Ventured Growth with Hercules Capital Hercules Capital

Public market investor turned tech visionary, Casey Woo, has spent the last two decades at the forefront of technology and finance, revolutionizing the way high-growth startups approach operations and strategy. His journey from analyzing markets on Wall Street to leading Operators Guild and FOG Ventures has positioned him as a thought leader at the intersection of technology, finance, and community building.
In this episode, Catherine Jhung is joined by Casey Woo to discuss his unique path from public market investor to influential COO/CFO in the tech industry. They discuss the creation and growth of Operators Guild and FOG Ventures, highlighting Casey's approach to fostering community and driving innovation in the startup ecosystem.

Topics Include:

-Casey's transition from public market investor to tech COO/CFO

-The founding story of Operators Guild and its impact on the tech community

-Inside FOG Ventures: Strategy and vision for tech startups

-The role of community in the success of tech and finance ventures

-Navigating high-growth challenges in the startup world

-Casey's vision for the future of technology and finance

-And other topics…

Casey Woo is the founder of Operators Guild, the premier community and ecosystem for finance and operational professionals at high growth companies, and its associated investing arm, FOG Ventures. He has two decades of experience as a proven, serial COO/CFO in high-growth technology companies, most recently as the CFO of property tech company Landing. Casey started his career as a public market investor focused on the consumer/retail, media, industrials, technology and healthcare sectors. His expertise in blending strategic finance with operational excellence has made him a pivotal figure in shaping the landscape of technology startups.

In the aftermath of the 2020 biotech surge and its subsequent contraction in 2022, the biotech industry has been characterized by significant volatility. There were 21 biotechnology IPOs in 2022, a notable decrease from the record-breaking 104 IPOs in 2021.

To review the highs and lows of 2023 and explore what lies ahead in 2024, distinguished biotech analyst and co-founder of Endpoints News John Carroll joins Hercules Capital's Janice Bourque. Carroll brings 45 years of award-winning journalism, and a specialization in biopharma spanning over two decades to discuss the biggest pharma deals and surprises of 2023, the impact of AI on drug development, the future of biotech in Asia, and much more. 

Topics Include:
The biggest pharma deals and surprises of 2023AI’s impact on drug developmentWhether or not the Inflation Reduction Act will impact pricingJohn’s major lessons from 2023The future of biotech in AsiaThe greatest concerns for the biotech industry going into 2024John’s hopes for the industry in the new yearAnd other topics…
------------------
John D. Carroll is a biotech analyst and writer with decades of prize-winning experience in journalism. A co-founder of Endpoints News, he has covered biopharma for the past 15 years. Carroll has been quoted by The New York Times, The New Yorker, Financial Times, The Times of London and more. He’s also keynoted at biotech gatherings around the world and addressed student audiences at MIT and Harvard. Carroll has contributed stories from Central America and Ireland to the Dallas Morning News and Time and wrote for the Houston Press. He spent 6 years as editor and publisher of the Dallas Business Journal, was publisher of Texas Business and early in his career was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team of reporters and editors at the Kansas City Star & Times.

Resources Mentioned:
Endpoints News: https://endpts.com/ 

Connect with John:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-carroll-884aa410/ 

The gaming and platform industries are dynamic sectors at the intersection of technology and entertainment, constantly evolving to meet the demands of a global audience. In 2022, the revenue from the worldwide gaming market was approximately $347 billion.

Ed Lu, a seasoned executive with 23 years of financial and operational experience, has played a pivotal role in this landscape, dedicating thirteen years as the CFO at online gaming and platform companies. Ed is the current Chief Financial Officer at Fandom, the world’s largest gaming and entertainment community platform.

In this episode, Hercules Capital's Lesya Kulchenko  and Ed Lu discuss Ed’s CFO experience within gaming and platform companies, top advice for new founders and aspiring CFOs in today’s business landscape, choosing between building, buying, and partnering, the key factors for successful acquisitions, when to pursue bargain opportunities, and much more.

Topics Include:
Ed’s top priorities as a CFO in today’s business landscapeEssential advice for emerging founders and aspiring CFOsCore values that led Ed to leadershipThe advice Ed gratefully avoidedChoosing between building, buying, and partneringKey factors for successful acquisitionsWhen companies should pursue bargain opportunitiesFactors outside of work that shape Ed as the “non-CFO CFO”And other topics…----------
Ed Lu is a seasoned executive with 23 years of financial and operational experience and thirteen years as CFO at online gaming and platform companies. He is the current Chief Financial Officer at Fandom, the world’s largest gaming and entertainment community platform. During his tenure, Fandom has grown revenue by more than 3x, acquired three companies, and doubled its employee base to 500.

Before joining Fandom, Ed served as the CFO for Outpost Games and Machine Zone. His tenure at Machine Zone involved raising over $800 million in combined financings, overseeing revenue growth from $8 million to $1.7 billion, and scaling the company from 30 to 1000+ employees. In his free time, he also enjoys serving as a strategic advisor for other digital gaming companies.

Resources Mentioned:
“Top 10 Start-Up Tips for Founders,” by Ed Lu: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6998677341623267328/ 

Healthcare and biotech venture capital plays a critical role in funding innovative medical technologies, drug development, and life-saving therapies. These investments drive advancements in healthcare, transforming science into products that improve global patient outcomes.

Terry McGuire is a founding partner of Polaris Partners, with over 35 years of early-stage investing experience in medical and information technology companies. As a venture capitalist, Terry has invested in more than 80 companies that have raised over $7 billion in equity and corporate capital.

In this episode, Hercules Capital’s Janice Bourque and Terry McGuire discuss Terry’s trajectory from generalist to distinguished expert in healthcare and biotech venture capital, strategies to find the right scientists and product, Terry’s biggest lessons in raises, limited partnerships and investor relationships, and much more.

Topics Include:
Terry’s path from generalist to venture capitalistStrategies to find the right scientists3 traits that can turn a scientist into an effective CEOHow to turn science into a productThe emerging technologies to look out forStrengths and weaknesses of the industryTerry’s biggest lessons from the evolution of raises, limited partnerships, and investor relationshipsAnd other topics…
Terry McGuire is a founding partner of Polaris Partners, with over 35 years of early-stage investing experience in medical and information technology companies. As a venture capitalist, Terry has invested in more than 80 companies that have raised over $7 billion in equity and corporate capital. He also co-founded three companies: Inspire, AIR, and MicroCHIPS. Companies Terry has supported have touched more than 60 million patients and directly saved over 400,000 lives.

Terry has been listed as one of Scientific American’s Worldview 100, Forbes’ Top Life Sciences Investors, and Forbes’ Midas 100 List of Top Tech Investors, among others. He is the chairman of the Global Venture Capital Congress, serves on several public and private boards of directors, and is the recipient of various awards, including the Albert Einstein Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Life Sciences awarded by Harvard and the City of Jerusalem.  

In the dynamic field of life sciences, skillful operators ensure the efficient development of medical innovations, while insightful investors provide crucial capital and strategic guidance. Rich Aldrich's 30+ year career uniquely bridges both sides, having played key roles in founding and managing successful ventures in the industry.

Rich Aldrich is a co-founder and partner at Longwood Fund. Before Longwood, he founded RA Capital Management and has been instrumental in co-founding and contributing to the growth of notable biotech companies, including Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Concert Pharmaceuticals, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals, among others.

In this episode, Hercules Capital’s Janice Bourque and Rich Aldrich discuss key lessons in operations and investment, the advantages of public investing, the attributes of a strong management team, Rich’s reflections on the industry and much more.

Topics include:
Transitioning from operations to investingRich’s key lessons from public investmentsThe advantages of public investingAttributes of a strong management teamCurrent areas of scientific interest for RichEmerging challenges in life sciencesDeciding whether or not to commercializeRich’s reflections on the industry’s evolutionAnd other topics…Rich Aldrich is a co-founder and partner of Longwood Fund, an early-stage life science venture firm. With over 30 years of experience in the life sciences space, he has co-founded and helped build several biotech companies including Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Concert Pharmaceuticals, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals, among others. Before the Longwood Fund, Rich founded RA Capital Management, a life sciences investment fund with an AUM of over $9 billion.

Rich received his undergraduate degree from Boston College and an MBA from the Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth. He currently serves as a Director of Longwood portfolio companies Axial, Sitryx Therapeutics, and Colorescience.

The healthcare space has long been a transactional one, seeing patients as numbers instead of human relationships. In 2004, Dr. Rushika Fernandopulle began to challenge the status quo and create an entirely new model of care delivery that finally put patients at the center of healthcare.

Rushika Fernandopulle is the co-founder and former CEO of Iora Health, a value-based primary care group based in Boston that was acquired by One Medical in 2021, where he served as Chief Innovation Officer. One Medical was acquired by Amazon earlier this year for close to $4 billion. Rushika currently serves on the staff at the Massachusetts General Hospital, on the faculty of Harvard Medical School, and on the boards of Families USA and the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Care.

In this episode, Hercules Capital’s Katie Segien is joined by Rushika Fernandopulle to discuss how he created a new delivery model for medicine, Iora Health’s business model evolution, going from bootstrapping to six rounds of funding, and other topics.

Topics Include:
Rushika’s mission and experience in transforming healthcareHow he created a new delivery model for medicineIora Health’s business model evolutionGoing from bootstrapping to six rounds of fundingRushika’s process for building an optimal teamAdvice for entrepreneurs who are struggling to raise capitalAnd other topics…Dr. Rushika Fernandopulle is a practicing physician who has spent decades improving the quality of healthcare delivered to patients. He was co-founder and CEO of Iora Health, a value-based primary care group based in Boston that delivers better quality, lower costs, and improved satisfaction for both patients and providers. Iora was acquired by One Medical in 2021 for over $2 billion, which went on to be acquired by Amazon earlier this year for close to $4 billion.

Rushika was the first Executive Director of the Harvard Interfaculty Program for Health Systems Improvement and Managing Director of the Clinical Initiatives Center at the Advisory Board Company. He serves on the staff at the Massachusetts General Hospital, on the faculty of Harvard Medical School, and on the boards of Families USA and the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Care.