Investing In Design-Led Companies & What Chicago Tech Is Missing - John Roa / AKTA & Roa Ventures

Tech In Chicago

John Roa is a serial tech entrepreneur and long time Chicagoan. He got his entrepreneurial start by creating a computer repair business at 14 and hasn't stopped since. Last year, he sold ÄKTA, his tech-consulting and design firm, to Salesforce. Now John is planning to invest in other Chicago startups via Roa Ventures, a fund that focuses on "early-stage investments, projects and experiments". He has also created the non-profit, Digital Hope, and enjoys playing competitive poker and traveling extensively.

listen on iTunes listen on google play

In This Episode You Will Learn:

• How John got started as an entrepreneur
• Why he started AKTA and where the name comes from
• What John attributes the success of AKTA to
• How John made the the decision to sell AKTA?
• If he would take venture capital if he could do it again
• Problems he sees in taking venture capital
• Why he's investing instead of starting another startup
• John's criteria for his next startup
• What draws John to travel? He has been to 50+ countries.
• How to build a brand as a new angel investor?
• Similarities between poker and startups
• What Chicago tech is good at & what we could improve on
• Why John doesn’t believe in giving advice

Selected Links From The Episode:

• 6 Ways Playing Poker Can Help You in Business (and 2 Ways It Can't) by John Roa
• The Grand Voyage
• Robert Nand, Founder of The Grand Voyage

Favorite Book:

• The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays by Albert Camus