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How These Brothers Went from Hip-Hop Duo to Transforming the World of B2B Sales – ReadWrite

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How These Brothers Went from Hip-Hop Duo to Transforming the World of B2B Sales - ReadWrite


Accord co-founders, Ross & Ryan Rich opening for Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, circa 2012

Right before the pandemic hit, Ryan Rich and his brother Ross left their job at Google and Stripe for their craziest adventure yet: founding Accord! They’d worked together in the past – performing as a hip-hop duo in college (yup, that’s them in the photo) and organizing countless fundraisers and concerts. Starting a VC-backed tech company was the next logical step for them, right?

It was late 2019 when they started Accord, the world’s first Customer Collaboration Platform. It’s a shared workspace so buyers and sellers can work together throughout the laborious B2B sales process—making it a lot more collaborative and a lot less painful. 

As part of the founding sales teams at Stripe (Ross) and Google Cloud (Ryan) saw how little innovation there was around the buyer <> seller relationship. Account executives were running multi-year, multi-stakeholder, multi-million dollar deals with email and conference calls. 

They went through Y Combinator’s Winter 2020 Batch and recently raised $6M from Stripe. Some of their early customers include Figma, Productboard, and Very Good Security.

Connecting with the minds behind Accord

I caught up with co-founders of Accord, Ross and Ryan Rich, who talked with me about the future of their company and the world of B2B sales.

Q: Accord takes a buyer-first approach, what exactly does this mean and why did you decide to take this approach?

As sales reps, Ryan and Ross shared that they used to think closing a deal was hard work… But that was before they started talking to buyers about their experience. After interviewing dozens of buyers while getting Accord off the ground, they quickly learned what it was like to be on the other side of the table.  

“In retrospect, we really had no idea how challenging it was to actually buy something! The legal reviews, security reviews, consensus building, budget negotiations. Most evaluations end in no decision AND there are over 10 decision-makers just on the buying team.” 

There are thousands of sales tools that focus on making life easier for the sales team—yet none built with the buying experience in mind. This is the perfect example of how sales aren’t truly focused on the most important person in the sales cycle: the buyer!

Out of all of the sales tools in 2021, it’s difficult to find one built with the buyer in mind. 2021 sales technology landscape (from smart selling tools)

Q: There’s mention of moving from“Vendorship” to “Partnership”, what exactly does this mean? 

Ryan shared his perspective on what Accord’s tagline “From Vendorship to Partnership” really means: 

“A vendor is focused on their product and selling as much of it as possible. They love talking about bells, whistles, and discounts. (No one wants to work with a vendor.) 

A partner, on the other hand, is a subject matter expert concerned with helping their buyers make the best possible decision. The modern buyer comes to the table looking to collaborate. They want a partner to help them think about their business and its challenges. Take Figma for example. Companies want to buy from Figma because they want a partner to help them with their over design and creative process, not simply because of a function or feature.”

Q: How will B2B sales evolve in the future? 

Think of everything that’s happened in the B2C buying process in the last 20 years… buying insurance, a trip abroad, or a new car. It’s frictionless and a human is only involved in the last 20% of the process (if at all). That’s coming to the B2B world. 

Buyers are begging for a different buying experience and sales leaders are struggling to keep up. Especially at more traditional enterprise organizations. Ryan believes that there’s about to be an explosion of technology to support this new relationship. There’s no way email, Slack, conference calls, and shared docs are going to cut it. You can’t replicate a frictionless B2C experience using home-grown tools. 

It’s an expensive problem and you are already starting to see a lot of new startups, like Accord, in the space.

Q: What are some actionable strategies B2B sales reps can implement to put their buyers first?

Build empathy for your buyers. The more a sales team understands their buyers, the better they can help them. Take time to interview your buyers after as many won and lost deals as possible. What was the most painful part of the sales process, where did they experience the most friction? Ryan also recommends a recent article on positioning yourself as a partner and how build empathy for your buyers

Most teams are afraid to ask their buyers about their experience—especially when deals were lost. Buyers are surprisingly open to helping their selling counterparts learn and improve.

Q: What are the plans for the recent fundraise? What’s the future hold for Accord? 

Off the back of their recent $6M seed round fundraise (led by Stripe & YC), Accord is staying laser-focused on building the Accord Customer Collaboration Platform to help revenue leaders create a repeatable, collaborative sales motion. 

This includes: investing even more in our R&D team (across engineering, product, and design), as well as starting to scale the GTM side of Accord with new hires in sales and marketing. 

Feel free to reach out to Ryan to talk B2B sales, hip hop, or whatever’s on your mind: ryan@inaccord.com, LinkedIn, or subscribe to Accord’s newsletter.

Renzo Costarella

Renzo Costarella is an entrepreneur with experience working in early-stage startups across multiple industries ranging from online payments to digital media. He is currently working at FastSpring, an eCommerce technology partner driving revenue and growth for SaaS and software companies.

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Fintech Kennek raises $12.5M seed round to digitize lending

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Google eyed for $2 billion Anthropic deal after major Amazon play


London-based fintech startup Kennek has raised $12.5 million in seed funding to expand its lending operating system.

According to an Oct. 10 tech.eu report, the round was led by HV Capital and included participation from Dutch Founders Fund, AlbionVC, FFVC, Plug & Play Ventures, and Syndicate One. Kennek offers software-as-a-service tools to help non-bank lenders streamline their operations using open banking, open finance, and payments.

The platform aims to automate time-consuming manual tasks and consolidate fragmented data to simplify lending. Xavier De Pauw, founder of Kennek said:

“Until kennek, lenders had to devote countless hours to menial operational tasks and deal with jumbled and hard-coded data – which makes every other part of lending a headache. As former lenders ourselves, we lived and breathed these frustrations, and built kennek to make them a thing of the past.”

The company said the latest funding round was oversubscribed and closed quickly despite the challenging fundraising environment. The new capital will be used to expand Kennek’s engineering team and strengthen its market position in the UK while exploring expansion into other European markets. Barbod Namini, Partner at lead investor HV Capital, commented on the investment:

“Kennek has developed an ambitious and genuinely unique proposition which we think can be the foundation of the entire alternative lending space. […] It is a complicated market and a solution that brings together all information and stakeholders onto a single platform is highly compelling for both lenders & the ecosystem as a whole.”

The fintech lending space has grown rapidly in recent years, but many lenders still rely on legacy systems and manual processes that limit efficiency and scalability. Kennek aims to leverage open banking and data integration to provide lenders with a more streamlined, automated lending experience.

The seed funding will allow the London-based startup to continue developing its platform and expanding its team to meet demand from non-bank lenders looking to digitize operations. Kennek’s focus on the UK and Europe also comes amid rising adoption of open banking and open finance in the regions.

Featured Image Credit: Photo from Kennek.io; Thank you!

Radek Zielinski

Radek Zielinski is an experienced technology and financial journalist with a passion for cybersecurity and futurology.

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Fortune 500’s race for generative AI breakthroughs

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Deanna Ritchie


As excitement around generative AI grows, Fortune 500 companies, including Goldman Sachs, are carefully examining the possible applications of this technology. A recent survey of U.S. executives indicated that 60% believe generative AI will substantially impact their businesses in the long term. However, they anticipate a one to two-year timeframe before implementing their initial solutions. This optimism stems from the potential of generative AI to revolutionize various aspects of businesses, from enhancing customer experiences to optimizing internal processes. In the short term, companies will likely focus on pilot projects and experimentation, gradually integrating generative AI into their operations as they witness its positive influence on efficiency and profitability.

Goldman Sachs’ Cautious Approach to Implementing Generative AI

In a recent interview, Goldman Sachs CIO Marco Argenti revealed that the firm has not yet implemented any generative AI use cases. Instead, the company focuses on experimentation and setting high standards before adopting the technology. Argenti recognized the desire for outcomes in areas like developer and operational efficiency but emphasized ensuring precision before putting experimental AI use cases into production.

According to Argenti, striking the right balance between driving innovation and maintaining accuracy is crucial for successfully integrating generative AI within the firm. Goldman Sachs intends to continue exploring this emerging technology’s potential benefits and applications while diligently assessing risks to ensure it meets the company’s stringent quality standards.

One possible application for Goldman Sachs is in software development, where the company has observed a 20-40% productivity increase during its trials. The goal is for 1,000 developers to utilize generative AI tools by year’s end. However, Argenti emphasized that a well-defined expectation of return on investment is necessary before fully integrating generative AI into production.

To achieve this, the company plans to implement a systematic and strategic approach to adopting generative AI, ensuring that it complements and enhances the skills of its developers. Additionally, Goldman Sachs intends to evaluate the long-term impact of generative AI on their software development processes and the overall quality of the applications being developed.

Goldman Sachs’ approach to AI implementation goes beyond merely executing models. The firm has created a platform encompassing technical, legal, and compliance assessments to filter out improper content and keep track of all interactions. This comprehensive system ensures seamless integration of artificial intelligence in operations while adhering to regulatory standards and maintaining client confidentiality. Moreover, the platform continuously improves and adapts its algorithms, allowing Goldman Sachs to stay at the forefront of technology and offer its clients the most efficient and secure services.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Google DeepMind; Pexels; Thank you!

Deanna Ritchie

Managing Editor at ReadWrite

Deanna is the Managing Editor at ReadWrite. Previously she worked as the Editor in Chief for Startup Grind and has over 20+ years of experience in content management and content development.

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UK seizes web3 opportunity simplifying crypto regulations

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Deanna Ritchie


As Web3 companies increasingly consider leaving the United States due to regulatory ambiguity, the United Kingdom must simplify its cryptocurrency regulations to attract these businesses. The conservative think tank Policy Exchange recently released a report detailing ten suggestions for improving Web3 regulation in the country. Among the recommendations are reducing liability for token holders in decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and encouraging the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to adopt alternative Know Your Customer (KYC) methodologies, such as digital identities and blockchain analytics tools. These suggestions aim to position the UK as a hub for Web3 innovation and attract blockchain-based businesses looking for a more conducive regulatory environment.

Streamlining Cryptocurrency Regulations for Innovation

To make it easier for emerging Web3 companies to navigate existing legal frameworks and contribute to the UK’s digital economy growth, the government must streamline cryptocurrency regulations and adopt forward-looking approaches. By making the regulatory landscape clear and straightforward, the UK can create an environment that fosters innovation, growth, and competitiveness in the global fintech industry.

The Policy Exchange report also recommends not weakening self-hosted wallets or treating proof-of-stake (PoS) services as financial services. This approach aims to protect the fundamental principles of decentralization and user autonomy while strongly emphasizing security and regulatory compliance. By doing so, the UK can nurture an environment that encourages innovation and the continued growth of blockchain technology.

Despite recent strict measures by UK authorities, such as His Majesty’s Treasury and the FCA, toward the digital assets sector, the proposed changes in the Policy Exchange report strive to make the UK a more attractive location for Web3 enterprises. By adopting these suggestions, the UK can demonstrate its commitment to fostering innovation in the rapidly evolving blockchain and cryptocurrency industries while ensuring a robust and transparent regulatory environment.

The ongoing uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrency regulations in various countries has prompted Web3 companies to explore alternative jurisdictions with more precise legal frameworks. As the United States grapples with regulatory ambiguity, the United Kingdom can position itself as a hub for Web3 innovation by simplifying and streamlining its cryptocurrency regulations.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Jonathan Borba; Pexels; Thank you!

Deanna Ritchie

Managing Editor at ReadWrite

Deanna is the Managing Editor at ReadWrite. Previously she worked as the Editor in Chief for Startup Grind and has over 20+ years of experience in content management and content development.

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