fnGlobal Keynote & Roundtables with Elad Ben Meir (August 19, 2025)

What separates startups that thrive from those that fail? According to Elad Ben Meir, success isn’t just about having a great idea—it’s about the relationships, strategy, and discipline that fuel long-term growth. With over 15 years of experience leading high-growth companies and executing successful turnarounds, Elad has transformed struggling businesses into thriving market leaders.

His approach underscores the importance of strong founder relationships, comparing them to a marriage that requires continuous communication, trust, and alignment. Without this foundation, even the most innovative startups can struggle. He also emphasizes the need for transparency at every level—founders, management, and investors—ensuring alignment and a shared vision for success.

Elad cautions against the dangers of overspending in pursuit of rapid growth. He advocates for a balanced approach, making calculated investments that drive scale while maintaining financial discipline. He will also share his insights on choosing the right investors, warning that big-name backers aren’t always the best fit if their vision, culture, or expectations don’t align with a startup’s long-term goals.

Don’t miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights from Elad Ben Meir’s extensive experience in scaling high-growth startups and leading successful turnarounds. Whether you're just starting out or navigating the complexities of growth, his expertise in founder relationships, communication, financial discipline, and investor alignment is invaluable.

Opening Remarks @ 9:30am PT

Join us for opening remarks with Dina Wagner, Head of Member Success at Founders Network, to get the latest updates from the Network and opportunities for getting involved.

Keynote Speaker @ 9:40am PT

Elad Ben-Meir is a seasoned entrepreneur, CEO, and turnaround specialist with a proven track record in scaling startups, executing successful exits, and revitalizing struggling businesses. As the CEO of SCADAfence, he brings over 15 years of leadership experience in high-growth environments, financial turnarounds, and market repositioning. Previously, he served as VP of Marketing and Strategic Accounts at CyberInt and VP of Marketing and Products at indeni.

Elad is known for leading companies through crisis situations, securing strategic partnerships, and driving disciplined execution that leads to sustainable success. A strong advocate for financial discipline and founder-investor alignment, he regularly advises startups on raising capital, scaling responsibly, and avoiding common growth pitfalls. He holds a BA in Computer Science & Economics from Tel Aviv College and is a sought-after speaker in the cybersecurity and IT sectors.

Stage-Based Roundtables @ 10:30am PT

Community Partners:

Jeff Erickson

Jeff leads the Partnerships Team at Forecastr — a leading FP&A software company that helps startups create kick-butt financial models to impress investors, confidently raise capital, and effectively run their businesses better.

Jeff serves on the advisory boards of several startup companies and is an active angel investor. He's passionate about startups and enjoys working with founders and mentoring entrepreneurs.

Jeff is an experienced entrepreneur and was the founder and CEO of a successful consumer goods company that he rapidly grew from $1M in sales its first year to over $40M in annual revenue in its fourth year of operations and was ranked #138 on the Inc. 500 list of fastest growing companies.

Prior to founding his own company, Jeff was a partner at Beanstalk Partners where he led the sales and business development activities. He also served as the National Sales Director for a venture-backed tech startup where he generated over $45M in client contracts and developed the company’s channel partner program.

Jeff has a degree in accounting and graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Utah. After receiving his MBA in Finance from the University of Utah he served as the Vice President of Investments for Sentry Financial Corporation.

Blake Caldwell

Blake Caldwell is the CEO & Founder of FoundersBoost. He has 350 alumni, 100 new startups a year, 8k newsletter readers. He's driven by his passions to create and build community. He's also the founder of 2332 Collective (music production & festivals with the goal of bringing music to West LA) & The MoGuard (consumer product cup attachment protecting glorious mustaches).

FoundersBoost is a free pre-seed & seed stage mentorship driven pre-accelerator helping promising tech-startups with accelerators, investment, and revenue.

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 Policy:

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.