The Investor Relations Podcast

Learn To Become Incorruptible with Eric Ries

"Nobody can ever trust this company again." That's what Eric Ries told a young founder on the way to what looked like a celebration — but was actually a wake for a company's soul. In this special-release episode, Joshua Wilson sits down with Eric Ries — author of the New York Times bestseller The Lean Startup, founder of the Long-Term Stock Exchange (LTSE), and author of the new book Incorruptible — for a candid conversation on the gravitational pressure capital markets exert on mission-driven companies and what founders, boards, and IR leaders can do about it. Eric unpacks why he calls this era "extraction primacy," why a Harvard Law School study found only 20% of venture-backed founders are still CEO three years after IPO, and how a structure he calls the spiritual holding company has quietly powered some of the most enduring businesses in the world — from Costco to Novo Nordisk to Patagonia to IKEA. If you're navigating a capital raise, building toward an IPO, sitting on a public company board, or advising founders through governance decisions that will shape the next twenty years, this is essential listening. 🎯 What We Cover: - Why the financial system targets trusted companies — and how to build defenses before you need them - The "governance fortress" concept and why Costco's board treats activist investors as noise - Sol Price, FedMart, and Jim Sinegal — the origin story behind modern warehouse retail and the lesson most founders miss - How the Novo Nordisk foundation rejected a $20B merger — and why that decision made Ozempic possible - What "extraction primacy" means and how it differs from shareholder primacy - The spiritual holding company structure (mission guardian entity, perpetual purpose trust, industrial foundation) and why companies that use it are 6x more likely to survive 50 years - How to recognize toxic capital before it enters the cap table - Why "I just want to make money" founders are often more mission-driven than they admit - The discipline required to resist spending pressure when the bank account is full - Practical guidance for founders, boards, and IR teams thinking about long-term governance design 🤝 Connect with Eric Ries: 🌐 https://www.incorruptible.co/ 🌐 https://www.ericriesshow.com/ 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/eries/ ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@theericriesshow 📩 Connect with Joshua Wilson: Have a question about investor relations, capital markets, or building your IR strategy? Reach out directly. 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ 🎙️ Follow The Investor Relations Podcast: 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@TheInvestorRelationsPodcast Disclaimer: Joshua Wilson is a licensed Florida real estate broker and holds FINRA Series 79 and Series 63 licensure. The content of this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or compliance advice. All views and opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of any regulatory agency, organization, or employer. Listeners should consult their own legal counsel, compliance teams, or financial advisors to ensure adherence to applicable regulations, including SEC, FINRA, and other industry-specific requirements. This podcast does not constitute a solicitation or recommendation for any financial products or services. Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] To Contact Us, Please Visit: https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/]

The IR Playbook Every Company Needs Before Activists Show Up — Aaron Bertinetti

There are only two types of public companies: those with activists, and those that will have activists. Aaron Bertinetti has seen it from every angle — issuer, advisor, and proxy — and he's blunt about what most boards get wrong before the gate is ever rattled. In this episode, Joshua Wilson sits down with Aaron Bertinetti, CEO of Investor Engagement at Computershare North America, for a candid conversation on what modern investor relations actually looks like at scale. Computershare serves more than 25,000 listed companies globally and counts roughly 58% of the S&P 500 as clients — giving Aaron a panoramic view of how capital markets, activism, and investor engagement are evolving in real time. With prior leadership roles as Managing Director and Head of ESG for IR at JPMorgan Chase and global head of research and corporate advisory at Glass Lewis, Aaron brings rare cross-disciplinary perspective on IR strategy, shareholder activism preparedness, investor targeting, SPAC communications, and the operational reality of running an IR function in a fragmented tooling environment. 🎯 What We Cover: * Why the IR role has shifted from earnings execution to C-suite strategic advisor * The diplomat-negotiator skill set every modern IR professional needs * Activism preparedness: building the playbook before the activist arrives * Why stock monitoring and engagement intelligence are non-negotiable * The 1-in-300 problem with traditional investor targeting — and how to fix it * Why microcaps should hunt aspirational investors, not their competitors' holders * How to bring CEOs and CFOs back actionable intelligence from the road * SPAC IR: building a public company narrative from day one * Tailoring messaging to institutional, family office, and retail audiences * Why operationalizing investor intelligence requires unified software, not more tools 🤝 Connect with Aaron Bertinetti: 🌐 https://www.computershare.com/us/business/investor-engagement-2 [https://www.computershare.com/us/business/investor-engagement-2] 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronbertinetti/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronbertinetti/] 📩 Connect with Joshua Wilson: Have a question about investor relations, capital markets, or building your IR strategy? Reach out directly. 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/] 🎙️ Follow The Investor Relations Podcast: 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/] ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@TheInvestorRelationsPodcast [https://www.youtube.com/@TheInvestorRelationsPodcast] Disclaimer: Joshua Wilson is a licensed Florida real estate broker and holds FINRA Series 79 and Series 63 licensure. The content of this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or compliance advice. All views and opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of any regulatory agency, organization, or employer. Listeners should consult their own legal counsel, compliance teams, or financial advisors to ensure adherence to applicable regulations, including SEC, FINRA, and other industry-specific requirements. This podcast does not constitute a solicitation or recommendation for any financial products or services. Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] To Contact Us, Please Visit: https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/]

How RIAs Are Reshaping the Investor Base for Pre-IPO Companies with Jeff Ransdell

The public market is 50% smaller than it was in 2000. Companies are staying private longer. And the wealth being created during that private window is bypassing every traditional investor relations playbook ever written. Joshua Wilson sits down with Jeff Ransdell — Founding Partner and Managing Director of Fuel Venture Capital — for a conversation IR teams cannot afford to miss. After two decades at Merrill Lynch overseeing roughly $130 billion in client assets, Jeff left the wirehouse world to build an institutional-quality VC firm purpose-built to serve the RIA channel. With nearly $1 billion in AUM, six funds, and a new Innovation 100 strategy designed for wealth advisors, Jeff makes the case that RIAs are becoming the dominant channel for pre-IPO investor capital — and that public-company IROs, pre-IPO communications leads, and capital markets advisors need a new framework for how innovation-economy companies engage their future investor base. This episode is essential listening for IR professionals tracking the migration of capital from public markets to late-stage private deals, and for pre-IPO operators thinking about IR strategy long before the S-1. 🎯 What We Cover: * Why the public market is half the size it was in 2000 — and what that means for IR strategy * The rise of the RIA channel as a serious source of pre-IPO capital * How Fuel Venture Capital's Innovation 100 fund is structured for wealth advisors * The 7–10% innovation allocation thesis from a former hedge fund CIO * Why 70% of startup employees never exercise their options — and how that distorts the cap table * What IR teams at late-stage private companies should be doing 18–36 months pre-exit * The shift from 10-year venture duration to 18–36 month pre-exit horizons * Why direct-to-consumer VC bypasses the financial advisor — and why Jeff thinks that's wrong * How AI is reshaping wealth management and the future of the advisor role * What separates boutique VC firms from the BlackRocks and Blackstones of the world 🤝 Connect with Jeff Ransdell:  🌐 https://www.fuelventurecapital.com/ [https://www.fuelventurecapital.com/]  💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffransdell/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffransdell/]  📧 jeff@fuelventurecapital.com [jeff@fuelventurecapital.com] 📩 Connect with Joshua Wilson: Have a question about investor relations, capital markets, or building your IR strategy? Reach out directly. 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/] Disclaimer: Joshua Wilson is a licensed Florida real estate broker and holds FINRA Series 79 and Series 63 licensure. The content of this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or compliance advice. All views and opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of any regulatory agency, organization, or employer. Listeners should consult their own legal counsel, compliance teams, or financial advisors to ensure adherence to applicable regulations, including SEC, FINRA, and other industry-specific requirements. This podcast does not constitute a solicitation or recommendation for any financial products or services. Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] To Contact Us, Please Visit: https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/]

From Multifamily to Castles in Spain: A Capital Raiser's Story — Mike Stohler

He sold 1,500 multifamily doors at 46 — over pancakes and a napkin number at IHOP — and then had to figure out what came next. What Mike Stohler found was an entirely different world: boutique castle hotels in Catalonia, Spain, priced at a fraction of what you'd expect, and a capital-raising strategy that no one in the room had ever seen before. Mike Stohler is Managing Partner at Gateway Private Equity Group and host of The Richer Geek podcast. A former commercial airline pilot and Navy veteran, Mike has owned or operated more than 1,500 units across multifamily, hotels, and residential — and now focuses exclusively on boutique hospitality investments in Spain. In this conversation, he unpacks the pivot from multifamily operator to international hotel investor, the LP mindset shift that changes everything when your asset class becomes exotic, and the deal structure philosophy that keeps capital raises moving: keep it simple, make it explainable, and let your investors tell you exactly what they want. 🎯 What We Cover: * The IHOP napkin moment: how Mike's 1,500-door multifamily portfolio sold over pancakes and coffee * Entering a new asset class the right way — finding an experienced operator partner and giving them a piece of the back end so they're accountable * Why raising capital for hotels felt different from multifamily the moment LPs started saying "I want to tell my friends I own a hotel" * How Mike coined the term "lifestyle investment" — and how it changed his entire marketing approach for the Spain acquisitions * The LP mindset difference between standard multifamily investors and exotic-asset investors who don't want you to ever sell * Waterfall and distribution structure philosophy: why Mike runs an 80-20 split on boutique deals and keeps prefs out of smaller structures * When complexity is appropriate in deal structure — and why confusion at any point destroys conversion * Mike's 20-year-old why, still hanging over his desk: "Build a life I don't need a vacation from" 🤝 Connect with Mike Stohler: 🌐 https://www.gatewayPE.com [https://www.gatewayPE.com] 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikestohler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikestohler] 🎙️ The Richer Geek Podcast: https://www.richergeek.com [https://www.richergeek.com] 📩 Connect with Joshua Wilson: Have a question about investor relations, capital markets, or building your IR strategy? Reach out directly. 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/] Disclaimer: Joshua Wilson is a licensed Florida real estate broker and holds FINRA Series 79 and Series 63 licensure. The content of this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or compliance advice. All views and opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of any regulatory agency, organization, or employer. Listeners should consult their own legal counsel, compliance teams, or financial advisors to ensure adherence to applicable regulations, including SEC, FINRA, and other industry-specific requirements. This podcast does not constitute a solicitation or recommendation for any financial products or services. Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] To Contact Us, Please Visit: https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/]

What Investors See That Founders Don't — Inside the VC Decision Process — Leon Eisen, PhD

A quantum physicist who built the world's first FDA-cleared wearable medical monitor — then crossed to the VC side and finally understood why he only raised $20M instead of $200M. What Leon Eisen, PhD discovered on the other side of the table will change how you think about every investor conversation you've ever had. Dr. Leon Eisen, PhD is a 4× founder, venture capitalist, and creator of Fundables OS™ — a fundraising operating system that has helped 100+ Seed and Series A teams become fundable. He is a Venture Partner at NetworkVC (Silicon Valley syndicate fund, 200+ LPs), a Senator at the World Business Angels Investment Forum (WBAF, G20 affiliated), and CEO of Venture Growth Group. In this episode, Leon pulls back the curtain on the VC decision-making process — how investors actually evaluate founders, why the logical brain is the last stop (not the first), and what truly separates a fundable company from one that keeps getting passed. Whether you're raising your first round or running a public company roadshow, the investor psychology Leon unpacks here applies across every capital raise conversation. 🎯 What We Cover: * Why founders pitch to the wrong brain — and the three-brain decision framework investors actually use * The difference between "asking for money" and offering equity in a growing asset — and why it changes everything * How to control the investor meeting through intelligence and preparation, not dominance * Why raising capital too early costs you more than you think — and the right time to raise * What VCs mean by "being in the flow" — and how they identify which companies are riding a trend vs. fighting one * The Fundables OS™ approach: why becoming fundable is a company-building exercise, not a pitch exercise * Momentum + charisma: the intersection Leon used to raise his first $1M during the 2008 financial crisis * How imposter syndrome silently kills founder credibility in investor meetings — and how to eliminate it * Why syndicate VCs have to sell themselves to founders, not just the other way around * The consciousness framework: how self-awareness separates entrepreneurs who scale from those who stall 🤝 Connect with Leon Eisen, PhD: 🌐 https://leoneisen.com [https://leoneisen.com] 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/leon-eisen/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/leon-eisen/] ▶️ Venture Grove with Leon Eisen (YouTube) 📩 Connect with Joshua Wilson: Have a question about investor relations, capital markets, or building your IR strategy? Reach out directly. 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] 🌐 https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/] Disclaimer: Joshua Wilson is a licensed Florida real estate broker and holds FINRA Series 79 and Series 63 licensure. The content of this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or compliance advice. All views and opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of any regulatory agency, organization, or employer. Listeners should consult their own legal counsel, compliance teams, or financial advisors to ensure adherence to applicable regulations, including SEC, FINRA, and other industry-specific requirements. This podcast does not constitute a solicitation or recommendation for any financial products or services. Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuabrucewilson/] To Contact Us, Please Visit: https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/ [https://www.theinvestorrelationspodcast.com/contact/]