From Working In A Bar To CEO of Startmate, In Conversation With Michael Batko

Today we’re in conversation with Michael Batko, the CEO of Startmate.After years in finance and consulting in his early days, Michael moved to Australia to work in a bar - and ended up at early-stage startup Mad Paws. We have the pleasure to hear Michael’s career journey in the startup space and the things he’s learnt along the way. If you’re interested in hearing his advice to founders and VCs alike–from the worst way to pivot to how to find a niche as a VC–this episode is for you.Struggling to hire tech talent? We’ve got a long-term solution: https://picwa.io/hireTimestamps:00:00 - Welcome to The Way Forward00:20 - Sponsor shoutout 00:47 - Intro to today’s episode01:02 - Michael’s early days in early-stage startups5:47 - A learning about financial modeling - it’s all about the story6:43 - Hiring for attitude and not skill9:23 - Aligning your career with your life’s mission11:20 - Advice to early-stage founders above the age of 3013:47 - Traction vs product-market fit 15:25 - Disappointments 17:54 - What Michael looks for in startups from an investor perspective20:47 - The worst way to pivot22:38 - How Michael maintains his mental health24:40 - Advice for VCs 26:00 - A common misconception about going into VC28:11 - What VCs bring to the table (and it’s not just capital)31:27 - Signals and anti-signals of great founders33:21 - What Michael would like to see more of from the NZ/AUS startup spaceLearn how to outperform traditional recruitment agencies at PICWA.io