Enrique Salem: How did you originally get in touch with BCV? What were your early conversations like?

Ofer Bengal: We were approached by Bill Lehmann at the time of our A round of financing and then met with Bill and his boss Salil Deshpande at their Palo Alto office. We had great chemistry with both, and the conversations went very well. Salil, a developer in his soul, immediately saw the opportunity, so we were able to conclude the deal in a relatively short time.

ES: How would you describe the nature of your relationship with BCV today?

OB: To start, you are a great firm to work with. As you know Enrique, we engage primarily with you, and that’s always been a great pleasure for me. You are super knowledgeable about the tech market, its drivers, and the inner dynamics of a growth company, and at the same time, an open person that will gladly share his wisdom. I also appreciate that we can have a beer or dinner together. And despite my long-time experience in the tech market, I find myself consulting with you quite a bit.

ES: Thank you for such kind words! What’s the best advice you’ve received about being a founder?

OB: The founder’s life is typically difficult, frustrating, and full of rejections. If you believe in your venture – be persistent, and never give up. In addition – people are your most valuable asset. Hire the best team and your goal is 50% achieved.

ES: That’s great advice. What would you want other founders to know about working with BCV?

OB: BCV is your ideal venture capital firm. On one hand, you can count on their support when needed and at the same time, they will not bother you or try to run your company for you.

ES
What inspired you to become a founder?

OB
Self-inspiration, I guess. I started doing business in my high school days and was basically never employed by others. Over the years I founded 5 businesses, out of which 3 are tech companies. One of them I took public at NASDAQ, one was sold, and I am still managing the third (Redis).

ES: What do you appreciate most about working with Bain Capital Ventures?

OB: Bain Capital Ventures were always very supportive, starting with offering us to work from their Palo Alto office before we had an office of our own or putting us in contact with other leading investors during our fundraising rounds. A great example of meaningful support was Salil’s initiative to gather leading open source software companies to brainstorm ways of responding to competition by cloud providers. Today we continue to enjoy BCV’s support through the excellent mentorship and advice of Enrique, who shares with me his experience as CEO of a large tech company.