Funding is a Tool, Not the Finish Line with Jeremy Harper, ERA

About this episode

In this episode, Jeremy Harper discusses the mindset shift needed for founders regarding funding as a tool rather than an endpoint.

This is the second episode in Digital Irish’s Venture Capital and Fundraising Demystified series: designed to pull back the curtain on raising capital for Irish founders and give you the confidence to walk into any funding conversation knowing exactly what’s on the other side of the table. In this episode, we sit down with Jeremy Harper, Partner and Director of Investments at ERA — the Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator in New York City. ERA has been running for 15 years, backing around 30 companies a year, and has a remarkable track record: roughly 80% of companies that go through the programme go on to raise follow-on capital. Jeremy has been at ERA for nearly all of that journey. He brings deep pattern recognition on what separates founders who succeed at raising from those who struggle — and a lot of it comes down to one core mindset shift: funding is a tool, not the finish line. We dive deep into: What an accelerator actually does beyond the cheque — and how ERA’s in-person, intensive model prepares founders for venture funding. Why investors don’t want to hear how you’ll spend the money — and what they actually want to hear instead. How to structure your investor updates…

People in this episode

Host: Digital Irish

Guest: Jeremy Harper

Topics covered

• venture capital
• fundraising
• accelerators
• investor relations
• founder mindset

Keywords

• funding
• entrepreneurs
• investors
• equity
• venture funding
• accelerator programs
• capital raising

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: ERA

Places: New York City

More episodes of Digital Irish Podcast

• [Trailer] Digital Irish Podcast · June 10, 2026 · 1 min
• VC Demystified: What the Term Sheet Is Really Saying with Stephen Tallon · June 9, 2026 · 48 min
• The Honest Test: Are You Actually Ready to Raise? with Marty Loughlin, Digital Irish Venture Fund · June 3, 2026 · 39 min
• Building the Irish Diaspora Venture Engine with Marius Smyth, Digital Irish Venture Fund · May 27, 2026 · 42 min
• What Separates the Irish Companies That Land Well in the US with Michael O'Loughlin · May 21, 2026 · 1h 8m
• How Irish Founders Win Globally with Marty Loughlin, Digital Irish Venture Fund · May 6, 2026 · 41 min