🏠 Growth Capital Podcast — Episode 65 🏠

Energy adoption isn’t failing because of technology. It’s failing because of complexity.

In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Arshia Jahangiri, Founder & CEO of Solenery, a platform simplifying clean energy upgrades for residential and commercial property owners across North America.

Arshia shares his entrepreneurial journey—from launching his first venture in high school to building a climate-tech platform designed to eliminate the friction around energy incentives, contractor selection, and ROI clarity.

But this conversation goes beyond energy.

It dives into:

• Why fragmentation kills adoption in regulated industries
• The hidden operational drag complexity created in real estate investing
• How AI is compressing the startup build cycle
• Why generalist founders may have the edge in today’s tech shift
• What investors really look for when allocating capital

Solenery is building a one-stop platform for property owners to access solar, HVAC, heat pumps, EV chargers, and energy incentives—removing confusion and improving clarity in decision-making.

📩 Connect with Arshia on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/arshyya/

If you’re a founder, operator, or investor navigating infrastructure, climate tech, or regulated markets—this episode will sharpen your thinking.

👉 Subscribe for more conversations with private equity leaders, founders, and CEOs scaling growth businesses. 👍 Like, comment, and share your biggest takeaway.

Watch or listen now!

🔗 Growth Capital Podcast — Episode 64 🔗

Why do some startups hold together under pressure, while others break at the first sign of scale?

In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Andrew Ackerman, Executive Director, REACH Labs, at Second Century Ventures, to unpack how investors really evaluate early-stage companies—and why startups behave more like chains than ropes.

Andrew draws on his experience as a founder, angel investor, accelerator builder, and venture capitalist to explain how one weak link—whether it’s the team, product, market, or go-to-market—can derail even the most promising startup. The conversation dives deep into how founders can de-risk before raising capital, the difference between seed validation and Series A scaling, and why buzzwords don’t replace real proof.

Key topics discussed:

• Why startups fail at their weakest link
• How investors think about risk at different stages
• Proving demand before raising capital
• AI in startups: real use cases vs. hype
• Founder growth ceilings and scaling leadership

🔗 Connect with Andrew: Website: https://asangelsseeit.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewbackerman/ 👉 Subscribe for more conversations with investors, operators, and founders 👍 Like the episode if it resonated 💬 Comment with the “weak link” you see most often in startups

🌍 Growth Capital Podcast — Episode 63 🌍

Remote work unlocked flexibility and global talent—but it also created a massive compliance gap that most companies and professionals aren’t prepared for.

In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Maxwell Nee, Co-Founder of Flamingo, to unpack the overlooked tax, residency, and regulatory risks hiding inside today’s borderless work environment.

Maxwell shares how remote work, global mobility, and digital nomadism have outpaced the systems designed to track them—and why even sophisticated executives often discover their exposure only when audits, visa reviews, or penalties appear. Drawing on his experience living and working across multiple countries, he explains why compliance failures are rarely intentional but almost always infrastructural.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

• Why most professionals and companies don’t track global work accurately
• How remote and distributed teams create silent tax and residency exposure
• The difference between where you’re hired and where liability actually accrues
• Why simplicity and privacy-first design matter in regulated markets
• How global mobility is becoming a strategic issue for founders, operators, and investors

Whether you’re leading a PE-backed company, managing a distributed workforce, or investing in global growth, this conversation highlights a risk you can’t afford to ignore.

🔗 Connect with Maxwell on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxwellnee/

👉 Subscribe for more insights from private equity leaders, founders, and operators 👍 Like this episode if it sparked a new perspective 💬 Comment below: Where has remote work created unexpected complexity for your business?