Earnest Sweat

Earnest Sweat Speaking Topics

• How Leaders Innovate: Capture the Potential of Your Human Experience

  Description: We live in a world of exponential growth and accelerating change. Changing ourselves and our businesses is more necessary than ever. In this provocative talk, you can see your leadership potential and how it's directly tied to putting yourself on the line for the benefit of those you lead. It is a motivational and eye-opening experience illuminating how personal discomfort gives access to breakthrough growth and how to find the courage to not just accept it, but to get out ahead of it to be able to lead change as the only competitive advantage. Leaders of companies of any size can embrace the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, such as robots, IoT and AI, and create something completely new without losing who they are in the process.

  Attendee Results:

  • Learn how using discomfort can lead to innovative thinking and breakthrough ideas.
  • Understand the critical role our own discomfort plays in our business success (or lack thereof).
  • Experience what the human experience is by means of a moving and powerful example.
  • Learn the methodology behind using constraints, hardships, and problems as circumstances to be embraced as our access to innovation.
  • Develop an ecology of people who create big goals, allowing for and even forcing actions that were previously unthinkable.

• Scaling a startup in a capital intensive foundational industry

  Description: There have been obvious hardships plaguing our economy in recent years – from the pandemic to the current issue with inflation. And while most investors, founders, and industries may have seen a downturn in capital as a result of this, it doesn't mean that things are halting completely. Foundational industries are proving why they're considered foundational to begin with – their deep roots and solid foundation have allowed them to maintain healthy businesses of every size due to relevance. Specifically, founders that are building products/platforms/services that modernize and accelerate the delivery of digital and physical assets. These software companies are improving high tech problems. One of the greatest needs over the next decade will be how software technology can improve efficiency, reduce costs, or enhance the value it provides to customers particularly for real estate, retail-ecommerce, and supply chain industries. Founders operating and scaling in these spaces have been able to find success, despite their small stature and dreadful economy, by accelerating industries with an already undeniable footing. As an experienced investor, Earnest explores the current state of the market that is making it such an ideal time for founders who are helping to accelerate these businesses with "value chain technology". He will break down the who, what, why of startups foundational industries and how-why investors like him will seek out these companies who are building more with less. His entire portfolio has grown to a combined more than $13 billion in enterprise value and have increased on average 8.6x in post-money valuation, with six companies growing more than 10x.

  Attendee Results:

  • Insights into the inner workings of VCs and how the economy-current affairs affects where capital is going.
  • Understanding foundational industries and the role that they play in our ecosystem.
  • Learn more about the companies that are building technology specifically for these kinds of legacy industries, and the importance of modernizing and digitizing these kinds of spaces.
  • Discover how companies of any size have been able to succeed and scale in industries far bigger than themselves.
  • Learn about value chain technology, how it helps accelerate business, and how/why investors are seeking out these companies that are building more with less.

How The Next Generation Of Saas VCs Are Changing The Investment Landscape As We Know It

Recent years have acted as a sort of renaissance, or new beginning. The pandemic changed everything about our lives, from the way we live to the way we work to the way we consume. And it's changed everything about how businesses and investors operate, too. The investment landscape hasn't been the same in years. Capital is scarce and investments are more thoughtful now. Additionally, many sectors are facing major policy changes and regulations that are turning certain companies upside down. With these changes, comes the rise of a new generation of VC. A generation that cares just as much about the founder as they do the tech. VCs that understand and adhere to the changing needs of founders.

Earnest discusses the next generation of SaaS VCs, how they differ (for better and for worse) from the first wave of investors we all are used to, and what this means for the future of SaaS startups.

Attendee Results:

• Learn about the current state of VC, and how recent events, the economy, and more impact investment strategies across industries (esp now as capital is scarce).
• Understand some of the defining qualities and characteristics of previous generations of VCs, and what did and didn’t work from this generation. Specifically when it comes to SaaS technology and investors.
• Discover the new generation of VC and learn how they differ from those before them in terms of investment strategy, partnership, and leadership to their portfolio companies.
• Discover what all this means for the future of startups and SaaS.