#41: Finding Brilliant Engineers in Unconventional Places (Christina Sass, Andela)

After our first year of The Idea Maze, we wanted to share five key takeaways that we have distilled from these converations. Listen now to host Rob Go break down the most significant lessons he learned from past episodes.    If you enjoy this episode, please be sure to subscribe to The Idea Maze.   

Hello Traction Listeners! Did you know we have another podcast, The Idea Maze? Hosted by Nextview Co-Founder Rob Go, each episode gives us an intimate, unfiltered look at a founder's journey through the twists and turns of the idea maze. We're sharing a favorite episode from Season 1 featuring Mike Salguero, founder of Butcherbox.    If you enjoy this episode, please be sure to subscribe to The Idea Maze. 

In a very special episode of Traction, we sit down as a team and discuss the new mission of the firm and talk through B2C and B2B examples of the Everyday Economy. We learn what commonalities exist among founders who are redesigning that economy, and the NextView partners share their perspectives on the next big wave of internet innovation. Plus, we share some news about the future of the show. Subscribe to get all NextView content at nextviewvc.com/blog Follow the NextView team on Twitter: David: twitter.com/davidbeisel Rob: twitter.com/robgo Lee: twitter.com/leehower Ginny: twitter.com/ginnymineo Listen to Jay's podcast about questioning conventional thinking at unthinkable.fm Thanks for listening to Traction!

On the podcast today, NextView cofounder Rob Go sits down with Andy Rachleff, VC veteran and the president, CEO, and executive chairman of Wealthfront. They talk about how Andy came up with the term product-market fit, how he applied his own lessons (and updated them) in building Wealthfront, and the mental models founders can use to unlock their real unfair advantage in a tactics-obsessed world: how you think. Follow Andy on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arachleff  Follow Rob on Twitter: http://twitter.com/robgo  Subscribe to the newsletter, The Next View, to get 1 new link and 1 strong opinion on tech each week: http://nextviewvc.com/blog 

Today, Samantha Howe of Grove Collaborative shares her in-depth knowledge of a massive trend in marketing: working with influencers. You'll hear how to get started, approach influencer in your space, and measure impact. Jay and Samantha also rant against some of the less effective but common tactics permeating this approach to marketing. Follow Samantha on Twitter: https://twitter.com/howesocial  Follow Jay on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jayacunzo  Check out the latest from NextView's refreshed brand, including the introduction to the Everyday Economy: http://nextview.vc/eetraction  Here is NextView's pitch to founders: http://nextview.vc/pitchdecktraction  Lastly, subscribe to get all of NextView's content at http://nextviewvc.com/blog 

On the show today, Fareed Mosavat shares his experiences on growth teams for Slack, Instacart, and RunKeeper. We learn from his approach but also extract valuable lessons about where growth jobs actually fit into your overall organization. Follow Fareed on Twitter: https://twitter.com/far33d  Follow Jay on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jayacunzo  Subscribe to get all of NextView's content at http://nextviewvc.com/blog (including the Hitchhiker's Guides to Boston: http://bostontechguide.com/ and NYC: http://startupguide.nyc/  Listen to Jay's other podcast, Unthinkable: http://unthinkable.fm or iTunes http://bit.ly/unthinkablefm

Today's episode features a fast-rising company led by Shan-Lyn Ma. Her startup, Zola, is changing the way people purchase gifts for brides and grooms. Anyone who has ever experienced the insanity of wedding season -- whether attending as a guest or planning your own -- knows just how stressful the whole experience can be. Shan-Lyn and her team are using some unique insights and past experiences to rethink it, and boy, is it working right now. We talk about tough early beginnings, clever market validation tests, and what Shan-Lyn believes about the future of startups and venture capital. Visit zola.com to learn more about the company, and follow Shan-Lyn on Twitter: twitter.com/shanlynm Subscribe to get all of NextView's content at nextviewvc.com/blog

Wayne Chang and Jeff Seibert are the cofounders of Crashlytics, which Twitter acquired in 2013. Today, as angel investors, they see dozens of entrepreneurs every quarter, and they've joined the show today to help us answer some tough questions: How should you structure communication with your cofounder? How do you work through difficult decisions, especially if nobody on the founding team is a domain expert? What would the pair do differently next time around? And what are they exploring as their next venture? Follow Wayne and Jeff on Twitter: https://twitter.com/wayne and https://twitter.com/jeffseibert  Follow Rob and Jay on Twitter: https://twitter.com/robgo and https://twitter.com/jayacunzo  Subscribe to the NextView blog for future episodes and more resources for seed-stage startups: http://nextviewvc.com/blog  Thanks for listening!

Sean Ellis and Morgan Brown are entrepreneurs, growth experts, and co-authors of the book Hacking Growth. Today, we talk about this notion of growth hacking and debunk some myths, then walk through a smart process you can use to start running a growth engine strategically, instead of seeking false silver bullets. Their book, Hacking Growth, on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Hacking-Growth-Fastest-Growing-Companies-Breakout/dp/045149721X Follow Sean and Morgan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SeanEllis and https://twitter.com/morganb  Subscribe to the NextView blog for future episodes and more resources for seed-stage startups: nextviewvc.com/blog Thanks for listening!

Christina Sass is co-founder and COO of Andela, a company that locates, trains, and staffs world-class engineers in Africa for hire by tech companies in the US and elsewhere. They've sparked a movement, cracked the code on finding great coders, and have attracted investors like Mark Zuckerberg. Visit andela.com to learn more, or follow Christina at twitter.com/sasschristina Subscribe to the NextView blog for future episodes and more resources for seed-stage startups: nextviewvc.com/blog Thanks for listening!