From Security Executive to Startup Founder: Sales, Focus, and Raising a Pre-Seed Round

On the Cybersecurity Recruiter podcast, Tom chats with Tommy Donnelly, CTO, President, and co-founder of Amplifier Security. Tommy describes founder life as high-ambiguity work requiring constant energy, disciplined routines, and learning new skills - especially sales - framing it as “finding” the right customers with urgency and budget rather than persuading everyone.

He explains the value of narrowing product scope, defining an ICP, and iterating cheaply to reach product-market fit before scaling. Donnelly shares hiring traits he prioritizes (ambiguity tolerance, vision alignment, data-driven iteration), discusses leadership progression from technical roles to cross-functional and external influence, outlines how Amplifer raised a $3.3M pre-seed using design partners, networked VC outreach, and standardized SAFE notes (e.g., via Clerky), recommends TK Kader founder training, and cites Patrick Lencioni’s book “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.”

00:00 Welcome and Banter

01:06 Entrepreneurship Reality Check

01:56 Energy and Founder Routines

03:20 Tommy’s Career Intro

04:02 Founder Life and Learning Sales

05:18 Listening and Networking Wins

09:21 Executive Communication Shift

12:33 Finding the Right Customers

17:46 Hiring for Ambiguity

21:44 From Startup to Scale Lessons

24:04 Structure vs Chaos

24:23 Climbing to VP Reality

25:54 Leaving Bullhorn for BetterCloud

27:14 Going All In as Founder

28:30 Staying Focused and Niche

30:50 How the Pre Seed Happened

36:28 Money Is a Commodity

40:44 Founder Sales Qualification

44:28 Best Founder Training Resource

45:49 Teamwork and Hard Conversations

48:16 Wrap Up and Thanks