“I’m a down-and-to-the-right guy” are words you almost never hear in tech, especially not from a serial entrepreneur with two previous exits to his name. Dan Hanrahan told us that his most valuable day at a company is the first; after that, his value goes down and to the right. While many of his employees might disagree, the point stands that Dan is an expert at getting businesses up and running. We sat down with him to talk all about launching and scaling startups. Dan Hanrahan, a serial entrepreneur, has started four companies and sold two of them. He was employee number one at Brooksource, an Indy-grown staffing and recruiting company, and is currently the Co-Founder of Haulstr, an Indianapolis-based software-powered home services company offering mulch, patios, landscaping, and dumpster rentals. Previously, Dan was a partner at iGoDigital, which sold to ExactTarget, and the founder of Sigstr, which was acquired by Terminus.

In our conversation with Dan, we explore valuable advice for non-technical founders. As a non-technical founder himself, Dan emphasizes the importance of treating your technical co-founder as a partner and fostering trust and communication. He also discusses the "silver tsunami," the impending transition of millions of small businesses owned by baby boomers, and the opportunity to acquire and modernize these businesses using technology. Additionally, Dan believes in hiring entrepreneurial-minded individuals and views his company as a stepping stone for them to achieve their goals. Tune in to hear Dan's insights on transitioning from startups to scale, acquiring versus starting a business from scratch, and the importance of time in the entrepreneurial journey.