The Founder to Leader Podcast

The Founder to Leader Podcast unpacks what it takes to grow from founder to leader. Each episode turns real dilemmas into practical insights from three perspectives: a founder who’s been through it, a leadership coach who guides others through it, and a researcher who studies it. We zoom in on the challenges rarely discussed in the startup world, such as co-founder tensions, hiring missteps, and the growing weight of responsibility. Founder to Leader is Denmark’s most established leadership development programme for founders, delivered by Copenhagen Business School and the Danish Industry Foundation. New episodes on the last Wednesday of every month. Want an outside perspective on your own dilemma? Submit it anonymously here !

The Founder to Leader Podcast is a business podcast hosted by Founder to Leader, with 13 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Founder to Leader hosts The Founder to Leader Podcast, a business show with 13 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #13

  "Should I Stop My Co-founder From Overpromising?" | Scaling Dilemmas From Founders

  Aug 18, 202624 min

  Is overpromising just what scaling looks like? In this episode of the Founder to Leader Podcast, we discuss a dilemma from a first-time scientific founder whose startup is racing against well-funded competitors on the same kind of tech. He leads research; his co-founder leads commercials. They're running out of cash and his co-founder says they have to promise more than they can currently deliver to investors and customers. He gets the logic, but panics every time he hears what they're saying externally because he doesn't know if they can actually deliver what they're selling on time. Is he right to push back so they move slower but get it right? Joining the conversation:  Marvin Holten (Co-founder & CTO, DIASENSE)  Signe Vikkelsø (Professor, Copenhagen Business School)  Mia Jung (Head of Leadership Development & Leadership Coach for Founder to Leader, Copenhagen Business School)  Yohanna Gustafsson (Podcast Host & Programme Manager, Founder to Leader)  Want an outside perspective on your own dilemma? Submit it anonymously here: https://forms.office.com/e/RSxf5BrxvN

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #12

  "Is It My Job to Manage My Founder’s Mood?" | Scaling Dilemmas From Employees

  Aug 4, 202626 min

  Is dreading your founder's mood just part of startup life? In this episode of the Founder to Leader Podcast, we discuss a dilemma from a startup employee working for a passionate, temperamental founder whose emotional state shapes the entire company's culture. The founder's fundraising pressure has turned into outbursts that affect everyone around him and the employee has even had to mediate some of them. He sees so many inspiring things in his founder as a leader, so is this just the reality of a startup with big ambitions, and if it isn't; what can he actually do? Joining the conversation:  Moritz Hartmann (Chief of Staff, Ento)  Nicolai Arnholm-Nyström (Co-founder & COO, Frankly Insure)  Nina Uller (Leadership Coach, Founder to Leader)  Yohanna Gustafsson (Podcast Host & Programme Manager, Founder to Leader)    Want an outside perspective on your own dilemma? Submit it anonymously here: https://forms.office.com/e/RSxf5BrxvN  

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #11

  “Isn't It Faster If I Just Do It Myself?” | Scaling Dilemmas From Founders

  Jul 21, 202626 min

  Is it really faster to do everything yourself rather than delegate?  In this episode of the Founder to Leader Podcast, we discuss a dilemma from a deep-tech founder with 15 employees who struggles to protect his own time. His investors, board, team and customers all want his input. He keeps telling himself it's faster if he just does it himself - but he's exhausted, working till 2am most nights as the admin piles up and leaves no time for the strategic work he's actually good at (and enjoys).  He realizes this isn’t sustainable long-term, so what's the first thing he should change?   Joining the conversation:  Marvin Holten (Co-founder & CTO, DiaSense)  Signe Vikkelsø (Professor, Copenhagen Business School)  Mia Jung (Head of Leadership Development & Leadership Coach for Founder to Leader, Copenhagen Business School)  Yohanna Gustafsson (Podcast Host & Programme Manager, Founder to Leader)  Want an outside perspective on your own dilemma? Submit it anonymously here: https://forms.office.com/e/RSxf5BrxvN  

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #10

  "Am I Doing My Founder's Job?" | Scaling Dilemmas From Employees

  Jul 7, 202623 min

  For the first time ever, our dilemma comes from a startup employee! A senior hire with a management consulting background is being pushed by her founder to reinvent the company's product roadmap into "something impressive". When she pushes back, her founder tells her everyone should "step up beyond their role". Problem is, she doesn't know the vision and she's starting to suspect her founders don't either. Is she being asked to do her founder's job? Joining the conversation:  Moritz Hartmann (Chief of Staff, Ento)  Nicolai Arnholm-Nyström (Co-founder & COO, Frankly Insure)  Nina Uller (Leadership Coach, Founder to Leader)  Yohanna Gustafsson (Podcast Host & Programme Manager, Founder to Leader)    🔍 Want an outside perspective on your own dilemma? Submit it anonymously here: https://forms.office.com/e/RSxf5BrxvN  

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #9

  “How Do I Lead When I'm Not in the Lab Anymore?” | Scaling Dilemmas From Founders

  Jun 23, 202626 min

  What happens when you go from running the lab to running a company?  In this episode of the Founder to Leader Podcast, we unpack a dilemma from a research-founder who built her company on a decade of research. Since closing her first round, she spends her weeks in investor meetings, board prep and hiring loops - and barely sets foot in the lab. Her CSO's updates look reasonable, but she feels out of control! Should she start showing up at the lab again, or is this just how it's supposed to be? Joining the conversation:  Marvin Holten (Co-founder & CTO, DIASENSE)  Signe Vikkelsø (Professor, Copenhagen Business School)  Mia Jung (Head of Leadership Development & Leadership Coach for Founder to Leader, Copenhagen Business School)  Yohanna Gustafsson (Podcast Host & Programme Manager, Founder to Leader)    🔍 Want an outside perspective on your own dilemma? Submit it anonymously here: https://forms.office.com/e/RSxf5BrxvN  

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on The Founder to Leader Podcast. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.