The 92 Report
Show Notes: Julie Lin was a medical student at Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons when she met her future husband. It was the first day of medical school and they met while attending a class where they were both serious amateur classical musicians. Julie talks about their shared love of music and how they planned to have a family quartet. The All-state Orchestra Model Julie shares her story of starting an orchestra at medical school, which initially had a traditional weekly rehearsal and concert. However, they found that the show rate was low as exam time approached, leading...
info_outline 97. Dennis Crowley, Medical Device M&A ExecutiveThe 92 Report
Show Notes: Dennis Crowley started working for Tyco International in 1996 and spent five years in Europe, spending half his time in Paris and two and a half years in Brussels. This experience was enjoyable as it allowed him to work, sightsee, and travel around Europe. During his time in Europe, he had the opportunity to visit every country in Europe, including Spain, Italy, the UK, and France. He moved back to Florida, then lived in New England for 25 years before settling just south of Boston. Dennis worked in various divisions at Tyco until 2007, where he worked in their healthcare...
info_outline 96. Natalia Tsarkova, Media Entrepreneur and FilmmakerThe 92 Report
Show Notes: Title: Media Entrepreneur and Filmmaker Show notes: Natalia Tsarkova, a transfer student from Latvia, was the first student from the former Soviet bloc to apply to an American college. She was thrown into a completely different world and roles, but knew she wanted to create more contexts for others to transform their lives like she didher life. Growing up in Latvia, she watched pirated MTV videos and credits seeing Billy Jean for the first time for inspiring her to work in the media space. In 1993, she met a professor at the MIT Media Lab, who recognized her mixed...
info_outline 95. William Cheng, Hospitalist and SingerThe 92 Report
William Cheng has been working in the Silicon Valley area since 2000. He graduated from Harvard as a bio concentrator and later attended UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine. He completed residency training in internal medicine at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, a county hospital affiliated with Stanford Hospital System. He then joined the Palo Alto Medical Foundation as a hospitalist, focusing on acutely ill patients. Working as a Hospitalist William's understanding of the world has changed over the two decades as a hospitalist. He now understands the importance of non-hard science...
info_outline 94. Jeanne Simpson, Actor/Dancer/Choreographer/Director/TeacherThe 92 Report
Jeanne Simpson moved to New York after graduating. She started doing day jobs in New York City to make ends meet while attending free dance classes, which allowed her to continue her training without having to pay for grad school. She eventually joined the American Isadora Dance Company, a modern company. Beginning a Career in the Performing Arts Jeanne began her acting career at HB Studios, where she was given a scholarship and studied under Austin Pendleton, a talented teacher who taught the advanced Acting Program at HB. She worked with other amazing actors and learned to choreograph scenes...
info_outline 93. Joshua Brandon Holden, Math Professor and Author of The Mathematics of SecretsThe 92 Report
Joshua Brandon Holden, the author of The Mathematics of Secrets, Cryptography from Caesar Ciphers to Digital Encryption, graduated with a degree in pure math and went on to teach at the University of Massachusetts and Duke. He discovered that he was spending most of his time on teaching, so he sought jobs where they would reward teaching. He then worked at the Rose Hulman Institute of Technology, where he did both teaching and research. Common Misconceptions about Cryptography Joshua discusses common misconceptions about cryptography and its connection to the internet. He explains that...
info_outline 92. Mark Jacobstein, Accidental EntrepreneurThe 92 Report
Mark Jacobstein resides in Stanford, California with his wife, two children, and his mother in law. Mark's career has primarily focused on entrepreneurial technology, primarily in health tech, biotech, molecular diagnostics, and digital health arenas. After Cambridge, he worked with Scott Murphy, a close friend and business partner. He moved to California in 2003 to start a technology company and has been there ever since. He lives on the Stanford campus, which allows his children to grow up on a college campus. Founding a Fantasy Sports Business Mark shares his journey from writing...
info_outline 91. Andreas Stavropoulos, Entering the Third ActThe 92 Report
Andreas Stavropoulos, a venture capitalist and entrepreneur, came to the United States from Greece at 18 and has been in the United States ever since. His big moves include marrying his high school sweetheart, arranging their lives around graduate school, medical school, business school, and moving to California. He is now 55-years-old and is excited about the third act of his life, where he can choose where to spend his time more than he used to. A Career as a Venture Capitalist Andreas started his career as a venture capitalist in 1999 and has been doing so for over two and a half years. He...
info_outline 90. Shannon Frison, Marine and JudgeThe 92 Report
Show Notes: Shannon Frison joined the United States Marine Corps during her time in law school. She spent her second year at officer candidate school and became commissioned as an officer. After law school, she returned to Massachusetts, worked for a year at the TAs office, took the bar, and went on active duty with the Marine Corps. After serving at Marine Corps Air Station, New River, North Carolina, she worked for a litigation firm called Dwyer and Clora before opening a law firm. In 2009, she applied for the bench in Massachusetts and was appointed to the Boston Municipal Court. She then...
info_outline 89. Anastasia Fernands, Patent LitigatorThe 92 Report
Show Notes: Anastasia Fernands has been practicing law since graduating from NYU. She started practicing in Boston at Hutchins, Wheeler and Dittmar, which was the oldest continuously running firm in Boston at the time. Anastasia has since moved to New York and now practices at Quinn Emanuel. Anastasia’s career primarily focuses on intellectual property litigation, particularly patent litigation since the mid to late 90s. At that time there were two schools of thought on patent litigation: technical people who understood technology and those who were litigators by trade. There was a...
info_outlineAndreas Stavropoulos, a venture capitalist and entrepreneur, came to the United States from Greece at 18 and has been in the United States ever since. His big moves include marrying his high school sweetheart, arranging their lives around graduate school, medical school, business school, and moving to California. He is now 55-years-old and is excited about the third act of his life, where he can choose where to spend his time more than he used to.
A Career as a Venture Capitalist
Andreas started his career as a venture capitalist in 1999 and has been doing so for over two and a half years. He has stopped making new investments in this endeavor and is now spending most of his time back to nonprofit public service and helping his country. He is increasingly spending more time back in Greece. In the third act, Andreas is considering the empty nest and choosing where to spend his time. He is now in the third act phase, where he is stepping back from full-time work, focusing on what he chooses to do with his 20+ 25+ productive years. This involves stepping back from full-time work, reducing board load, and not chasing after new deals.
A View of the Business Landscape in Greece
Andreas talks about his decision to pursue public service in his third act. He gives a brief overview of the crisis Greece has experienced since the 1980s. The crisis was ushered in after a short, populist five-year phase of trying empty promises. However, in 2019, a new generation of moderate, business-friendly leaders emerged, inoculating voters against the empty promises of populism. Greece is now a leader in this regard, showing the rest of Europe how a post-populist society and governance model can look like. The generation of leaders in power is younger and more business friendly, making them an opportunity to help the country catch up with Western Europe. He is also working on a board of a private company that manages large privatization and public-private partnerships in Greece, such as airports, ports, and highways. Another area of focus is AI. He is on an advisory committee to the prime minister on topics related to artificial intelligence, and he talks about the influence of Greek diaspora.
On the Board of a Privatization Entity
Andreas discusses his experience on the board of an entity that manages privatization. The board includes seven independent members. The nominating committee has combined complementary skills, providing a sound foundation of skills in various areas. The finance side of the board includes working with portfolio companies to mature them for financing, going public, or getting sold. The board also oversees state assets that are not ready for deal-making, designing business plans and leveraging them to create something attractive to private investment while maintaining upside for the state. The board also involves working with bankers and consultants to do transactions, as well as fiduciary duties. They also work with assets to maximize value and develop eco-friendly tourism activities. The advantage of being on the board is learning about the country's large construction projects and local opportunities efficiently. Additionally, working with local players, such as large investors and consultants, allows the board to build a network that allows them to understand data and the players in a relatively small economy.
Managing and Motivating People
Andreas shares his insights on the business world and the way things work. He explains that talented people, particularly project managers, can be difficult to unleash due to non-meritocratic and bureaucratic processes. For example, Greece's promotion system was purely seniority-based, based on degrees and years of service. However, this approach has led to a loss of motivation for people to go above and beyond. Andreas has learned the importance of thinking about reward systems and what drives human motivation. He believes that humans are rational and evaluative maximizers, constantly processing inputs and making decisions.
Third Act Pursuits and Dharma as a Guiding Principle
Andreas discusses his personal portfolio, including his involvement in public service, sailing, and travel. The couple plans to focus on their children and professional responsibilities, with Andreas' wife aiming to maintain her FTE at Stanford. He and his wife have also been involved with education, serving as chair of the board and treasurer at their children's school. He is currently president of the Alumni Board for Harvard Business School and has recently joined the board of a nonprofit that provides policy recommendations for the diaspora of Greece.
Andreas believes that leaving professional firms is intentional and requires planning and commitment. He has had to tell his partners about entering a new phase, which involves changing their brand and deciding who will be in and who will not. Andreas discusses the concept of Dharma, which translates to roughly "destiny, duty, purpose.” Meditation, a spiritual element that began about 567 years ago, helped him understand their essence and purpose in life. The COVID-19 pandemic forced him to reevaluate and rethink his beliefs. He suggests that the Dharma concept is not prescriptive, but rather a gradual, intentional approach to life. He suggests that by focusing on the essence of their goals and leaving a mark on the world, they can evolve in the right way.
Lessons Learned in Hiring Talent
Andreas shares his lessons in hiring people who are not just like him, but also have different backgrounds, approaches, and styles. He emphasizes that having diverse people around you can lead to better outcomes overall. The biggest lesson learned is to stop thinking about hiring people based on their appearance or experience. Instead, focus on having people with different backgrounds, approaches, and styles that work well together. It's not about being friends or building a nice place to work, but about creating fair and purposeful environments. Another important lesson learned is the importance of communication and truthfulness in venture capital. Building a reputation goes beyond single interactions, and it's never about a single moment. Instead, it's about building value over multiple years, and in many cases, those same founders or employees will go on to other companies. Instead of being transactional, it's crucial to be upfront about what you stand for and what you can help with. Being upfront and admitting that you don't know is difficult, but it's essential for long-term success.
Influential Courses and Professors at Harvard
Andreas discusses his courses and professors at Harvard that continue to resonate with him, whether it's professional or side interest. He highlights Justice with Michael J. Sandel as the most relevant course, and his computer science classes on algorithms have taught him the ability to think systematically and break down problems in a way that works for him. He plans to spend a chunk of his third act living in Greece, despite being away for nearly 35 years, and he believes that the culture, business outlook, and family connections are all factors that lead to better quality of life.
Timestamps:
02:56 Life phases and prioritizing personal choices in the third act
07:22 Greece's economic crisis and potential for growth
14:06 Board experience and diaspora contributions
19:07 Government work, talent, and motivation
25:10 Human behavior and personal interests
27:58 Personal growth and planning for a successful third act
33:44 Intentional exit from professional firm after 10+ years
39:31 Selecting and working with talented individuals in the venture capital industry
45:28 Retirement, quality of life, and family ties in Greece
Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreasstavropoulos/