Jesse Lee

Brooklyn Vendor Assurance is a cloud-based SaaS engine, designed for the Vendor Management function.

The Sickness of Entrepreneurship

“… on the topic of whose good to go into business with. If so much went wrong, in fact if EVERYTHING went wrong. is this someone whom I would still consider in my circle of trust.”

• What was your first action?

  It’s been different for every business, but for Brooklyn it was making sure I had the right cofounders.

• How did you test and build traction?

  I took a job in a consultancy to get closer to the problem and validate the idea

• How do you confirm someone is the right partner to go into business with?

  I’ve tried it so many different ways and had varying results over the years. In the end, it’s not about the business fundamentals or the vision for the company, but the best barometer is “Do I like spending time with this person? And would I everyday if I could?”

Jesse Lee has spent much of his career launching and growing startups. He has started five or six different software businesses, with one going public on the NASDAQ in October 2016 at a $770 million market capitalization. Through those experiences, he's learned a lot about what he calls "the sickness of entrepreneurship". In our conversation, we explore his perspective on finding the right cofounders, getting real, honest feedback, and the never-ending balance of timeliness and patience. His humility and genuineness shine through as he shares his lessons learned over the years.

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