Michael Dearing

Founder and General Partner, Harrison Metal · 1 appearance on the record.

computed by AI from the episodes · how this works → · full disclaimer →

investorfounderexecutiveacademic@mcgd ↗LinkedIn ↗harrisonmetal.com ↗

Michael Dearing is the founder and general partner of the early-stage venture capital firm Harrison Metal. He previously served as Senior Vice President at eBay and taught at Stanford University's d.school.

14statements → 0claims → 0claims resolved → 3.86/5average certainty → 2.57/5average debate potential → ≈4.5/5argument clarity, estimated → 45said about them ↓

3 opinions · 9 insights · 2 disclosures · every statement was checked. none of them is a claim the record can settle: opinions, insights and disclosures never carry an assessment.

The record, in short

What the tape says about how Michael argues and how the claims held up. Everything they said, and everything said about them, is in the tabs below.

How they sound: speaking style how? →

228 words/min while actually speaking · 4.3 um and uh per 1k words

No argument clarity score for Michael Dearing: no usable question→answer exchanges on raw tape (a fair score needs 8+). We do not score a sample that small. Roundtable and news formats yield far fewer direct exchanges than interviews. Their coarse estimate from 24 exchanges on the produced feed is ≈4.5/5, shown at half point precision because the sample is small and produced tape scores higher.

Measured by listening to 3,939 words across 1 episode, but every recording we have of Michael Dearing is the aired feed, and an editor cleaned that audio before release. Some of the hesitation was cut before we ever heard it, so read these as floors: the true rates are at least this high. These are measurements of speaking style, not scores. How it's measured →

How the interview went all their pushback → series average →

Across 1 rated episode:

host pushback ▾ 2/10

pushed back at the host ▾ 2/10

setup questions received 65%

host pushback: the hardest questions Harry asked, tap to play ▶ 4:59“How do you look to think about this first, and then distinguish between potential brilliance and potential arrogance?” ▶ 12:32“Peter Fenton said on the show, never turn down a company based on valuation. It's a mental trap. How would you respond to that, and what would you evaluate as your price sensitivit…” ▶ 16:45“In terms of the signaling function and potential negative signaling function, is it a case where you have to at least put some dollars into the companies that you initially go into…”

when Michael pushed back ▶ 2:39“Wow, you, you are really rounding up to describe it as the wonderful world of venture capital.” ▶ 12:42“Well, I'm tempted to say that if I had Peter Fenton's resources, I might feel exactly the same way.”

What they said14 What others said45 Episodes1

Everything Michael Dearing said on 20VC that made the record, most notable first. Filter by type, assessment or year in the ledger →

Opinion

Dearing: Convertible debt seed market is terribly toxic and undisciplined

“On the convertible debt side of the market, I think it's terribly toxic and about as undisciplined as it could possibly be.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 14:50 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Opinion

Dearing: It is a pathetic indictment that basic management makes founders exceptional

“And I also think this checklist of five things that McCallum gave us, if they are good at those five things, they are in the Pathetic indictment of the state of general management that it's that easy to be exceptional, but it really is.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 10:48 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Founder exceptionalism is independent of pedigree or brand-name experience

“That personal exceptionalism, that sense that they are special, that they are destined for really unique outcomes relative to their peer group, I think that shows up early in somebody's life. And it's independent, quite independent of pedigree or brand name wo…”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 5:44 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Perfect market timing is impossible, making survival a management challenge

“I would say, though, that if you start with the premise that timing is always slightly wrong, I mean, listen, what are the odds that we invent something, we productize it, and we turn it into a company at exactly the right moment? It's practically impossible. …”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 11:36 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Corporate capital allocation fails because CEOs lack true pricing signals

“One of the biggest problems with internal capital allocation inside a company is, Very rarely do CEOs have access to true opportunity cost-based prices. And the market's really good at that. The market's really good at saying, well, if you're going to use my f…”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 21:28 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Executives are paid for judgment, not running A/B tests

“And listen, this is what we pay people for is to make judgments. We don't pay people to run AB tests. We don't pay people to do boil the ocean analytics on what is the quote right answer. We pay people for their judgment.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 23:53 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Great founders subject gut intuition to market discipline

“Every human is walking around with two processors running in parallel. One processor is that gut instinct, that intuitive perception of the world, and the other is the analytic, more rational, and reasonable one. Now, the gut perception of how the world works …”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 7:12 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Daily software deployments and rapid prototyping are necessary founder markers

“How fast do they release prototypes? How many days a week do they push new software to production? How quickly do they start sketching an idea versus just talking about it in very macro terms? And how quickly does a pen go to paper? Those are markers of people…”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 8:06 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Fundamental general management principles have not changed since 1855

“So that checklist of five things is the same today as it was in 1855 when he first wrote that treatise.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 9:47 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Valuation is a VC's primary tool for risk management

“Pricing is the way that we manage our risk. It's the primary tool I have to manage my own risk in the situation. And so as my risk goes up, my price should go down and vice versa.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 13:17 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Opinion

Dearing: Seed equity market rounds are priced reasonably

“So I would say on the equity side of the market, I believe for the most part, companies are priced reasonably.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 14:33 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Disclosure

Dearing: Harrison Metal currently reserves $1.50 per $1 initially invested

“Over time, the way I've funded the reserves pool is varied between taking that ratio all the way up to two to one, back down to now I reserve about a buck 50 for every initial dollar.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 16:30 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Disclosure

Dearing: Harrison Metal cut reserves over values violations only twice in 100+ deals

“I've rarely come into a situation where I've completely pulled out. I mean, it has happened, but usually for real values violations, you know, dishonesty, and thank God that's only happened, like, you know, two times out of more than a hundred cases.”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 17:10 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

Insight

Dearing: Initial deal picking drives fund returns, not capital recycling

“I don't consider it a bulk part of the strategy because let's be honest, my numbers call it on a fund are driven by my initial investment picking. So picking is the primary thing I do. If I pick really well, I should generate great multiples and liquidity for …”

Michael Dearing Oct 9, 2017 ▶ 18:14 20VC: Michael Dearing on 5 Key Principles He Uses To Assess Startup Founders, Why Benevolent Dictatorship Is A Beautiful Thing & Why Markets Are Better Capital Allocators Than CEOs

The other half of the tape: Michael Dearing's own voice is left out of every number here. Other people bring the name up 45 times in 13 episodes on 20VC. every mention, with the transcript →

Who brings them up most Harry Stebbings 21 Rachel Carlson 6 Andy Pflaum 5 David Rogier 4 Jenny Lefcourt 3 Hunter Walk 2 Charles Hudson 2 Samir Kaji 1