess their ability to maximize distribution
30:56 – Digital marketing and why it could be broken
34:22 – Examples of masterful marketing
36:07 – How they are focused on improving wellbeing, their first focus on healthcare
39:35 – Wellbeing on their focus on community
41:29– The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging
45:30 – Her thoughts on mentorship
48:23 – What she has learned in her time at USV
51:50 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Rebecca
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest today is Matt Clifford. He’s the co-founder of Entrepreneur First, the world’s leading talent investor. They invest “pre-company” by helping the best people in cities around the world find a co-founder, develop an idea, and start a company. So far, they’ve helped 1000 people start 200 companies worth a combined $1.5B. This conversation covers their entire ecosystem and holds lessons for anyone building a business. I especially loved Matt’s ideas on the history of ambition.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:20 – (First Question) – An overview on talent investing
4:37 – The history of ambition
10:08 – How do they search for ambitious people
12:21 – What happens early on for these formed teams
17:43 – Assigning an idea to a talented team
20:52 – Opportunities in deep technology
27:16 – A closer look at the hardware and machinery of the deep technology changes
30:54 – The geographical focus of venture capital investments
37:16 – Problems with the way early-stage investment world works
41:22 – People who are creating value in a management company and how they manage their investments
55:12 – Advice to people creating investment companies and pricing power
1:00:31 – The power of cities
1:02:46 – Topics they cover in their newsletter; technological sovereignty as one example
1:04:11 – Experience and thoughts on China
1:06:51 – A.I. Nationalism
1:12:03 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Matt
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest today is Peter Buffett. Peter is a musician, composer, author, and philanthropist. Peter is an Emmy Award winner, New York Times best-selling author and co-chair of the NoVo Foundation. We discuss music, community, philanthropy, and finding one's note in life. This is a very different episode much more about life in general, with no business or investing discussed. Like his father Warren, Peter has the gene for phrasing ideas in memorable ways, and I think you’ll find many great phrases in this chat that will stick with you. I’ve been thinking about Peter's idea making sure those in your life are safe, seen, and celebrated ever since our chat.
Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:27 - (First Question) – Welcome and small talk
1:35 – Why Peter is in Kingston and how it plays into his foundation work
4:01 – How moving from the city to the country changed Peter
6:27 – Seeing connections vs living abstractions
7:30 – What is the Nova Foundation
11:03 – Historical points that inform his views
13:51 – Identifying qualitative negative side effects and which ones they are attacking
17:51 – What makes for effective community
20:22 – Linkage between consumption and individualism
23:55 – The cultivation of work ethic, curiosity, and education
23:57 – Life Is What You Make It: Find Your Own Path to Fulfillment
27:22 – Early exploration of his curiosity
32:26 – What has music taught Peter about music that is unique to that experience
34:26 – Most memorable question a person has asked Peter at his concert and conversation series
36:46 – What makes for good relationships, in particular marriage
42:03 – What keeps people from putting in the work into a relationship
45:11 – What he has learned about being a good friend
46:29 – How does one person have a relationship with a large community
49:21 – Dark sides of the philanthropic world
49:54 – The Charitable-Industrial Complex
53:21 – Dignity: Seeking Respect in Back Row America
55:55 – What one spot would he send everyone to learn
57:48 – Traumas and helping people find their note
57:49 – The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
1:02:24 – What is he most interested in right now: how to best use Nova’s funds
1:04:45 – Lessons from family
1:07:22 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Peter
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest today is Ben Savage, a partner at Clocktower ventures. Ben is focused on financial technology, fintech, investing which is the topic of our conversation.
I’ve been making the fintech is rounds of late, and plan on making a few of these conversations public. Ben is the first in what may be a mini-series because of the sheer amount I learned in our discussion.
We cover all aspects of the fintech ecosystem. I hope you enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:15 (First Question) – The market portfolio and how technology will move us away from liquid markets
7:24 – Businesses that are making assets that weren’t investable, investable
9:11 – Ryan Caldbeck Podcast Episode
12:03 – Most interesting places where technology is creating investment opportunities
18:33 – Assets that are likely to tap into new sources of beta
23:46 – How well are investors prepared for the changes that are coming
28:35 – Trends in asset management with technology
33:05 – View on cryptocurrency and blockchain
36:45 – Places where startups can reduce costs/fees and create efficiencies
40:17 – Views on private equity markets and their future
45:40 – Privilege of access problem
48:50 – Verticals in fintech that are interesting to him
59:53 – The importance of focus and niche
1:02:26 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ben
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Jeff Ma. Jeff was on the famous MIT Blackjack team from the book Bringing Down the House but has spent his career in an around fields of analytics and data science. He’s studied sports betting and analytics, built companies for analyzing human capital, and ran the data science and analytics group at Twitter. Here are links to his book, blog, and podcast.
Our discussion is about a number of fascinating ways data is being used to make decisions in the worlds of sports and business. Please enjoy!
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:20 - (First Question) – How quantitative analytics have evolved in sports and how they’re being used
4:26 – Best role of humans in the analysis process
8:38 – Sports that are most interesting to observe through analytics
10:26 – How does luck play into sports analysis
11:54 – Team analytics vs better analytics
12:38 – Concentration of success among sports betters and their moats
14:58 – Favorite lessons learned from professional gamblers
16:45 – How analytics got introduced into gambling
19:21 – Understanding one’s own biases
24:04 – How he became VP of analytics at Twitter
28:37 – Primary lessons from the work evaluating human capital and talent with analytics
28:59 – Niel Roberson Podcast Episode
31:40 – How to model people for success when hiring
33:29 – How to hire the right data scientists’ team
37:54 – Most interesting problems they tackled at twitter
42:31 – Responsibility of social platforms to police itself
45:34 – Areas that would interest him in the future as an investor
49:24 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Jeff
51:50 – Values instilled in him by his parents.
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
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My guest today is Vaughn Tan, who studies quality, innovation, and organizational behavior. His resume is bonkers. He’s a PhD from Harvard, Was an infantry signals logistician in the Republic of Singapore Army, then worked at Google on advertising, Earth, Maps, spaceflight, and Fusion Tables. He’s also been a wood sculptor.
But the topic of our conversation is how to foster quality and innovation in ourselves and inside of companies—lessons he learned in part by studying inside some of the world’s best restaurants.
If you enjoy this conversation, I recommend you also check out his new book, The Uncertainty Mindset Innovation Insights from the Frontiers of Food. Please enjoy my conversation with Vaughn Tan.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:33 - (First Question) – Interesting ways to identify high quality
5:06 – The current problem with the way we think about the world
8:56 – How people think about their careers and college
11:21 – Uncertainty vs risk, and productive discomfort
19:08 – Cultivation of discomfort for an individual
24:05 – Successful innovation cultures
32:25 – Analyzing quality and restaurant bread
37:43 – The Slug idea
40:43 – His research project where he observed restaurants
45:44 – How do people mandate their own structure in the face of uncertainty
53:46 – How employees should approach this rent-to-buy hiring structure
57:17 – Example of someone who took advantage of uncertainty time
1:00:05 – Playful adults
1:00:07 – Jerry Neumann Podcast Episode
1:03:10 – Other changes companies can make to their culture to be more innovative
1:08:19 – The difference between simplicity and complexity
1:11:12 – How he applies his thinking into several different ideas, like Cannabis
1:16:17 – Asking the right question
1:19:05 – Andy Rachleff Podcast Episode
1:20:19 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Vaughn
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Gavin Baker, the founder, and manager of Atreides Management. I met Gavin in the same way I meet many of the most interesting people, on twitter. His focus is on consumer and technology growth investing, which is the topic of our conversation. We discuss many of the largest trends in these sectors, several fascinating investment cases, and also explore the videogame industry in detail—which I found especially interesting. Please enjoy my conversation with Gavin Baker.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:16 – (first question) – His unique view on the markets
4:00 – Distilling Apple as a growth investment
6:44 – What is the most important lever for Apple looking forward
9:01 – His view on Intel
11:03 – Most important technological changes that may dictate his investing strategy
16:20 – How do you look at a big idea, like AR, and then apply to an individual business
18:21 – Fortnite isn't a game, it's a place
18:26– Fortnite Is the Future, but Probably Not for the Reasons You Think
18:56 – His insight into video games and their ability to control attention
28:36 – How do you invest in the gaming sector
40:06 – Favorite video games
32:07 – Why gaming and customer sector allows him to find Alpha richness
34:17 – Being in the top 1% of knowledge before investing in a company
36:24 – His view on value investing today and, in the future,
41:15 – Increase of regulatory capture
42:01 – Headwinds to the tech companies today
43:50 – Thoughts on the Chinese internet market and how it impacts US markets
45:36 – How often companies look at China for ideas
46:21 – Role of alternative data in his process
49:36 – Big trends today we should be paying attention to
54:20 – the most interesting company he does not own
58:48 – Advice for new investors
1:00:17 – Non-obvious tech resources - TechMeme
1:00:50 – Favorite sci-fi character
1:01:19 – Kindest thing anyone has done for him
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
All opinions expressed by Patrick and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of O'shaughnessy asset management. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions. Clients of O'shaughnessy asset management may maintain positions in the securities discussed in this podcast. Clients of the podcast guest’s firm may also maintain positions in the securities discussed in this podcast.
My guests this week are Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, the co-founders of Instagram.
I met Kevin and Mike a few months ago over a shared interest in business and investing. I have found them both to be extremely good people who have a rare talent for finding and solving interesting problems. Indeed, problem-solving and jobs-to-be-done is a big part of our conversation.
I realized walking into the podcast that Kevin and Mike have a rare set of experiences: having both built and sold an extremely successful product from scratch, but then also operated and scaled inside one of the largest businesses in the world. This means they have unique knowledge to offer just about anyone interested in business and products. We dig into all those lessons here.
I am working on hosting more founders and CEOs on the podcast, and can’t think of a better pair to show you why I want to do so. Please enjoy my conversation with Kevin and Mike.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:38 – (first question) – Projects they’ve been working on since leaving Instagram
5:22 – How they can apply what they are learning in machine learning
7:18 – Most interesting experience diving back into data and machine learning
8:42 – How startups compare today to when they founded Instagram
13:23 – Judging founders and whether they know how to use their data effectively
14:26 – The jobs-to-be-done framework
19:14 – Laying out a vision vs solving problems that pop up
25:20 – Developing and sharing the principles of the company with the team
30:48 – Creating a community when it includes almost the entire world
39:03 – The most popular ways people used the platform
41:24 – What was the jobs-to-be-done rational behind the stories feature
44:15 – Interesting things that they saw as Instagram entered the developing world
46:40 – Their thoughts on how Instagram shaped culture and if they focused on those
52:58 – The new waves that they are observing right now
55:11 – How their thinking on leadership and teams changed during their time at Instagram and Facebook
1:03:23 – The pillars of a good business, including humility and confidence
1:06:06 – Focus on growth and distribution in a startup
1:10:01 – How early were they thinking about monetization on this free platform
1:13:43 – How do they think about how they invest their money and allocate resources
1:17:36 – Mentors for Kevin and Mike
1:20:30 – Their passion for learning to fly and the someday/maybe list
1:23:01 – Their interest in coffee
1:26:24 – Advice for everyone else
1:30:00 – Kindest thing anyone has done for them
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Daniel Ek, the founder and CEO of Spotify.
In my conversations with Daniel, I’ve found him to be one of the most interesting and thoughtful business leaders in the world. You’ll see what I mean as you listen to our conversation.
We talk about Spotify plenty, but what I so enjoy about Daniel is his way of thinking in systems and frameworks. He is committed to evolution, innovation, and growth for both himself and for Spotify and is on my shortlist of CEOs to emulate.
This was one of my favorite conversations on the podcast, I hope you enjoy it.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:21 – (first question) – Management lessons from a Dubai chocolate maker
4:54 – Trends shaping the business landscape today: globalization, automation, and digitation
7:51 – How he thinks about the vertical integration of his business and scale
10:37 – Are companies doing a good job adjusting to the changes in the global business landscape
14:44 – How does Spotify view scale moving forward
17:59 – What trends has he seen among creators as a result of the Spotify platform
20:32 – The community benefit that has been created by the platform
23:47 – Intimacy of audio
25:31 – Creating an environment that continues to spur innovation
29:12 – Star vs constellation business strategy
32:21 – Measuring network health
35:12 – Spotify Originals and what his competition in the video market is doing
39:36 – How podcasts play into the growth strategy
43:04 – How did he solve the problem of competing with free
47:21 – Is their strategy repeatable, going after fractured suppliers
49:02 – Role of the CEO in a startup
51:22 – Others who have taught him great business lessons
53:18 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Daniel
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is George Rzepecki, the found and managing partner Raba, an Africa focused investment firm. George is making investments across Africa in early-stage companies. Africa represents a fascinating opportunity: a huge and diverse population and enormous room for per capita GDP growth. We cover all aspects of investing in the continent, including unique potential rewards and risks.
Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
1:18 – (first question) – Interest in emerging markets and the tech landscape in Africa
4:57 – Similarities across all of the different metro markets across Africa
8:05 – Why has the continent lagged behind the rest of the world
10:49 – What is the history and landscape of capital in the African continent
13:32 – The market opportunity given the demographics
15:44 – US investment/involvement in Africa
18:06 – Kinds of companies that he likes to invest in
23:26 – Initiatives and investments that could help lift the population out of poverty: finance
29:33 – The public marketplace landscape in Africa
31:49 – Capacity on the private side
34:24 – How the valuation of deals compares to other markets
36:13 – Unique risks in the investments they are making
38:28 – Most exciting trends or changes he is seeing
40:22 – The professional investor environment
43:25 – How to learn more and get involved
43:49 – China Africa Research Initiative
44:17 – China Africa Project
44:38 – Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World--and Why Things Are Better Than You Think
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest today is Chad Cascarilla, the CEO and co-founder of Paxos, which describes itself as a financial technology company “mobilizing assets at the speed of the internet.“ Thanks to more than 20 years of investing and financial services experience, Chad has a unique perspective on integrating blockchain technology with traditional systems. He also has one of my favorite bitcoin origin stories, which we explore.
Before Paxos, Charles co-founded institutional asset management complex Cedar Hill Capital Partners in 2005 and its blockchain-focused venture capital subsidiary, Liberty City Ventures (LCV).
Our conversation is less about cryptocurrencies and more about the history, current state, and potential future states of our financial system. Please enjoy.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
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Show Notes
1:32 - (First Question) – His work in the finance world before crypto’s
5:12 – Experience navigating the subprime mortgage trend and what it taught him about blockchain
9:59 – The levers that matter in the financial services industry today vs when he first started
14:07 – Open vs closed money in financial services
19:16 – How slowdowns are different in the modern era
23:06 – What would lead to a major winding down of global debt
27:09 – What would be his focus as a traditional investor
29:21 – How he first got involved with bitcoin
29:47 – Elliott Wave Newsletter
31:53 – His measured view of Bitcoin and living through the volatility of it
32:03 – Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
35:57 – Allocation of a portfolio which includes crypto
36:54 – His involvement and feelings on gold
37:56 – The formation of Paxos and the problem it exists to solve
41:34 – How Paxos is impacting the space
44:12 – Advantages of a private blockchain
43:59 – What is Pax Gold and how does it work
48:53 – Bad ways and situations to own gold
52:12 – Using a stable coin
56:00 – Biggest problem they are working on now
57:23 – What should people be paying attention to in the crypto currency space
59:23 – Coindesk Research Archive
59:39 – Has the influx of interest in crypto helped in other spaces
1:02:11 – Other lessons people should learn from his career
1:04:53 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Chad
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
My guest this week is Bill Gurley, general partner at Benchmark Capital. Our conversation is about one specific issue that has popped up as a topic of interest in the investing community in recent months: the comparison between bringing a company public through a traditional IPO vs. what’s known as a direct listing.
As a third party observer with no real dog in the hunt (as we don’t buy IPOs at O’Shaughnessy Asset Management), I thought this was a small and nuanced issue. I’ve therefore been surprised by the strength of opinions on both sides of this issue as I’ve explored it behind the scenes this past week. It feels almost like I’ve encountered a political third rail, where one side throws a lot of vitriol towards the other.
To be clear, this episode is very much in favor of direct listings instead of traditional IPOs. For those that want a good discussion of the IPO process and its upsides, check out episode 173 of the Exponent podcast with Ben Thompson.
Now please enjoy my very interesting conversation with Bill Gurley
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Show Notes
1:22 - (First Question) – His view on the IPO process
5:42 – Will now be the turning point for IPO’s
6:40 – The engagement between a new company going public and their counterparty and the IPO process
13:38 – The math of capital costs
18:18 – Banks that underprice the IPO’s
20:45 – The psychology of IPO’s
23:14 – The pop in the IPO and the media
24:54 – The value that shareholders give vs VC’s
25:37 – The Green Shoots
28:17 – The lock-up
31:40 – Direct listings vs IPO’s
36:07 – Spotify’s CEO Reveals Why He’s Not Doing a Traditional IPO
38:23 – The capital raised in an IPO and diluting the company
40:18 – Privilege access and buy-side firms
43:33 – What will actually lead to changes in the IPO space
44:48 – Why he became so interested in the IPO space
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Albert Wenger, a managing partner at Union Square Ventures and the author of the book World After Capital.
Albert studied economics at Harvard and earned a PhD in information from technology, but if you’d asked me to guess before looking those up, I’d have guessed that he studied philosophy because of how widely he has thought about the world and the impact of technology.
Our conversation is about how technology is changing the world from an Industrial Age to a knowledge age. We explore how cryptocurrencies, low cost computing, and regulation will impact our future and why the transition may require delicate care.
I loved this conversation because of my obsession with the concept of scarcity. We explore what has been scarce through time and what may be scarce in the future. Albert is one of the most interesting thinkers I’ve come across and was a pleasure to speak with. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
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Links Referenced
Show Notes
2:16 – (First Question) – Defining what it means to be human
2:58 – World After Capital
3:56 – Trans-humans vs neo-humans
4:37 – The concept of Qualia
5:25 – Albert’s investment philosophy=
8:27 – How Albert began his exploration into cryptocurrencies
12:59 – Most exciting things blockchains could enable
14:27 – How does Albert view blockchain technology from the view of an venture capital investor
17:00 - Why Albert thinks that the dominate cryptocurrency of our time may not exist just yet and what he is looking for in protocols that will become the leader in the space
20:16 – What are the central functions that will be important in cryptocurrencies
21:22 - The state of regulation in the cryptocurrency space
27:37 – What has Albert most excited for the future of blockchain
29:10 – The idea of universal basic income
32:26 – How do you solve the problem of giving money value in a world of universal basic income
35:00 – How scarcity has changed over time
39:01 – Role of financial capital in the last 200 years of civilization
42:39 – Are we as a society only capable of solving problems once they become an immediate threat
44:15 – Explaining the idea of attention as a scarce resource
47:56 – The two key drivers of change; zero marginal cost distribution and universality of computational power
53:13 - What should we as investors and inventors be focusing on as the new objective function
57:24 – Scariest aspect of this transition into the knowledge age
59:45 – Three basic freedoms we all seek; informational, economic, psychological
1:02:13 – Fermi’s paradox and the scarcity of attention
1:02:56 – How Albert thinks about his own day and wellbeing given all of this information
1:05:01 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Albert
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week are Matt Smith and Ian singer of Deep Basin Capital, a hedge fund specializing in the energy sector.
I first met Matt almost 10 years and, in that time, I’ve grown to respect him as much as any investor that I’ve ever met. Now having spent time with Ian, who specializes in oil and gas field exploration companies and the rest of the Deep Basin team, I have similar respect and admiration for all of them.
Deep Basin does almost the exact opposite of what us quants do. In fact, their entire goal is to build a portfolio of mostly idiosyncratic or stock specific risk, the very thing us quants mostly remove from portfolios. Deep Basin positions the portfolio to make a series of carefully constructed bets, long and short, without taking market risk, style-factor risk, or even commodity risk. They use a hybrid fundamental and quantitative process which we explore in detail. This is definitely another good example of who we are all up against in public markets.
What makes this story unique is that we are investors in Deep Basin’s management company and so have a clear interest in their ongoing success. Listeners know that I want to be as transparent as possible on this podcast so we event spend a little time telling the story about how it all came together a few years ago.
I have learned a ton about investing from my countless hours with this team and hope that this conversation gives you a glimpse into what is happening at the cutting edge of investing in the world of hedge funds.
Please enjoy my conversation with Deep Basin
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Books Referenced
Expectations Investing: Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns
Show Notes
2:47 – (First Question) – Looking at the universe of the energy space that they are focusing on
7:48 – Breaking down the important components and their labels in this space
10:27 – What makes energy companies distinct from the broader market.
12:52 – How the isolate unique value creation
14:58 – Ian’s take on the upstream part of the business where he has spent a lot of time
18:35 – How does Deep Basin use data and what edge do they derive from it.
21:31 – What insight are they looking for from updated well data
23:59 – How do they use combine the business value that they measure with the market price that is being forecasted
24:40 – Expectations Investing: Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns
29:34 – How do they build an actual portfolio
31:51 – Their systematic approach to energy investing
37:53 – What are their thoughts about using leverage when making investments in the energy space
40:53 – A look at the changes to the hedge fund industry over the entirety of their careers
45:46 – Defining the culture of Deep Basin
49:15 – The story of how OSAM and the O’Shaughnessy’s came to be investors in the Deep Basin
54:13 – Kindest thing anyone has done for each of them
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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My guest this week is Pat Dorsey, who was the longtime director of equity research at Morningstar, where he specialized in economic moats: sources of sustained competitive advantage that allow a few companies to deliver huge returns over time. Several years ago he left Morningstar to form his own asset management firm, Dorsey asset management, and build a portfolio of companies with wide moats like those he studied at Morningstar. And while moats are critical, equally important is how companies allocate the capital generated--or made possible--by the existence of the moat.
A special thank you to Brian Bares who introduced me to Pat, and to Will Thorndike--an earlier guest on the show. In the vast majority of conversations you hear on this show, I'm meeting the guest for the first time. I mention this to encourage you to connect me with anyone whose story or way of looking at the world might resonate. Always feel free to contact me with ideas.
Pat and I begin our discussion with the key differences between the sell side and the buy side, and then discuss all aspects of moats and capital allocation.
For comprehensive show notes on this episode go to http://investorfieldguide.com/dorsey
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Show Notes
2:23 – (First question) – Transition from the sell side to the buy side and the biggest surprise
3:40 – What is a moat
5:16 – What part of the stock market universe has a moat
6:57 – Pat’s framework for identifying moat, starting with intangibles
8:32 – The power of brands
9:44 – what chance does an upstart have to come in and usurp a well-established brand
12:24 – Switching costs as part of the framework for identifying a moat
14:55 – The third component of identifying a moat, network effects, and what businesses should do to effectively build one
17:29 – Last component, cost advantages/economies of scale
19:29 – How do you analyze these four components into an investing framework that can be built into an actual strategy
21:13 – How does Pat think about this from a mis-pricing standpoint
23:37 – How does Pat incorporate current price of a company in consideration for future returns when pricing a moat
25:39 – How should a company with a moat operate to protect that characteristic, especially when it comes to their capital allocation
26:51 – Which characteristic of a moat does Pat find most intriguing
30:35 – What makes for good and smart capital allocation
35:58 – What is Pat’s process for identifying the best investment opportunities
38:38 – What are good economics when looking at a company
41:03 – If Pat could take any business, but have to swap leadership, what would he choose.
44:13 – Back to his process of finding investment opportunities
46:05 – Kindest thing anyone has ever done for Pat
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
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Read more at https://investlikethebest.libsyn.com/pat-dorsey-buying-companies-with-economic-moats-invest-like-the-best-ep51#oBGdOp1br4EMtORd.99