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Fun Conversations, Real-World Insights
I’m Shawn Jenkins, a tech entrepreneur, writer, podcaster, and most importantly, I’m a husband and father of five. As the co-founder of Benefitfocus, a high growth Software as a Service (SaaS) company, I served as the CEO for 18 years, from startup through our Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2013, to over $1b valuation and past $250m in annual revenue in 2017.
As I was building my software company, I craved behind-the-scenes, real-world examples of how founders and leaders built their companies. I wanted to hear how they made decisions, overcame obstacles, survived difficult times, and went on to sustained growth. I had questions like:
- How do you hire your first salesperson?
- What are the right board members for each stage of growth?
- What do contracts have to do with funding and the whole product?
That’s why I started writing: to share my successes, failures, and lessons learned along my journey. I hope you find them helpful—or at least entertaining.
In addition to tech and entrepreneurism, I’m also passionate about serving in my community. In 2015 our family had the incredible opportunity to join with the Medical University of South Carolina and help create the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital in Charleston. Supporting the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital along with the community has become the joy of a lifetime for us, and we feel it will be part of our family’s life for decades to come. (Read more about the experience here.)
Our family lives in Steamboat Springs, CO, and we love being on the mountains or on our family farm in Charleston, SC. Having decided to take a few years off beginning in 2018, we purchased 275 acres of land and began Salty Oak Farm with some friends.
These days I might be skiing with my family in the morning and attending a board meeting in the afternoon for one of my portfolio companies. The software industry has been so good to me, and I’m grateful for all of the people who have helped me along my journey. I am thankful to be able to put back into the software community through my work here on my blog and the opportunities it creates.
If you have a question you’d like to ask me or a podcast guest recommendation, please reach out to me on LinkedIn.
Current Boards I Serve On:
Further Reading:
- NY Times Corner Office Feature: Shawn Jenkins, A CEO is Like a Flight Instructor
- The Benefitfocus Origin Story on the Rebel Entrepreneur Podcast
- Feature on Benefitfocus IPO
- Article on the opening of the Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital
- More information on how you can donate to the MUSC Children’s Hospital
- Q & A with Business Jet Traveler