Founder Spotlight #2: Jake Weatherly
The Fortson VC Founder Spotlight series, where we take a moment to shine the spotlight on an outstanding entrepreneur or startup founder we back, continues! This week, we had the opportunity to catch up with the CEO of SheerID, Inc., Jake Weatherly, whose company enables brands to acquire customers in high-value consumer communities through gated, personalized offers. Check out our conversation with Jake below for his reflections on the year looking back and opportunities that are top of mind for him moving forward.
Q: As a business leader and the CEO of SheerID, what are you most excited for in the rest of 2023?
A: “I’m excited to see a few things. One is how our customers, who are often big consumer brands, use SheerID as they continue to grow globally and develop gated programs and offers for specific communities, including teachers, students, medical professionals, first responders on the front lines, military families and so on. I’m also excited about the growth we’re seeing in the types of companies showing interest in our product, specifically supermarkets and grocery stores. As they begin to execute strategies that are focused on personalized customer outreach, they’re realizing that the older techniques of generic advertising are no longer sufficient to achieve their desired business outcomes. I’m excited to see what the year has in store and to continue exploring digital trends as they evolve and impact our customers.”
Q: Can you share a takeaway from the last year that has stuck with you?
A: “In the last year, companies from all over the world of different sizes and industries, in some cases embraced and other cases were forced to face the reality of what it means to responsibly run a business from the financial point of view. We saw companies prioritize growth at all costs, burn tons of cash in order to bridge to the next financing or cross their fingers that the resources they burned would eventually produce return on investment. All of those were short-sighted decisions. Think about the larger companies hiring so many people because of short-term growth that wasn’t consistent with their history and will not be consistent with their future. That has led to a lot of people having a hard time with their careers and layoffs. However, the health of the economy and the level of responsibility that most business leaders have embraced in order to run viable, financially healthy businesses will hopefully have a long-term positive impact.”
Q: How has your leadership evolved over the past year? How will you continue growing and evolving as a leader moving forward?
A: “My leadership has been heavily affected by some of the socioeconomic issues we’ve been seeing - social injustice, economic uncertainty, etc. and these have affected me both personally and professionally as a leader. When you look at a team, the company’s role for that team is to help them develop their careers and create a financially rewarding situation so they can live their lives, support their families and excel professionally. As the CEO of SheerID, I take this role very seriously. It’s important for me to instill confidence in everyone who is part of SheerID – they are part of something that is meaningful, financially healthy and growing. It’s really challenging sometimes to instill confidence in your team when all the headlines are doom and gloom and fear and uncertainty – but it’s important to remember that people are the most important part of the equation. Truthful, honest, confident leadership helps people get through tough times and helps them to grow and develop in their careers professionally. All of these things are what I will continue to work on and get better at with hope that some of these difficult circumstances we’re seeing will start to turn around and get better.”
SheerID hasn’t stopped improving and innovating their solutions since day one and we can’t wait to see what else is in store for this growing company. Learn more about SheerID at www.sheerid.com.
Stay tuned for the next Founder Spotlight coming soon!