Explore every episode of the podcast Women in Venture Capital

In this conversation with Lisa, we hear about her journey as a CEO in Residence at Primary VC and what she is most excited about the new trends in the startup ecosystem - the AI wave, climate-tech and east-coast startups scene in the US. We also talk about her role at General Assembly as their CEO, expanding reach and impact. 

Akriti is a Partner at Ridge Ventures, focusing on early-stage investments in enterprise technology companies. With a background in computer science and product management, she brings valuable insights to her role as an investor and board member. Akriti has led investments in various sectors, including AI, fintech, and SaaS, demonstrating her expertise in identifying promising startups. Her experience spans from founding a B2B accounting software company in India to working with tech giants like Microsoft and Amazon. As a Techstars Mentor and angel investor, Akriti continues to support and shape the future of technology entrepreneurship.

In this conversation with Akriti, we dive deep into her decisions for career transitions across roles and geographies and what led her to those. Tune in for a fun chat! 

In this conversation with Meera, we chat about how she joined AV, drawing from her endowment experiences and the fund's innovative investment strategy (exclusively co-investors). We also hear Meera's take on recent trends in the VC industry, including how AI has unlocked new capabilities in vertical SaaS. Lastly, we discuss about the current state of the investing ecosystem when it comes to female representation in decision making roles and advice for aspiring women investors.

In this episode with Barbara, we talk to her about her diverse experiences in the investment ecosystem across Africa, USA, Dubai; and how that shaped her investment philosophies. We also talk about how she got to starting her own fund in the Web3 space and what excites her about the opportunities there.

In this conversation with Emily, we touched on the experiences that shaped her move to and career in venture capital, including the rapid transformation in areas like Fintech. Emily shares more about strategies that helped her manage transitions within VC and trends she's excited about at Primary including innovations in payments and capital markets. Finally, Emily touches on bridging the gender gap in venture and shares some advice for aspiring investors. 

In this episode, we talk to Katelyn and Vicki from UP.Labs about the venture lab model in the mobility space. We talk to the team about building startups alongside corporate partners and drawing on their past experiences as operators. Finally we touch on making the move to venture labs, especially in mobility, and some advice for women looking to break into the tech, transportation, and venture lab spaces - including an ask for referrals for female CEOs hoping to join the firm!

In this episode, with Zabreen, we chat about her career transitions from operator roles to investing, and her current stint with Phenomenal Ventures. We also speak about her non-profit, HerCapital, that aims to empower women to invest in their future. Lastly, we hear Zabreen's thoughts on working towards diversity and advice for women looking to break into the VC ecosystem.

In this episode, Julia walks us her through her decision to join investing early in her career, leaving to start a company before heading back to Pari Passu. Julia shares more about her decision to start a fund instead of joining one, the newly launched 'PariPassu' app and the firm's strategy. Finally, we end with some thoughts around gender dynamics in check writing roles and some advice for aspiring investors. 

In our conversation with Katelin, we get to know about her diverse experiences that shaped her working style of always being 'people-first'. We also hear about how this strategy has helped her transition into the world of venture capital, at 776 and what differentiates the fund. Lastly, Katelin shares what it takes to break into the VC ecosystem. 

In this episode, Caroline dives into her journey from music major to being a serial entrepreneur and leading a powerhouse startup accelerator. We'll hear about her experiences co-founding the neuromarketing pioneer NeuroFocus, her time at Nielsen, and her current role as an investor at SkyDeck. Caroline also shares insights on what makes the Berkeley SkyDeck Fund stand out and their approach to investments. 

In this episode with Ash, we talk about her strategic transitions into the world of blockchain investing and finding her next move in the VC world. We also explore the latest trends in AI and early stage investing, and end with some actionable suggestions for entering the investing world.

In this episode, Priya talks to us about her relatively early move into VC and her biggest learnings from investing in mid to growth stage companies. She dives into why she started her firm, Touring Capital and the fund's investment focus on AI enabled software, initially in North America while keeping eyes open on other regional markets. Finally, Priya shares her thoughts on gender dynamics in the industry and some advice for aspiring investors including creating your personal board of directors. 

In our 100th episode, we talk to Lily (recently named Boston's new power venture capitalist) about her decision to pursue a career in VC after years in product strategy at Facebook. Lily also shares Underscore's investment thesis, her views on the thriving Boston ecosystem and the role of data in startups. Finally, Lily touches on how she leverages her role in the industry to promote representation and shares some tactical advice for aspiring female investors. 

In this episode, we talk to Joanna about her work and pursuit for impact in the non-profit sector and now in venture capital. Joanna touches on how her background shaped her career choices, her decision to join VC and Illumen Capital. She also delves into how companies (VCs and startups) can tactically implement impact strategies and address gender and racial biases. 

In this episode, we talk to Heidi about her career, starting as one of the earliest female operators in Tech as the CEO of T/Maker and growing and building the company. We dive into her transition to VC with roles at Mobius, DFJ and now Threshold and trends she's excited about.  We also touch on her story as a great "people connector", being at the center of an HBS case and gender bias experiment. Finally, Heidi shares some of her lessons from the industry and some advice for women looking to break in. 

In this episode, we talk to Kelly about her optimization for learning and development which led her to various roles and ultimately VC. We learn more about Vestigo Venture's investment strategy and  community driven approach to investing as well as trends Kelly is excited about. Finally, we touch on what it takes to break into the industry. 

In this episode, Fazeela walks us through her global experiences in VC including building out Temasek's healthcare and international businesses and her more recent role at Revolution. Fazeela also touches on Revolution's efforts to tackle the unequal distribution of opportunity and her views on VC DE&I efforts, having led some of them in her career. She shares her insights on how and if the VC industry differs around the world and ends with some advice for breaking in. 

In this episode, Julie talks about her venture firm, How Women Invest, and how empowering women is about unlocking untapped potential. She shares her view of having women at the table as investors and corporate board members. She also touches on the importance of "networks, mentorship, and continuous learning" in VC and her own life. Finally, Julie touches on some of her most impactful partnerships in advancing diversity in the industry and shares some lessons for women looking to break in and rise while addressing the cost along the way. 

In this conversation with Claude, we hear about her operator experience at L2, followed by transition to an investor role with Volition after pursuing an MBA. We hear about how she chose her career transitions and firms she wanted to work with. We end with her take on how women should approach growing in the VC ecosystem. 

In this episode, Alexa shares her journey building companies that she wished existed for herself, including LearnVest and Inspired Capital. Alexa dives into Inspired's "napkin to revenue", long term investment strategy. She also touches on her experiences hosting her own podcast, "The Founders Project" interviewing many notable founders. 

Finally Alexa shares her observations and advice on being an investor and a woman in the VC industry and her focus on and strength in getting better as she succinctly puts, "like anything in life you're only as good as you can evolve". 

In this episode, we talk to Melissa about her experience giving legal advice and negotiating deals for tech companies and VC funds and her passion to help inform and represent underrepresented founders in the industry. 

Melissa dives deeper into the role of lawyers in the VC ecosystem and reflects on some of her highs and lows in the space as a thought partner. Finally Melissa talks about how she uses her position to create a welcoming space for historically underrepresented founders to openly ask questions and seek advice. 

In this episode, we talk to Risa about her journey into entrepreneurship and VC, combining her love for science and building. We touch on how being a repeat founder has shaped her investment style and some exciting innovations in life sciences. 

Finally, we dive into her experiences in male dominated industries on the trading floor, in life sciences, PE and VC, how she navigates that experience and makes sure her work and determination speaks for itself and her advice to women to network their way into the industry and deals. 

As we kick off season 3 of the Women in VC, we reflect on the current state of the industry and celebrate the many achievements of women. 

In this episode, we talk to Sonja about her long and successful career in venture capital, including becoming the youngest GP at Menlo Ventures and investing in companies such as TheRealReal, Q1 Labs and many more. Sonja walks us through how Broadway Angels, an investment group made up of women, came about and what her experience has been being the only woman in many rooms. Finally, she shares some advice on how to break into and navigate VC as an aspiring female investor. 

In the conversation with Courtney, we talk about her journey into the world of investing, starting as a Kauffman Fellow - to becoming an LP and now running Recast Capital, a platform supporting and investing in emerging managers in venture. We also learn more about their recent fellowship - for emerging VC investors. We hear Courtney's perspective on how the changing market environment is impacting growth of the VC industry. Finally, we talk about some hard facts on gender biases in this ecosystem, their root causes and how can they be changed.

In this episode, we dive into the Platform and Operations role at venture funds with Sophie. We also touch on the operations role in times of uncertainties for startups such as the SVB crisis and how 186 Ventures is positioning itself to best support portfolio companies. Finally, Sophie talks about gender dynamics in VC broadly and in the Boston ecosystem and  shares some advice for aspiring female investors. 

In this conversation with Claire, we hear about her journey from LevFin to PE to now VC, and how she tapped into various networking opportunities and fields of career as she chose to pursue VC. She also shares some trends in the startup world she is tracking closely. And we end the chat with some candid and genuine advice for women who are trying to break into this ecosystem!

In this conversation with Janis, we chat about her long journey in life sciences and the gradual transition to a more generalist fund set-up, with Cota Capital. We also hear about the fund thesis with Cota and some of the most exciting spaces she is following. Lastly, we touch upon her experiences and take on gender dynamics in this ecosystem and how should one navigate the system!

In this chat with Johanna, we get to hear about her breadth of experiences in economics, finance and and what led her to do investing. She also shares her motivation and journey building Elevar, doubling down on the LatAm ecosystem and her aspirations for women in the space. 

In this conversation with Pallavi, we learn about her career transitions and what got her interested in growth investing, particularly in the Indian fintech ecosystem. We got to hear about a few of her investments and investment theses, and her goals of learning from the international markets, like the USA. Tune in, for a thought provoking chat! 

In this conversation with Tasneem, she talks about setting up Excelestar - building the fund's thesis and growing it to where its at today. She also talks about her efforts into promoting female entrepreneurs, via Golden Seeds - that is addressing the lack of funding and coaching for female founders. Finally, she shares what her aspirations are for women in investing.

In this conversation with the Untapped Global team, we talk to Caitlin and Yvonne about the fund's smart asset financing strategy, data-driven approach and Africa's growth vision. We also hear from them how women have a better "vibe check", making them sound investors in the ecosystem!

In this episode, we talk to Miki about her interesting path into VC and her career motivations along the way. We dive into the inspiration behind Grid110, the mission of the firm and the trends she's been excited about. Finally Mikki talks about gender dynamics in VC and details some tactical advice to break into VC; from online research to books, events, and communities. 

In this episode, we talk to Justine about what led her to a career in finance, first at Goldman Sachs then in VC. She further dives into the secondary team at Industry Ventures and how she approached the decision of what stage to invest in. Finally, Justine touches on how the sheer availability of female mentors in itself is a sign that things are changing in the industry, albeit slowly, and discusses the work yet to be done and some advice for aspiring female investors. 

In this episode, we talk to Brittany about her passion for Tech through her roles in consulting, ops and VC. She also touches on her experience working for one of the longest running VC firms and how the tenure of her mentors have played a role in her own journey. Finally, we dive into the thought that “Talent is equally distributed, but opportunity isn’t — yet." and what it will take to get to equal distribution of opportunity in the industry. 

In this episode, we talk to Julie Sandler about her psychology background and how that has translated to her work today, especially her relationships with founders. Talking about PSL, she touches on the growth of the fund and the Northwestern region and the venture studio model. She also dives into diversity both within the fund and their investments, serving as a testament to advancements in the industry. She concludes with her observation that the support system among women prominent in VC provides guidelines to help navigate the space. 

In this episode, we talk to Connie about her early interests in technology and how that translated to working at Square and eventually in VC. Connie shares more about her experience at Forgepoint Capital, including the funding growth in cybersecurity and horizontal expansion of the space across sectors. She also touches on how she engages with a community of professionals to tackle unfavorable gender dynamics and concludes with two key advices for aspiring female investors: (1) find a mentor with industry commonalities and (2) vocalize your opinion.

In  this episode, we talk to Temi about her pull towards an entrepreneurial space focused on Africa, her deep dive into fintech along with trends and themes she is excited about in the space—notably female founders. Temi also touches on the climate resilience and climate adaptation efforts in Africa (especially considering the prevalence of agriculture-related jobs). We conclude the chat with some advice for aspiring VCs, which includes taking initiative to reach out to founders, having a perspective and being willing to share that thesis, and lastly, to not be shy with your “superpower”. 

In this episode, we talk to Jazmin Medina about her interest in VC and startups during business school and why she chose an operator role beforehand. We also touch on some of the aspects of the industry that she finds attractive, including the ability to have a high level of ownership, lifelong learning, and the privilege of working alongside CEOs. Jazmin further talks to us about trends she's excited about and The Cap Table Coalition, elaborating on the organization’s broader mission to increase the number of startups, founders, board managers, and other positions in power from underrepresented groups. 

In this episode, Julia shares her experience working in business development at WeWork before joining VC funds for the last 3+ years. She further talks about professional growth within a firm and how to tackle conversations around promotions. She concludes with her very candid recommendation to think about why you see yourself succeeding in and enjoying venture capital before diving in. 

In this episode we talk to Senofer and Asya about their journey into VC and their vision to build a more equal and diversified funding landscape. We touch on how the current environment is all about empowering entrepreneurs and how bias can be used to counter the very unequal distribution it has created in the past. We conclude with some advice to aspiring female investors to tap into their strengths and find a place that rewards them but also be comfortable with embarrassing parts of the journey - you might get 1 response to the 20 emails you write, but that 1 might be just enough!

In this episode, Vivien talks about her venture path, her passion for healthcare and the podcast she hosts, interviewing & learning from entrepreneurs in the sector. She further talks about leading Pear's Female Founder Circle which is providing a platform for female technical founders and shares the aspiration of bringing these founders to the funding table, technical assistance or simply a community of like minded gamechangers. 

In this episode, we talk to Isabelle about her journey through finance and operations and what eventually led her to angel investing. We touch on the realities and opportunities of being part of an angel investing community, especially for women. We wrap up the conversation with some advice for female founders and investors with Isabelle drawing inspiration from two impressive women in very different worlds. 

In this episode, Lexi talks about how a long visit to the continent prompted her to explore innovation and investing in Africa and eventually moving to Nigeria. She dives into some of her key investment strategies that have helped achieve portfolio success at Acuity and themes and trends that she is excited about. Additionally, we talk about her experience with gender dynamics in African VC and her observation of how, the relatively late development of the tech and VC industry in Africa ("late mover advantage") has helped with building a more inclusive ecosystem. 

In this episode, we talk to Monica about her role driving impact at G2 Venture Partners and dig into her interest in climate tech and sustainability through her roles at Zola Electric and Tesla. We also touch on the evolution of climate tech over the years and the exciting new opportunities and conclude with how to achieve parity for women in both Tech and VC. 
Side note: apologies for my flu voice. 

In this fun episode with Tess, we talk about her passion for space and how that translated into a career through Boeing, SpaceX and eventually into venture capital at Bessemer. We also touch on mentorship vs. sponsorship and fellowship programs as a means to learn and break in the VC space. Finally, we dive into the low representation stats for female investors and talk about the need to take actions at the funder and founder levels and how playing into your strengths can make a difference. 

A short message to our avid listeners - we are still here! Anvita graduated from HBS last month (woo!) and is moving to Seattle to start the next chapter of her life and I have been working on an Africa focused Agritech / Foodtech accelerator program in Mauritius, hence the break from the podcast. We are looking forward to resuming the podcast in the coming days. Stay tuned!  - Rashveena

In this episode, we talk to Rima about her journey from being a "stock picker" in equity research at GS to business development at Marc Jacobs and Ralph Lauren and eventually venture capital, first with XRC labs, and now Commerce Ventures. Rima also touches on her experience working for StartU, "a Techcrunch for student startups" as she calls it, while doing her MBA. She emphasizes the importance of mentorship and community in solving gender disparity in VC and encourages aspiring female investors to tap into their strengths and form meaningful relationships to break in. 

In this episode with Deborah Quazzo, we talk about her pathway to VC, including her time at Merrill Lynch and her experience with angel investing as well as her collaboration with Michael Moe in founding ThinkEquity Partners and GSV Ventures later on. We also touch on the current education technology space and the opportunities it holds for entrepreneurs passionate about solving problems. We conclude with a discussion about how GSV has been able to form such a diverse team, especially with women in leadership positions.

In this episode, Kristin shares her decades of wisdom on finding the role and fund that you fit in and a bunch of tactical tips on finding the right place for you. We go deep into gender dynamics conversation in the finance industry. Listen in, to get great advice on choosing the optimum career path for yourself, asking the right questions, finding and nurturing the right mentor relations, and more!