This week’s guest is Ayal Yogev, co-founder and CEO of Anjuna Security, who has experienced both sides of the startup journey: scaling quickly during the boom years and then making the incredibly difficult decision to lay off a significant portion of his team when the market shifted.
From growing to 75 employees to scaling back and rebuilding, Yogev learned firsthand that the hardest part of leadership isn’t hiring fast, it’s making tough decisions with care, transparency, and integrity.
In this episode, Isabelle Johannessen and Yogev unpack what it really means to lead through layoffs with compassion and how founders can support their teams even in the most challenging moments. They also explore the lessons learned from scaling too quickly and how to build a more resilient company the second time around.
Apply to Startup Battlefield: We are looking for early-stage companies that have an MVP. So nominate a founder (or yourself): techcrunch.com/apply. Be sure to say you heard about Startup Battlefield from the Build Mode podcast.
TechCrunch Disrupt: If you're thinking about applying to Startup Battlefield, then October 13 to 15 in San Francisco, we're back for TechCrunch Disrupt, where the Startup Battlefield 200 takes the stage. So if you want to cheer them on, or just network with 1000s of founders, VCs, and tech enthusiasts, then grab your tickets.
Use code buildmode15 for 15% off any ticket type.
New episodes of Build Mode drop every Thursday. Hosted by Isabelle
|
Theresa Payton, Fortalice Solutions CEO ...
#taxes #inflation #interestrates #econom...
Revolution Medicines could be on the cus...
Vice President JD Vance and Treasury Sec...
Mohamed El-Erian, Allianz, and Steve Sos...
John Carlin, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Whart...
#stockmarket #marketanalysis #inflation ...
Fed's Powell, Scott Bessent warn bank CE...
NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal doesn...
Luca Socci dives into the "AI Fear" surr...
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East ...
#yahoofinance #livemarketanalysis #stock...
Luca Socci dives into the dominant ratin...
LLMs may have kicked off this AI boom, b...