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Feb 1, 2017 · 30m · 20vc

20VC: The Fundamentals To Creating A Successful Venture Partnership & The Optimal Investment Decision Making Process with Ryan McIntyre, Co-Founder @ Foundry Group

Ryan McIntyre · 21m spoken Harry Stebbings · 8m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

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In this episode of The 20 Minute VC, Harry Stebbings interviews Ryan McIntyre, co-founder of Excite and Foundry Group, to discuss building high-trust venture partnerships, consensus-driven investment decision frameworks, and developer-focused thesis investing.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Harry holds 28.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Harry as informed peer 2.3 Guest teaching 3.7 Guest disagreement 1.0 Harry pushing back 1.1
05100:0010:0020:0030:003:01–5:03 · Harry as informed peer 1/10 Ryan McIntyre's Origin Story from Entrepreneur to Venture Capitalist Harry asks a broad open-ended question about Ryan's origin story. Ryan provides a smooth monologue covering his path from co-founding Excite in college to joining Mobius VC and founding Foundry Group.5:04–8:15 · Harry as informed peer 2/10 Transitioning to Investing and Relocating to Boulder, Colorado Harry relays two specific questions provided by Brad Feld regarding Ryan's transition to investing and moving to Boulder. Ryan explains his preference for portfolio context-switching over single-startup focus.8:17–11:01 · Harry as informed peer 1/10 Core Dynamics and Trust in the Foundry Partnership Harry asks what makes the Foundry partnership work so effectively. Ryan details their 17-year shared history, their commitment to personal friendship, and their practice of holding bi-annual 360-degree moderated feedback sessions.11:01–16:42 · Harry as informed peer 3/10 Foundry Group's Investment Decision-Making Process Harry asks about voting rules and effective board leadership. Ryan explains their formal 3-of-4 voting rule versus practical unanimity, and how they intentionally bring the most skeptical partner into deals early to stress-test investments. Harry interjects with knowledge of partner Jason's legal background.16:43–19:07 · Harry as informed peer 2/10 VC Stereotypes, Media Representations, and Ego Management Harry asks about VC media stereotypes and behavior. Ryan compares 'Silicon Valley' to Spinal Tap hitting too close to home, but cautions VCs against ego inflation by reminding that VCs exist to serve entrepreneurs.19:12–25:18 · Harry as informed peer 4/10 Investing Passions: Developer Tools and Music Technology (Roli) Harry pushes Ryan on how he maintains investment discipline and rigorous TAM evaluation when investing in personal passions like music technology (Roli). Ryan reframes his developer background as an operational asset and explains how he and Jason impose a higher bar on themselves for passion investments.25:18–29:07 · Harry as informed peer 3/10 Quick Fire Round: Favorite Books, Advice, and Top Investments Harry conducts a quick-fire round enforcing time constraints and passing along partner questions. Ryan offers advice for his son to gain operating experience before VC and highlights SendGrid as his proudest investment.3:01–5:03 · Guest teaching 3/10 Ryan McIntyre's Origin Story from Entrepreneur to Venture Capitalist Harry asks a broad open-ended question about Ryan's origin story. Ryan provides a smooth monologue covering his path from co-founding Excite in college to joining Mobius VC and founding Foundry Group.5:04–8:15 · Guest teaching 2/10 Transitioning to Investing and Relocating to Boulder, Colorado Harry relays two specific questions provided by Brad Feld regarding Ryan's transition to investing and moving to Boulder. Ryan explains his preference for portfolio context-switching over single-startup focus.8:17–11:01 · Guest teaching 4/10 Core Dynamics and Trust in the Foundry Partnership Harry asks what makes the Foundry partnership work so effectively. Ryan details their 17-year shared history, their commitment to personal friendship, and their practice of holding bi-annual 360-degree moderated feedback sessions.11:01–16:42 · Guest teaching 5/10 Foundry Group's Investment Decision-Making Process Harry asks about voting rules and effective board leadership. Ryan explains their formal 3-of-4 voting rule versus practical unanimity, and how they intentionally bring the most skeptical partner into deals early to stress-test investments. Harry interjects with knowledge of partner Jason's legal background.16:43–19:07 · Guest teaching 4/10 VC Stereotypes, Media Representations, and Ego Management Harry asks about VC media stereotypes and behavior. Ryan compares 'Silicon Valley' to Spinal Tap hitting too close to home, but cautions VCs against ego inflation by reminding that VCs exist to serve entrepreneurs.19:12–25:18 · Guest teaching 5/10 Investing Passions: Developer Tools and Music Technology (Roli) Harry pushes Ryan on how he maintains investment discipline and rigorous TAM evaluation when investing in personal passions like music technology (Roli). Ryan reframes his developer background as an operational asset and explains how he and Jason impose a higher bar on themselves for passion investments.25:18–29:07 · Guest teaching 3/10 Quick Fire Round: Favorite Books, Advice, and Top Investments Harry conducts a quick-fire round enforcing time constraints and passing along partner questions. Ryan offers advice for his son to gain operating experience before VC and highlights SendGrid as his proudest investment.3:01–5:03 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Ryan McIntyre's Origin Story from Entrepreneur to Venture Capitalist Harry asks a broad open-ended question about Ryan's origin story. Ryan provides a smooth monologue covering his path from co-founding Excite in college to joining Mobius VC and founding Foundry Group.5:04–8:15 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Transitioning to Investing and Relocating to Boulder, Colorado Harry relays two specific questions provided by Brad Feld regarding Ryan's transition to investing and moving to Boulder. Ryan explains his preference for portfolio context-switching over single-startup focus.8:17–11:01 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Core Dynamics and Trust in the Foundry Partnership Harry asks what makes the Foundry partnership work so effectively. Ryan details their 17-year shared history, their commitment to personal friendship, and their practice of holding bi-annual 360-degree moderated feedback sessions.11:01–16:42 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Foundry Group's Investment Decision-Making Process Harry asks about voting rules and effective board leadership. Ryan explains their formal 3-of-4 voting rule versus practical unanimity, and how they intentionally bring the most skeptical partner into deals early to stress-test investments. Harry interjects with knowledge of partner Jason's legal background.16:43–19:07 · Guest disagreement 2/10 VC Stereotypes, Media Representations, and Ego Management Harry asks about VC media stereotypes and behavior. Ryan compares 'Silicon Valley' to Spinal Tap hitting too close to home, but cautions VCs against ego inflation by reminding that VCs exist to serve entrepreneurs.19:12–25:18 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Investing Passions: Developer Tools and Music Technology (Roli) Harry pushes Ryan on how he maintains investment discipline and rigorous TAM evaluation when investing in personal passions like music technology (Roli). Ryan reframes his developer background as an operational asset and explains how he and Jason impose a higher bar on themselves for passion investments.25:18–29:07 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Quick Fire Round: Favorite Books, Advice, and Top Investments Harry conducts a quick-fire round enforcing time constraints and passing along partner questions. Ryan offers advice for his son to gain operating experience before VC and highlights SendGrid as his proudest investment.3:01–5:03 · Harry pushing back 0/10 Ryan McIntyre's Origin Story from Entrepreneur to Venture Capitalist Harry asks a broad open-ended question about Ryan's origin story. Ryan provides a smooth monologue covering his path from co-founding Excite in college to joining Mobius VC and founding Foundry Group.5:04–8:15 · Harry pushing back 0/10 Transitioning to Investing and Relocating to Boulder, Colorado Harry relays two specific questions provided by Brad Feld regarding Ryan's transition to investing and moving to Boulder. Ryan explains his preference for portfolio context-switching over single-startup focus.8:17–11:01 · Harry pushing back 0/10 Core Dynamics and Trust in the Foundry Partnership Harry asks what makes the Foundry partnership work so effectively. Ryan details their 17-year shared history, their commitment to personal friendship, and their practice of holding bi-annual 360-degree moderated feedback sessions.11:01–16:42 · Harry pushing back 1/10 Foundry Group's Investment Decision-Making Process Harry asks about voting rules and effective board leadership. Ryan explains their formal 3-of-4 voting rule versus practical unanimity, and how they intentionally bring the most skeptical partner into deals early to stress-test investments. Harry interjects with knowledge of partner Jason's legal background.16:43–19:07 · Harry pushing back 1/10 VC Stereotypes, Media Representations, and Ego Management Harry asks about VC media stereotypes and behavior. Ryan compares 'Silicon Valley' to Spinal Tap hitting too close to home, but cautions VCs against ego inflation by reminding that VCs exist to serve entrepreneurs.19:12–25:18 · Harry pushing back 4/10 Investing Passions: Developer Tools and Music Technology (Roli) Harry pushes Ryan on how he maintains investment discipline and rigorous TAM evaluation when investing in personal passions like music technology (Roli). Ryan reframes his developer background as an operational asset and explains how he and Jason impose a higher bar on themselves for passion investments.25:18–29:07 · Harry pushing back 2/10 Quick Fire Round: Favorite Books, Advice, and Top Investments Harry conducts a quick-fire round enforcing time constraints and passing along partner questions. Ryan offers advice for his son to gain operating experience before VC and highlights SendGrid as his proudest investment.

speaking balance: gold is Harry, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Harry 95.7% · guest 4.3%0:00 · Harry 95.7% · guest 4.3%3:00 · Harry 22.4% · guest 77.6%3:00 · Harry 22.4% · guest 77.6%6:00 · Harry 26.2% · guest 73.8%6:00 · Harry 26.2% · guest 73.8%9:00 · Harry 5.3% · guest 94.7%9:00 · Harry 5.3% · guest 94.7%12:00 · Harry 10.5% · guest 89.5%12:00 · Harry 10.5% · guest 89.5%15:00 · Harry 16.8% · guest 83.2%15:00 · Harry 16.8% · guest 83.2%18:00 · Harry 17.7% · guest 82.3%18:00 · Harry 17.7% · guest 82.3%21:00 · Harry 10.7% · guest 89.3%21:00 · Harry 10.7% · guest 89.3%24:00 · Harry 11.5% · guest 88.5%24:00 · Harry 11.5% · guest 88.5%27:00 · Harry 40.9% · guest 59.1%27:00 · Harry 40.9% · guest 59.1%30:00 · Harry 100% · guest 0%30:00 · Harry 100% · guest 0%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 18:20 Reframing VC importance and ego

Ryan explicitly challenges the common VC ego trap, arguing that investors often mistakenly assign causality to their investments and forget that they exist solely to serve entrepreneurs.

 Hardest push from Harry ▶ 22:26 Demanding investment rigor on passion plays

Harry interrupts Ryan's enthusiasm to challenge him directly on how he maintains academic discipline, TAM calculations, and go-to-market analysis when investing in emotional passions like music.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 11:45 Involving the skeptical partner early

Ryan educates the host on Foundry's decision-making mechanics, detailing how they proactively engage the partner most likely to be skeptical early in the process to eliminate friction and blind spots.

 Harry holds his own ▶ 13:58 Leveraging partner Jason's legal expertise

Harry demonstrates specific knowledge of Foundry partner dynamics by correctly identifying Jason's legal background as the key asset for reviewing complex 100-page financials and IP contracts.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicHarry as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementHarry pushing backWhy
Ryan McIntyre's Origin Story from Entrepreneur to Venture Capitalist 1300 Harry asks a broad open-ended question about Ryan's origin story. Ryan provides a smooth monologue covering his path from co-founding Excite in college to joining Mobius VC and founding Foundry Group.
Transitioning to Investing and Relocating to Boulder, Colorado 2210 Harry relays two specific questions provided by Brad Feld regarding Ryan's transition to investing and moving to Boulder. Ryan explains his preference for portfolio context-switching over single-startup focus.
Core Dynamics and Trust in the Foundry Partnership 1400 Harry asks what makes the Foundry partnership work so effectively. Ryan details their 17-year shared history, their commitment to personal friendship, and their practice of holding bi-annual 360-degree moderated feedback sessions.
Foundry Group's Investment Decision-Making Process 3511 Harry asks about voting rules and effective board leadership. Ryan explains their formal 3-of-4 voting rule versus practical unanimity, and how they intentionally bring the most skeptical partner into deals early to stress-test investments. Harry interjects with knowledge of partner Jason's legal background.
VC Stereotypes, Media Representations, and Ego Management 2421 Harry asks about VC media stereotypes and behavior. Ryan compares 'Silicon Valley' to Spinal Tap hitting too close to home, but cautions VCs against ego inflation by reminding that VCs exist to serve entrepreneurs.
Investing Passions: Developer Tools and Music Technology (Roli) 4524 Harry pushes Ryan on how he maintains investment discipline and rigorous TAM evaluation when investing in personal passions like music technology (Roli). Ryan reframes his developer background as an operational asset and explains how he and Jason impose a higher bar on themselves for passion investments.
Quick Fire Round: Favorite Books, Advice, and Top Investments 3312 Harry conducts a quick-fire round enforcing time constraints and passing along partner questions. Ryan offers advice for his son to gain operating experience before VC and highlights SendGrid as his proudest investment.

Statements from this episode (10)

Assertion Partly supported
Excite@Home failed because cable companies refused revenue sharing with the startup
“Ultimately, the combined company met its demise due to, shall we say, the cable companies not really wanting to revenue share this new internet broadband subscription source with a cheeky Silicon Valley startup.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 4:04
Disclosure
Foundry Group hired outside moderators for bi-annual partner 360 feedback
“So when we first started Foundry Group, you know, we would have an outside Person come in and moderate three 60 degree feedback sessions with us twice a year.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 10:02
Disclosure
Foundry Group requires three of four partners to approve investments
“Technically three of the four need to vote affirmatively to make to make an investment decision.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 11:09
Disclosure
All Foundry Group investment decisions have been unanimous in practice
“I think in practice, all of our investment decisions have been unanimous.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 11:17
Assertion Supported
Foundry Group completes between seven and ten investments per year
“We do between seven and 10 investments per year, and there, there's probably, you know, 10 times that in terms of companies that we would invest in, in terms of the qualities of the teams or the entrepreneurs, but, you know, we have to keep a very high bar.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 11:40
Insight
Ryan McIntyre says self-awareness is the most critical trait for board members
“The bigger thing I think we all place a premium on is a high level of self-awareness among ourselves and the entrepreneurs and members of management teams that we work with. And I'd say that sort of self-awareness of, you know, your own role and dynamics in a …”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 13:00
Opinion
Ryan McIntyre says HBO's Silicon Valley portrays the venture ecosystem painfully accurately
“Silicon Valley, which, by the way, is a great show, and sometimes gets things so, so right, it is , you know, it is painful to watch.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 17:04
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Ryan McIntyre says new musical instrument categories emerge once every few decades
“The sort of opportunity for new instruments to really emerge is, you know, only happens, you know, once every few decades.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 23:12
Disclosure
Foundry Group sets a higher diligence bar for passion-project music tech investments
“Jason and I spent a lot of time back and forth, almost, you know, giving ourselves a higher bar because saying, hey, we know we're excited about this because we're music geeks, but let's also, you know, make sure that before we start showing it to Seth and Bra…”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 24:40
Assertion Partly supported
SendGrid sends one billion daily emails and prepares for 2017 IPO
“They send over a billion emails a day. They've been profitable this year and they're an IPO candidate in in 2017.”
Ryan McIntyre Feb 1, 2017 ▶ 28:34
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