Peer Exchange Program for Entrepreneurs
Loyal VC manages a network of 400+ companies and after talking to founders on a monthly basis, the team has identified that personal wellbeing among entrepreneurs is a critical resource that doesn't always get the attention it deserves. To offer portfolio founders structured support, Loyal conducted a Pilot Peer Group Project to determine the most effective framework. The proposed framework below is based on the feedback from this pilot.
Welcome to your peer exchange group!
Your group members are listed below! Click their photo or company name to learn more about them.  

Ali Mahmoud

WeekOne

Amit Kasliwal

Dehurdle

Evan James

Dreamwriter

Raj Sahu

utobo.com

Nabifo Wamunga

Uzazi Hub

Maria Sucgang

Remotify

Kim Lavine

Hypersence

Aldo Victoria

Uworktify

Megan Pillsbury

Dunya Analytics

Andrei Voronine

NYsKOOL Ltd

Patrick Williamson

Aloma.io

Jan Schütte

LE CHEMISEUR®

Marthe Lübbers

Bloomcart

David Friedeberg

OXOMIO

Sylvia Huang

bMightie

José Olarreaga

Be Ambassador

Yvan Castilloux

Augusta Care

Tony Ong

Chargewerx

Mariana Velasquez

Branddu

Siavash Sartipi

Travmonde

Lakshmi Narasimha Moorthy

Niche Brains

Shamala Hinrichsen

Hanai

Evrim Taskiran

STEPfix

Dara Chen

HiiGuru

Altesh BAIJOO

Insaaph Capital

Akanksha Kumar

Parent Network

Yavuz Cingitas

Inodash

Gary Woodhead

Curveblock

Charlie Chandra

DOTX

Howard Urnovitz

FBB Biomed

Kevin Siskar

Finta

Mohan Lath

NriDealExpert
Your group moderator
Matt Hudzik-Mazerant
Executive Coach
Helping companies & founders scale, simplify and grow profitably, based on my 15+ experience as entrepreneurial strategy consultant and executive coach.
Jonathan Sibley
Executive Coach
As an executive coach I help leadership teams to work more effectively together and leaders to recognize and address blindspots. I'm an INSEAD MBA (Dec 86).
Merve Hokamp
Leadership Coach
Merve K. Hokamp is an ICF and EMCC accredited executive and business coach with over 500 hours of coaching experience, working with clients from 25+ countries. Her mission is to help leaders grow their businesses, build high-performing teams, and advance their careers. Merve advises startups and business owners on marketing, PR, business development, and sales. She is adept in tech, including Cloud, digital marketing, data, and analytics, and offers these insights to startups as well. Merve’s clients include industry giants such as Google, McKinsey, Meta, Amazon, Stripe, Heineken, and L'Oreal, as well as startups like Visualist, Fourteen.am, Hiiguru, and Eatmise. Before founding Leadrise Coaching, Merve held leadership roles at Google, managing global sales, project management, and customer success teams. She also served as an advisor for Google for Startups, mentoring European startups. Her career began in management consulting. Merve holds an MBA from INSEAD and a BA in International Relations and German Literature from Claremont McKenna College. She has an Executive Education Diploma in Leading, Innovating, and Negotiating from Harvard University and an Advanced Diploma in Leadership and Executive Coaching from Kingstown College. Born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey, Merve has lived in six countries across America, Europe, and Asia. Now based in Dublin, she holds dual citizenship (Turkish and Irish), is married to an American, and is the proud mother of two children, Maya (6) and Uzay (2).
Ganesh Chidambaram
THINKING Partner
I am your THINKING partner; I assist businesses and individuals strike a balance between short-term priorities and long-term impact through independent and unbiased reflections. I am your co-pilot in navigating the complex and dynamic business environment and help you achieve your aspirations.
Richard Smith
Strategy, Coaching, and Positive Impact
I work with founders to help them find their way through the complexity of their roles and especially the tensions between work and personal lives. Former strategy consultant (10 years @BCG) across multiple industries, functions and geographies and INSEAD MBA. Particular interest in organisations with positive social / environmental impact. British, currently living with family in Mexico.
Spencer Christiansen
Operations
Head of Operations @ Loyal VC — former investment banker, moved into VC in 2019, now running the operations for Loyal. Experienced with designing 0 to 1 processes that scale using a mix of no code automation and occasional scripts. Knowledgeable in startup operations tech stacks and building solutions with LLMs like ChatGPT using vector databases for semantic search.
Claire Harbour
Coaching and Strategy
Described as "warm, generous, challenging rocket fuel" by her clients, Claire is an advisor and coach who sees what others do not see and dares to say what others do not dare to say. She has a global background across general management, strategy, human capital and talent management, and is a published author. She advises on international business development, strategy and communication, but specialized in People, Culture and Talent issues, and is a highly experienced coach, willing to support and challenge you on any aspect of your growth.
Timeline

Commitment: 10 sessions over 10 months, each session 1 hour long.

Launch: The first cohort of groups will launch in November 2024. We are planning to offer this program again in 2025 and those who won't be selected for this cohort will be considered for the next one.

Schedule: Facilitators will propose a recurring monthly weekday and time. The group must agree on timing. If it is not unanimous then we can discuss switching the groups up.

What to expect

This is a forum to discuss topics with other founders, including topics that you can’t discuss with your co-founders and your team. Examples of common topics include: Co-founder conflicts, share allocation and vision alignment; fundraising, valuation, team structure/titles and adding the right advisors. Founders share their experiences, knowledge, information, contacts, brainstorm ideas, and offer emotional support. 

Here is feedback from a Pilot participant that echoes others as well:

“The Loyal VC founder peer group has been very worthwhile for me because:

  • It’s a forum to take up personal founder issues with confidence, because it turned out that at least one of the peers has faced and dealt with a similar situation.
  • We discussed sensitive issues with people in the same situation in a safe space.
  • I got to work with committed founders who know they are going to make it as they commit to the group and its ethos. 
  • People who are not committed should be weeded out early on as it disrupts the group flow.
  • I think we should be even more 'hard talk' (be open about issues) than we were. Almost like 'what is the worst and best thing that happened since last session' [Our moderator] steered it in that direction and the group just got better and better.”
Objective

The objective of the program is to bring founders together in a structured but informal peer-to-peer exchange group format facilitated by qualified advisors to share what it’s like being a founder from personal journey, addressing work-life balance, co-founder and team issues, personal coping strategies and blind spots. These sessions aim to create a safe space for sharing and co-creating actionable insights with peers. 

Program Details

Loyal manages a network of 400+ companies and after talking to founders on a monthly basis, the team has noticed that personal wellbeing among entrepreneurs is a critical resource that doesn't always get the attention it deserves.

To offer portfolio founders structured support, Loyal conducted a Pilot Peer Group Project to determine the most effective framework. The proposed framework is based on the feedback from this pilot. 

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Ilona Hassan, a Loyal Advisor, will manage this initiative on behalf of Loyal and can be contacted for any ongoing questions and suggestions. 

Facilitators will have an option to participate in facilitator-peer-exchange calls quarterly for the purpose of networking, exchanging experiences and discussing any ongoing issues with the groups.

It’s up to the group to decide whether they want to have a group chat or not. In the Pilot groups we did not have chats, because the founders felt it would be overwhelming.

We aim for 8 people initially, expecting possible attrition. The groups work well with 4 to 8 people.

We found that the same time zone was the most important factor in a group alignment. Other factors may be considered if there is more than one group in the same region.  Other factors to discuss include: penalties for missed sessions, communication channels, tardiness, etc.

It’s up to the group to agree on penalties for missed sessions, i.e. 2 missed sessions results in automatic elimination from the group. Participation commitment is a crucial part of this to work. An integrity conversation may be useful at the alignment session.

Founders will sign an agreement that includes them in the equity-sharing distribution pool at a reduced rate (compared to advisors).

Important to note that the Facilitators will moderate the conversation flow rather than coach, ensuring a safe space for sharing and equal participation. Sessions will follow a round-table format with no pre-set agenda, allowing topics to emerge from the sharing.

  • 5 min: Getting in the right mindset
  • 20 min: Round-table sharing
  • 30 min: Round-table discussion on the most compelling topic/company
  • 5 min: Summarize insights and closing notes

For organizational questions it’s best to send it in an email to the group, instead of using a session time.

Facilitators are encouraged to lead each session as they see fit, adapting to the unique cultural dynamics of the group. The goal is to foster an environment of authentic and honest sharing, rather than a space for competition or self-promotion. Sessions are strictly confidential, allowing founders to connect openly without taking on the role of advisor, mentor, or coach. Participants are encouraged to speak from their personal experience—sharing insights by saying, “I” or “in my experience.”

Cultural Alignment and Expectations for the Group:

  1. Commitment: Agree to commit to the group’s success by showing up and being engaged, and to be responsible for your own results and meet expectations. 
  2. Confidentiality: Agree to confidentiality within the group.
  3. Communication: Agree to notify the group ahead of time if unable to attend a session or if facing challenges within the group. Seek coaching or advisory support if issues arise with the group Facilitator on a private call.
  4. Engagement: Encourage contact between group members between sessions.
  5. Presence: Agree to be fully present, including keeping video on during calls.
  6. Authenticity: Agree to share personal experience, even if things aren’t going well. Authenticity adds value to both group learning and personal growth.
  7. Permission for Feedback: Ask permission before giving unsolicited feedback or advice.

Loyal will send feedback surveys after 5 sessions and again after 10 sessions. Results will be shared with all facilitators and the Loyal team but will not be shared with your group members.

The group will have a chance to continue with the same facilitator on mutually agreed terms outside of Loyal’s purview. They will have the option to continue without facilitation, following the same session format. 

Facilitators can offer their own paid services after the 10 sessions.