The FORT Podcast: Jason Illian – GP & Co-Founder @ Highmount Capital – Growth Equity, Investing in Dude Perfect, Launching Koch Disruptive Technologies
Jason is the General Partner and Co-Founder of Highmount Capital, a unique investment firm focused on growth stage and middle market investments in transformative technology and other growth-related platforms. He is the former Managing Director and founding member of Koch Disruptive Technologies (KDT), the venture and growth arm of Koch Industries, the largest privately-held company in the US with over $130B in revenue. Jason was responsible for helping KDT grow to billions in AUM across 40+ companies.
We discuss:
– What makes a great venture partner
– What venture firms look for in late-stage companies
– The process of making a $100mm investment in DudePerfect
Listen on:
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
YouTube
Topics:
(00:00:00) – Intro
(00:05:23) – Jason’s Early career
(00:10:03) – What makes a great venture partner
(00:13:23) – Joining Koch Industries
(00:15:18) – Building the venture framework for Koch
(00:19:48) – What does a great late-stage company look like in the eyes of a venture firm?
(00:26:40) – Founding Highmount Capital
(00:29:56) – Building a great origination engine
(00:35:44) – Investing in Dude Perfect
(00:40:18) – The craving for family-friendly brands
(00:44:10) – How do you think about your role post-investment?
(00:46:44) – What are unique ways to make money in the creator economy?
(00:54:14) – Are the Dudes a technology business or technology-enabled business?
(00:57:34) – How do you find a CEO for a company like DudePerfect?
(01:01:18) – How is Highmount structured?
Episode Summary:
Jason Illian, an experienced venture capitalist and entrepreneur, sat down with Chris Powers on the podcast to discuss his journey and offer insights into the venture capital landscape. He highlighted his time at Koch Industries and his current role at Highmount Capital. With a diverse background that includes playing football at TCU, studying at the London School of Economics, and founding multiple companies, Illian’s transition into venture capital has been both unique and impactful.
In the podcast, Illian begins by outlining his path from TCU to Koch Industries. He describes how his career was shaped by a mix of education, entrepreneurial ventures, and strategic relationships. After completing his studies, he joined Strong Capital Management, where he gained valuable experience in finance, including venture capital, hedge funds, and institutional investing. His journey took him back to Texas, where he helped family offices and started software companies, eventually leading to his recruitment by Koch Industries.
Illian emphasizes the importance of relationships in his career trajectory. He shares how a connection made a decade earlier led to an invitation to join Koch Industries, where he played a key role in building their venture and growth team. He highlights how Koch’s investment strategy was not just about financial returns but also about aligning with the company’s broader strategic goals. This approach, focused on long-term relationships and principled investing, is something Illian carried forward into his own firm.
When discussing his time at Koch, Illian details the process of building a venture capital framework from the ground up. He and his team sought advice from industry leaders like Mark Andreesen and Ben Horowitz, learning from their experiences in building successful investment firms. Illian underscores the importance of having a clear vision and values, complementary capabilities within the team, and aligned incentives. These principles guided Koch’s investment strategy, allowing them to make thoughtful, long-term investments in companies across various stages and industries.
Illian also touches on the types of companies Koch Industries targeted for investment, particularly later-stage, technology-enabled businesses. He explains that while capital is essential, the real value lies in the ability to bring more than just money to the table. Koch’s vast resources allowed them to support portfolio companies in ways that smaller investors could not, providing not just financial backing but also strategic support and industry expertise.
As Illian transitioned from Koch to founding Highmount Capital, he recognized the need to focus on opportunities that were no longer a fit for Koch’s increasingly strategic investment focus. Highmount Capital was established to invest in growth-stage companies with strong revenue potential, particularly those in the middle stage of development. Illian discusses how Highmount aims to bring a principled approach to investing, similar to what he practiced at Koch, focusing on long-term relationships, integrity, and strategic value creation.
One of the key highlights of the podcast is Illian’s discussion of Highmount Capital’s first major investment in Dude Perfect, a leading family-friendly media brand. Illian explains how Dude Perfect’s strong principles, family-friendly content, and massive audience made it an ideal investment. He outlines Highmount’s strategy for supporting Dude Perfect post-investment, including helping them build a robust management team, prioritizing strategic goals, and maintaining the brand’s creative vision.
Throughout the podcast, Illian shares valuable insights into the world of venture capital, emphasizing the importance of relationships, strategic thinking, and principled investing. His experiences at Koch Industries and Highmount Capital illustrate how a thoughtful, long-term approach to investing can lead to successful outcomes, both for investors and the companies they support.
The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts