Testimonials

A collection of experiences from companies I have worked with recently.

“Paul helped our team reduce our new product concept-to-shelf development time and also to ensure it was always relevant for consumers. He shared his experience and case studies from working with many startups that were relevant to our situation. His engaging style kept a large group active and learning in a workshop setting and also kept a small team focused over months of guidance. Highly recommended for large organizations that want to learn from startups.” — Nagisa Tavares, Unilever

“The Timing Workshop with Paul was quite ‘timely’ for our premium Edtech SaaS company as we were planning for what next in 2023 and beyond! During the session, Paul guided us to identify and reflect on the drivers that impact our market potential and importantly, how to express those drivers. Walking away from the session, we also gained the ability to answer questions supporting our choices as we prepare for a transformational fundraise resulting in some key strategic decisions. Thanks to Paul, we validated our path forward in a straightforward and considered way.” — Prasad Gollakota, Chief Content Officer, Finance Unlocked

“The Why Now workshop helped me step back and see the big picture. As I worked through Paul’s ‘why now’ drivers and researched other companies it helped me see the importance of timing. In our case, we started as an idea a couple years ago and now, as our product is ready for market we want to know how to future-proof it.” — Sara Tan, Founder, Novalearn

“The Why Now workshop put things in perspective. You can be passionate about something, but if the ‘now’ isn’t working for you yet, you might not be able to get it off the ground. It answered questions like: Why do projects take off the way they do? What other forces are in play to flywheel this into traction?” — Jeffrey Broer, Venture Advisor, Kophy

“Littered throughout the notebook I used during the accelerator our startup went through in Rome are carvings with the phrase: ‘Ask Paul.’ Serving as an active resource and mentor, Paul has become indispensable in the guidance of our startup. He’s well versed in all matters related to startups and has been a huge help in designing effective experiments to help us quantify our startup’s performance and take realistic, and meaningful, next steps. His sometimes notable theatrical presence simply serves to help take the edge off of how difficult it is to run a startup up but then, ironically, presents itself as a poignant reminder to stop fooling around and get back to work.” — Justin Hedani, Co-founder, Smart Yields

“Paul has been a great mentor and coach. He consistently offers great insights and proactively checks-in with me to assess progress. Paul also has a great network in the startup ecosystem and is always thinking of how he can connect others with no self-interest. A genuine and great guy!”  — Brian Conyer, Co-founder, Giblib

“Paul’s leadership has helped us navigate difficult challenges and successfully raise capital. It’s clear that the trajectory of our company OOTify changed after working with him. With Paul’s support, I have no doubt we will accomplish great things…” — Ravi Sharma, CEO, OOTify

“Paul is an incredible mentor, connector and motivator for early stage companies. Even with the limited hours in a day he finds time to provide honest feedback and sound advice when you need it most. Whether you’re preparing to pitch, or launch a new product, Paul has the experience and patience to help founders realize and effectively communicate their vision. I’m extremely proud to be a part of this innovative group. Paul Orlando is an incredible mentor, communicator and connector.” — James Chang, Founder, Frenzy

“Paul has been instrumental in helping Simerse define its strategy, go-to-market approach, and customer discovery methodology. Highly recommended.” – Michael Naber, CEO, Simerse

“The Incubator offered me tremendous help bringing 121C Boards from a prototyping to a revenue generating business. Prior to the launch of our successful crowdfunding campaign, Paul facilitated our project to be chosen as a Kickstarter ‘staff pick’ which elevated our campaign to the next level, and also pushed me to get published in a multitude of blogs and magazines, really building our following and awareness. In addition to the irreplaceable Kickstarter advice, I really enjoyed the group that I got to know over the course of my time in the program and would recommend applying to anyone who plans to launch a business.” — Ryan Olliges, Founder, 121C Boards

“Start-ups aren’t easy.  Paul’s genuine personal interest in our success is as valuable and inspiring as the resources he’s opened up to us.” — Roger Leib, AIA, ACHA, CEO, Activ Sitting

“Paul has been a constant source of helpful advice on our business model, getting distribution, and making relevant introductions. While building my company Aqus, Paul has been crucial to our growth and I couldn’t overstate how great he has been.” — Kevin Kassel, Founder, Aqus

“Paul provided many of the resources necessary to get Mira off the ground. Between access to legal help, pitch competitions, other entrepreneurs, and mentorship from Paul, our experience has proven to be invaluable.” — Ben Taft, Co-founder, Mira

“I have had the opportunity to work with Paul in both a teaching capacity as his teaching assistant, in a mentor/mentee capacity as a member of the Incubator he runs. Paul has helped me grow my business tremendously, and has gone the extra mile to help me solve the everyday problems that start-up businesses face. Paul is very knowledgeable on all matters related to start-ups, and the level of commitment he has to helping his students is a truly rare and admirable trait that cannot be understated.” — Dan Goldman, Founder, Speakeasy Briefs and Clickbait Clothing

“As a founder, the pressure, doubt and anxiety of getting a company started can be overwhelming. Paul Orlando gave me incredible encouragement, guidance and support in moving forward and launching. I can’t stress enough how valuable this experience was in regards to networking and getting the right introductions to resources you would not typically have access to.” — Wannie Park, Founder, Mega Tiny

“Paul as a mentor and advisor has been a tremendous asset to us in terms of strategy, networking and infrastructure. Through him, we’ve met numerous investors, subject experts and entrepreneurs whose input has been invaluable. I strongly endorse any venture to reach out to Paul and benefit from his direction as we have.” — Drew Park, CEO, Q-Cigarettes (acquired)

“Paul Orlando is someone you want on your team. His constant support, push and passion has driven me to reach and exceed goals I did not think were possible. All in all this experience has been truly invaluable and I am so grateful to be a part of it.” — Sami Fishbein, Founder, OMie Yoga

“Paul’s introductions, advice, and resources have been phenomenal for TalentTrail’s progress. Over the last couple of months, we have improved growth, strategy, and product.” — Sydney Liu, Co-Founder/CEO, TalentTrail, now of Commaful