Wednesday, December 23, 2020
Reflections on 2020: Carey Ransom, Operate
Every year, we feature the year end reflections of founders, CEOs, investors, and others in Southern California's high tech community. We'll be posting these throughout the next two weeks. Today, we have Carey Ransom, of Operate (www.operatestudio.com). You will be able to get to all of these posts on our 2020 reflections here. Are you a founder, CEO, or investor who would like to participate? Contact our editors for details.
What was the biggest news for you/your company this year?
We made 7 investments in SoCal founders in our first year (out of 8 total), and even the 1 exception has deep SoCal ties and we hope to relocate her here in 2021. We changed our name to Operate to better reflect who we are and what we do in partnership with founders through our venture studio.
It's been a tough year for many due to the pandemic; how have you or your company adapted to the business environment?
Our studio companies were working in a mixture of both in our office and remote/virtual before March, and most have moved entirely remote and distributed since then. That's been an adjustment to figuring out a cadence for communication and relationship development. We've expanded our network activity outside of SoCal to potentially invest in and recruit founders and talent to the region. We know that California has seen some criticism for a variety of reasons, but we're believers that SoCal's next decade will be an incredible one for innovation and entrepreneurs.
What was the biggest lesson you learned this year?
I was reminded this year that plans must have contingencies, and adaptability is increasingly the most important trait for all of us to develop and hone, including founders. I also learned that my optimism and gratitude can provide a calming strength for me, my family and others around me, even during a pandemic. And finally, I was reminded this year of the many brilliant, caring and collaborative people in the region, and we could meet far more frequently on Zoom!
What are you most looking forward to in the technology/startup world in 2021?
I'm excited to see and meet the founders who were inspired by this challenging year to begin to tackle some of the huge looming problems in front of us. There are many. And I want to partner with them to build impactful companies that ultimately help define this century's roaring 20s. With the creative capabilities, technical competence and entrepreneurial energy here in SoCal, I'm confident we'll be positively denting the universe from here in many ways in the years ahead.
Carey Ransom is President and Co-founder of Operate (www.operatestudios.com). Ransom is a technology entrepreneur, executive, investor, and board member, and has started, grown, and/or led nine B2B and consumer technology companies during startup and growth phases.