. | Between Two COO's

Feb. 5, 2025

Cut Your SaaS Costs: COO Justin Etkin on Smarter Procurement

In this episode of Between Two COOs, Michael Koenig sits down with Justin Etkin, COO of Tropic.io, to discuss how procurement has evolved into a strategic function in today’s businesses. Justin shares his insights on how companies can use procurement as a growth lever rather than just a cost-saving…

Jan. 21, 2025

True Search Managing Director Evan Grossman on how to land your next C-Suite role

In this episode of Between Two COOs, Michael Koenig interviews Evan Grossman, partner and head of the CEO and board practice at True Search, one of the world’s leading executive recruiting firms. Evan shares insights into the hidden C-suite job market, the importance of networking, and how to posit…

Jan. 8, 2025

Vestwell COO Jon Mark on applying strategy and tactics to build a multi-billion dollar company

In this insightful episode of Between Two COOs, host Michael Koenig sits down with Jon Mark, the COO of Vestwell, a trailblazing digital platform revolutionizing workplace savings and investment programs. Vestwell is on a mission to close the savings gap in the U.S., serving 25,000 small businesses…

July 16, 2024

HomeToGo COO Valentin Gruber Talks M&A, Strategic Planning, and Taking the Multi-Billion Dollar Company Public

In this episode of 'Between Two COOs,' host Michael Koenig interviews Valentin Gruber, COO of Home2Go. The conversation covers Home2Go's history, its public listing via SPAC in 2021 with a valuation of $1.2 billion, and the company's strategic direction. Valentin discusses their approach to navigat…

April 23, 2024

School of Rock COO Stacey Ryan on Navigating Crises, Change, Leadership, and Empowerment

Empowering Leadership and Innovation with Stacey Ryan of School of Rock In this episode of Between Two COOs, host Michael Koenig interviews Stacey Ryan, the COO of School of Rock, a global music school franchise. Despite common beliefs, the School of Rock predated its namesake 2003 film, with Stac…

April 9, 2024

Fellow CEO Aydin Mirzaee on Mastering Productivity and Efficiency with AI

In an insightful episode of 'Between Two COOs,' host Michael Koenig converses with Aidan Mirzaee, the founder and CEO of Fellow, about the art and science of optimizing meetings. The discussion dives into the staggering statistics of daily meetings in the U.S., the inception of Fellow as a product …

Feb. 13, 2024

How to delegate, lead, fix problems, hire and promote, and be the second in command with Cameron Herold of COO Alliance and 1-800-got-junk

Join me, Michael Koenig, on a journey with business guru Cameron Harold, as we celebrate his latest literary achievement, "The Second In Command." Listen in as Cameron, the brain behind COO Alliance, unpacks the essentials of his new book, offering a treasure trove of guidance for CEOs and COOs ali…

Jan. 30, 2024

EU vs AI: What You Need to Know About the EU's AI Act - The Legal Opinion with Flick Fisher, Partner at Fieldfisher

How you need to plan for the AI Act? What is permissible and isn’t? How the EU will regulate AI? What constitutes AI? Could the EU's new AI Act be the cornerstone of global AI regulation? That's what we're here to unpack with the expert insight of Flick Fisher, a leading privacy specialist and part…

Jan. 24, 2024

Productboard COO Greg Strickland on how to balance growth and innovation, collecting mentors and personal development, managing through change, SMB to enterprise shift, and the competitive advantage of startups

Join us as Greg Strickland, COO of Productboard, and I explore the power of embracing new opportunities and the crucial balance between business outcomes and personal advancement. Greg shares his journey of growth through accepting challenges that push boundaries, and we reflect on the times when a…

Jan. 9, 2024

Get Your Guide COO Tao on Building a $2 Billion Dollar Travel Experience Giant

Unpack the transformation of travel experiences with me, Michael Kanig, as Tao Tao, COO of GetYourGuide, reveals the secrets behind turning a dorm-room startup into a $2 billion industry titan. We're setting the stage for a fascinating tale of innovation, strategy, and resilience that's reshaping t…

Guest: Tao Tao

Dec. 19, 2023

Doist COO Allan Christensen on remote ops, perfecting hiring, designing ops for career development, the ideal employee feedback loop

Are you ready for a deep dive into the world of remote work, productivity, and leadership? Let us whisk you away on a journey with our special guest, Alan Christensen, the COO of Duist, a trailblazing SaaS company. Alan’s story, which starts from humble beginnings in a family pipe business, catapul…

Dec. 5, 2023

Rewind.ai & Optimizely CEO & Founder, Dan Siroker, on augmenting human memory with AI, building Optimizely, AI in operations, privacy and security, hiring and building extraordinary teams, and AI's impact on STEM education

We're thrilled to welcome Dan Sroker, co-founder and CEO of Rewind, and former CEO and co-founder of Optimizely, to Between Two COOs! This episode centers around an eye-opening conversation about the potential of AI to augment human memory, transforming every digital interaction into an AI-able, se…

Guest: Dan Siroker

Nov. 21, 2023

Arcadia COO, Kate Hennigsen, on Clean Tech and Disrupting the Energy Market, Non-Traditional Backgrounds for Working in Tech (and Ops!), Energy Regulation, M&A, Board, Risk, and Cash Management, & the Power of a Well Written Cold Emai

The compelling Kate Hemington, co-founder and COO of Arcadia, joins us for a deep dive into the revolutionary world of clean tech and the disruption of the energy market. Her unique insights, stemming from her academic background at the University of Oxford and experience in corporate litigation, s…

Guest: Kate Henningsen

Oct. 17, 2023

Perfecting Remote Work Operations with Darren Murph, Fmr Gitlab VP Remote

We're thrilled to present a fascinating conversation with Daren Murph, acknowledged as the Oracle of Remote Work by none other than CNBC. Prepare for a deep dive into the critical operations of remote companies, with a spotlight on low context communication. In our discussion, we unpack the signifi…

Guest: Darren Murph

Sept. 26, 2023

Prisma COO, Nitin Gupta, explains tech to my mom, operationalizing hackathons, the balance of commercializing open-source, planning, and a team psychologist

Prisma COO Nitin Gupta joins to explain Prisma to my mom, how Prisma University educates internally, and technical team members share knowledge. He discusses operationalizing hackathons, remote team issues, all-hands meetings, organization structure, and open-sourcing processes. Learn how Prisma em…

Guest: Nitin Gupta

Sept. 11, 2023

ZenBusiness COO, Shanaz Hemmati, on automating G&A with AI, building a $1.7B company that thrives in both up and down times, being a technical COO, and growing HomeAway through M&A to IPO to more M&A with Expedia

Shanaz Hemmati is the co-founder and COO of ZenBusiness, a company that makes it simple for people to start their businesses and run their G&A. We chat about how AI will automate G&A, building a $1.7B company that thrives in both up and down times, being a technical COO, and growing HomeAway throu…

Guest: Shanaz Hemmati

Aug. 1, 2023

Productiv COO, Munish Gandhi on Harnessing AI for Streamlining Contract Renewals and Procurement, Optimizing SaaS Costs, Governance and Risk Management, SVB's Collapse, and more

What if you could get a hold on your SaaS governance and optimize how you manage your applications with AI? That's exactly what we're exploring in our riveting conversation with Munish Gandhi, co-founder and COO of Productiv. Munish's deep insights into SaaS portfolio governance and ways to rationa…

July 18, 2023

Transforming the Labor Market: A Deep Dive with former Workrise COO and current CEO of Gigs, Allen Narcisse

Ever wondered what it takes to thrive in the gig economy arena? Hold on to your seats as we discuss the intricate world of the gig economy with none other than Allen Narcisse, the former COO at Workrise and the brain behind Gigs. Together, we traverse his career landscape, from his initial venture,…

June 27, 2023

Embracing the Future of Food: The Rise of Sustainable Indoor Urban Farming with Square Roots CEO Tobias Peggs

Discover how indoor urban farming changes how we grow and consume food in our captivating conversation with Tobias Peggs, co-founder and CEO of Square Roots. As climate change threatens traditional agriculture, innovative solutions like Square Roots are making their mark by bringing sustainable, lo…

Guest: Tobias Peggs

May 2, 2023

Cotopaxi COO & cofounder, Stephan Jacob on getting to $100M in revenue, brand building, supply chain, B Corps and ESG, and taking llamas on college campuses

Stephan Jacob, Co-founder and COO of Cotopaxi, joins Michael to talk about building an impact-driven business to $100M in revenue, how sustainability drives Cotopaxi’s product development, managing a CEO transition, the proliferation of certified B Corps, donating revenue to fight poverty in develo…

April 10, 2023

Lime COO, Woody Hartman, on micromobility, helping Lyft grow from $100K to $3B in revenue, launching 24 markets in 24 hours, creating joy, how to coach, and summiting Everest

Woody Hartman, COO of Lime and former VP of Global Operations at Lyft sits down with Michael to talk about the challenges in scaling a micromobility company, how Lime’s gained a competitive advantage over other players in the market, and why he chose to summit Mount Everest following his time at Ly…

Jan. 23, 2023

Data Privacy & GDPR with Flick Fisher, Partner at Fieldfisher

This week on B2COO’s, lawyer, data privacy expert, and Partner at Fieldfisher’s Technology and Data Group, Felicity “Flick” Fisher joins Michael to dive deep into all things data privacy and GDPR, including: 🔒 what the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is and the impact it’s had upo…

Jan. 16, 2023

Blinkist Co-Founder & CEO Holger Seim on growing to 21M users, optimizing your information intake, geographic expansion, and experimenting with a 4-day workweek

Holger Seim, co-founder and CEO of Blinkist, speaks with Michael about how Blinkist emerged out of shifting consumption patterns, geographic expansion out of Germany, where the company may be headed, and how to stick to your long-term strategic vision while also incorporating responses to ongoing c…

Nov. 7, 2022

Vodafone Qatar COO, Diego Camberos on prepping for 1.4M World Cup visitors, rolling out 5G across Qatar, life as a serial expat, being c-suite at a global juggernaut, and the benefits of radical simplification

Diego Camberos, COO of Vodafone Qatar and former CEO of Tigo Millicom Senegal and Rwanda, joins Michael to share insight into navigating cultural differences in different markets, how “radical simplification” has served as the bedrock of Vodafone’s success, and how to build a corporate culture that…