Will Little @wclittle Subscribe

Managing Director at Prota Ventures.
I'm a bioengineer-turned-software-developer and venture builder/investor. Learn more about me professionally on LinkedIn, personally here, and check out the podcast I host, Ventures.

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Topic:   Startups
 Will Little

Nov 3, 2020
Startups Ventures Podcast Public Relations

Public Relations (PR) for startup founders: How to effectively communicate with journalists, influencers, and potential customers :: with Alexandra Skillman

In this episode, Alexandra Skillman (https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexskillman/) shares her extensive knowledge in the world of PR for an entrepreneurial audience. We discuss at length PR considerations for startup founders regarding go-to-market strategies, overall marketing plans, working with journalists, reaching out to influencers, and avoiding common mistakes.
Will Little

Oct 28, 2020
Startups Coaching Will's General Newsletter

Leadership coaching, Reddit conversations about algorithms, and Startup Rocket for organizations

In this newsletter I talk about my podcast with Shandel Sutherland, my Reddit post from last week, and a 3-min screencast I made today regarding Startup Rocket and its features for organizations.
Will Little

Oct 27, 2020
Startups Coaching Ventures Podcast

Coaching founders on leadership, holistic communication, team building, purpose, values, vision, and mission :: with Shandel Sutherland

In this episode of Ventures I had the honor of interviewing executive coach Shandel Sutherland (https://www.shandelgroup.com/) about topics including organizational effectiveness, personal/team wiring and communication, the “why” behind a company, and setup work that is necessary for teams to be maximally efficient. Establishing clarity is one of the hardest jobs as an entrepreneur and business leader, and in this episode we get a front-row seat into how a 20-yr coaching veteran helps founders and their teams succeed.

Will Little

Oct 20, 2020
Blockchains Startups Startup Fundraising Ventures Podcast

Emerging technology, startup funding, and books for entrepreneurs :: with John Biggs

My guest this week (John Biggs, https://twitter.com/johnbiggs, https://www.linkedin.com/in/johndbiggs/) is an entrepreneur, writer, and technologist. He was the east coast editor at TechCrunch for fifteen years, was an editor at Coindesk, and is currently the Editor in Chief at Gizmodo. In this conversation we dive into a wide range of topics including 5G, the future of work, blockchains, recommended books, John’s entrepreneurial ventures, his new book (Get Funded), previous books (https://johnbiggsbooks.com/), and practical advice for entrepreneurs.

Will Little

Oct 13, 2020
Health Science Startups Will's General Newsletter

Wisdom for entrepreneurs, Bio Eats World, and remember to register for this Saturday’s A Night of REST

A new podcast with Troy Henikoff, a new (long) article on how to prepare for bio eating the world, and a reminder to register for A Night of REST.

Will Little

Oct 13, 2020
Startups Startup Fundraising Venture Capital Ventures Podcast

Entrepreneurship, fundraising, and practical advice for startup founders :: with Troy Henikoff

This week I’m excited to share an in-depth conversation with Troy Henikoff (https://www.linkedin.com/in/troyhenikoff/, https://www.mathventurepartners.com/ ) about his entrepreneurial story and path into startup investing. Troy is one of the most amazing and inspiring people I know. I first met him when I moved to Chicago in the mid-2010s, and his generosity, enthusiasm, and support for founders has been consistently admirable and contagious. After an extended introduction where he shares his story, we walk through practical validation, execution, and funding advice for early stage founders.

Will Little

Oct 6, 2020
Startups Will's General Newsletter

Starting a side business, the future of the Satchel platform, and a request for good books for new founders

Lead Honestly is a web-based software platform designed to help managers have better one-on-one meetings with their direct reports. Satchel is growing. And what books would you recommend for new founders?

Will Little

Oct 6, 2020
Startups Ventures Podcast Product Management

Starting a side business, validating a product idea, and managing people :: the Lead Honestly story with Shay Howe and Darby Frey

In this episode of Ventures we examine the origin story of Lead Honestly, a web-based software platform designed to help managers have better one-on-one meetings with their direct reports. My guests Shay Howe (https://www.linkedin.com/in/shayhowe/) and Darby Frey (https://www.linkedin.com/in/darbyfrey/) have a frank and open conversation about starting a side business, balancing family life and their day jobs, transitioning from builder to manager, validating their startup idea, holding to values when setting pricing, and advice for entrepreneurs.
Will Little

Sep 29, 2020
Health Science Startups Keto Will's General Newsletter

From idea to exit in a few years, setting up a mac for web development, and followup from last week's episode on Lipidology

This week I’m honored to have two friends of mine share their story of building and growing a company, getting acquired, and merging in with a larger organization. I also share a screencast for Mac users setting up their computers for web development, and follow up from last's week's episode on lipidology.
Will Little

Sep 29, 2020
Startups Startup Fundraising Ventures Podcast

The VendorHawk story: Idea to successful acquisition within a few years, and the importance of founder worldview alignment :: with Patrick Lowndes and Brian Geihsler

In this episode of Ventures we cover the full spectrum of an amazing startup story: Patrick’s original idea, recruiting a team, landing his first customers, getting into an accelerator (Techstars), raising a $1.2 million seed round, and being acquired by ServiceNow.

Will Little

Sep 15, 2020
Startups Will's General Newsletter Social Entrepreneurship

Two important social justice issues to consider this week (and why to mark your calendar for October 17th)

First, listen/watch to today’s episode of Ventures: Period equity, femtech, health education, and Project Untaboo :: with Rachael Kim. Second, please mark your calendar: Real Escape from the Sex Trade (REST) is hosting A Night of REST: Virtual Soirée at 6pm PDT on Saturday, October 17th

Will Little

Sep 15, 2020
Startups Ventures Podcast

Period equity, femtech, health education, and Project Untaboo :: with Rachael Kim

In this episode my guest Rachael Kim (Founder & CEO, Project Untaboo) and I discuss period equity, period health/care/education, Project Untaboo, and advice for entrepreneurs and investors considering the space of femtech and healthcare in general.

Will Little

Sep 8, 2020
Health Science COVID-19 Startups

An inside look at COVID-19 care responses and innovation efforts within University of Washington Medicine :: an ask for those learning to code :: and a followup post on Reddit in /r/Entrepreneur

I sat down last week with a few folks from UW Medicine and learned about their amazing response to COVID-19. Being on the front-lines of the pandemic in the USA, it is extremely admirable how they organized themselves, formed an innovation group, and opened sourced their efforts to help healthcare communities around the world.
Will Little

Sep 8, 2020
Startups

Reflections on entrepreneurship education, learning to code, business validation, finding co-founders, & time management :: A shout-out to - and empathy for - founders diving in and juggling it all

For a bit of background, a couple weeks ago I posted a few thoughts in /r/Entrepreneur from my past couple of decades of building and investing in businesses. Thanks for all the encouraging feedback and thoughtful questions. This article is a summary of the five most common topics/themes/questions that come up from that thread.

Will Little

Sep 8, 2020
Health Science Startups Ventures Podcast

COVID-19 response and innovation at University of Washington Medicine. Plus, a call-to-action for medical technology entrepreneurs :: with Danica Little, Dimitry Levin, and Dr. Robert Sweet

In this episode of Ventures we look at the response to COVID-19 by teams involved with emergency preparedness and innovation at University of Washington (UW) Medicine in Seattle. We also discuss the need and options available for startups to collaborate with UW Medicine to help - not only with COVID-19 relief - but with general medtech and telehealth innovation to provide better care for patients in a post-COVID-19 world.