Beyond Capital: How Venture Guides is Redefining the Venture Playbook
April 24, 2025
Welcome to Built Not Born: The Startup Go-To-Market Podcast, the podcast for early-stage founders and startup leaders who know that great companies aren’t lucky… they’re built through smart execution and a bulletproof go-to-market strategy.
in this episode of Built Not Born, host Sage Nye sits down with Ben Nye, Managing Partner at Venture Guides, to explore the strategy behind their newly launched Fund II. Ben explains why Venture Guides takes a hands-on, founder-first approach, from investing in fewer companies to embedding go-to-market support at every level. He shares how today’s startups can scale smarter in 2025 by staying customer-obsessed, avoiding common hiring pitfalls, and partnering with investors who offer more than capital.
Welcome to Built Not Born: The Startup Go-To-Market Podcast, the podcast for early-stage founders and startup leaders who know that great companies aren’t lucky… they’re built through smart execution and a bulletproof go-to-market strategy.
in this episode of Built Not Born, host Sage Nye sits down with Ben Nye, Managing Partner at Venture Guides, to explore the strategy behind their newly launched Fund II. Ben explains why Venture Guides takes a hands-on, founder-first approach, from investing in fewer companies to embedding go-to-market support at every level. He shares how today’s startups can scale smarter in 2025 by staying customer-obsessed, avoiding common hiring pitfalls, and partnering with investors who offer more than capital.
Here’s what you’ll learn:
- Why Venture Guides is going lean, with only 15 portfolio companies per fund
- How to know if your startup is really working (hint: it’s about time horizons)
- The customer-first mindset that every founder needs in 2025
- What to avoid when hiring your first go-to-market leader
- Why the best funding offer isn’t always the highest valuation
- How co-locating startups can speed up execution
Ben Nye is the Managing Partner at Venture Guides, a focused execution-first venture capital firm specializing in early-stage infrastructure software investments. As a six-time Midas list investor and former operator and CEO, Ben brings over 25 years of experience in building and scaling successful software companies, including notable exits like Rapid7, SolarWinds, Dynatrace, and Turbonomic. His unique approach combines deep technical expertise with hands-on operational guidance, maintaining an impressive 81% success rate across portfolio companies.
Episode Resources: