Sean O’Brien of Overline VC on Seed Funding and Portfolio Construction

This week I had the pleasure of interviewing Sean O’Brien, managing director of Overline VC. Sean saw a gap in seed funding in the southeast. Being one of the most well connected early stage financiers he has had some spectacular success in sourcing and funding some great companies out of Atlanta. You can watch/listen to the podcast on YouTube, iTunes, and Spotify.

Sean O'Brien is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Overline, an Atlanta-based seed-stage venture capital fund that he runs with his partner, Michael Cohn. He has had a 30-year career spanning investment banking, hedge fund management, and corporate strategy/M&A roles. O’Brien currently serves as Board Member at Resultid, BreachRx, HopDrive, The Zero Proof, Press Sports, and Makeswift. Previously, he served as President, Strategic Initiatives & Chief Strategy Officer at PGi, a public technology company that was acquired by private equity in 2015 for over $1 billion. At PGi, he oversaw the company's Legal, HR, and Program Management Organizations, in addition to managing Corporate Development, Corporate Strategy, and Mergers & Acquisitions. O’Brien has completed 30+ corporate acquisitions, divestitures, and company sales, and he has funded, advised, and mentored dozens of early-stage companies. He is an All-Star Techstars mentor and a mentor at Endeavor Atlanta.

What You’ll Learn:

• Seed fund management and founder operator background 

• Leading Rounds

• Investor Relationship Building

• Portfolio Construction

• Deploying Capital and Market Timing

• Fund Ownership

• Thematic Investing

• Calculating a future dilution

Favorite Quote:

“We want to have a different type of relationship with founders. We truly want to be the first call whether is good news or bad news ”