Aussie Startup Advice: USA

While Aussie founders understand the need to “go global”, their first consideration must be: Is the US market right for your startup? In episode 1 of Aussie Startup Advice: USA, podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, chats with Matt Sweeney, founder of Flirtey, the world’s first drone delivery service, about Matt’s decision to scale to the States.Carl and Matt discuss the need to develop a go-to-market plan that clearly frames how the US is the right market for your company’s strategic growth.Matt talks about Flirtey’s unique compatibility with the US market based on access to deep aerospace talent, large amounts of capital (Flirtey raised $16M in Silicon Valley 2017) and a regulatory framework that supported drone activities (with Nevada being a designated drone test site).

Real advice on navigating the US market from successful Australian entrepreneurs who have done it.This series was produced by Austrade and the Aussie Founders Network (AFN). Visit bit.ly/AustradeUSA to access a suite of resources to assist you and your business in your entry to the US. AFN is a growing global community of Aussie tech founders. To learn more and sign up for a membership, visit aussiefounders.org.

The fifty US states have vast differences in culture, cost, talent and time zones and can make it difficult to decide where to set up shop. This episode is your audio tour of top US locales for business and covers essentials like tax incentives, labour markets, and industry capabilities.Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, chats with Luke Anear, Co-Founder of SafetyCulture, a software for mobile workplace safety and quality management. Luke shares how a first customer led their team to Kansas City and how they worked with the city and state to negotiate major tax incentives.

You’ve decided the US is where you need to be, but do you know where to begin? This episode steers you through the process of getting set up!Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, interviews Geoff McQueen founder of Accelo, who closed a $9M Series A round in 2017 and Kathy Woeber Gardner, a mergers and acquisitions corporate lawyer. They discuss the sequencing of setting up your US entity, getting your visa, snagging a social security number and securing a driver’s license (prepare for traffic). All the essential info you need before you make a move to the US!

Obtaining the right visa is a critical step in your journey to setting up in the US. This podcast gives you the visa lowdown (E3, L1, H1B), ESTAS & companion visas and addresses which visa may be best for your situation.Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, interviews Matt Farnell a serial entrepreneur whose user acquisition intelligence platform Appsperse was acquired by Adroll. Through his 15 years in the US, Matt has successfully navigated numerous visa classes, and has now successfully gained his green card. Carl also speaks with Elizabeth Jamae, an immigration lawyer, who has worked with many Aussie tech founders and their teams to secure the correct US visas.

It may not be the most thrilling part of the founder’s journey, but proper financial management separates the best from the rest. In this episode, we demystify US investment structures, discuss when and why startups need to do a flip ups, and explain how Australian entrepreneurs can take advantage of the R&D tax concession & EMDG grants.Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, speaks with Deb Noller CEO and Co-Founder of Switch Automation. Deb closed a $3.8M Series A round in 2018. As a successful founder of multiple companies, Deb was recently recognised as one of the Top 50 Female Entrepreneurs in Australia. Deb is joined by Peter Harper, an Australian tax lawyer, international tax advisor and market-entry specialist now based in Atlanta.

It’s always difficult to “grow the family” and your first overseas hire is a critical part of your expansion strategy. In the US, talent acquisition and retention is very competitive and you must understand the cultural and regulatory landscape. This episode provides advice from successful Aussie founders on how to build your US team.Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, interviews Phaedon Stough founder of MitchelLake Group, an executive search, consulting and onsite recruitment solutions firm with offices located globally. Having worked across dozens of US markets Phaedon shares valuable US tech startup recruitment expertise.

How do you grow a business overseas? Sell, sell, sell! In this episode, you will hear about an actionable US sales team methodology custom fit for the Aussie founder and will learn why doing initial demand generation from Australia can kick-start your overseas expansion.Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, speaks with Matt Cameron, a sought after speaker on the topic of SaaS sales leadership based in the US. As a managing partner at SalesOps Central, Matt partners with venture backed startups to provide sales enablement to scale up companies to between $1M to $50M, with SaaSy Sales Management . In a former life, Matt was employee #6 for Salesforce in APAC and was responsible for building and managing the ANZ Enterprise Sales Team.

The US is the global epicentre of venture capital so it’s no surprise that it’s top of mind for many Australian entrepreneurs in the States. In this episode we reveal hot fundraising tips from Aussie founders and a startup fundraising expert.Podcast host Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and now AFN Director and Co-Founder of Shortlyster, interviews serial entrepreneur Mick Johnson. Mick is the founder of Lexy; his former startup, Whereoscope was acquired by Facebook in 2011. Carl also chats with Luba Lesiva, a former investment banker, financial analyst and VC expert in SF.

Invaluable insights are shared in this bonus episode - Carl Hartmann, founder of Temando and Shortlyster speaks with Jeremy Liew, Venture Capitalist at Lightspeed Venture Partners and an Australian based in San Francisco for over 21 years. Jeremy gives tips every Aussie tech founder seeking VC funding needs to be across; mostly focusing on consumer investing Jeremy shares what he looks for in portfolio companies.