Bolster

Clare Hart, CEO of Williams Lea, has a reputation for being a uniquely methodical leader. Today, she’s sharing strategies that help her keep her team aligned.&nbsp;Her first piece of advice? It’s important to establish a cadence of repetitive and transparent communication with your employees. Tune in to the episode to hear all four tips.

Clare brings more than 25 years of leadership experience to the global business. Responsible for
driving profitable growth, enabling a high-performance culture and delivering superior client
service and solutions, her expertise across technology-enabled business services is key to driving
Williams Lea to its fullest potential.
Prior to joining Williams Lea, Clare was Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board of
Directors of Sterling Talent Solutions, the global leader in background screening with nearly 4,000
employees in 20 offices in 9 countries. While at Sterling, she doubled the size of the company –
Revenue and EBITDA – and scaled the business through new leadership driving organizational,
cultural and technology improvements.
Prior to joining Sterling, Clare was President and CEO of Infogroup and a member of the Board of
Directors from July 2010 through December 2011.
From 2006 to 2010, Clare was Executive Vice President, Dow Jones & Company, a News
Corporation Company, and President, Dow Jones Enterprise Media Group. Clare was President
and CEO of Factiva, a joint venture between Dow Jones and Reuters, from 2000 to 2006.
She has won numerous awards for leadership and innovation including Inside Market Data’s 2010
Hall of Fame, where she was recognized as "The Visionary” and Drexel University’s Drexel 100,
the University’s alumni hall of fame. She also served on the boards of the Direct Marketing
Association and the Software and Information Industry Association.
Clare received a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Computer Systems Management from Drexel
University and an MBA from Rider University.

Clare Hart

CEO, Williams Lea

Strategies for Nurturing Alignment with Clare Hart

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The Daily Bolster is a quick-hitting podcast for startup leaders scaling their businesses.&nbsp;Every day, Matt Blumberg, Co-founder and CEO of Bolster, is joined by experienced operators and industry experts who share their real-world experiences and practical advice. Together, we discuss professional development, venture capital, startup strategy, and tips and tricks for executive growth. It’s the actionable insight you need to scale—in under 10 minutes.The Daily Bolster is produced by Bolster, the new way to find the right executives. We supercharge startup growth by matching CEOs with transformational executives, mentors, and board members—without the hassle of traditional talent sourcing. Built by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, Bolster’s on-demand marketplace is packed with diverse, highly qualified leaders ready for full-time, interim, fractional, project-based, advisory, or board roles.&nbsp;Have a question for Matt or one of our guests? Email us at <a href="mailto:thedailybolster@bolster.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">thedailybolster@bolster.com</a>. Interested in learning more about Bolster? Sign up or start searching for free at bolster.com.

Today on the podcast, Matt is joined by Greg Sands, founder of Costanoa Ventures. Tune in as they dive into Greg’s career, starting at Netscape in 1994 during the dawn of the commercial internet, to getting into venture capital and the unique process of founding Costanoa.&nbsp;Matt and Greg also chat about extraordinary moments in the tech industry, empathy for founders, and what it means to run a healthy organization. Listen now!

As Managing Director at Costanoa, Greg is focused on investing in the next generation of great enterprise technology companies. An early stage investor for over 20 years, Greg prides himself on being the first call for founders whether they have good news or bad news to share. Because great product is the foundation of great venture-backed startups, he also focuses on helping them develop product strategy, including focusing on the initial wedge and the Ideal Customer Profile. Some of his notable investments include Aquabyte, Alation, Demandbase, Focal Systems, Highnote, SGNL and StackHawk, with successful exits Datalogix, Inflection, Intacct, Roadster and Kenna. 
 
Before founding Costanoa, Greg was a Managing Director at Sutter Hill Ventures, focused on early stage, enterprise technology investments, including Merced Systems, Quinstreet and Youku. Before Sutter Hill, Greg was the first hire at Netscape Communications after its founding engineering team. As its first Product Manager, he wrote the initial business plan, coined the name “Netscape” and created the SuiteSpot Business Unit, which he grew from zero to $140M in revenue. Greg also served as Manager of Business Development at Cisco, where he architected a global channel management plan. He holds an MBA from Stanford and a BA from Harvard.

Greg Sands

Founder & Partner, Costanoa

Deep Dive with Greg Sands

Today on The Daily Bolster, former Lessonly CEO Max Yoder shares what he learned about himself through the scaling process.&nbsp;One of our favorite takeaways? Conflict isn’t dysfunction, it’s information.&nbsp;

Max Yoder is former CEO and co-founder of Lessonly and author of Do Better Work, a book about communicating. Max lives in Indianapolis, Indiana with his wife and daughter.

Max Yoder

Former CEO, Lessonly

Learning About Yourself While Growing a Business with Max Yoder

CEOs have an opportunity to make their boards more effective. How? Check out today’s episode to learn about snackable board books and more. Robert Wolfe—a successful multi-time founder—is the CEO of Zeck, where his team is reimagining the approach to board decks, board prep, and board governance. Board meetings don’t have to be miserable.

Robert started Moosejaw, CrowdRise and Zeck but he’s better known for coming in second at the World Breakdancing Fiesta in 2002.

Robert Wolfe

CEO, Zeck

How to Improve Your Board Meetings with Robert Wolfe

Expect the unexpected. From first communication to preparing to join a board meeting to sitting down for dinner with directors, Cristina Miller of Goldbelly shares her experience interacting with boards as a COO.&nbsp;Her final piece of advice? Don’t expect the board meetings to go as planned, but remember your day job has likely prepared you for those unexpected moments.&nbsp;

Cristina is a seasoned, results-driven C-level executive and board director with a strong track record in digital marketplaces, startups & scale-ups and new business innovation. She is currently the Chief Operating Officer at Goldbelly, the e-commerce marketplace empowering the best food makers, chefs, and small shops to reach a national audience with fast, easy, and delicious nationwide delivery. 

Cristina Miller

COO, Goldbelly

Interacting with the Board as a CXO with Cristina Miller

Today’s episode is a deep dive with tech marketing expert Sarah Brown. Sarah is a startup mentor, ecosystem builder, and the author of Lead Upwards.She and Matt discuss creative career paths—Sarah considered “The Non-Linear Path” as an alternate title for her book—and the unique opportunities startups present. They also share their thoughts on the contrast between startups and large companies, from office politics to overall function. Tune in to hear about mentorship, team hierarchy, and Sarah’s take on quitting as an executive.

Sarah E. Brown is a B2B tech marketing leader, author, startup mentor, and ecosystem builder focused on scaling SaaS companies through customer-centric marketing. Currently, she is the VP of Marketing at Sastrify, and her new book is Lead Upwards: How Startup Joiners Can Impact New Ventures, Build Amazing Careers, and Inspire Great Teams (Wiley, 2022).

Sarah E. Brown

VP of Marketing, Sastrify

Deep Dive with Sarah E. Brown

How transparent is too transparent?&nbsp;On today’s Ask Bolster episode, Signpost CEO George Bilberry joins Matt to discuss how open CEOs should be with their teams, especially in an uncertain environment.&nbsp;While there’s not a one-size-fits-all answer, Matt advises founders to err on the side of transparency. Tune in to hear his full answer, the reasoning behind it, and the exceptions.

George Bilbrey is the CEO of Signpost, and former co-founder of Return Path (alongside host Matt Blumberg). 

Recent Episodes

SEASON 1

Deep Dive with Greg Sands

Learning About Yourself While Growing a Business with Max Yoder

How to Improve Your Board Meetings with Robert Wolfe

Interacting with the Board as a CXO with Cristina Miller

Deep Dive with Sarah E. Brown

Transparency in Action with George Bilbrey

About The Show

The Daily Bolster

Matt Blumberg

Co-Founder & CEO, Bolster