Phin looks at the job of investing as a craft composed of two parts—both interviewing and coaching. He’s built a career around his ability to maximize one-on-one time with founders in both pre-investment and post-investment settings, ultimately helping founders move closer to their north star by bringing out their best answers.
Highlights
AND1
Phin spent six years building sneakers and helping to scale revenue as Creative Director for Footwear. His AND1 highlight reel includes countless hours getting product feedback at playgrounds and malls across the country, working in Asia to turn consumer insight into physical sneakers, time in the locker room at Madison Square Garden convincing Vince Carter to wear AND1 shoes in a dunk contest, and working with KG on his signature shoe. More tactically, Phin played a critical role in the initial concept for the AND1 Mixtape, which became a formative early experience in the value of creative confidence and the power and process of finding product-market fit.
First Round Capital
As a Partner at First Round, Phin defined venture capital as a product that founders buy with their equity. He turned that idea into a cultural mandate inside First Round’s decision-making processes, which led to partnerships with generational founders and inspired community programs like Angel Track and Dorm Room Fund.
For Phin, the moments he enjoys most as a builder are when he is able to bring out a founder’s best and the value of the partnership is recognized in thank-yous from entrepreneurs.
Superpowers
Interviewing
Phin is an expert at bringing out a builder’s best in the interviewing process. This often means creating an environment that allows founders to get to the ground truth fast and clearly define their north star. He tries to help builders challenge their assumptions and begin to navigate some of the uncertainty that’s core to the company building process before it’s all too real.
Coaching
Through his gift for listening, Phin excels at helping founders find the answers to company-building challenges within themselves. He’s an expert at giving founders the space to think about the complexities of the problem they’re solving and the confidence to trust their instincts when it comes to solutions.
