Your Team Is the Heart of Your Company: Interview with Dan Kimerling, Founder and Managing Partner of Deciens Capital
I went one-on-one with Dan Kimerling, founder and Managing Partner of Deciens Capital, after connecting at the 2024 Milken Institute Global Conference. Prior to founding Deciens, Dan co-founded Standard Treasury and served as its CEO until its acquisition by Silicon Valley Bank.
Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?
Dan: I firmly believe the world needs more entrepreneurs, and when envisioning a career supporting founders, I knew I wanted to be nimble enough to work with them on day one. I also knew I wanted to be in the early-stage game – and thus, Deciens Capital was born.
Before founding Deciens in 2017, I co-founded Standard Treasury, which built leading API solutions for the global financial services community. I served as CEO until its acquisition by Silicon Valley Bank in 2015 and then focused on API banking, open platform, and global R&D for the bank.
Being successful requires you to make innumerable decisions. You often won’t know if you’ve made the “right” decision until you’ve made it – or you may never know. Deciding to sell Standard Treasury was one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make, but I’m grateful it led to my path in venture capital. I’m now in a unique position where I get to support other founders and my experience strongly guides the way I evaluate and work with our portfolio companies.
Adam: How did you come up with your business ideas and know they were worth pursuing? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with and test business ideas?
Dan: Starting a successful business is about solving a problem or responding to a problem in a more effective and efficient way. With Standard Treasury, we saw API solutions in other industries and recognized the potential for banking-as-a-service.
One piece of advice I have for entrepreneurs working on and testing a business idea is to be flexible about market fit. You may have thought you created a great solution to one problem, but it may be an even better solution to a different problem. Don’t put yourself or your product in a box. And don’t surround yourself with yes-men – you need people who are going to give you truthful, tangible advice that you can use to make your company or product better. Without naysayers, you aren’t going to evolve.
Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your businesses? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?
Dan: First, you need a good team. Having a smaller team allows me the luxury of being highly involved in the consideration of each new team member. I have two incredible partners and a small but mighty team. But whether you’re looking to build a small or large team, your team is the heart of your company.
Second, growth is great, but I always tell people to focus on returning capital vs raising capital. Ultimately, you need to sustain yourself.
Adam: What do you look for in companies you invest in? What are your best tips for investors? And what are your best tips for entrepreneurs on capital raising?
Dan: There are three main things I look for when evaluating a business: the team, the opportunity, and the deal. My criteria for building a team apply to any industry. First, I look for a leader with fortitude – someone with a track record of resilience. Next, I look for what I call “variant” perspectives – people who are looking for “non-obvious” solutions to problems. Third, I look for people who have accomplished a lot relative to the cards they’ve been given.
My tip for investors is that being “hot” at inception doesn’t necessarily mean a company will be successful long-term and vice versa. Trends can be great, but don’t let that be your driving force.
Entrepreneurs who are capital raising should get used to being told no. But that “no” very rarely means you wasted your time. The startup world is largely about networking, connections, and meeting the wrong people who will introduce you to the right ones.
Adam: What are the most important trends in fintech that leaders should be aware of and understand? What should they understand about them?
Dan: In my opinion, leaders should focus on trends holistically – what’s happening in the world and the problems we’re facing.
There are a few themes we continue to come back to that are very motivating to us. One is the opportunity for financial services for the elderly. The population of the US is rapidly aging, and there is a lot of opportunity to support the elderly, their families, and their caregivers. For example, one of our portfolio companies, True Link Financial, helps caregivers protect against elder fraud.
The second is climate change. Homeowners’ insurance is one area that will see direct impacts from climate change. Our portfolio company, GlacierGrid, helps reduce the cost of energy. Another is Three Farm Financial, which provides insurance to family-owned farms.
Third is the music industry. Streaming has rapidly transformed the entire industry – from the way we consume it to the way artists get paid and deals are structured. This has left a unique opportunity for startups to take a stake in the industry, and beatBread is one company doing that by helping artists maintain creative control and ownership of their music.
Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?
Dan: At Deciens, we’re looking for leaders who don’t get rattled easily and have a strong track record of overcoming adversity. This requires my team to spend a significant amount of time with founders before moving forward with an investment.
The best leaders also know their weaknesses and surround themselves with people who have complementary strengths to offset those weaknesses.
Lastly, leaders need to be motivated, not deterred, by being told “no.” This is especially true in the startup world. Being a successful leader requires courage and resilience to keep asking, keep pushing, and keep persevering.
Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams?
Dan: Quality over quantity is imperative when leading a team and building a company. Quality often means having certain traits, versus specific skills. Culture is also incredibly important, and your cultural strategy needs to align with your business strategy.
Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?
Dan:
Always know where a safe harbor is. Don’t always assume clear skies and smooth water – assume the seas will always be rocky. In the startup world, that means always having a good plan to get profitable on the cash you have.
Entrepreneurship is primarily mental, and most people give up on themselves before others give up on them. It’s important to stay level-headed, focused, and adaptable.
To quote Warren Buffet, “Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful.”
Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?
Dan: Early in my career, one of my mentors shared with me the idea that "You only get what you want by asking for it." No one is inside your head hearing your hopes and dreams. You need to externalize those hopes, dreams, ambitions, and desires for there to be any chance of making them a reality.
Asking for what you want is a necessary condition. But, of course, it is far from sufficient. God only knows I have asked many, many, many people to help support my ambitions. And the vast majority have said no. But some have said yes, and that’s been enough.
Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?
Dan: Thanks for having me, Adam. I find enormous value in hearing about others' career journeys, and I hope my insights are helpful to someone – whether that be a fresh graduate exploring a VC career or someone looking to take the jump into entrepreneurship.
Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one-on-one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.
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