How to Select, Manage and Grow a Co-Founding and Equal Partnership Relationship

 

For their seventh episode of Like It’s Your Job, Matt and David Shields brought on two innovators in the debt capital delivery world: Joe Beard, CEO, and Joel Radtke, President & COO, of CollateralEdge.

CollateralEdge is an innovative fintech platform that provides community and regional banks with a flexible, automated risk management solution to strengthen the credit profile on individual corporate loans. In addition, Beard and Radtke shared their backgrounds, experiences, insights and philosophies on managing and co-founding a business.

While David Shields pointed out most lawyers see more challenges than positives to a 50-50 business partnership, Beard and Radtke are proving the exception to the rule. So, why did they choose to form a partnership rather than start separate businesses?

“This is how I look at it,” Radtke said. “If the business is a lemonade stand, you should probably do it yourself because of the fun, the uniqueness, the little decisions you make; you want control of that. When you set your sights on building a great company, in a big market, with a difficult problem, you need to multiply the number of ideas. You need to make sure all of the priorities and expirations that need to happen to address this don’t get short shrift just because you’ve reached your mental limits or you’re exhausted at the end of the day.”

For Beard, he recognized that he could have an even more significant impact on the world with the right business partner by his side with all his talents and abilities.

“Having a true peer in terms of what you bring to the table is critical,” Beard said. Beard sees it as a “two heads are better than one” situation with the complex nature of business.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

university
The Employer University Alignment Journey with Kristen Fox, CEO of Business-Higher Education Forum
March 16, 2026

Across the U.S., the conversation about the value of a college degree is increasingly tied to one central question: Does higher education actually prepare students for the workforce? As artificial intelligence reshapes how work gets done and employers rethink the skills they need, universities are under growing pressure to ensure graduates leave not just…

Read More
private equity
How AI Is Transforming Private Equity Deal Evaluation and Portfolio Strategy
March 13, 2026

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming how organizations evaluate risk, analyze markets, and drive operational efficiency. In financial services alone, global AI spending is projected to surpass $97 billion by 2027, reflecting how deeply data-driven technologies are reshaping decision-making. For private equity firms—where hundreds of potential investments may be screened each year—the ability to analyze information…

Read More
The Tech-Enabled Hospital of the Future: Implications for Care Delivery
The Tech-Enabled Hospital of the Future: Implications for Care Delivery
March 12, 2026

Gone are the days when a hospital was simply a place where patients received care. Today’s hospitals are rapidly evolving into highly connected ecosystems powered by advanced technology, networked devices, and real-time data. The modern hospital is no longer confined to physical walls—it’s a dynamic digital environment where data flows seamlessly, AI supports clinical decisions,…

Read More
career
Stop Chasing Titles, Build a Career That Matters: A CAO’s Advice on Long-Term Success
March 11, 2026

Career advice in finance and accounting often centers around promotions, titles, and compensation. But in an era where professionals frequently change jobs every few years—the average American worker now stays in a role for less than four years—industries are facing growing talent shortages and reevaluating what long-term career success looks like. The question many…

Read More