Great People Are What Make?Great Investments

by Glenn Handler

There were a lot of reasons for starting Oceans (HINT: they don’t include GPs, IRR, or the size of a fund). The main one for me – one that continues to be front and center – is helping inspire entrepreneurs to do their best work. Without founders – confident and empowered founders – who build great teams, the whole house of venture collapses.

Before Oceans, I was under the impression that founders were already really well-supported by investors – especially by those in my world of people and recruiting. I assumed the industry would be full of GPs with similar backgrounds as myself. I was wrong. Instead, I found a huge gap between investors’ promises and the guidance founding teams received. I saw great investors faking their way to being builders and people executives. The chatter about “the best team wins” and “bet on the jockey” didn’t add up.

We built Oceans to be the exception: the best VCs at evaluating and supporting founding teams. As seed investors, you simply can’t compromise the ability to find, support, and cultivate talent.

I’ve been lucky to have enjoyed a long career based on assessing talent. Now, I try to make sure our founders are team builders, mission-driven, and empathetic leaders. That they have the gravitas to recruit the best teammates in the world and clearly articulate their vision. At the Pre-Seed and Seed stage, there isn't much product, revenue, or metrics to analyze, but there are people.?

People are normally the hardest to evaluate. For us, it's our superpower.

As a recruiting executive at some of the most successful companies in the world, the aspect of the hiring process that I found indispensable was the candidate experience. As the labor market tightens and candidates have more choice than ever, companies now need to put themselves on display – and the interview process is the perfect way to put it to the test.?

Now, I am not one that likes to give away his “recruiting” secrets, but as the first person that a founder usually meets in our process, here is a quick snapshot of what I am looking for (and what one can expect) in that initial conversation:?

No scripts allowed

• Don’t over-prepare. If it's a good fit, it should be easy and feel right. I know you can read a deck. But I want to hear your stories and I want to tell you some of ours. You are better off being prepared but don't rehearse.??

Two-way conversation?

• Ask us more questions than we ask you.
• Do diligence on us just like we would on you. Ask us what our values are, what have we invested in and why, and how we would support you and be a value-add.
• Play offense. You’re in charge of who you want around your table.

Your “why this?” (strengths and passion)?

• I want to get to know you and your team. What are your strengths? What do you love to do and how does your company align with that? What makes you uniquely great at solving the problem you are looking to solve?

Be yourself (you can only fake it for so long)

• It feels much better to be honest and authentic. That way you don’t have to worry about trying to put on a show for the next 7 to 10 years.?
• We want to know who you are – not who you think you should be, or worse, who you think we want you to be. I can spot someone trying too hard or not being authentic pretty easily so don’t try to pretend to be someone you’re not.??
• We don’t believe founders should have all the answers on day one, but we expect them to know where they will need help going forward.??
• Being a founder is hard. Vulnerability and willingness to learn are valuable traits for any leader – and we value that.??
• I promise you – what you see is what you get from us. Being ourselves is our differentiator too – in the best of ways.

I often hear from founders how refreshing it was to have a real conversation – one that was normal, easy, and comforting. How we were the first team that really wanted to know more about not just the business, but them: personally, professionally, their thoughts on team and culture, and more. One day, I think we will see people executives at the GP level within every firm. We all agree that “the best team wins” – but evaluating talent and helping their teams scale is hard. We happen to have been doing that here – from Day 1. That is why we will deliver outsized returns for our LPs and ensure founders reach their full potential.