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Jun 29, 2018 · 18m · top-founders

1070 Navy Vet Makes Loads Via Lifetime Fitness, Now Digital Asset Management

Mike Brown · 10m 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

Nathan Latka interviews Fission founder Mike Brown to examine how his Navy background and Lifetime Fitness executive experience guided the growth of his enterprise digital asset management software to a $1 million annual run rate.

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 36.9% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.0 Guest teaching 2.8 Guest disagreement 1.0 Nathan pushing back 2.8
05100:0010:001:54–5:34 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Fission Business Model and Enterprise Market Strategy Nathan explores Fission's business model and pricing tiers, noting the risks of customer concentration when shifting to enterprise ARPU. Mike explains how enterprise pain points drive higher contract values compared to SMBs.5:34–9:31 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Scaling Run Rate, Funding History, and Customer Retention Nathan presses on historical growth rates, funding sources, and logo versus revenue churn. Mike shares details of his $4M self-funding and explains keeping setup fees low to circumvent corporate CapEx approval thresholds.9:35–14:28 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Sponsor Feature: ProsperWorks CRM Platform Following a sponsor read, Nathan questions why Mike needs to raise capital if the business yields 45% to the bottom line. Mike clarifies that 45% EBITDA represents the mature unit economics model at scale, whereas the company is currently burning cash.14:32–17:43 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Famous Five Questions, Volero Acquisition, and Life Lessons During the Famous Five, Nathan inquires about the Volero acquisition and challenges the logic of listing on the OTCQB given administrative overhead. Mike defends the public listing as an effective way to use equity as acquisition currency.17:43–18:36 · Nathan as informed peer 0/10 Episode Conclusion and Performance Recap Nathan delivers a rapid solo summary of Mike's metrics, company history, and financials. Because this is a monologue closing segment, host interaction scores are zeroed.1:54–5:34 · Guest teaching 3/10 Fission Business Model and Enterprise Market Strategy Nathan explores Fission's business model and pricing tiers, noting the risks of customer concentration when shifting to enterprise ARPU. Mike explains how enterprise pain points drive higher contract values compared to SMBs.5:34–9:31 · Guest teaching 2/10 Scaling Run Rate, Funding History, and Customer Retention Nathan presses on historical growth rates, funding sources, and logo versus revenue churn. Mike shares details of his $4M self-funding and explains keeping setup fees low to circumvent corporate CapEx approval thresholds.9:35–14:28 · Guest teaching 5/10 Sponsor Feature: ProsperWorks CRM Platform Following a sponsor read, Nathan questions why Mike needs to raise capital if the business yields 45% to the bottom line. Mike clarifies that 45% EBITDA represents the mature unit economics model at scale, whereas the company is currently burning cash.14:32–17:43 · Guest teaching 4/10 Famous Five Questions, Volero Acquisition, and Life Lessons During the Famous Five, Nathan inquires about the Volero acquisition and challenges the logic of listing on the OTCQB given administrative overhead. Mike defends the public listing as an effective way to use equity as acquisition currency.17:43–18:36 · Guest teaching 0/10 Episode Conclusion and Performance Recap Nathan delivers a rapid solo summary of Mike's metrics, company history, and financials. Because this is a monologue closing segment, host interaction scores are zeroed.1:54–5:34 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Fission Business Model and Enterprise Market Strategy Nathan explores Fission's business model and pricing tiers, noting the risks of customer concentration when shifting to enterprise ARPU. Mike explains how enterprise pain points drive higher contract values compared to SMBs.5:34–9:31 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Scaling Run Rate, Funding History, and Customer Retention Nathan presses on historical growth rates, funding sources, and logo versus revenue churn. Mike shares details of his $4M self-funding and explains keeping setup fees low to circumvent corporate CapEx approval thresholds.9:35–14:28 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Sponsor Feature: ProsperWorks CRM Platform Following a sponsor read, Nathan questions why Mike needs to raise capital if the business yields 45% to the bottom line. Mike clarifies that 45% EBITDA represents the mature unit economics model at scale, whereas the company is currently burning cash.14:32–17:43 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Famous Five Questions, Volero Acquisition, and Life Lessons During the Famous Five, Nathan inquires about the Volero acquisition and challenges the logic of listing on the OTCQB given administrative overhead. Mike defends the public listing as an effective way to use equity as acquisition currency.17:43–18:36 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Episode Conclusion and Performance Recap Nathan delivers a rapid solo summary of Mike's metrics, company history, and financials. Because this is a monologue closing segment, host interaction scores are zeroed.1:54–5:34 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Fission Business Model and Enterprise Market Strategy Nathan explores Fission's business model and pricing tiers, noting the risks of customer concentration when shifting to enterprise ARPU. Mike explains how enterprise pain points drive higher contract values compared to SMBs.5:34–9:31 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Scaling Run Rate, Funding History, and Customer Retention Nathan presses on historical growth rates, funding sources, and logo versus revenue churn. Mike shares details of his $4M self-funding and explains keeping setup fees low to circumvent corporate CapEx approval thresholds.9:35–14:28 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Sponsor Feature: ProsperWorks CRM Platform Following a sponsor read, Nathan questions why Mike needs to raise capital if the business yields 45% to the bottom line. Mike clarifies that 45% EBITDA represents the mature unit economics model at scale, whereas the company is currently burning cash.14:32–17:43 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Famous Five Questions, Volero Acquisition, and Life Lessons During the Famous Five, Nathan inquires about the Volero acquisition and challenges the logic of listing on the OTCQB given administrative overhead. Mike defends the public listing as an effective way to use equity as acquisition currency.17:43–18:36 · Nathan pushing back 0/10 Episode Conclusion and Performance Recap Nathan delivers a rapid solo summary of Mike's metrics, company history, and financials. Because this is a monologue closing segment, host interaction scores are zeroed.

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

0:00 · Nathan 50.8% · guest 49.2%0:00 · Nathan 50.8% · guest 49.2%3:00 · Nathan 15.3% · guest 84.7%3:00 · Nathan 15.3% · guest 84.7%6:00 · Nathan 24.6% · guest 75.4%6:00 · Nathan 24.6% · guest 75.4%9:00 · Nathan 63.4% · guest 36.6%9:00 · Nathan 63.4% · guest 36.6%12:00 · Nathan 27.9% · guest 72.1%12:00 · Nathan 27.9% · guest 72.1%15:00 · Nathan 27.1% · guest 72.9%15:00 · Nathan 27.1% · guest 72.9%18:00 · Nathan 90% · guest 10%18:00 · Nathan 90% · guest 10%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 1:22 Correcting service branch distinction

Mike playfully but bluntly corrects Nathan for mistakenly introducing him as a Marine rather than a Navy veteran.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 12:55 Challenging fundraising while claiming high margins

Nathan directly challenges why Mike intends to raise capital if the company is generating 45% bottom-line EBITDA.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 13:28 Explaining model economics versus early-stage burn

Mike educates Nathan that theoretical software EBITDA margins only materialize after reaching critical mass, noting that most SaaS firms deliberately burn cash early on.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 16:16 Questioning high overhead of micro-cap public status

Nathan immediately catches the administrative burden and compliance costs associated with maintaining a public listing at Fission's small scale.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Fission Business Model and Enterprise Market Strategy 5312 Nathan explores Fission's business model and pricing tiers, noting the risks of customer concentration when shifting to enterprise ARPU. Mike explains how enterprise pain points drive higher contract values compared to SMBs.
Scaling Run Rate, Funding History, and Customer Retention 5213 Nathan presses on historical growth rates, funding sources, and logo versus revenue churn. Mike shares details of his $4M self-funding and explains keeping setup fees low to circumvent corporate CapEx approval thresholds.
Sponsor Feature: ProsperWorks CRM Platform 6525 Following a sponsor read, Nathan questions why Mike needs to raise capital if the business yields 45% to the bottom line. Mike clarifies that 45% EBITDA represents the mature unit economics model at scale, whereas the company is currently burning cash.
Famous Five Questions, Volero Acquisition, and Life Lessons 4414 During the Famous Five, Nathan inquires about the Volero acquisition and challenges the logic of listing on the OTCQB given administrative overhead. Mike defends the public listing as an effective way to use equity as acquisition currency.
Episode Conclusion and Performance Recap 0000 Nathan delivers a rapid solo summary of Mike's metrics, company history, and financials. Because this is a monologue closing segment, host interaction scores are zeroed.

Statements from this episode (12)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brown: Fission operates at an 82% gross margin
“And it's a, you know, 82% gross margin business.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 2:42
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brown: Fission tripled average monthly annuity and doubled total annuity value
“All blended, we've, we have tripled our monthly annuity as a, on an average client basis in the last year. We've doubled the total annuity value just in the last 12 months.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 3:47
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brown: No single customer exceeds 5% of Fission's revenue
“I don't think we have any customer right now that represents more than five percent of our total revenue.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 4:15
Insight
Brown: Gaining traction in SMB is harder than enterprise
“Well, we have found that the traction Selling into the small business channel is harder to accomplish than selling into the large corporate global enterprise channel.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 4:47
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brown: Fission surpasses $1 million annuity run rate
“And we have eclipsed now on the annuity run rate of over a million.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 5:45
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Brown: Fission will triple its run rate by year-end
“Yeah, we've got a hundred percent January to January in our annuity, which is awesome, and we should see three X that by the time we end this year, so it's really starting to take off for us.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 6:11
Insight
Brown: Enterprise tech sales cycles average 15 months
“Enterprises probably easily in the tech space, 15 months on average from the time that you engage until you have a profitable generating client, right?”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 6:29
Disclosure
Brown personally funded half of Fission's $8 million total capital raised
“Half of it is mine out of hip national bank, both branches, right? And the other half is from friends, family small business folks that that know my track record and so forth.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 7:19
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brown claims Fission's 5% churn is one-third the industry average
“We haven't seen that yet. We're probably less than, we're probably about a third of that.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 9:00
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Brown: Digital Asset Management Market Will Reach $22B Within 24 Months
“In our particular area, it's expected to be twenty-two billion. Within the next 12 to 24 months, growing at about 16% per year.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 12:17
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brown: Fewer Than 30% of SaaS Companies Are Profitable
“It's probably less than 30%. Of your SaaS companies out there are actually showing a profit.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 13:50
Disclosure
Brown: Fission bought Volero purely with OTCQB stock
“Very small and we did it purely on stock. You know, we're yeah, we're publicly traded on the QB. So we used our stock as currency on that.”
Mike Brown Jun 29, 2018 ▶ 15:45
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