10/14/21 – Episode 2
Mike Freeman is CEO and General Partner at Innosphere Ventures, a venture capital firm located in Fort Collins, CO. In this episode, Emily and Mike chat about red flags in founders, university involvement in venture, what region is the most exciting, and advice for up-and-coming investors.
About Mike Freeman:
Mike Freeman is originally from the east coast (North Carolina and DC) and started his career in the public sector as a City Manager. Through his work in economic development and innovation, Mike became fascinated with startups and made a career change to investing. This led him to Innosphere Ventures in Fort Collins, where he applies his past experience to help founders succeed, particularly in the tech industry. Mike is currently on the board of Catalyze, Aspero Medical and GelSana.
In this episode with Mike, you’ll learn:
- How Mike became an “accidental” investor
- The role of venture in the growth of startup communities
- Why Innospheres partners with universities
- What they look for in founders and how it varies by industry
- Mike’s advice for founders
Mentioned in this episode…
Companies:
Innosphere Ventures
Aspero Medical
Catalyze
Incident Response Technologies
Stout Street Capital
Rockies Venture Club
MCAP
People:
Mike Freeman
John Smith
Mark Rentschler