In the fifth episode of “The Investors Hate You” from the video podcast series “Don’t Waste My Time,” well-known investors and entrepreneurs share advice and insights on how to build trust between startup founders and investors. They discuss how to manage working relationships and highlight an essential skill — reporting.
Learn more from Adrian Slywotzky — angel investor, business futurist and consultant, Partner at Oliver Wyman; Natalia Anon, angel investor, CEO and founder of Svitla Systems; and entrepreneur Ivan Petrenko.
How can trust be built between a startup founder and an investor?
In the startup ecosystem, conversations often revolve around money, valuation, and growth. However, there is one topic that is frequently overlooked, even though it ultimately determines the long-term success of cooperation between founders and investors — trust. Adrian Slywotzky offers a clear answer to the question: how can trust between a startup founder and an investor be built systematically?
One of the simplest yet most effective tools for building trust is regular, timely, and honest updates on the state of the business.
“Master the art of a one-page report. And let the first line always be about revenue. What was our revenue? What was the growth? What was it over the last six or nine months? What do we expect it to be over the next five or six months? Because if I see that number, I actually don’t need to read the report. It gives me 90% of the information I need. And one more thing: imagine you are the investor. Put yourself in the investor’s place. What would you want to know?” — Adrian Slywotzky
The podcast guests emphasize that investors are not looking for multi-page essays. They are looking for clarity. The ideal reporting format is one page.
Adrian Slywotzky also reflects on another crucial element of building relationships — the ability to honestly communicate failures or mistakes, as bad news is also part of a partnership. He notes that investors do not expect perfect stories from startup founders; they expect honesty.
“If the news is bad, I’ll understand it. That’s what business is about — solving problems. The real question is: how good are we at solving problems in business and talking about them?”
He concludes that trust does not emerge when everything is going well, but rather when things are difficult — and discussed openly.
Slywotzky also reminds us of the concept of collective synergy: “I’ve seen this in one startup. You create a collective conversation among people who are sitting on different sides of the negotiating table, but who genuinely care about the success of the business. And then something interesting can happen — for example, an investor might say, ‘Oh, you need this kind of customer,’ or ‘You have a problem understanding the economics,’ and then offer specific solutions or contacts. That’s my point: look for connections, ideas, or contacts that can help you grow your business. Proactively ask for targeted, concrete help — especially from your investors.”
Discipline — a weak spot for many startups
As noted in the video podcast, after an investment deal is signed, many startups struggle specifically at the stage of regular communication. Ivan Petrenko comments: “Discipline is one of the key areas Ukrainian startup founders need to improve. Providing a monthly update is not that difficult. I would also like to emphasize: adapt to your investors, show respect, and build trust. This is extremely important.”
In conclusion, Adrian Slywotzky adds: “I don’t insist on constant meetings between founders and investors, but I value a quality of communication where we are on the same wavelength and meet not to ‘fix flat tires,’ but to create added value. Investors look for asymmetric moves — decisions where one invested dollar can return 15–20 times. When a founder demonstrates that they understand and can identify such opportunities, trust grows — as does the willingness to invest again.”
In summary
Trust between a startup and an investor does not arise automatically. It is built through:
-
regular and honest communication,
-
discipline,
-
openness to feedback,
-
the ability to think asymmetrically,
and through a shared understanding that business is not about avoiding problems, but about how well we are able to solve them.
The participants of the video podcast are investors in Angel One, a venture fund established by the UCU Foundation, whose mission is to invest in Ukrainian startups, support the implementation of their ideas, and develop startup culture in Ukraine. As an example of successful collaboration, the fund recently invested in the Ukrainian-American deep-tech startup Haiqu, whose co-founder and CTO is a graduate of UCU Business School, and Director of the MSc in Technology Management program, Mykola Maksymenko.
