Podcast #75: Jean Smart Of Penelope

Republished By Plato

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On today’s episode, I sat down with Jean Smart, Founder & CEO of Penelope.

Penelope is the retirement savings platform for small businesses & entrepreneurs. Small is the key term; Penelope focuses on the smallest of the small businesses.

Penelope currently serves companies that have no more than 15 employees. A lot of these small firms are local mom-and-pop shops. One of the biggest barriers these companies face is finding and retaining talent.

Penelope offers them a chance to compete. Retirement accounts are one of the top asks from prospective employees. Having the chance to offer retirement savings helps level the playing field.

Jean and I discussed her journey to Penelope, her family’s immigrant journey, how Penelope designs content & education, do-it-yourself investing apps, risky asset classes like crypto, raising capital, and much more.

Episode highlights include:

Jean’s professional journey to Penelope
The biggest barriers SMBs face in trying to offer benefits
Lessons learned from Schwab, TD Ameritrade, and others
Language and education barriers
Financial inclusion
Changing the perception of SMBs
Crypto
Raising Capital
And much more

Connect with Jean on LinkedIn

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1968820/11879773-pitchit-podcast-75-jean-smart-founder-ceo-penelope.mp3?download=true

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Todd is the host of PitchIt: the fintech startups podcast, a weekly interview show featuring emerging fintech founders and leading venture capitalists. He is responsible for leading the content team which covers fintech through daily & weekly email newsletters, editorial, virtual events, and in-person conferences. He has been covering fintech, banking, and venture capital for more than 15 years, including speaking regularly at industry events.

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