Welcome to She Invests, where you’ll hear from existing female angel investors, venture capitalists and fund managers on their investment thesis. From deal flow to exits, they will share the best practices that contribute to their success.
In this episode, Dr. Silvia Mah welcomes Alicia Robb to the show to discuss the Next Wave Impact Fund and the Founder of Color, two organizations in which Alicia has deep ties. Alicia breaks down virtual investing and the economic impact that COVID has had on entrepreneurship and venture capitalists.
What We Covered
02:28 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Alicia Robb who speaks to her work with Next Wave Impact and Founders of Color
08:18 – Alicia breaks down who and what is driving economic growth during the uncertainty of COVID
10:50 – Alicia speaks to virtual investment and how that has led to the diversity of investors who are involved with the Next Wave Impact Fund
13:49 – Alicia breaks down the incredible work that Founders of Color is doing and how it felt to win the Hans Severiens Award from the Angel Capital Association
18:36 – The democratization of data, wealth and opportunity and how COVID has impacted Founders of Color
22:45 – Alicia provides her insights on maintaining a mindset of abundance
24:02 – Alicia shares her ongoing projects
26:30 – Dr. Silvia thanks Alicia for joining the show
In this episode, Silvia Mah introduces a new COVID-19 themed series on the She Invests podcast.
Female investors are stronger together when uncertain times emerge. This is what we have seen during our global pandemic over and over again, female investor colleagues, reactivating, realigning with the most critical mission at hand and reinvesting in this business of investing and supporting transformational innovations that will make our world a better place.
In this new series you'll be inspired through conversations with amazing women who have invested during a pandemic. You will be encouraged by their actions, the checks they write, their passions, the founders they invest in, their thoughts, their strengths, and their advocacy for what is right and just, which is supporting founders that are making this world a better place through innovation and entrepreneurship.
This is a time to help founders. This is the time to really activate our capital to impact the economy.
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Amanda Lettmann, CEO of Kardia Venture, lives a “limitless” life, and believes in the power of paying it forward. As a veteran of the United States Air Force and a successful figure in the tech industry over the past 20 years, she has taken her fascination with finance and thriving businesses into the arena of angel investing.
In this episode, Amanda shares how she got into investing, the importance of supporting coachable female and veteran entrepreneurs, and shares her latest adventure of bringing Women of Impact into the world. She also shares her six tenets of impactful people.
What We Covered
01:05 – Amanda is the first veteran investor on the show. What makes her as a veteran investor and the types of investments she makes unique?
02:15 – The Pay It Forward aspect – Why investing in women or having women on a leadership team is not just a good decision, but is a good business decision
03:42 – What thriving startups are doing right
04:41 – Amanda’s start in angel investing
06:42 – Amanda’s first investments into public markets
07:22 – Making the leap from investing to angel investing; a riskier asset class
08:30 – Delving deep into the thought process of syndication and how to do it
10:50 – Amanda’s thesis for investment criteria
13:15 – Bringing Women of Impact [series] into the world
15:37 – Six Tenets of Impactful People
18:34 – Speaker Series: Kardiavibe; an offshoot of the ESPN radio show
19:45 – What else is Amanda working on?
21:23 – The forefront of tech right now
24:00 – Full-time versus part-time investing
27:05 – What makes San Diego amazing [as a startup eco-system]?
Susan Preston is the General Partner for the CalCEF Clean Energy Angel Fund, the Buerk Endowed Fellow for Entrepreneurship at the University of Washington, a Trustee for the Angel Resource Institute, chair of ARI: Women First Enterprises, and on various for-profit and non-profit boards. She is also the author of Angel Financing for Entrepreneurs: Early-stage Funding for Long-term Success. In addition, Susan received her JD, cum laude, from Seattle University School of Law and her BS, magna cum laude, in Microbiology and Public Health from Washington State University. Her background with microbiology is the source of her interest in investing in the med-tech area.
In this episode, Susan credits team, technology, and the market as the three pillars of startup success. She encourages beginning entrepreneurs to be confident on their “elevator pitch,” to successfully get an investor’s attention, as well as female angel investors to believe in themselves. To Susan, education and training are vital in investing.
What We Covered
03:28 – How Susan got involved in investing
05:27 – Susan’s first year of angel investing
06:56 – The involvement on female angel investors in Susan’s company
08:49 – How Susan focused on education in her career
10:52 – The role of early stage investors in growing the economy of the United States
12:12 – Why the diversification of your portfolio can help you as an investor
13:41 – The importance of post-investment engagement and what does it really mean
15:52 – How Susan communicates with companies on her expectations
18:48 – Alignment in the angel investment world
19:55 – How an entrepreneur can get an investor’s attention
22:14 – Team, technology, and the market on a company’s success
23:19 – Investing in the med-tech area
26:12 – How Susan’s company run angel investment group workshops
28:33 – Helping university startups get an investment
31:11 – Encouraging female angel investors to write their first check
Oregon-based entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist, Julie Harrelson, is the CEO of Harrelson Group and the fund manager of Cascade Angels Fund, in which she co-founded in 2013. Throughout her entrepreneurial career, she has had multiple executive roles in design, technology, and angel investing. She has received many accolades for her hard work and success, including the 2017 Bend Chamber of Commerce Woman of the Year Award and the Oregon 2014 Women of Influence Orchid Award.
She is an active member of the Angel Capital Association, the Oregon State University Advantage Accelerator and Metropolitan Family Service, and the Portland State University’s Center for Women’s Leadership Honorary Council. In this episode, Julie explores the topic of philanthropy in entrepreneurship and using collaboration to create a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.
What We Covered
09:23 – Entrepreneurship in the Oregon
12:04 – How Julie created a fund in Bend, Oregon
14:09 – Fund managers are over 90% men
16:10 – The beginnings of Cascade Angel Fund
18:03 – Julie’s biggest asset from collaboration
22:05 – Persistent effort over time leads to valuable progress
23:41 – The “three-legged stool” for investing in Bend, Oregon
25:00 – Why angel investors are attracted to Bend, Oregon
26:03 – Up and coming industries in Bend, Oregon and Pacific Northwest
28:47 – The importance of the entrepreneurial ecosystem
30:50 – How can angel investors really make a mark on the entrepreneurial ecosystem
32:13 – What Julie looks for as an individual angel investor
34:20 – How to manage your portfolio as an angel investor
35:33 – Fund Five’s investments
39:12 – Being civically engaged as ecosystem builders
This is an invaluable resource to me as an entrepeneur! Getting to peek into the heart and mind of investors is SO incredibly valuable to me. Thank you for bringing such a fantastic podcast to life!
