Podcast: Eric Klitz with Haley Ehrke

Engler Entrepreneurship Author

01/22/2018 Added

6 Plays

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Haley Ehrke interviews Eric Klitz, a sophomore at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln who attended the Lean Startup Conference in Silicon Valley California Nov 1-4, 2017. Eric discusses his experiences as well as what his main takeaways were from the conference.

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[00:00:00.359]Welcome to Inspired by Englers.
[00:00:02.258]This is Haley Irkey.
[00:00:03.681]I'm a Sophomore Agra Business major at the
[00:00:05.536]University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
[00:00:07.834]Today I have with me Eric Glitz,
[00:00:09.642]who's also an Engler entrepreneur
[00:00:11.422]who attended a Lean Startup conference
[00:00:14.559]in California.
[00:00:15.797]Thanks for coming here today, Eric.
[00:00:17.809]Yeah, it's great to be here.
[00:00:18.927]Thank you for having me here.
[00:00:21.052]Can you tell me a little bit
[00:00:22.129]about the conference?
[00:00:24.669]Yeah, I guess.
[00:00:25.563]It's been a little bit since we attended
[00:00:27.716]and it's kinda gave me some time
[00:00:29.504]to digest things and have some things resonate.
[00:00:32.235]And some things that really stuck with me was
[00:00:35.721]the Lean Startup Conference seemed to be
[00:00:38.024]not completely geared but it was attended widely
[00:00:41.785]by a lot of corporations and larger companies
[00:00:44.965]trying to do entrepreneurship.
[00:00:47.169]And that really stuck with me as that
[00:00:49.851]Corporate America is trying to adapt this
[00:00:53.783]Lean Startup methodology into their business model
[00:00:56.973]and try to not overcome entrepreneurship but
[00:01:00.752]incorporate that in as they see that as a threat
[00:01:03.658]to their quarterly earnings.
[00:01:05.393]What was the most memorable part
[00:01:07.140]about the conference for you?
[00:01:09.091]I guess the structure of the conference was
[00:01:10.615]a lot of speakers.
[00:01:11.834]There was a few workshops,
[00:01:14.262]and a couple of networking opportunities.
[00:01:16.803]Probably the networking opportunities, as well as,
[00:01:19.119]just a couple of speakers really stuck with me.
[00:01:22.065]We had the opportunity to have a dinner
[00:01:25.417]and we sat next to another entrepreneurship program
[00:01:29.693]that sends a few females along that we
[00:01:32.732]got to connect with and talk about ideas
[00:01:35.818]and just differences in programs.
[00:01:39.364]In addition to that,
[00:01:40.207]we sat next to a few of the sponsors
[00:01:43.040]and a teacher who taught entrepreneurship in Ireland
[00:01:46.934]and one other country that I don't
[00:01:48.783]quite recall now.
[00:01:50.761]But he had a lot of insight and a lot of connections
[00:01:52.835]and he had the opportunity to take a few companies public
[00:01:55.659]and start quite a few Tech companies.
[00:01:58.524]So that was awfully interesting to hear what
[00:02:00.303]they had to say.
[00:02:01.766]And in addition to that,
[00:02:03.601]a few of the more memorable speakers I had was,
[00:02:07.199]I think we're gonna talk about it later,
[00:02:08.432]is Chip Heath.
[00:02:09.923]He talked about his book, "The Power of Moments".
[00:02:12.744]In addition to that, they had GE there,
[00:02:14.693]kind of as the golden child
[00:02:16.370]of corporations adopting this entrepreneurship
[00:02:19.755]and this whole Lean Startup methodology.
[00:02:22.405]That was interesting,
[00:02:23.412]because when you read books like
[00:02:25.676]"Good to Great" and things,
[00:02:27.017]it mentions GE every time.
[00:02:29.577]So just to see them in person and hear what they're
[00:02:31.986]having to do and how they went about doing this.
[00:02:35.488]This wasn't your first time going to
[00:02:37.033]Silicon Valley, was it?
[00:02:38.781]No, I've actually been there two other times.
[00:02:41.779]I have a cousin that's there so we toured it,
[00:02:44.519]just more of a tourist attraction when I was younger.
[00:02:47.273]But through the Engler Program
[00:02:48.948]we also went there in May.
[00:02:50.687]And this was a good addition to it,
[00:02:52.341]because I feel like you kinda get treated
[00:02:55.207]a little bit different as a group of
[00:02:57.188]30 individuals just going to different startups
[00:02:59.819]and hearing their pitch,
[00:03:01.365]as opposed to really being in it and surrounded
[00:03:04.494]by it with only four Engler entrepreneurs.
[00:03:09.400]You don't quite get the same effect and everything
[00:03:13.333]that you really gotta get the startup culture
[00:03:15.625]and everything in this round.
[00:03:18.304]We've heard you say the words
[00:03:19.811]"Be a fifth level leader."
[00:03:22.287]What does that mean?
[00:03:25.093]This goes back to one of my favorite books,
[00:03:27.161]"Good to Great"
[00:03:28.561]and I guess maybe I should've
[00:03:31.698]mentioned this when I was talking about Eric Ries.
[00:03:35.245]So you had the chance to see and hear
[00:03:37.487]Eric Ries in person.
[00:03:39.246]What do you think of his startup persona?
[00:03:42.112]Eric Ries wasn't quite the person
[00:03:44.388]I anticipated him to be.
[00:03:46.399]I found him to be catering to corporate America
[00:03:49.102]and maybe even the way he communicated really
[00:03:52.056]just resonated with corporate America more than
[00:03:55.885]the young entrepreneur.
[00:03:58.122]I don't know if you know
[00:03:59.635]Eric Ries' background, but he...
[00:04:01.312]This actually isn't his idea,
[00:04:02.775]he's just the author of the book,
[00:04:04.775]that really made it public.
[00:04:06.502]He took the idea from his professor
[00:04:08.737]with the professor's permission, of course,
[00:04:11.094]and wrote this book and kind of really created
[00:04:12.902]a movement out of it that
[00:04:15.198]I don't want to say caters to corporate America,
[00:04:17.065]but definitely corporate America is recognized,
[00:04:20.115]it's strengths and how it can play into their business.
[00:04:23.499]But overall, when I heard Eric Ries talk,
[00:04:26.289]I really didn't feel like I got connected with him
[00:04:28.820]just because I don't know if you're listeners have
[00:04:32.356]read the book, "Good to Great,"
[00:04:34.946]but I didn't think Eric Ries really was the
[00:04:37.843]fifth level leader that he was that jolly guy
[00:04:41.407]sitting up on the stage
[00:04:43.441]not liking the attention.
[00:04:45.340]He is that guy sitting up on the stage
[00:04:48.045]that is trying to lead his team
[00:04:51.926]as opposed to push his team.
[00:04:54.019]I guess that was kind of surprising just to see
[00:04:57.764]the difference after reading the book and
[00:05:00.427]really recognizing the differences between those
[00:05:02.979]two types of leaders, fourth and fifth level.
[00:05:07.295]I kind of have made a deeper appreciation
[00:05:09.692]for the fifth level leader.
[00:05:12.487]So now that we have heard you talk about
[00:05:14.856]being a fifth level leader,
[00:05:16.767]what does it exactly mean?
[00:05:18.320]Like I said, it goes back to
[00:05:19.368]"Good to Great."
[00:05:20.201]I would recommend that your listeners read that
[00:05:22.484]book as well.
[00:05:23.409]I think that book is a phenomenal book for any
[00:05:26.122]entrepreneur just to be self-building,
[00:05:28.723]rather than build a company,
[00:05:30.177]but just build himself as a leader.
[00:05:34.410]In the book it talks about a flywheel effect.
[00:05:36.585]It never was just one big like Eric Ries' book.
[00:05:41.644]It's that great companies and long-lasting
[00:05:43.737]companies do a flywheel effect he calls it.
[00:05:46.216]It's one push and then two pushes and then
[00:05:48.764]you move the flywheel one inch and two inch,
[00:05:51.254]and eventually you gain that momentum where the
[00:05:53.306]flywheel can't be stopped,
[00:05:54.636]as opposed to just one big movement.
[00:05:57.074]That's kind of how I view this conference.
[00:06:00.528]More so that looking back in 30 years,
[00:06:03.106]I'm gonna remember this conference,
[00:06:05.070]but am I going to dedicate my success solely
[00:06:07.253]to this conference?
[00:06:08.829]It was a push on the flywheel,
[00:06:10.150]sure it was a bigger push,
[00:06:11.734]and I don't want to discredit this.
[00:06:13.136]It was a wonderful investment for Engler to make.
[00:06:16.782]And I think that anyone who goes to it
[00:06:18.500]and anyone who talks to anyone who goes to it,
[00:06:21.385]will certainly see the benefits of it.
[00:06:23.700]But it was just another push on the flywheel.
[00:06:27.306]A bigger one of course,
[00:06:28.462]but just another one to get the momentum going.
[00:06:32.203]You also had the chance to see and hear
[00:06:34.397]Chip Heath in person,
[00:06:35.952]provider of the "Power of Moments."
[00:06:37.851]What do you think of his persona?
[00:06:40.144]At the end of his talk he gave his book
[00:06:41.610]and I got a signed copy of it.
[00:06:44.800]It wasn't three days after I listened to the
[00:06:48.069]whole audio book over the book.
[00:06:49.329]I think that this would be a good book
[00:06:51.929]for a lot of Engler entrepreneurs to read as
[00:06:54.144]there's a whole brand movement as opposed to
[00:06:57.029]just a product that's going on now.
[00:06:59.354]And even just off the top of my head how many
[00:07:02.750]product or value added beef companies we have
[00:07:06.355]in Engler that are trying to tell their story
[00:07:09.159]and make a brand for themselves that this book
[00:07:11.495]would benefit a lot of
[00:07:13.689]the companies that are following the entrepreneurs
[00:07:16.485]are trying to build because it really gives you
[00:07:18.820]points that you can work on and things that
[00:07:22.654]he sees that works when you're trying to build
[00:07:25.071]a brand and trying to make these moments.
[00:07:28.078]That is really what people are paying for.
[00:07:29.785]They want a piece of beef that's high quality,
[00:07:32.995]but they want a moment that they can remember.
[00:07:35.657]And he really helped people be able to build that
[00:07:38.664]and make a conscious effort when doing so.
[00:07:40.667]Kind of a loaded question,
[00:07:42.068]but what were your entrepreneur goals going into
[00:07:44.323]the conference if you had them,
[00:07:45.929]and how did they change as you were
[00:07:47.380]at the conference?
[00:07:48.355]Entrepreneurial goals.
[00:07:50.135]I kinda went in with an open mind.
[00:07:52.105]The only thing I knew I want to do is really
[00:07:54.227]connect with a lot of people,
[00:07:55.670]'cause it was a unique opportunity to see people
[00:07:57.559]from all over the world as a matter of fact.
[00:08:01.715]I guess kind of context,
[00:08:03.524]us four went there volunteering,
[00:08:06.823]getting into the conference for free,
[00:08:09.253]which had a hefty price tag.
[00:08:10.969]I was extremely grateful for that.
[00:08:14.471]I would've rather attended the conference
[00:08:16.114]volunteering because it gave you an opportunity to
[00:08:18.469]really connect with volunteers your age.
[00:08:22.645]Not that you didn't have the opportunity to
[00:08:24.505]connect with corporations and business people
[00:08:27.826]that maybe had a little bit older,
[00:08:29.461]a bit more experience.
[00:08:30.905]But it gave you the opportunity to do both.
[00:08:33.830]But you got the young entrepreneurial spirit
[00:08:36.658]that was there to work hard and get the most
[00:08:38.606]out of this conference.
[00:08:39.642]But then you also had the corporations that were
[00:08:43.701]expected to take something out of this conference
[00:08:46.708]and bring it to their company that invested so much
[00:08:50.214]in them to attend this conference.
[00:08:52.986]So I guess going back to the question,
[00:08:55.625]my goals was really just to get a solid contact list
[00:08:59.304]that I can follow up with and connect with
[00:09:02.423]and have a network that I can utilize in the future
[00:09:04.802]with specific goals.
[00:09:06.657]What is something new at the methodology
[00:09:09.088]or a piece of feedback?
[00:09:10.926]Or something you heard at the conference
[00:09:12.471]that just made a connection with something you've
[00:09:14.338]heard or learned in the past?
[00:09:16.403]I would say there's two things.
[00:09:18.565]The first being,
[00:09:19.398]like I said, the "Power of Moments".
[00:09:20.618]I think his talk was by far the most powerful
[00:09:23.634]throughout the conference that he really hit that
[00:09:25.790]point home and gave you a very prescriptive
[00:09:28.716]way to do so.
[00:09:32.414]That book, "Power of Moments" by Chip Heath.
[00:09:34.657]And then in addition to that,
[00:09:36.598]I think that when GE talked,
[00:09:39.673]if you read a lot of books,
[00:09:43.170]it talks about GE and I think it was maybe
[00:09:45.059]even on a podcast I heard,
[00:09:47.051]it was a podcast on the difference between
[00:09:48.789]million and billion dollar companies.
[00:09:52.069]It mentioned GE that million dollar companies
[00:09:54.903]expand and build on a product.
[00:09:57.424]And billion dollar companies expand and build
[00:09:59.688]on an idea.
[00:10:01.090]That really never resonated with me what GE's
[00:10:03.215]idea was.
[00:10:04.219]The podcast touched on it that they can
[00:10:06.576]turn products, quality products in things.
[00:10:09.725]I guess going to the Lean Startup Conference
[00:10:12.021]that really showed how they do that with the
[00:10:14.834]Lean Startup methodology that they could build
[00:10:17.730]a jet engine just as fast as they can build
[00:10:19.822]an MRI machine just as fast as they can build
[00:10:22.525]an oven.
[00:10:23.886]And it's all very high quality,
[00:10:25.564]all very diversified.
[00:10:27.441]And they can enter into any market
[00:10:29.485]and dominate it just because of the methodology
[00:10:32.532]they have and the culture at their company,
[00:10:35.244]as opposed to just having a product
[00:10:38.099]that's so-called their golden child,
[00:10:40.585]that it's more so an idea and
[00:10:42.082]culture of their company.
[00:10:44.346]And I thought that was something I really took away.
[00:10:47.343]That gives you a lot of thought on just
[00:10:49.701]everyone.
[00:10:50.970]I think a lot of entrepreneurs almost become
[00:10:53.103]inventors that they just get stuck on the one idea
[00:10:55.835]and don't really build on themselves,
[00:10:57.918]or build on an idea,
[00:10:59.319]as opposed to just one product.
[00:11:01.207]They'll just keep pivoting, as one of the buzz words
[00:11:04.765]is nowadays, on their product,
[00:11:07.255]as opposed to just what they're really trying to do
[00:11:09.924]as far as idea and change in the society
[00:11:12.486]that they live in.
[00:11:13.989]Would you want more Englershers to
[00:11:15.464]attend this conference?
[00:11:17.504]Yeah, I think this was definitely a good
[00:11:18.996]opportunity for me
[00:11:21.153]and my fellow Engler Entrepreneurs
[00:11:25.083]that went on the conference.
[00:11:27.396]And I found it extremely beneficial.
[00:11:29.227]I think that,
[00:11:30.913]in the future this would be a good thing for Engler
[00:11:32.896]to send Engler students to volunteer at the
[00:11:36.104]conference and really get an idea.
[00:11:38.097]And then make sure that they make a
[00:11:40.625]valid effort to return to the program what they
[00:11:44.233]learned there and return the investment that the
[00:11:46.405]program made with them to their
[00:11:48.601]fellow entrepreneurs as well.
[00:11:50.816]Can you give me three recommendations
[00:11:52.502]or advice you would recommend to give future
[00:11:55.051]Engler students going to the Lean Startup Conference.
[00:11:57.948]I would go in with an open mind very much.
[00:12:00.372]So that if you haven't been experienced to the
[00:12:03.047]Silicon culture it can be certainly shocking,
[00:12:06.479]especially if you're like many of us are,
[00:12:08.806]come from a small town in Nebraska.
[00:12:10.594]It's a new experience and it's certainly
[00:12:13.815]a different one.
[00:12:14.718]And you have to recognize that.
[00:12:16.525]That's where the heart of the Startup community
[00:12:19.676]world is and that if you're gonna engage in this
[00:12:22.261]world that's something you have to become used to
[00:12:24.256]and conform to and learn to work in.
[00:12:26.843]I think that's where the benefit of this
[00:12:30.026]conference comes into as much as anything.
[00:12:34.503]Another one I'd say is
[00:12:37.564]for them to, when they're there,
[00:12:39.259]just really be present
[00:12:40.600]and recognize that Engler made an investment in you
[00:12:44.622]and they expect a return out of it through
[00:12:47.914]knowledge and experience and story telling
[00:12:50.811]when you get back and things.
[00:12:52.108]It can be easy just to be in a different place
[00:12:55.443]in your same life,
[00:12:56.723]but you have a wonderful opportunity that they
[00:13:00.369]gave to you and that it's something that you
[00:13:02.583]should certainly take advantage of.
[00:13:04.330]Lastly I would say that
[00:13:06.179]no other time are you ever gonna have the
[00:13:08.394]opportunity to connect with just a broad
[00:13:11.523]amount of people,
[00:13:12.375]whether that be in a professor from Ireland,
[00:13:16.216]or a company owner,
[00:13:19.011]or a CEO of a company,
[00:13:21.883]or a startup all conglomerating together
[00:13:24.639]to try to all really try to do the same thing,
[00:13:27.980]and that's disrupt an industry or build something
[00:13:32.215]that you just really need to take advantage of that
[00:13:35.284]and you recognize the environment that your in
[00:13:37.601]and how you come in to play in that environment,
[00:13:40.434]and what you have to offer,
[00:13:42.072]and what they have to offer that you can pick up on.
[00:13:45.099]Could you give me a little bit
[00:13:46.141]of an inside on what it is like to spend time
[00:13:49.049]with your fellow Engler entrepreneurs?
[00:13:51.647]It was a good experience.
[00:13:53.052]I guess going into it,
[00:13:54.830]I knew Zack Setchy well,
[00:13:59.430]but I didn't know the other two.
[00:14:02.845]So I think that was a good experience too
[00:14:04.814]just in the trip, getting to know my fellow
[00:14:07.814]entrepreneurs better too.
[00:14:09.590]Not many times do you have the opportunity
[00:14:11.085]to travel to a new place with someone and spend
[00:14:13.442]three days with them, three of four days with them.
[00:14:18.591]I think that was just as good of a part
[00:14:22.908]of the trip as any,
[00:14:24.088]getting to know your entrepreneurs,
[00:14:26.567]your fellow entrepreneurs on a more personal level.
[00:14:29.803]You really connect with them and understand
[00:14:31.280]what they're trying to do,
[00:14:33.168]and what they're trying to build,
[00:14:34.308]and how you might be able to help them,
[00:14:36.145]and how they might be able to help you,
[00:14:37.823]and come together.
[00:14:38.940]Lastly, a question I'd like to ask.
[00:14:41.561]I'm gonna put your mind on the spot.
[00:14:43.613]What is your newspaper headline about your
[00:14:45.889]experience at the Lean Startup Conference?
[00:14:48.124]I think one that would certainly catch
[00:14:50.562]the public's eye,
[00:14:52.541]it certainly surprised me when I got there,
[00:14:55.812]is that corporate American really is
[00:14:58.869]afraid of startups and what they're doing to their
[00:15:02.070]business and how it's affecting their market share
[00:15:06.256]and just the cozy little quarterly earnings
[00:15:09.721]that they've been able to experience for ex number
[00:15:12.243]of years since the industrial revolution that's
[00:15:14.946]kind of coming to a crash pretty quick,
[00:15:17.451]and they need to adapt some methodology,
[00:15:20.400]whether it be this or they need to do something
[00:15:22.239]different because...
[00:15:25.134]I once read the difference between
[00:15:28.547]self organized companies and structured companies
[00:15:32.590]kind of going with government incorporations,
[00:15:35.394]and every time city doubles in size,
[00:15:38.207]their innovation goes up by 15% innovation
[00:15:41.127]and productivity I should say.
[00:15:42.602]And every time a company doubles in size,
[00:15:44.585]their innovation and productivity decreases
[00:15:47.153]by 15%, the complete opposite.
[00:15:50.266]Don't quote me on this,
[00:15:51.767]but I think the podcast said that
[00:15:54.144]from 1980,
[00:15:57.177]maybe it was later,
[00:15:58.010]maybe it was like 1960 about 80% of the
[00:16:00.041]Forbes five hundred companies are off that list,
[00:16:02.407]that they don't exist anymore.
[00:16:04.172]Companies kind of self implode.
[00:16:07.437]That's more true than ever now with entrepreneurship
[00:16:11.204]as popular as it is,
[00:16:13.227]comparative to kind of the
[00:16:15.544]deal on entrepreneurship back then was more so,
[00:16:18.896]but you really didn't know what you were doing
[00:16:20.550]with your life.
[00:16:21.819]This was kind of just
[00:16:23.670]running around,
[00:16:24.715]exploring ideas.
[00:16:25.610]But now entrepreneurship is very determined.
[00:16:28.106]It's directed and focused on ideas
[00:16:30.700]and building things that's certainly cutting into
[00:16:33.349]corporate America's comfy little quarterly
[00:16:37.019]earnings, like I said.
[00:16:38.198]Kind of a long round about answer,
[00:16:40.685]but I would say for sure in quotes
[00:16:43.590]the newspaper headline is, "Corporate America
[00:16:46.081]"Fears Entrepreneurs."
[00:16:48.295]Thank you for listening today.
[00:16:49.961]You have heard from Eric Glitz, who's an
[00:16:51.682]Engler entrepreneur,
[00:16:52.880]who attended the Lean Startup Conference in
[00:16:54.863]Silicon Valley.
[00:16:56.006]Thanks for listening.
[00:16:56.839]This is Haley Irkey,
[00:16:57.980]and I'm a sophomore Agra Business major
[00:16:59.617]at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

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Podcast: Eric Klitz with Haley Ehrke

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