Podcast
Billion Dollar Backstory
Hosted by Stacy Havener · EN
Host Stacy Havener brings you the storytelling tips, sales strategies, behavioral secrets, and inspirational stories that help YOU turn your words into dollars. Learn from sales and marketing experts. Meet finance and investment leaders, founders and fund managers who have made it, and the ones on the rise. Because there are people behind the portfolios. Their stories matter. So does yours.
Presented by:
Ultimus Fund Solutions // www.ultimusfundsolutions.com
GemCap // www.geminicapital.ie
@stacyhavener // www.billiondollarbackstory.com
32episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
160: The Art of Differentiation in the Investment Industry | Allocators Want Different Not Better | How to Identify Your Edge and Find Your Fascinating to Raise Capital
2w ago00:26:12Tap to summarizeDifferent > better.Especially in an industry that loves to rank, chart, compare, and benchmark errrthing. Because when everyone is trying to prove they're better, everyone starts sounding pretty much the same.In this Encore episode, Stacy is bringing back one of her favorite conversations about what it actually takes to stand out.She’s covering: Why leaning into what makes you different means going to the edges and getting radicalWhy 80% of executives think their company is differentiated, while only 10% of customers agreeHow to create a category of one What differentiation is, and what it absolutely is notWhy you must be brave enough to attract and repel This is Billion Dollar Backstory: Encore, because some conversations are just too good not to bring back. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →159: How to Work With Compliance Without Killing Your Content | Story Snacks Series
3w ago00:05:28Tap to summarizeYou want to post on LinkedIn.Compliance wants to hit the taboo buzzer.Cool. Now what?In this Story Snack, Stacy Havener shares how to stop treating compliance like the department of "no" and start bringing them into the growth conversation.Because yes, we live in a culture of compliance. And yes, we have business goals too.Listen in to hear:How to get compliance out of "department of no" modeThe question to ask so you know what topics are actually off-limitsHow to use safer language without sanding off your entire point of viewWhy LinkedIn is possible in a regulated industry, even if your team is nervousThis is Story Snacks, a bite-sized, jam-packed series for fund managers who are ready to master strategic storytelling in under 20 minutes a week. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →158: No Fancy Degree, No Problem: Lindsey Stewart on McDonald’s, Morningstar, and Making Finance Make Sense
4w ago00:32:06Tap to summarizeMost people assume a successful career in finance starts with the "right" degree.Lindsey Stewart's started behind the counter at McDonald's.At 18, he made the decision to skip university, avoid student debt, and learn by doing. Years later, that path led him to Morningstar, where he now helps some of the world's largest institutional investors turn complex data into better decisions.In this episode, Lindsey and Stacy discuss: Lindsey’s backstory – from an investor relations firm to a Big Four acquisition to MorningstarWhy he put McDonald's back on his LinkedIn profile after years of leaving it offWhat nearly broke him about the CFA exam, and what finally helped him passThe bias he sees across the finance industry (and why it may be holding talented people back)Why "sounding smart" and being understood are not the same thingMore About Lindsey Stewart:Lindsey Stewart, CFA, is Director of Institutional Insights at Morningstar, where he leads content and outreach for institutional investors. His 25-year career spans investor engagement, financial regulation, and communications at firms including KPMG and the UK Financial Reporting Council. He is a Chartered Management Accountant and holds the CFA designation, and was a Senior Leader Finalist at the 2021 Black British Business Awards. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →157: What Asset Managers Get Wrong About LinkedIn | Story Snacks Series
Jul 800:06:40Tap to summarizeYour company's LinkedIn page is not the main character.It matters. It has a job.But if your LinkedIn strategy is built around the logo doing all the talking, Stacy Havener has thoughts.In this Story Snack, Stacy breaks down the biggest LinkedIn mistake she sees asset managers make: treating the platform like something it was never built to be.And there's a stat behind it that might make you rethink who's actually posting on your firm's behalf.So yes, "our employees share the company posts" technically creates activity. Whether it creates trust is a different question.Listen in to hear:What LinkedIn actually is, and why most firms are using it backwardsThe stat that should make you rethink who gets the microphoneWhy employee advocacy falls flat when it turns into copy-paste contentWhat LinkedIn is cracking down on right now, and why it mattersHow to show up more human without abandoning professionalismThis is Story Snacks, a bite-sized, jam-packed series for fund managers who are ready to master strategic storytelling in under 20 minutes a week. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →156: Ditch the Pitch. Now What? | Story Snacks Series
Jul 100:05:55Tap to summarize"Ditch the pitch" is easy to say.But it's hard to do when you're staring at a calendar invite and realizing you've been leading with the deck for years. And you start thinking, “Okay, if I'm not presenting, what am I actually doing in there? Am I just… winging it?”Nope. In this Story Snack, Stacy’s breaking down what your meetings will actually look like once you put the deck aside and why ditching the pitch is probably a lot easier to pull off than you think. Listen in to learn:How the typical pitch backfires in meetingsWhy the allocator should always be the hero of the meetingThe meeting structure that works from a behavioral science standpoint How that structure actually removes the pressure to perform This is Story Snacks, a bite-sized, jam-packed series for fund managers who are ready to master strategic storytelling in under 20 minutes a week. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →155: The Story Allocators Need Before They Say Yes | Story Snacks Series
Jun 2400:04:57Tap to summarizeEvery fund manager wants the story that gets allocators to lean in and say yes every single time they tell it. So, this is often a hard pill to swallow…A story that actually works doesn't always get you a yes. A powerful story either gets you a heck yes or a heck no, but never a maybe. And even though hearing heck no is uncomfortable, getting closure in sales is everything (so you don’t waste your time on allocators who’ll never be the right fit). That’s why in this Story Snack, Stacy’s sharing the one kind of story that gets allocators off the fence without fail. She’s also breaking down how to own the sharp edges in that story that’ll help allocators finally decide: this is for me. Or it isn't.Listen in to learn:Why "maybe" is the outcome you should be trying to avoidHow to connect who you are, why you invest the way you do, and who your strategy is built forWhy your differentiators need to attract and repelA question that’ll help you find your sharp edges fastThis is Story Snacks, a bite-sized, jam-packed series for fund managers who are ready to master strategic storytelling in under 20 minutes a week. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →154: Want More Allocator Meetings? Start Here. | Story Snacks Series
Jun 1700:11:20Tap to summarizeThe capital-raising memo says: pitch harder, send the long intro email, and voilà, meetings.Stacy Havener never got that memo.She came into this industry as an English lit major who wanted to be a college professor. Finance was a means to an end, not the whole plan. She had no idea there was a "right" way to do capital raising.So she just led with what she knew best, which was storytelling and creating human connection. It wasn't until someone tapped her on the shoulder and said, "What are you doing? Because you keep raising money," that she realized what she was doing was different.Different, and working.She took her high school soccer coach's fund from $1M to $500M in two years. Then joined a firm at $17M and helped grow it to $5B in three.In this Story Snack, she's breaking down exactly how and why the answer is never more volume, more cold emails, or more at-bats.Listen in to learn: Why "get more meetings" is the wrong goal if the meetings you’re getting aren't convertingHow to use small, genuine "gives" to build trust before you ever ask for a meetingWhy give, give, give, ask beats pitch, pitch, pitch every timeThis is Story Snacks, a bite-sized, jam-packed series for fund managers who are ready to master strategic storytelling in under 20 minutes a week. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →153: “We Only Back Established Managers.” Cool. Now What? | Story Snacks Series
Jun 1000:07:41Tap to summarizeWhen an allocator says "We only work with established managers," it can feel like a door closing in your face. And the natural instinct is to pry it back open by explaining yourself, defending your track record, and making a case for your fund. Stacy Havener's advice: don't go there.Because handling objections to close deals is a thing. It's just not the right thing in this moment.That’s why, in this episode, Stacy’s breaking down what to do instead when you keep hitting the same wall in meetings.Listen in to learn:Why "too small" or "too new" is usually a timing mismatch, not a hard no The three words that change the whole vibe: "Tell me more." The questions that uncover real requirements around AUM, allocation size, and track record How to capture their language so your follow-up actually lands when the timing is rightThis is Story Snacks, a bite-sized, jam-packed series for fund managers who are ready to master strategic storytelling in under 20 minutes a week. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →152: How to Talk Process Without Losing the Room | Story Snacks Series
Jun 300:05:41Tap to summarizeIf you’ve ever thought, “Okay, I have to cover process… but I can literally see their eyes glazing over,” you’re not alone. Because when you walk through your process like everyone else, allocators don't hear "rigor." They hear "table stakes," and they're already half checked out by the time you get to the good part.In this episode, Stacy Havener breaks down how to fix that without scrapping the slide entirely. Listen in to hear:How to cover process without just reading the boring slide out loudThe fastest way to make your process feel different (even if the slide isn’t)The one line Stacy wants you to stop using when talking process (because it’s a big fat nothing sandwich) ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
Transcribe →151: €8B Founder Turned Family Office CIO: Harald Berlinicke on Allocator Trust, LinkedIn, and Why “Give Give Give” Wins
May 2701:07:45Tap to summarizeAt 15, Harald Berlinicke got a front-row seat to Black Monday during a bank internship outside Berlin. It was total chaos, with people yelling "SELL!" and a 20% drop in a single day.Most people would have run away from that pressure. But Harald ran toward it. And that's the day he knew he wanted to be in finance.Decades later, he's the guy on the other side of the table as a fund selector and family office CIO, with a surprisingly impressive LinkedIn presence for someone who will tell you straight up that he's an introvert.In this episode, Stacy sits down with Harald to talk about the human side of selection and why "give, give, give" beats "pitch, pitch, pitch" every single time.Listen in to hear:Harald's Black Monday origin story and how that early chaos shaped his view of markets and decision-making Why "people do business with people" is painfully true in fund selection His playbook for building relationships on LinkedIn as an introvert The provocative CFA poll he ran and what that debate says about where the industry might be headedMore about Harald Berlinicke: Harald Berlinicke, CFA is CIO of the fifth-generation Max-Berlinicke-Erben family office in Berlin, where he oversees a multi-asset portfolio with a focus on asset allocation and manager selection. He co-founded New Bond Street Asset Management in London and served as Partner and Head of Structured Credit Investments, growing the boutique to a peak of €8B AUM. He later spent 2014–2023 at Scope Group as Director of Alternative Investments and now advises independently-owned investment boutiques. A CFA charterholder since 2003, Harald is also a long-standing CFA Institute volunteer and a widely followed voice on LinkedIn known for making complex investment topics accessible. ---Running a fund is hard enough.Ops shouldn’t be.Meet the team that makes it easier. | billiondollarbackstory.com/ultimus
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