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John Cobb

@jcobb.pholus.co

2.5K followers 30K following 520 posts

Founder of @pholus.co. Helping leaders protect reputation, prevent failure, and regain momentum when conventional playbooks fall short.

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John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Peru just removed its third president since 2022.
121 votes. “Permanent moral incapacity.”
To U.S. investors, it looks like chaos. It’s not — it’s pattern.
🧵 Here’s what to understand before judging the headlines:
🔗 www.pholus.co/perus-...

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

5 8

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 37m

Cuando un fundador se desborda, el equipo entero tambalea. El rol del asesor es contener.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 6h

En entornos frágiles, improvisar es costumbre. Profesionalizar es rareza. Ahí está la ventaja.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 11h

Local staff often see risks faster than executives. Build GTM frameworks that channel their observations upstream—before mistakes compound.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 20h

Marketing raises multiples. A growth story without leads is just fiction.

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John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 23h

Las organizaciones mueren más por autoengaño que por amenazas externas.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 1d

Beware the “NGO effect.” A foreign-funded program can distort demand signals for years. GTM needs filters to separate real demand from grant-driven illusions.

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John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 1d

Buyers want certainty. A steady flow of customers from good marketing creates it.

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John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Transparency without sensationalism keeps panic contained.

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John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Corruption is a reality, but cynicism isn’t a strategy. Advising in Peru requires realism without fatalism.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

At Pholus, we watch these inflection points for what they really are:

Stress tests of governance capacity.

Understanding that difference is what separates a frontier investor from a speculator.

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

The pattern is repeating across frontier democracies:

Weak institutions

Politicized prosecutions

Reactive capital flight

Without institutional repair, every crisis becomes a cycle. Not a correction.

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

2 3

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

In markets like Peru, rule of law isn’t theoretical. It’s a risk variable.

The faster a country can remove its president, the faster it can undermine investor trust.

Predictability, not ideology, drives stability.

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Congress filed the impeachment motion last Thursday afternoon.

They voted to remove the president around midnight.

No defense time. No due process.

This isn’t about one leader’s failure. It’s about institutional breakdowns that make long-term investment almost impossible.

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

5 8

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Your first marketing channel in many markets? Word of mouth amplified by WhatsApp groups. Simple, cheap, fast, and brutally honest.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

En mercados complejos, la calma del líder vale más que cualquier manual importado.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

After a killing, the organization is judged on humanity and discipline. Show both.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Sometimes the founder just needs someone who won’t flinch when they rant. Stability is contagious.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Advising means recognizing that in Peru, reputation spreads faster than contracts. Word of mouth makes or breaks projects.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

GTM isn’t sexy when the road to your customer literally collapses in the rain. Execution is logistics before it is marketing.

Reposted by John Cobb

Pholus Advisory @pholus.co · 2d

"When criminal organizations reach the level where they can effectively influence who governs and a majority of legislators are under criminal investigation themselves, you’re not just managing business risk, you’re operating in a contested governance environment."

www.pholus.co/perus-presid...

Peru's Presidential Removal: What American Investors Need to Know - Pholus Advisory

Peru removed its third president in three years. Analysis of what institutional breakdown means for American investors in frontier markets.

www.pholus.co

1 1 3

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 2d

Calm isn’t weakness. It’s choosing clarity when the world around you pushes for panic.

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John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 3d

Advising in Mozambique means adjusting expectations. Things take longer, but trust built slowly lasts longer too.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 3d

If you can’t stay calm when fraud is suspected, the fraudster has already won. They’ve pulled you off balance.

John Cobb @jcobb.pholus.co · 3d

O prestígio de um líder não vem do brilho público, mas da solidez nas salas privadas.