BOSTON—Harvard Business School (HBS) today announced the launch of The Founder Mindset with Reza Satchu, a new podcast examining what it actually takes to become a founder—not in hindsight, but in the moments before outcomes are known. The show debuts today across YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other major platforms.
The premiere episode features Reese Witherspoon discussing her transition from Academy Award–winning actress to founder of Hello Sunshine, and the difficult decisions required to build a company in an industry undergoing rapid change. Early guests of the podcast also include Tim Ferriss, Alix Earle, and Kevin O’Leary.
“I realized I was admiring a problem, but I wasn’t providing a solution. And it’s not enough to just admire,” said Witherspoon.
While many business podcasts focus on success stories, The Founder Mindset centers on the decisions that precede them—how founders act when the path is unclear, the stakes are real, and the outcome is uncertain. In each episode, Satchu asks guests to revisit specific moments of doubt, risk, and commitment, offering listeners a candid look at how judgment is built over time.
“Most business podcasts ask founders to narrate their success stories. I’m not interested in that,” said Satchu. “I want to hear about the decision that terrified them—the moment when they had to act without knowing if they were right. That’s where judgment is formed.”
The podcast is produced and directed by HBS’s newly launched Foundry initiative, an AI-native platform designed to help founders develop the skills, judgment, and readiness required to build companies. Together, Foundry and The Founder Mindset extend HBS’s approach to entrepreneurship beyond the classroom—combining practical tools with real-world insights from experienced founders.
“The goal of HBS Foundry is to give more people access to the kinds of critical decisions and feedback that shape successful founders,” said Satchu. “The podcast brings those decisions to life through real stories.”
The launch of the podcast and Foundry this week reflects HBS’s effort to extend its entrepreneurship teachings beyond the classroom, reaching a broader set of founders at all stages of building.
Episodes will roll out bi-weekly, featuring additional guests from across the startup, investment, and creator ecosystems.
For more information, visit hbsfoundry.org/podcast.
Mark Cautela
mcautela+hbs.edu
617-495-5143
Media Contact
Chandler Zablo
Fortier PR
chandler@fortierpr.com
239-302-7464
ABOUT HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL
Harvard Business School (HBS) is one of the world’s leading institutions for business education, with a deep track record in entrepreneurship. Over the past decade, HBS alumni have founded more than 1,700 companies, collectively raising over $84 billion in capital. Through its programs and initiatives like Foundry, HBS extends its entrepreneurship teaching beyond the classroom to founders around the world.
ABOUT FOUNDRY
Foundry is Harvard Business School’s AI-native platform designed to support founders from early-stage ideas through launch and growth. By combining AI-driven tools, venture-building simulations, and access to a global community, Foundry helps entrepreneurs develop the judgment and capabilities required to build successful ventures.
ABOUT PODCAST HOST REZA SATCHU
Reza Satchu is a serial entrepreneur and senior lecturer at Harvard Business School, where he teaches the popular classes The Founder Mindset and Founder Launch. He has founded and built multiple businesses across industries with combined exits exceeding $3.5 billion. Concurrently, Reza has created several entrepreneurship programs at Harvard Business School, University of Toronto and NEXT Canada, a leading nonprofit entrepreneurship initiative. He is the founder and managing partner of Alignvest Management Corporation and is also working on a book that focuses on how founders develop judgment, make high-stakes decisions under uncertainty, and build companies that create long-term value. Reza was born in Mombasa, Kenya, grew up in Toronto, Canada, and splits his time between there and Cambridge, Massachusetts.