fnGlobal Keynote: How I Survived My Board and Investors Long Enough to Sell for $500M (November 18, 2020)

Here is the link to the slide deck that was used in the presentation.

You may believe yourself to be irreplaceable, but you are the only one who thinks so. Board members can not only replace you; at times, they may instinctively want to. In this Founders Network talk, Geoff Cook -- serial entrepreneur who most recently sold The Meet Group for $500 million -- discusses his top four survival moments across a 15-year career as a founder and CEO, and what early-stage founders need to know about navigating similar risks.

Register for Geoff’s keynote to learn:

• How to fight harmlessly, letting go of your ego to engage rationally
• Choosing the right investor -- of you can't stand the dating, the marriage won't be fun
• Getting at least one reliable advocate on your board
• Buying yourself time in the face of scrutiny
• Making compromises to execute against your strategy

Get the help that you need NOW. RSVP today and join other fnFounders for mentorship and deep discussions on relevant topics as you scale your business. Ask other founders who have been there, done that, and help share your expertise to help them.

Agenda

• 9:15am - Event pre-check
• 9:30am - Opening remarks (Kevin)
• 9:35am - Keynote speaker
• 10:10am - Chapter Roundtables, Series-A+ Roundtable (Keynote speaker to join for private Q&A in Series-A roundtables)
• 11am - Conclude

Speaker

Geoff Cook

Geoff Cook is a serial entrepreneur and public company CEO. He has been on the board of The Meet Group (NASDAQ: MEET) since 2011 until its sale in 2020.

Geoff sold the company for $500 million in September 2020 -- one of the last large public deals prior to the declaration of a global pandemic by the WHO. He started his first company from a Harvard dorm and sold it for millions of dollars at age 24 in the year 2002. He sold his second company for $100 million in 2011.

Geoff is currently the CEO and co-founder of The Meet Group, a social dating and livestreaming company. He is also GM of video for the parent company ParshipMeet Group. He successfully transitioned the company from 90% advertising revenue in 2016 to 60+% user-pay revenue while dramatically expanding revenue by investing heavily in livestreaming video.

Geoff is experienced in M&A, having spent $200 million in the last 4 years buying and integrating 4 companies: LOVOO, Tagged, Skout, and Growlr, and also in corporate development, having recently agreed to a three-year deal to power live video for one of The Match Group's (ticker: MTCH) largest apps: POF. Geoff is also a thought leader in building safer dating apps.

Geoff is the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner for the Philadelphia Region. He has also received the "Best Places to Work in Pennsylvania" award on behalf of his company. In his spare time, Geoff is a children’s book author and a mentor at Princeton University’s Keller Center. Geoff is listed on 4 patents currently pending with the USPTO related to livestreaming dating and incented audio.

He graduated from Harvard University in 2000 with a BA in Economics.

Guests Are Welcome!

Please bring a guest! Every member can bring one (1) guest to each event. Each guest must be a full-time tech startup founder so they can bring new perspectives, skillsets, and experience to your chapter.

All guests must be full-time tech startup founders and you can register them directly on this function page. See How to Register a Guest here.

Confidentiality Reminder

All information shared within Founders Network is strictly confidential. We are built on a foundation of trust, and the community takes confidentiality seriously. Investors, members, and staff all share experiences and opinions off the record. In this roundtable forum, we continue to model our fnValues of Reciprocity, Humility, Authenticity and Inclusivity.