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Rick Zullo
Rick Zullo

749 Followers

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Jul 17, 2022

On Imposter Syndrome — Letting Fear Drive You, Not Define You

@Rick_Zullo Co-Founder / General Partner at Equal Ventures One of the more challenging items I’ve dealt with as my career matures is the feeling of belonging. While it might be a surprise to many, the state where we are as a firm and where I am in my career has…

Venture Capital

5 min read

Venture Capital

5 min read


Jan 16, 2021

Finding “Founder <> Investor Fit”

Cheerleaders vs. Trainers Unquestionably, 2020 was a jarring year for startups. Whether you are a company dismantled by COVID or resilient to its impact, it affected your organization and placed undue strain on the founders of the company. Founders have had to not only worry about the viability and growth…

Startup

4 min read

Finding “Founder <> Investor Fit”
Finding “Founder <> Investor Fit”
Startup

4 min read


Jan 8, 2021

The Turning Point

Democracy, capital markets and innovation cycles 4 years ago, I was on vacation with my wife. Trump had just been elected and we were escaping a frigid Chicago winter to relax on a warm beach. I’m not a casual beach reader and opted to read a relatively academic, twenty-year-old book…

5 min read

The Turning Point
The Turning Point

5 min read


Oct 2, 2017

The Science of Simplicity

Why keeping it simple is the secret to finding Product-Market Fit and raising your Series A The single hardest thing for any startup to accomplish is achieving Product-Market Fit. Product-Market Fit (PMF) is defined differently for every startup, but can most generally be described as the moment when there is…

Startup

3 min read

Startup

3 min read


May 26, 2017

Going Vertical: How to identify markets ripe for vertical software disruption

Earlier this year, I penned a piece on why I’m NOT a B2B SaaS investor. I stand by my position that the landscape has evolved due to heightened competition across software companies, making it increasingly difficult to scale traditional B2B SaaS companies. The truth is, it’s never been easier to…

Startup

4 min read

Startup

4 min read


Jan 19, 2017

Why I’m NOT a “B2B SaaS” Investor

Originally published in VentureBeat on January 14, 2017 (http://venturebeat.com/2017/01/14/why-im-not-a-b2b-saas-investor/) People often categorize me as a ‘B2B SaaS’ investor, when in actuality I haven’t invested in a single SaaS company in years. Why? Because I think it’s really hard for a traditional SaaS company to be successful in today’s market. Given…

Startup

5 min read

Startup

5 min read


Published in

Startups & Venture Capital

·Dec 2, 2016

5 Reasons Why Traction is Overrated for Seed Stage (Enterprise) Startups

A large part of my day is spent meeting with companies that will likely never be a fit for our fund or my investment profile. There isn’t anything wrong with these companies (they often go on to raise money from other funds or angel investors), but they just aren’t a…

Venture Capital

5 min read

Venture Capital

5 min read


Jan 6, 2016

Why hiring great talent for a VC fund can be just as hard as picking the next great startup

Today, I’m excited to announce that Eric Ong is joining Lightbank. Eric joins us from the west coast where he spent the last 2 years as a TMT investment banker at Deutsche Bank and returns to Chicago after going to Northwestern for his undergraduate degree. Eric is extremely impressive in…

Startup

3 min read

Startup

3 min read


Aug 28, 2015

Design, Decentralization and Democratization — The 3 Ds of Industry-Leading Software

Design, Decentralization and Democratization — The 3 Ds of Industry-Leading Software A decade ago, quality software solutions were a privilege reserved for the corporate elite, those who could afford multi-year implementations with swarms of resources to develop customized products. Customers would bring in large professional services firms to help with…

Startup

4 min read

Startup

4 min read


Aug 20, 2015

Trucking: The Next Unicorn Marketplace?

Trucking: The Next Unicorn Marketplace? With over $5.4B dollars poured into Uber over the last year, we are seeing more and more founders coming to us with an “Uber for X” pitch for their marketplace business. As frequent investors in (and builders of) marketplace businesses, we are thrilled to see…

Startup

3 min read

Trucking: The Next Unicorn Marketplace?
Trucking: The Next Unicorn Marketplace?
Startup

3 min read

Rick Zullo

Rick Zullo

749 Followers

VC @EqualVentures bridging the digital divide, husband to @lauren_zullo

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