Chris Lynch – The Punk Rock Venture Capitalist

Chris Lynch is the Executive Chairman, and CEO at AtScale, the industry leader in data federation and cloud transformation. Sometimes known as the Punk Rock VC, Chris is a VC investor, operator, advisor, and mentor to dozens of entrepreneurs and startups. He has been in the founding team of Arrow Point, Acopia Networks and Vertica.

We talk about the influence of punk rock and the Sex Pistols on his approach to work, why connection is the key to success in any industry. Chris is also pushing for more transparency and disclosure in equity compensation in privately owned companies, especially in high tech and private equity/venture capital environments. So we talked about the changes needed, and most importantly, about what questions people should ask before accepting a job in a privately owned company where equity is a significant part of the compensation.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

[02:40] – Chris shares how he arrived at where he is today.

[05:01] – How work, love, and punk rock influenced Chris’ business career.

[08:23] – From dreams of playing bass in a punk rock band to inventing a persona that helped him ‘fake it until he made it.’

[11:04] – Why connection and authenticity are the keys to success no matter what you are ‘selling.’

[13:10] – How accepting failure as part of the process ultimately leads to success.

[16:21] – “Celebrating success is fine. But it doesn’t make you more successful. Overcoming failure makes you more successful.”

[19:41] – Chris shares how his definition of success has evolved over his career.

[24:43] – What are the traits of a good Venture Capitalist (VC)?

[26:25] – Chris shares his answer to the ‘trick question’ that opened the door to him working with the Godfather of VC (and a top 5 IPO).

[28:50] – Chris shares the secret to his success and his message for those he mentors.

[30:18] – How to join Chris in his mission to create more transparency in the private equity market.

[34:57] – The most important questions to ask before joining a startup or a privately owned venture that features equity compensation.

[37:51] – Why employees need to negotiate equity compensation the same way they would for cash.

[39:47] – How to find more information about Chris and the types of investments he is

[41:28] – Crowdsourcing the power of music and the tech entrepreneur ecosystem to do good through Tech Tackles X.

[44:13] – Why perfection is the enemy of progress.

[46:05] – Chris shares a question for listeners to answer for a special opportunity to meet with him via ZOOM. Jean dot O’Neill at escale.com.

[47:16] – Chis shares the VC jargon that leaves him empty.

[50:34] – Why we all need to stop fighting amongst ourselves to connect with what’s real.

[53:04] – Chis shares his favorite meal and drink.

[53:50] – Why Chris believes the Sex Pistols changed the world with just one record.

Contact Dino at: dino@al4ep.com

Websites:

AtScale.com

reverbadvisors.com

Tech Tackles Cancer / Tech Tackles X: techtacklesx.org

Other Christopher Lynch links:

LinkedIn:  linkedin.com/in/chlynch

Twitter: @LynchBigData

Authentic Leadership For Everyday People / Dino Cattaneo

Dino on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dinocattaneo

Podcast Instagram – @al4edp 

Podcast Twitter – @al4edp

Podcast Facebook: facebook.com/al4edp

Music

Susan Cattaneo: susancattaneo.bandcamp.com