In the debut episode of Born to Lead, we caught up with Duane Primozich, the Co-Founder & Managing Partner at BIGR Ventures, a Boulder, Colo.-based growth equity fund providing value-added, strategic partnership, and capital to promising early-stage products.
Although Primozich doesn’t consider himself to be a leader, he has held multiple management roles throughout his career. Most recently, he’s stepped in as an investor to become CEO of one of the companies within his portfolio — a role made more complex and challenging in a global pandemic.
We caught up with him to discuss how he’s leading both his investment company and one of his portfolio brands as a CEO; who he admires most as a leader; and how he’s adapted to leading through COVID-19. And he answers the question, ‘Are some people just born to lead?’
Check out some highlights below:
On Building Trust As a Leader
“One doesn’t simply establish trust and move on. It’s a continuum. You’re always either building trust or trust is eroding every single day, and I try to bring that intention to my work every day.”
On Coaching
“I’m often in a position of coaching folks up within our portfolio companies, but I like to say that I learn as much as I teach in the board environment. And that’s certainly true from a leadership perspective.”
On How to Lead
“I try to empower people to do the best work they can and give them the tools to do so.”
