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Sep 16, 2020 · 17m · top-founders

Prentus Founder Spent $90k on Failed Project Before Launching New Recruiting Tool During COVID

Rod Danan · 7m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this interview with Nathan Latka, Prentice founder Rod Danan discusses how he rebounded from a $90,000 startup failure to launch a bootstrapped recruiting platform that connects coding bootcamp graduates with early-stage tech companies.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 44.7% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 3.8 Guest teaching 2.2 Guest disagreement 0.6 Nathan pushing back 2.2
05100:0010:001:35–5:32 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Introducing Rod Danan and the Prentice Business Model Nathan probes the unit economics and monetization structure of the intern placement model. Rod clearly explains the pricing shifts from $100 to $1,500 based on advisor feedback without friction.5:32–7:51 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Bootcamp Talent Supply and First Client Acquisition Nathan questions the logic of launching a recruiting business during a pandemic. Rod clarifies the dynamic by correcting Nathan's confusion about Base CRM versus an executive assistant tool.7:54–9:59 · Nathan as informed peer 0/10 Sponsor Break: Design Pickle On-Demand Graphic Services A dedicated mid-roll sponsor ad read by the host for Design Pickle with zero guest interaction.9:59–15:23 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 The $90K Failure of Dananza and Overcoming Debt Nathan cites Rod's specific LinkedIn statistics and past posts back to him to drill down on community growth metrics. Rod explains his bootstrap strategy and managing credit card debt.15:23–17:02 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 The Famous Five: Habits, Tools, and Hard-Earned Lessons Nathan runs through the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, and Rod provides straightforward, candid responses regarding his background and daily routines.1:35–5:32 · Guest teaching 3/10 Introducing Rod Danan and the Prentice Business Model Nathan probes the unit economics and monetization structure of the intern placement model. Rod clearly explains the pricing shifts from $100 to $1,500 based on advisor feedback without friction.5:32–7:51 · Guest teaching 4/10 Bootcamp Talent Supply and First Client Acquisition Nathan questions the logic of launching a recruiting business during a pandemic. Rod clarifies the dynamic by correcting Nathan's confusion about Base CRM versus an executive assistant tool.7:54–9:59 · Guest teaching 0/10 Sponsor Break: Design Pickle On-Demand Graphic Services A dedicated mid-roll sponsor ad read by the host for Design Pickle with zero guest interaction.9:59–15:23 · Guest teaching 3/10 The $90K Failure of Dananza and Overcoming Debt Nathan cites Rod's specific LinkedIn statistics and past posts back to him to drill down on community growth metrics. Rod explains his bootstrap strategy and managing credit card debt.15:23–17:02 · Guest teaching 1/10 The Famous Five: Habits, Tools, and Hard-Earned Lessons Nathan runs through the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, and Rod provides straightforward, candid responses regarding his background and daily routines.1:35–5:32 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Introducing Rod Danan and the Prentice Business Model Nathan probes the unit economics and monetization structure of the intern placement model. Rod clearly explains the pricing shifts from $100 to $1,500 based on advisor feedback without friction.5:32–7:51 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Bootcamp Talent Supply and First Client Acquisition Nathan questions the logic of launching a recruiting business during a pandemic. Rod clarifies the dynamic by correcting Nathan's confusion about Base CRM versus an executive assistant tool.7:54–9:59 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Sponsor Break: Design Pickle On-Demand Graphic Services A dedicated mid-roll sponsor ad read by the host for Design Pickle with zero guest interaction.9:59–15:23 · Guest disagreement 1/10 The $90K Failure of Dananza and Overcoming Debt Nathan cites Rod's specific LinkedIn statistics and past posts back to him to drill down on community growth metrics. Rod explains his bootstrap strategy and managing credit card debt.15:23–17:02 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Famous Five: Habits, Tools, and Hard-Earned Lessons Nathan runs through the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, and Rod provides straightforward, candid responses regarding his background and daily routines.1:35–5:32 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Introducing Rod Danan and the Prentice Business Model Nathan probes the unit economics and monetization structure of the intern placement model. Rod clearly explains the pricing shifts from $100 to $1,500 based on advisor feedback without friction.5:32–7:51 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Bootcamp Talent Supply and First Client Acquisition Nathan questions the logic of launching a recruiting business during a pandemic. Rod clarifies the dynamic by correcting Nathan's confusion about Base CRM versus an executive assistant tool.7:54–9:59 · Nathan pushing back 0/10 Sponsor Break: Design Pickle On-Demand Graphic Services A dedicated mid-roll sponsor ad read by the host for Design Pickle with zero guest interaction.9:59–15:23 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 The $90K Failure of Dananza and Overcoming Debt Nathan cites Rod's specific LinkedIn statistics and past posts back to him to drill down on community growth metrics. Rod explains his bootstrap strategy and managing credit card debt.15:23–17:02 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 The Famous Five: Habits, Tools, and Hard-Earned Lessons Nathan runs through the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, and Rod provides straightforward, candid responses regarding his background and daily routines.

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

0:00 · Nathan 66.9% · guest 33.1%0:00 · Nathan 66.9% · guest 33.1%3:00 · Nathan 26.8% · guest 73.2%3:00 · Nathan 26.8% · guest 73.2%6:00 · Nathan 50% · guest 50%6:00 · Nathan 50% · guest 50%9:00 · Nathan 46% · guest 54%9:00 · Nathan 46% · guest 54%12:00 · Nathan 28.2% · guest 71.8%12:00 · Nathan 28.2% · guest 71.8%15:00 · Nathan 51.1% · guest 48.9%15:00 · Nathan 51.1% · guest 48.9%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 5:32 Defending pandemic launch rationale

Rod gently pushes back against Nathan's suggestion that launching during COVID is insane, noting that supply of bootcamp grads is actually abundant and looking for mentorship.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 2:57 Challenging non-SaaS recurring model

Nathan challenges Rod on whether there is any genuine recurring SaaS component or if he must continuously find 100 new paying clients each month.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 6:50 Differentiating Base from Base CRM

Rod promptly corrects Nathan's assumption that his client was Base CRM, explaining it is software specifically built for executive assistants.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 14:04 Quoting LinkedIn community metrics

Nathan demonstrates careful research by citing specific member counts and timeline data directly from Rod's recent LinkedIn activity.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Introducing Rod Danan and the Prentice Business Model 5314 Nathan probes the unit economics and monetization structure of the intern placement model. Rod clearly explains the pricing shifts from $100 to $1,500 based on advisor feedback without friction.
Bootcamp Talent Supply and First Client Acquisition 4413 Nathan questions the logic of launching a recruiting business during a pandemic. Rod clarifies the dynamic by correcting Nathan's confusion about Base CRM versus an executive assistant tool.
Sponsor Break: Design Pickle On-Demand Graphic Services 0000 A dedicated mid-roll sponsor ad read by the host for Design Pickle with zero guest interaction.
The $90K Failure of Dananza and Overcoming Debt 6313 Nathan cites Rod's specific LinkedIn statistics and past posts back to him to drill down on community growth metrics. Rod explains his bootstrap strategy and managing credit card debt.
The Famous Five: Habits, Tools, and Hard-Earned Lessons 4101 Nathan runs through the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, and Rod provides straightforward, candid responses regarding his background and daily routines.

Statements from this episode (9)

Disclosure
Prentus charges $1,500 upfront and $1,500 upon permanent hire
“So we do intern to perm basically as the goal. So a business comes to us, they pay for the hiring fee, you can call it. It's per intern and we charge 1500 dollars for that. And then they work it up for three months. And if they want to hire the intern, then yo…”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 2:04
Disclosure
Prentus allows client startups to offer unpaid internships
“So we only work with, you know, startups that have a mentor. So these interns are mainly looking for mentorship. We do have, you know, some startups do pay them, but some startups don't. It depends on their kind of level. So it's up to the business to decide o…”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 2:43
Disclosure
Prentus raised placement pricing from $100 to $1,500
“Well, so we built up, like, I initially, the first company was a hundred dollars. You know, we're just trying to get, you know, internships started. That way we can get testimonials, which will boost revenue in the future. And then from there, we went to four …”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 4:01
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Eight paying companies have used Prentus
“It's been eight companies now.”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 4:37
Insight
Danan: Sourcing bootcamp talent is easy due to urgent entry-level demand
“So on the unsupply side, like, it's actually kind of easy because, you know, a lot of boot camp grads, they come out and getting that first job is really tough because they don't have experience. So they're all looking for this. There's a lot of supply.”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 5:53
Disclosure
Danan: Spent $90k on contractors and employees for failed first startup
“In total. I spent 90 K between contractors and then employees and, you know, kind of went down the drain, but it was lessons, you know, all that put me on the path to build this.”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 10:32
Disclosure
Danan funded failed startup with 401(k), savings, and credit cards
“It was for one K was savings from my other, my previous job. And then also a lot of credit card debt, which I do not recommend knowing that.”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 11:08
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Prentus has 110 interns on its placement waitlist
“We have right now like a 110 interns that are waiting to get placed.”
Rod Danan Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 12:21
Insight
Latka: Community is the best MVP today, even for SaaS
“I think the core, like the best MVP today is community. Even if you're like for SaaS platforms or anything”
Nathan Latka Sep 16, 2020 ▶ 14:45
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