Shiv Narayanan’s Post

In this episode, I'm thrilled to be joined by Bryce Youngren, Managing Partner at Polaris Partners. Bryce and I discuss how Polaris creates value in smaller businesses, and why this area of the market is under-leveraged. Learn about the tried-and-tested process that has helped them generate impressive returns, including a founder-friendly approach and strategic acceleration teams. #privateequity #venturecapital #growthfund #investing #businessgrowth

In today's startup ecosystem, it often feels like it's unicorn or bust. But some investment firms are embracing the concept of an alternative pathway—an "offramp" for companies that aren't going to be unicorns but are still valuable in their own right. My conversation with Lauren Bonner at MBM Capital helps shed some light on this. Mistakes happen in every company, big or small. The impact of those mistakes can vary greatly depending on timing and market dynamics. For some companies, a misstep can be nearly fatal. That’s why creating a resilient pathway that allows companies to recover and continue innovating is crucial. These businesses often have products that deliver significant value to their customers and clients. Recognizing this value and finding ways to preserve and enhance it is essential to support innovation and growth. How do you think we can better support startups to thrive beyond the 'unicorn or bust' mentality? #innovation #startupculture #businessstrategy

I sat down with Ripan Kadakia at ZMC recently, and one of the big takeaways from our conversation was the value of patience and alignment when you're growing portfolio companies. To keep portcos focused on longer-term goals, Ripan suggests setting not just financial goals, but also qualitative objectives—like marketing position, product offering, or customer perceptions you strive to achieve. “One of the exercises we go through with all of our companies…what do you want to be five years from now?” he says. “What does success look like? What is it that we want to be?” They revisit their goals during every board meeting to avoid short-term thinking and stay aligned. “Our experience has been, if you're aligned to…three to five big picture goals and working towards them, you have a better chance of succeeding.” For more insights from my conversation with Ripan, check out the full interview here: https://bit.ly/3TROfOh.

Most marketing campaigns stop getting funding well before their true pipeline value is understood. Why? Because marketing leaders are constantly being asked for an immediate return on their efforts. Unrealistic pipeline growth expectations from CEOs and boards lead to the exact opposite result of what they are hoping to achieve. Pipeline growth takes time. You need to: - Develop marketing assets - Build ongoing processes to scale - Get the right people to execute on the plan Meanwhile, the potential of channels and campaigns are judged on their first iteration. This is why you hear things like: "Facebook Ads don't work for us" "This is a relationship based business so we have to go to events" "Why would I give more money to marketing when I can hire 2 more sales reps?" Etc. Similar to how sales reps become more valuable after full ramp up + training + pipeline building, marketing becomes more valuable after experimentation + better distribution + better messaging. Not only is giving Marketing less than a quarter or two to prove out its full value setting the function up for failure...it's also setting up the business to fail to meet its bookings projections long term. #marketing #digitalmarketing

If your company misses revenue projections, it's easy to blame it on poor sales strategy. But that isn't the full picture. In my conversation with Matt Gallagher from Hg, we discussed how companies often misdiagnose why they're falling short of revenue targets, and the real reasons many sales functions underdeliver. Even the most skilled sales teams, with great storytelling and processes, struggle to hit their marks without a strong pipeline. Not only that, your message needs to resonate with all the decision-makers involved—especially those who can veto the deal closing. Every aspect—from pipeline generation to sales training and effective messaging—plays a critical role in closing your best-fit deals and scaling revenue. So how are you ensuring your teams are well-prepared to not just meet but exceed their targets? #salesstrategy #businessdevelopment #leadership

Organizations that over-rely on Sales and Events for pipeline put their sales targets at risk. This is most often seen inside Sales-led organizations where Marketing has a limited budget. How can you expect to hit aggressive sales projections when you aren't engaging with your buyers on channels where they are spending most of their time? Instead, investing into digital and buyer-centric channels increases the odds of hitting pipeline targets. Growing Marketing Generated Pipeline is the key to hitting aggressive sales projections. When Marketing stops over-relying on events and begins building new channels to acquire customers, it forces the organization to be less Sales-led. This takes time, which is why Marketing leaders need to lobby CEOs and Boards for the right budget to invest in the right channels to become more Marketing-led. #marketing #digitalmarketing

When entrepreneurs take the venture capital route, they often find themselves on a relentless treadmill. From seed to Series A and B, each funding round seems to push the goalposts further out, diluting founders’ stakes and filling their boardrooms with more voices that may not align with the original vision. With lofty valuations, the pressure mounts. For founders to see a significant return, their companies might need to achieve a half-billion dollar sale or aim for an IPO—targets that can sometimes be out of reach for the business model they have built. This scenario can leave founders feeling like they’ve lost control and are stuck between a rock and a hard place. It's crucial for founders to critically evaluate their growth avenues and the implications of VC funding. What strategies have you found effective in maintaining control and ensuring alignment with your company's long-term goals? #entrepreneurship #venturecapital #startupchallenges

Your market is not just on one channel. Too many companies over-index on one channel and set of activities (SEO, LinkedIn, Google Ads). While these are all good standalone channels, they are also just one place to find your ideal customer. You will find different subsets of your customers in different channels. Presence in each of those channels is more than half the battle for every company. So: -Go to the trade show -Invest in paid search -Rank for your SEO terms -Create thought leadership content -Host webinars -Create ABM plays to your target accounts -Run ads on FB / LI -Do PR / Comms The best companies at marketing do it all. They also have higher marketing budgets for this reason. #marketing #digitalmarketing

Sharing successful strategies and innovative approaches between portfolio companies can spark creativity and inspire breakthrough ideas. In my discussion with Vincent Prajka of JMI Equity we discuss how their companies share best practices to unlock growth. Check out episode 7 of the Private Equity Value Creation podcast for more insights from Vinny. Full episode here: https://bit.ly/3xOuTkq #privateequity

Looking at where inefficiencies exist in the funnel is the fastest way to uncover how content can make the biggest impact. By not looking at their own funnel efficiency data, companies misunderstand where the biggest optimization opportunities actually are and also where content can make the biggest impact. Depending on the root cause of your funnel inefficiency, the antidote is different. If your Opportunity to Close rates are weak, you need to create more assets for the sales team to help them close more deals. If your Demo to Opp rates are weak, odds are your nurture programs need to do a better job of converting prospects. If your Traffic to Demo Rates are weak, landing pages and offers on those pages need to be improved. And if your overall traffic is weak, you likely need to produce a lot more content to capture traffic from all sources. #marketing