A New Take on the VC-Founder Relationship

A New Take on the VC-Founder Relationship

Author: Burkland September 23, 2025 Duration: 28:14
Ivan Montoya is a venture capitalist with a fresh perspective on the typical VC–founder relationship. He and his firm, NuMundo Ventures, take an unusually hands-on approach with pre-seed and seed-stage founders—providing a level of support typically reserved for Series A and B stage startups.

They often form close bonds with founders even before investing, actively helping with fundraising, pitch decks, go-to-market strategy, and everything in between.

On this episode of Startup Success, we explore how Ivan’s trajectory from startup operator to angel investor to VC shaped his approach to backing founders, and how he’s helping the next generation of LatAm entrepreneurs achieve remarkable growth and gain traction in the US.

We discuss:
  • How to make your startup stand out at an early stage
  • The power of working with the right VC partner
  • LatAm’s startup boom and why their ecosystem is ripe for disruption

Whether you’re a founder, investor, or part of the global startup community, this episode takes you inside an emerging tech scene and reveals a new blueprint for the VC-founder relationship.

----

Stay connected with our host, Kate Adams, here on LinkedIn!
Learn more about NuMundo Ventures here: https://numundoventures.com/

Tuning into Startup Success: A Podcast for Founders & Investors feels less like attending a formal lecture and more like pulling up a chair in a room full of people who have actually built and funded companies. Hosted by the team at Burkland, the conversations here move beyond theory to focus on the tangible, often messy, realities of scaling a business. You’ll find episodes that feel timely, addressing the specific challenges and opportunities that founders and investors are navigating right now. The dialogue is driven by guests who have lived it-founders recounting pivotal moments from their journey and investors explaining the nuances behind their decisions. This isn't about generic advice; it's about the operational details that make or break growth. Each discussion naturally narrows in on a single, critical pressure point, whether that's untangling a complex financing round, refining a go-to-market strategy, or building a culture that can withstand rapid hiring. The value of this podcast lies in its specificity and the credibility of the voices featured. It serves as a practical resource for anyone actively involved in the lifecycle of a startup, offering perspectives that are immediately applicable to your own work. By focusing on real stories and current trends, the series provides a grounded, actionable look at what genuine progress requires from both sides of the founder-investor relationship.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Startup Success: A Podcast for Founders & Investors
Podcast Episodes
What to Stop Doing Today: Real Talk with a Startup Coach [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:15
We’re thrilled to welcome back Feras Alhlou—seasoned entrepreneur, startup coach, and co-founder of Start Up With Feras—for another insightful episode of Startup Success.In this candid conversation, Feras dives into what…
How a User-Driven Pivot Led to Product-Market Fit [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:09
In this episode, we sit down with Merrill Lutsky, Co-Founder and CEO of Graphite, a breakout startup redefining code review for the AI era. Originally built solely as an internal code review tool, Graphite unexpectedly a…
Pitch to Deck to Close: Mastering Fundraising [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:57
If you’re a founder gearing up to raise capital, this episode of Startup Success is your ultimate fundraising playbook. We’re joined by Nathan Beckord, CEO of Foundersuite and Fundingstack, and host of the How I Raised I…
Navigating Co-Founder Dynamics [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:15
What makes a co-founder relationship thrive—or fall apart? In this episode of Startup Success, we’re joined by Tim He, Founder of Cherrytree, a company helping startup co-founders navigate the tricky terrain of working t…
Your Startup Board: How to Make it a Game Changer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:03
What makes a startup board really effective? How do you build one that will truly benefit your startup? How do you conduct board meetings that are helpful and not just a quarterly scramble to put together a deck? In this…
Think Like a Scientist: Smarter Decision-Making for Founders [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:35
In this episode of Startup Success, we welcome Arielle Lechner, Executive Coach and Founder of NewPo, to discuss the crucial role of decision-making and leadership in early-stage startups. Arielle, a mentor for TechStars…
Strategies for Startups Outside Silicon Valley [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:30
Finding startup success outside of Silicon Valley is possible – it just requires some ingenuity.We couldn’t think of anyone who knows more about this topic than Rick Turoczy.With three decades of experience supporting fo…
Q1 Snapshot: The Startup Ecosystem [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:55
Join us for a Q1 update! Kicking off 2025, many anticipated a return to the "good old days" of economic optimism, but the reality has been more complex. In this episode of Startup Success, we sit down with Steven Lord, B…
Data Privacy Considerations that Startups Can’t Ignore [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:06
In this episode of Startup Success, we explore the data privacy considerations that all founders need to address, not ignore, with Katharine Tomko, Partner at First Ascent Ventures. Katharine fully understands all the pr…
Unlocking Growth: How Startups Can Optimize Pricing & Packaging [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:36
Pricing and packaging can make or break a startup, yet many founders struggle to get it right. In this episode of Startup Success, we sit down with Fynn Glover, Co-Founder and CEO of Schematic, to explore his journey fro…