The Climate Pioneers Show

As the CEO and Founder of AirEx, Agnes Czako is spearheading the mission of the company - fighting the dual challenges of fuel poverty and climate change. AirEx is a London-based climate tech company developing smart home solutions that reduce heat demand in buildings. They are disrupting the building retrofit market by providing a connected-homes solution with technology that’s simple to install and simple to use. As of 2024, over 30,000 AirEx units have been deployed all over the UK.For series 9 of the Climate Pioneers Show, we're hearing founder stories from across climate tech. We'll be chatting about the highs, the lows, fundraising, commercialising, scaling, building teams and more.2:09 - The journey to founding AirEx4:23 - How the AirEx air brick was brought to life7:37 - Can all homes benefit from these air bricks and can they be retrofitted?8:25 - How does the tech in the air brick work?9:08 - What was it like doing this as a solo founder?11:08 - As a first-time founder, did you have support from mentors or communities?14:12 - How was the Series A fundraising process?17:06 - How did you put together your first angel round when you were starting out in the industry and still building your network?20:00 - The differences between raising an angel round and VC-backed round22:39 - Moving from research to commercial traction26:08 - How the AirEx team has evolved27:50 - How AirEx’s culture was defined and how it has been maintained as the team grows29:47 - How have you built mission-alignment into the recruitment process?32:16 - What makes AirEx a great place to work?33:58 - How have you ensured diversity within the team?36:44 - What would you like to see change across policy and building design?38:46 - Plans for the future of AirEx40:12 - Advice for fellow climate founders Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Camilla Taylor is CFO of SatVu. She holds a degree in Biological Sciences from Oxford University, a master's in Environmental Economics, and an MBA from Columbia and London Business Schools. This academic background provides the ideal foundation for her work at the intersection of environmental sustainability and financial strategy.Camilla’s extensive experience of securing funding and scaling companies has prepared her well for this role, overseeing financial operations and assisting in closing a fundraise of £20 million for the business in 2024. SatVu’s mission is to become the "world’s thermometer from space”, by launching high-res thermal imaging satellites that collect thermal data that enables monitoring of energy efficiency, and climate change mitigation efforts.1:56 - Intro to SatVu4:29 - Camilla’s career journey into climate7:22 - Camilla’s move from investor into an operator / CFO role8:29 - How Camilla’s academic and investor background has helped her as an operator10:31 - How Camilla came to meet the team at SatVu13:30 - Are there common themes seen across scaling startups?16:40 - At what point should a startup to bring in a CFO?20:17 - What are some of the main financial mistakes in startups? What can be done to avoid these?25:23 - What was the key to SatVu’s fundraising success? And what are investors looking for?28:39 - What challenges and risks has SatVu faced?30:34 - What was the impact of the satellite loss across the business in 2023?32:17 - How did the satellite loss impact investor confidence?33:54 - What stood out about how SatVu’s leadership handled the satellite failure?34:40 - SatVu’s plans for the future36:37 - SatVu’s work alongside conflict of interest and international data access37:40 - Where to find out more about SatVu and watch their satellite launches Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bill Yost is Co-founder and CEO at Reclinker (formerly Cambridge Electric Cement). For more than 25 years, Bill has supported early-stage companies spanning hydrogen generation, water treatment, thermal storage and the recycling of carbon fibre, to bring climate solutions to market.For series nine of the Climate Pioneers Show, we're hearing founder and senior leader stories from across climate tech. We'll be chatting about the highs, the lows, fundraising, commercialising, scaling, building teams and more.1:51 - How Reclinker was founded5:24 - The scale of the problem Reclinker is solving and what the solution is10:24 - The economic benefit and diversification on offer to steel producers by working with Reclinker12:51 - Where does Reclinker get its materials?14:53 - How competitive is the market for the waste materials?17:02 - Which markets are Reclinker looking to expand into and where are other furnaces available?19:51 - How was the seed fundraising process last year?22:10 - What main expectations did you see from investors?25:16 - How has the team at Reclinker evolved - what has gone well or not so well?27:54 - How did you define Reclinker’s culture and values?31:22 - What are you proud of in the last year?32:57 - Reclinker’s plans and challenges for the next year?36:07 - What would be the biggest help in driving things forward?39:20 - Advice for other climate founders Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Thomas Farquhar is the CCO at Heatio, a UK-based clean technology company founded in 2020, focused on developing innovative solutions for home energy management to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions in residential properties. Their mission is to accelerate the transition to sustainable home heating by making it easier and more cost-effective for homeowners to adopt low-carbon technologies. Heatio secured £2 million in funding last year, has built partnerships with major energy providers and property developers across the UK and has been recognised as one of the most promising climate tech startups in the UK.1:25 - An intro to Heatio and the problem they are working to solve3:36 - How did you meet your co-founder and come to form Heatio?4:37 - How has the clean tech and home energy market changed in the last 20 years?5:46 - What is holding UK homeowners back from adopting clean energy into their homes, compared to other countries?7:19 - What have countries with higher adoption rates done well?9:00 - Common myths to bust about heat pumps.12:06 - How did Heatio choose which segments of the market to approach and how to commercialise?13:12 - Is Heatio’s communication and education content for B2B or also for the end-user residential customers?14:38 - What early wins did you get from a commercial or customer perspective?16:01 - How did you find the fundraising experience last year? What were the main objections you faced and learnings that came from your time fundraising?19:42 - What did the first round of money unlock for you post-raise?20:13 - How did the team develop post-raise? How was the recruitment process and what challenges did you face?21:34 - What is important to Heatio when hiring and where does company culture fit into that?22:32 - How did you assess talent to know who had the strength to work in a startup?23:30 - What did the growth phase of the company teach you about scaling? What might you do differently?25:18 - What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced since starting Heatio?26:04 - As a founder, how do you protect yourself against what can be extreme highs and lows?27:26 - What are you excited about for the rest of the year and the future of Heatio?28:09 - Are you encouraged by the current government’s commitments to renewable energy? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For series 9 of the Climate Pioneers Show, we're hearing founder stories from across climate tech. We'll be chatting about the highs, the lows, fundraising, commercialising, scaling, building teams and more.We're kicking things off with Chris Jackson, founder and CEO at Protium, where they're developing sustainable green energy projects for UK clients to help them achieve their Net Zero emissions targets and build a cleaner, greener world for the future.2:42 - Intro to Protium5:58 - Chris’ journey to founding Protium9:45 - Where are you seeing hydrogen work well and where do you see potential for the future?16:01 - How has Chris seen the market evolve?23:43 - How challenging was it in the early days to secure partnerships and projects? What was the GTM thesis?30:33 - Protium’s fundraising experience39:11 - Was there a big difference in expectations between Series A and Series B?42:01 - How have you scaled and grown your team over the past six years as the company has grown?45:49 - What did you learn during your rapid growth period and what would you not do again?48:18 - How intentional have you been about company culture or has it evolved organically?51:16 - How are things feeling post-Series B and for the broader market? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Elbow Beach is an early-stage climate tech VC. They help to unlock technologies, solve big problems and transform industries. To date, they have made 20 investments.JP co-founded Elbow Beach in 2021 and is CEO. With over 20 years’ experience in large telecoms and tech companies, he brings deep operational experience to commercialise technology. He transitioned into climate tech investing, combining his passion for commercial success with purpose-led companies. Throughout his career, JP has led numerous turnaround stories by focusing on customer and colleague outcomes, driving both business success and meaningful impact.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:39 - Intro to JP and Elbow Beach5:30 - Which stages and ticket size does Elbow Beach invest in?6:21 - JP’s reflections on 2024 broadly and also within Elbow Beach specifically10:22 - Is traction in international markets a strong differentiator for companies looking to raise Series A and beyond?11:02 - Is there a risk that trying to handle UK and international markets can lead to founder focus and marketing not being strong enough in either market?13:22 - JP’s predictions and thought for the 2025 fundraising market18:12 - Which climate technologies are ripe for growth currently?20:09 - What does Elbow Beach look for in potential investments?22:16 - What are the minimums you look for a team? How mature does it have to be and can gaps be filled by fractional support?25:43 - When should founder-led sales be changed for a commercial / sales team?28:15 - JP’s advice for founders looking to raise this year31:25 - How to contact JP and Elbow Beach Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Angel investor, James Manktelow, has invested in 25 climate startups since 2019 via Green Angel Syndicate. He focuses on accelerating the growth of IP-based startups that develop solutions to climate change.The syndicate at Green Angel is the largest in the UK with a climate focus; it has over 350 members and has invested in over 45 startups and early-stage companies across ten different economic sectors.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:48 - Intro to James and Green Angel Syndicate2:15 - James’ investment thesis and what he looks for in investments3:21 - James’ reflection on the 2024 investment and climate tech landscape4:46 - Out of your portfolio companies, did any perform particularly well during 2024?5:54 - Did you see any common themes amongst companies that did well?6:37 - James’ predictions for 2025 investment8:20 - Which parts of the climate market have good opportunity for growth?10:15 - As an angel investor, how do you hear about companies to invest in and how do you conduct diligence?12:06 - How do you support businesses as an angel?14:13 - What has James learnt from investments that haven’t gone so well?16:33 - James’ advice to founders looking to raise an angel round - what should they have in place?18:15 - How influential are incubators when considering an investment?19:16 - James’ thoughts on investing in solo founders.20:15 - What level of commercial traction is needed for investment?21:34 - How much can you determine the founding team’s resilience during due diligence?23:19 - How to contact James via Green Angel Syndicate Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eric Kohlmann is a partner at Climate First, a VC firm established in 2023. It has since grown to not only invest in technologies that will disrupt highly emitting, multi-billion dollar industries; but has also become an official nominator for Prince WIlliam’s Earthshot Prize, offers programs that provide knowledge, know-how, and mentorship, and they run an exclusive roadshow in London to cultivate further connections and opportunities for founders. During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:25 - Eric’s reflections on 2024 and the climate ecosystem4:00 - The differences Eric has seen between the USA and Europe since moving to London in 20245:48 - What does Climate First invest in?8:27 - Which companies in your portfolio performed particularly well in 2024?10:09 - What helped those companies to be successful?12:31 - Which technologies Eric is excited about for 2025.15:31 - What does Climate First look for in a company when investing?18:04 - How does Climate First support founders with commercialisation and scaling?20:03 - How are big, corporate industry players responding to the Climate First roadshows?21:18 - Eric’s advice for founders looking to raise investment.23:15 - What stages does Climate First invest at and start conversations?24:01 - How to contact Eric and Climate First. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kate Ronayne is a deep tech climate investor from BGF. She particularly enjoys drawing on her time leading commercialisation activities from UK national laboratories to find, validate and back teams who are using exciting science to solve big challenges.BGF invests in small to mid-sized UK businesses. As the most active equity investor in the UK and Ireland, they back a wide variety of ventures from climate to pet food.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:47 - Intro to BGF and their thesis3:56 - Kate’s reflections on 2024 and the trends she noticed5:12 - Has there been a shift away from asset-light propositions towards hard tech and deep tech?7:03 - Which BGF climate companies have done particularly well and what helped them to succeed?10:34 - Predictions for climate investment in 202512:49 - How will the US election result affect climate work in the EU and the opportunities for companies to expand into the US?17:28 - What technologies Kate is excited about for 202522:12 - What does BGF look for in investments?27:15 - How does BGF assess a team during due diligence?29:32 - Kate’s advice for founders who want to approach BGF for fundraising33:21 - How to contact BGF and Kate Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chloe Coates is a research and analysis lead at Zero Carbon Capital. As well as her work at Zero Carbon, Chloe has hosted sessions at The Drop, been featured by ClimateHack and was a judge at the 2024 Global Challenge Lab Demo Day.Zero Carbon support companies working to solve the biggest challenges of decarbonisation with pre-seed and seed investments in ambitious teams building hard-science solutions across Europe and Israel.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:29 - Intro to Zero Carbon Capital and their investment thesis2:41 - Chloe’s reflections on the 2024 climate landscape4:43 - What contributed to certain portfolio companies doing well last year?7:43 - Thoughts and predictions for the fundraising market and early-stage investment in 202511:42 - What areas of the market are you excited about?15:15 - What does ZCC look for in investments?17:05 - What does ZCC expect in terms of demonstrable traction?19:14 - Chloe’s advice for founders who might want to approach ZCC for investment21:01 - How can founders make their pitch stand out?22:33 - How to contact ZCC and Chloe Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Founder and managing partner of Greencode Ventures, Dr. Terhi Vapola. Along with her team in Helsinki, Greencode invest in digital-first early-stage green transition startups across Europe. They have a particular interest in green energy, mobility, built environment and green industries.Founded in 2022, Greencode’s investments include renewable energy startup, Synergi, green hydrogen software solution, Southern Lights, and climate risk platform, Repath.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:36 - Intro to Terhi and Greencode Ventures5:12 - Terhi’s reflections on the 2024 fundraising market7:13 - Greencode portfolio companies that did well in 2024 and why they did so well9:03 - Terhi’s predictions for the 2025 climate investment market10:23 - What subsections of climate could have a good year?12:08 - What does Greencode look for in investments?15:16 - What stages does Greencode invest at?16:20 - How much traction do you look for?17:30 - What minimum do you look for in a founding team’s establishment? And how long should founders lead sales before bringing in a sales team?19:38 - How much does talent and talent mapping make up part of your due diligence for investments?21:46 - Terhi’s advice for founder’s thinking of raising this year.25:04 - How to contact Greencode Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jeremy Brown is an Investment Principal from Anthemis Capital. Jeremy is head of climate strategies and focuses on seed to Series C investments across Europe and the USA. With a keen interest in the intersection of climate and fintech, Anthemis is the perfect home for Jeremy, as they support pre-seed to growth-stage companies that embed finance in their products, services and operations.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:08 - Intro to Jeremy and Anthemis10:09 - Jeremy’s reflections on the 2024 fundraising market18:02 - What are you excited about for 2025?22:47 - What does Anthemis look for when investing?27:24 - What would you expect founders to have in place to raise?30:18 - How to contact Jeremy and Anthemis Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arjun Jairaj is an investor with noa VC. The team at noa are building Europe’s largest tech fund dedicated to transforming the built world. They invest in pioneering founders and breakthrough technologies that decarbonise the built world.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:36 - Intro to noa VC and their investment thesis.3:09 - What stages and areas do noa VC invest in?3:46 - Is built environment primarily deep tech and hardware based?5:28 - Arjun’s reflections on 2024’s fundraising market.11:01 - What do you think companies in your portfolio have that has made them particularly successful?13:27 - Predictions for the 2025 market for early-stage climate investment.19:54 - What are noa VC looking for in teams and startups when you invest?21:30 - What is the minimum you’d be looking for in a team at an early stage and do you think gaps can be filled by fractional executives or advisors?23:45 - Advice for founders looking to raise this year.26:02 - Advice for founders on how to manage the fundraising process and make sure the business is still being well looked after whilst their attention is elsewhere.28:25 - How to get in touch with Arjun and noa VC. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stuart Ferguson is an investor with Sustainable Ventures, who as well as offering investment to earth-saving startups, also operate two co-working spaces in London and Manchester, with sole focus on climate tech. In fact, we here at Above & Beyond use their London space regularly. Stuart is particularly passionate about early stage investing and loves working with new entrepreneurs to help them realise their ambitions.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:27 - What are your reflections on 2024 for investment?2:38 - Were any of your portfolio companies particularly notable last year? What do you think helped them succeed?4:00 - What do you predict for the UK climate funding landscape in 2025?6:37 - Are you seeing a difference in how climate companies are positioning themselves?8:15 - What do you look for when making investments?11:34 - What support do Sustainable Ventures offer post-investment?13:26 - What parts of the climate industry are you excited about and see potential in?15:41 - Advice for founders looking to raise funds this year.19:42 - What is the minimum viable amount of traction you’d be looking for?22:59 - How to contact Sustainable Ventures. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Roberta Franchi is an investment associate at Counteract. Counteract is a carbon removal company combating the climate crisis through research, development and investment. They give engineer and scientist entrepreneurs the financial and strategic support to turn fresh ideas into self-sustaining businesses with the potential to capture or store greenhouse gases at a global scale.During this series of bite-sized episodes, I’ll be speaking to investors from across the climate ecosystem to get their reflections on 2024, insights about the funding landscape for 2025, advice for founders looking to raise, and finding out what they’re most excited about for the coming year.1:37 - An intro to Counteract3:04 - How was 2024 for the CDR market?6:48 - What is driving corporates to sign off-take agreements?9:35 - How do you see the 2025 CDR market developing?13:19 - What do you look for in investments?15:45 - What are you excited about in the CDR landscape?17:49 - What advice do you have for founders looking to fundraise?19:39 - Where can people find out about grants they could apply for?21:04 - How to contact Counteract and Roberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Establishing a culture where team members can thrive is vital, but with the move towards hybrid and remote work over the last few years, it can sometimes be hard to know where to start when people aren’t spending as much time with each other. Geraldine Butler-Wright is a chief people officer with far-reaching experience across multiple areas of tech, international businesses and in both startups and scale-ups, which have operated as fully remote, hybrid and on-site. She’s seen it all! She helps companies establish people processes and supportive cultures that make team members want to stay. As the founder of RorCas, she works as a consultant to guide startups and scale-ups to get the “people part” right, so focus can be on revenue, product-market fit, investment and growth.During this series, we’ll be discussing the art of building strong, high-performing teams to give your startup the best foundation possible. I’ll be speaking to industry experts about inclusion, employer branding and establishing culture, plus I’ll be hearing both the VC and founder viewpoints and experiences when it comes to finding and supporting the best talent. So, whether you’re a founder starting to scaling your team, a hiring manager looking for top talent, or simply curious about how diverse teams are tackling the planet’s most pressing challenges, this series is for you.2:16 - Why do you love working with small, early-stage companies and teams?3:35 - Do you see patterns in people-related challenges within early-stage businesses?5:00 - How do you guide people who might never have run a business or managed a team before? How do you learn to be a leader?6:26 - Are some people not suited to being a leader?7:33 - At what stage do you think companies should start to think about career pathways?11:01 - How can you reconcile the tension that can come within startups where employees want career pathways but the direction of the company can change as it scales, meaning opportunities change.13:29 - How do you help hiring managers to set the bar and understand what makes an A-player for their team?19:02 - How can leaders handle the feeling of perhaps wondering whether they haven’t done enough to support an under-performer?21:07 - How can companies build a positive and supportive feedback culture?24:45 - How do you advise people to manage a function or role, when perhaps that’s not their background and they don’t have direct experience of doing a role?27:43 - What should founders be mindful of when building remote or hybrid teams?32:32 - How do you ensure continuity of culture when some people are remote and some are in the office?33:58 - What mistakes do you see keep coming up with remote work?36:38 - What are some easily transferrable culture creation tips that could be applied to other companies that came up from your time at Healthily?40:37 - What important lessons have you learnt about scaling at pace and maintaining a great culture whilst you do it?44:50 - How do you handle urgency-bias and ensure it doesn’t cause cultural problems down the line?48:09 - As a startup changes during growth, how do you advise people to handle those difficult conversations when someone who was right for a role at the beginning, isn’t the right person further down the line?53:20 - What are some simple practices and boundaries you would recommend to founders to protect their mental health? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first few hires in any team are key but what about scaling beyond that as you progress through funding rounds and possibly acquisitions and exit?  Dimple Patel is currently CEO at NatureMetrics and as a highly accomplished entrepreneur, she’s seen it all, from MVP to new markets and fundraising stages right through to exit. A strong team is what gets you there, to secure funding and drive growth, so she knows how vital it is to build a team of A players.During this series, we’ll be discussing the art of building strong, high-performing teams to give your startup the best foundation possible. I’ll be speaking to industry experts about inclusion, employer branding and establishing culture, plus I’ll be hearing both the VC and founder viewpoints and experiences when it comes to finding and supporting the best talent. So, whether you’re a founder starting to scaling your team, a hiring manager looking for top talent, or simply curious about how diverse teams are tackling the planet’s most pressing challenges, this series is for you.1:31 - Dimple’s journey from banking to coffee to tech to biodiversity.5:35 - Why did you choose to join NatureMetrics?9:49 - What stage was NatureMetrics at when you joined and how have things changed since you joined a year ago?14:42 - What is the culture like at NatureMetrics and how does your mission feed into that?19:16 - How do you show up as a leader and how do you feed into the culture?24:27 - What challenges and lessons have you learnt across the variety of businesses you’ve worked in?27:29 - What are some ways to build trust between team members?32:47 - When you’re working in an early-stage industry, how does that impact finding the right talent?38:02 - Advice for leaders who are scaling their business and maybe the people who were in the business early-on aren’t right for the long-term.45:15 - Have mentors helped you understand team building?48:26 - How important do you think it is to be part of industry communities?53:07 - What key piece of advice would you offer for building a culture that will endure? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As any team starts to scale, it becomes more and more important to have sustainable and repeatable processes in place. But it’s also not uncommon for that to be overlooked in favour of things like sales and fundraising.  Sherry White is a consultant who works specifically with startups and scale-ups to tackle challenges, unblock and improve leadership, establish good foundations, face tough questions and get things moving fast!  She covers everything from culture and employment law, through to health and safety and commercial balance.During this series, we’ll be discussing the art of building strong, high-performing teams to give your startup the best foundation possible.  I’ll be speaking to industry experts about inclusion, employer branding and establishing culture, plus I’ll be hearing both the VC and founder viewpoints and experiences when it comes to finding and supporting the best talent.  So, whether you’re a founder starting to scaling your team, a hiring manager looking for top talent, or simply curious about how diverse teams are tackling the planet’s most pressing challenges, this series is for you.1:34 - Sherry’s journey from lab spaces to HR.3:34 - Are there any particular challenges that you see come up in STEM environments?6:28 - What are the main things you work with people on in early-stage businesses?7:47 - What parts of HR and People processes do you often see neglected?8:40 - What basics should people look at getting in place early?10:20 - Can startups write their own policies or do they need templates or a consultant?11:50 - How can startups offer good benefits on a tight budget?14:25 - Thoughts on equity as part of a compensation package.16:11 - What makes a good onboarding process?19:08 - Tips for scaling onboarding as the company grows.20:53 - Can video recorded onboarding work or should it always be in-person?22:05 - Is it a good motto to hire slow and fire fast?24:24- What are the legal requirements when letting someone go?26:19 - Being aware of disabilities in hiring and firing.32:57 - How early should you consult with an HR expert? Is it ever too early?34:53 - How often should you review your HR policies?36:36 - How to get in touch with Sherry. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Supporting and engaging neurodiverse talent is a vital part of team building. Parul Singh comes from a background in tech and recruitment and has first-hand experience of the challenges faced by neurodiverse people in the workplace, having been diagnosed in 2021 with autism and ADHD.  Prior to diagnosis, she had experienced burnout, self-destructive behaviour and had struggled in both education and workplace settings. Now with a better understanding of her own needs and divergence, she is the founder of Parallel Minds. She is dedicated to creating positive change for neurodivergent people in the workplace, and supports businesses with recruitment training, coaching for leaders and line managers, running neurodivergence awareness sessions and more.During this series, we’ll be discussing the art of building strong, high-performing teams to give your startup the best foundation possible.3:00 - What was your personal journey towards diagnosis and what made you seek that out?7:41 - Was there a sense of relief that came with being diagnosed?11:08 - What led you to leave the workplace and set up Parallel Minds?13:00 - Key definitions around neurodiversity.19:08 - Why is it important to talk about and understand neurodiversity in the workplace?21:56 - Why is there a lack of disclosure between employees and employers?25:22 - What can companies do to create a safe environment where people feel comfortable to have conversations about their neurodivergence?28:15 - Startups are very fast-moving and experience a lot of change. Autistic people often struggle with change, so how can you create an environment where everyone can thrive?31:47 - You can’t be everything to everyone, so at what point do you say ‘this is our company and it might not be for everyone’?35:33 - What could companies be doing better to tackle common challenges?46:36 - What coping mechanisms and toolkits do you use to help you?RESOURCES:Connect with Parul Neurodiversity resource bank Neurodiversity in tech report 2023 Research on the link between ADHD and burnout DARE report on adjustmentsCIPD neuro-inclusion at work report 2024Equal tech report 2023  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a lot that goes on within a hiring process but what is it actually like from the perspective of founders and the C-suite, when trying to scale a business and build out that initial team? Sebastian Leape previously worked as a sustainability consultant at McKinsey and has now turned his attention to encouraging people to embed nature into business decision-making. He is CEO at Natcap, where they offer a simple and scalable platform to bring together the world's best science, data and technology to create actionable insights and empower organisations to measure, report and ultimately act on their nature-related risks and opportunities. During this series, we’ll be discussing the art of building strong, high-performing teams to give your startup the best foundation possible. I’ll be speaking to industry experts about inclusion, employer branding and establishing culture, plus I’ll be hearing both the VC and founder viewpoints and experiences when it comes to finding and supporting the best talent. So, whether you’re a founder starting to scaling your team, a hiring manager looking for top talent, or simply curious about how diverse teams are tackling the planet’s most pressing challenges, this series is for you.1:50 - Where was Natcap in the People journey when you joined and where are you today?5:22 - How have you stayed true to your scientific and academic roots, and progressed without alienating early employees?8:43 - What challenges have you faced over the last couple of years when it comes to building out the team?11:18 - How did you plan your benefits package and what did you decide to include, particularly in light of a tighter budget as a startup?13:38 - How much did you consult with the team about what to include in the benefits package?15:14 - Where did you not do onboarding so well and what have you learnt and changed during the process?19:43 - How did you ensure that managers were able to take over onboarding as the company grew?23:24 - As your strategy and headcount have changed, how have your company values had to evolve?30:01 - Did you have any external support when finalising your branding, values and mission?32:16 - How do your values feed into your recruitment process?34:34 - How intentional were you when it comes to gender diversity and were there challenges?39:03 - How have things changed from a People perspective now that you’re post-Series A?41:41 - Have the characteristics and experience of team members changed in light of Series A and has the team changed overall?43:28 - What have been your key learnings from the last couple of years and what advice would you give to early-stage founders for team building?48:26 - Would you advise starting to hire before closing a round, as you did with your Series A, and did that room to hire slower make it better? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.