Apr 19, 2020 · 44m · neon-show
Blume Ventures: Sanjay Nath on Post Covid-19 Scenario for Startups & Building Future of Work
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In this episode of the 100x Entrepreneur Podcast, Sanjay Nath, Managing Partner at Blume Ventures, provides strategic guidance on managing startup cash runways, navigating market downturns, and building resilient businesses in an evolving landscape of remote work and VC mentorship.
How this conversation actually went
Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. How this is scored →
Siddhartha as informed peer 5.3 Guest teaching 2.4 Guest disagreement 1.2 Siddhartha pushing back 0.5
speaking balance: gold is Siddhartha, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 28:50 Disputing the skipped IC meetings narrative
The guest directly rejects the host's assertion that Monday investment committee meetings will be skipped, clarifying that ICs evaluate broader operational actions like M&A and capital preservation.
Hardest push from Siddhartha ▶ 28:45 Challenging VC deployment paceThe host presses on whether investment committees are practically on pause given the freeze on new capital deployment.
Biggest teaching moment ▶ 26:15 Differentiating order books from collected receivablesThe guest educates founders and the host on why optimistic SaaS sales pipelines mean nothing during a liquidity crunch if accounts receivable stretch from 30 to 90 days.
Siddhartha holds their own ▶ 35:01 Cataloging Blume's historic turnaround portfolioThe host exhibits strong recall and portfolio expertise by citing Mettl, Minjar, TaxiForSure, and NowFloats, demonstrating precise knowledge of Blume's past turnaround acquisitions.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
| Chapter | Topic | Siddhartha as informed peer | Guest teaching | Guest disagreement | Siddhartha pushing back | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sanjay Nath's Career and Founding Blume Ventures | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | The host sets up the background conversation and politely clarifies the founding timeline of Blume Ventures. The guest warmly recaps his trajectory from engineering to consulting and angel investing in Mumbai. | |
| Backing InMobi and Navigating Past Market Crises | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | The host demonstrates deep context by referencing InMobi's 2008 backing and comparing market shocks across Y2K, 9/11, and COVID-19. The guest reframes the romanticized idea of crisis investing, noting survival comes before thriving. | |
| Blume's Internal Playbook and Daily Knowledge Webinars | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | The host inquires about Blume's high-cadence founder webinars. The guest details the portfolio support mechanism and controlling internal cost variables during a downturn. | |
| Sectoral Headwinds and Tailwinds Across Startups | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | The host lists specific portfolio companies across edtech, B2B SaaS, and daily delivery to probe sectoral variance. The guest articulates the split between headwind sectors like shared mobility and lift sectors like online education. | |
| Future of Work and Distributed Collaboration Models | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | The host prompts a discussion on the future of work portfolio companies. The guest explores distributed robotics and corporate adoption of remote productivity platforms. | |
| Gig Economy Dynamics and Shifting Workforce Logistics | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | The host asks about shifts in gig workforce supply and Blume's overall fund thesis evolution. The guest explains why gig supply will rise while demand lags, and outlines Blume's shift from micro-VC to deep-tech thesis investing. | |
| Enterprise SaaS Resilience and Cash Flow Management | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | The host asks specifically about SaaS outlook for 2020-2021. The guest explains the fundamental strength of recurring revenue while schooling founders to prioritize cash collections over pipeline bookings. | |
| Venture Capital Deployment Pace and Market Mergers | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | The host asks if VCs will skip Monday investment committees due to market freezes. The guest corrects the premise, explaining ICs are essential for operational reviews, follow-ons, and consolidations. | |
| Capital Discipline and Returning to Business Fundamentals | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | The host asks about capital reallocation and requests concrete playbooks for cost reduction. The guest outlines actionable structures for tiered salary deferrals and founder-led cuts. | |
| Guiding Startup Founders Through Critical Crises | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | The host displays strong domain knowledge by rattling off four historical Blume exits that navigated the valley of death. The guest reflects on providing psychological support to lonely founders. | |
| Navigating Startup Consolidation and Acqui-Hires | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | The host quotes predictions about startup mortality rates and asks how founders with sub-9-month runways should handle M&A. The guest lays out three clear tiers: talent redeployment, acqui-hires, and mergers of equals. | |
| Macro Recovery Timelines and Post-Pandemic Scenarios | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | The host asks for best-case scenario predictions for 2020. The guest reframes the inquiry, explaining that pandemic uncertainty prevents planning for upside, forcing teams to prepare strictly for worst-case scenarios. |
Statements from this episode (16)
Nath backed InMobi via Mumbai Angels while living in San Francisco
“And remember, I was a small check rider, you know, part of that round. So, ah, I think that vision and that the gumption and the passion to go out and make a difference. I think we backed that as much as just the idea itself, because all of us know that ideas …”
Cost and team morale are the only variables founders control in downturns
“It is the only internal variable, which we believe in also. It's the only internal variable that you can control is your cost, your cash, right? You can't control how, how much your gamer is going to spend, you know, for your game, Or the enterprise sales, the…”
Autonomous systems will drive enterprise growth as mandatory in-office work declines
“I think people are not necessarily going to feel that you have to be at work Monday to Friday or Monday to Saturday, but the future of work is here. So, so autonomous systems will drive, you know, a lot of the growth and I think, you know, enterprises start pi…”
Tailwind-driven startups must capture share while headwind startups ruthlessly cut costs
“I think what I would suggest to founders is that if you're in a lift sector, which is positively structurally favorable, then you want to dominate, you know, win market share keep customers with you. If you're on the other hand in a tougher sector, then you wa…”
Zoom grew from 10 million to 200 million active users during COVID-19
“Zoom was apparently on ten million MAUs, right? For some time. And in this crisis, it's gone up Siddharth, to 200.”
The supply of gig workers will definitively increase post-COVID
“I think you know, on the supply side, which is the supply or the number of gig workers, I think will definitely go up.”
Delhivery CEO Sahil Barua relocated to Goa to work remotely during COVID-19
“Delivery, for example, I don't know if you know, but the CEO, Sahil of Delivery sits in Goa. He's moved to Goa.”
Nath: The era of the generalist venture capital investor is over
“You know, that the era of the generalist VC is over.”
Enterprise startups must prioritize cash collections over pipelines during economic downturns
“Focus as much on receivables versus just order books and purchase orders, right? Because you may have a great pipeline. And you, your receivables may look quite strong, but are you collecting it fast enough, you know? Are the 30 days becoming 90 days? Are you,…”
The startup market will see a wave of healthy, non-distressed consolidations
“One of the things that will happen is I see also a wave of Consolidations and mergers, M&A, right? More the M side than the A side. Consolidation doesn't necessarily mean distress. I mean, good companies banding together, right?”
VCs will scrutinize capital needs instead of forcing minimum check sizes
“I think now VCs will ask the question very, hey, listen, what do you really need this money for, right? Okay, here's five million because we can't, earlier it was like, okay, you know, we can't deploy less than three million because that's our minimum check si…”
Employees stay engaged when founders and CXOs take the first pay cuts
“I think when employees see that the founder and the CEO and the CXOs are leading from the top at their part with them, they're more likely to be engaged, right? Versus saying, you know, I'm okay. You're on the other side of the fence and I'm cutting you.”
CEOs face profound isolation because junior staff fear reprisals for critical feedback
“The CEO's job is very lonely, right? Think about it. Now who can criticize the CEO? Only the board and investors, right? Or maybe the co-founders. No, no junior employees technically can, again, because there may be fear of reprisals.”
The 2020 downturn will release massive amounts of top-tier talent
“There's going to be a lot of talent on the streets now, the good talent. Either from layoffs or from pay cuts or for whatever reason, the entire company is going down.”
Entering M&A talks with one month of cash guarantees distressed, punitive terms
“You know that in any M&A, when you're closed, you have one month cash in the bank, then it becomes distressed, right? The other person can squeeze you.”
Economic re-stabilization from COVID-19 will occur by September 2020
“But my sense is that it's going to be somewhere like six months, you know, if they're saying, you know, international flights resume in a couple of months to me, fall is you know, the June to September period would be, according to me, like re-stabilization, y…”