She Invests!

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 to the podcast entrepreneur, Product Coach, author and co-founder, Vidya Dinamani. Vidya has a passion for coaching product leaders and teams. She is one of the founding partners of Ad Astra Ventures. She is also Principal with Product Rebels, a company founded to help product managers, founders and entrepreneurs make customer breakthroughs. Vidya has also recently been focused on investing and mentoring startups and early stage companies. She has over eighteen years of experience specializing in business and technology strategy development and product design, development and management. Vidya has held multiple executive roles at leading companies, including executive positions leading innovation and product management at Mitchell International, Director of Customer Experience for TurboTax Intuit. She also served as Director of Business Operations and Chief IT Architect for the software provider. Prior to Intuit, Vidya was a consultant with Deloitte Consulting, specializing in technology strategy consulting. She holds seven U.S. patents for software technology and is a certified Net Promoter associate. Today, Dr. Sylvia and Vidya talk about Vidya's ‘Why' of investing and her goal to achieve equality among men and women on both sides of the investment table. Vidya expounds on what it means to go from the first meeting with a startup company to actually writing a check and investing. Finally, Dr. Sylvia and Vidya discuss the work Ad Astra Ventures is doing to educate entrepreneurs today. 04:30 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today's guest, Vidya Dinamani, who discusses her professional background, her very first investment and her ‘Why' of investing 10:22 – Vidya talks about identifying the right founder and the right product-market fit when she seeks out early stage startup companies to invest in 13:45 – Vidya talks about the origin story of Ad Astra Ventures and the commitment they've made to help more female founders 20:55 – Vidya speaks to the impact Ad Astra Ventures wants to create 29:15 – Vidya talks about her book, Groundwork: Get Better at Making Better Products and some of the great testimonials she's received as feedback 37:02 – Vidya expounds on her background in product and how it's impacted how she shows up as an investor 38:55 – Vidya talks about the work she's doing at Lash.Live 45:56 – What abundance mindset means to Vidya 47:32 – Dr. Silvia recaps her interview with Vidya Full show notes: https://www.sheinvests.com/41

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 to the podcast attorney and angel investor, Rose Bowlus. Rose is an experienced attorney and former in-house counsel with extensive transactional, regulatory and compliance experience at industry leading financial institutions and energy companies. She is a strong leader, seasoned negotiator and excellent communicator, all traits that have prepared her for her transition to angel investing. Today, Dr. Silvia speaks to Rose about Rose’s journey from aspiring angel investor to an expert who is ingrained in the startup ecosystem. They discuss Rose’s background in law, the work she’s doing to help and advocate for start-ups and some of projects she’s currently taking part in, including Angels in the Law and The Fourth Floor. 05:12 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Rose Bowlus who speaks to her involvement in the San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC), her background as a lawyer and finding her voice as an investor 11:01 – Rose recounts the finalist companies at San Diego Angel Conference 13:24 – Rose expounds on her latest project, Angels in the Law 18:51 – Bringing a different perspective and doing your due diligence as an angel investor 24:02 – What Rose is doing to help and advocate for start-up companies 29:28 – Rose talks about one of the start-up companies that she’s particularly excited about 37:56 – Rose speaks to her involvement in an early stage company, The Fourth Floor 42:14 – What abundance mindset means to Rose 43:40 – Dr. Silvia recaps her interview with Rose Full show notes: https://www.sheinvests.com/40

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 to the podcast entrepreneur, founder and fellow angel investor, Dr. Kay Olmstead. Dr. Kay is an angel investor who has a particular interest in investing in technology-based companies in biotech and clean tech. She looks for investment opportunities in socially responsible companies with technologies to make our world better by creating products to tackle tough problems. Dr. Kay is also an accomplished entrepreneur and is a co-founder and CEO of Nano PharmaSolutions. Throughout her thirty-two year career in the pharmaceutical industry she led the development efforts of five FDA-approved drugs and holds nineteen issued patents to date. Today, Dr. Silvia speaks to Dr. Kay about her investment thesis, one that is rooted in impact investing and legacy building through philanthropic investment vehicles, such as Donor Advised Funds, or DAFs. Dr. Kay continues by discussing the importance of commercialization and provides general advice to aspiring entrepreneurs. 04:40 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Dr. Kay Olmstead who speaks to her investment thesis and the decision to pursue impact investing 16:44 – Dr. Kay talks about how her approach to investing has been influenced by her background as both an intrapreneur and entrepreneur 20:53 – Dr. Kay provides some poignant investment questions that are important to ask 24:03 – Dr. Kay comments on the importance of commercialization 29:33 – Dr. Kay speaks to the value of relationship building in investing 34:35 – Dr. Kay talks about her experience with San Diego Angel Conference 38:47 – Dr. Silvia recaps her interview with Dr. Kay Full show notes: https://www.sheinvests.com/39

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 to the podcast experienced retirement plan consultant and entrepreneur, Rebecca Hourihan. Rebecca is the founder and CMO of 401(k) Marketing, a firm that helps retirement plan advisors market their expertise and build long-lasting brand awareness. The company was founded on the idea that retirement plan advisors are specialists and should promote their unique skill set. With over 15 years of retirement plan experience, Rebecca is skilled at developing clear paths that are simple for plan sponsors, advisors and participants to understand. She is committed to company growth, advisor development and collaborative improvement. Dr. Silvia and Rebecca discuss lessons Rebecca has learned from her involvement in the San Diego Angel Conference, tips for being a better public speaker and how she has transitioned into a leader in the financial planning and services industry. 04:19 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Rebecca Hourihan who speaks to her involvement in the San Diego Angel Conference, her background as a financial advisor and her entrepreneurial journey 15:45 – The community of SDAC and what Rebecca noticed about some of the founders from this past year 20:39 – Rebecca talks about how she prepares for presentations 22:27 – How Rebecca has grown throughout her journey as an angel investor and the importance of diversifying her investments 27:12 – Rebecca’s shares other projects she’s a part of 28:45 – Rebecca expounds on her investment thesis and her ‘why’ 30:21 – Dr. Silvia shares her own specific investment thesis 34:04 – Rebecca talks about some trends she’s seen in the FinTech industry 35:53 – Rebecca discusses her financial savvy and provides best practices for living a frugal lifestyle 44:40 – Final words of wisdom from Rebecca 46:20 – What abundance mindset means to Rebecca Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/38

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 to the podcast ecosystem builder, investor and advisor, Caitlin Wege. Caitlin is a partner at MooDoos Investments, a private family-owned investment fund that invests in early-stage companies throughout North America. MooDoos is industry agnostic and invests in several industries including life sciences, manufacturing, and education technology. Caitlin is an experienced angel investor and fund manager that serves as Chairman of the board of multiple portfolio companies and President of the San Diego Chapter of Tech Coast Angels, the largest Angel network in the US. Dr. Silvia and Caitlin discuss the concept of finding your ‘why’ as an investor, Caitlin’s passion for fostering entrepreneurial and investor education, and how to create a wonderful network and community for investors locally as well as nationwide. 04:32 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Caitlin Wege who speaks to her entrepreneurial journey, her ‘why,’ and how she got involved in investing 08:45 – Caitlin speaks to the importance of addressing the wealth gap in America 12:24 – Caitlin discusses the dynamic of her family office and her role as President of the San Diego Chapter of Tech Coast Angels 18:40 – Caitlin shares her thoughts on the need to get more women involved in angel investing and the panel she worked to achieve this goal 27:08 – Caitlin identifies some specific female members of Tech Coast Angels who are doing amazing work   29:35 – Overcoming Imposter Syndrome 36:19 – Caitlin talks about overcoming the challenges of COVID-19 to emerge successful in 2020 and what excites her about 2021 41:31 – How Caitlin plans to amplify her ‘why’ in 2021 46:05 – What abundance mindset means to Caitlin Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/37

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 to the podcast former Director of Contracts at Qualcomm, Janet Carson. After retiring from Qualcomm in 2018, Janet turned her focus to making an impact in the community by serving with several community-based organizations and investing personal resources with numerous startup companies. As an angel investor, Janet identifies innovative solutions and technology-centric startup companies for investment opportunities. Dr. Silvia and Janet talk about how Janet has diversified her portfolio through different types of investment opportunities, from Portfolia and San Diego Angel Conference to Founders First Capital Partners. They discuss the value of looking to others for industry-specific expertise throughout the due diligence process. Finally, they speak to Janet’s passion for investing in women-led and underrepresented startup organizations. 05:06 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Janet Carson who speaks to extensive business background, her involvement in San Diego Angel Conference and what she enjoyed most about SDAC 11:19 – How Janet’s experience has changed with a year under her belt at SDAC and speaks to the benefits of angel investing 15:14 – How SDAC has adjusted and pivoted amidst COVID-19 19:32 – Janet speaks to the site visits she’s excited to make once it’s safer to travel 23:02 – Janet opens up about her different investment approaches and how she’s leveraged the investment platform Portfolia 34:10 – Janet talks about her involvement with Kim Folsom and Founders First Capital Partners 38:01 – How Janet views herself as an investor 42:54 – What abundance mindset means to Janet Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/36

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 to the podcast start-up consultant, entrepreneur and investor, Michelle Youngers. As a cross-functional Executive, Michelle brings over 30 years diverse experience in both financial and operational strategies to improve organizational effectiveness of early stage, high growth companies across multiple industries. Throughout her career, she has served as a Company Co-founder, President and CEO, and various roles as a trusted financial and operational partner to CEOs, leadership teams, Board of Directors and investors. She strongly believes in the equation vision plus execution equals success. Dr. Silvia and Michelle talk about Michelle’s investment thesis, factors Michelle looks for when assessing founders and how we can better empower female entrepreneurs. 04:26 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Michelle Youngers who speaks to her involvement in San Diego Angel Conference, how she assesses founders and what her investment thesis entails 13:13 – Michelle provides some examples of companies she has invested in that she is also incredibly excited about 16:02 – Michelle talks about diversification, the importance of having capital available for investment opportunities and the value of SDAC 21:44 – Dr. Silvia and Michelle talk about the Women of SDAC and areas where we can better promote more female entrepreneurs 28:42 – What abundance mindset means to Michelle Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/35

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 to the podcast leader, connector and mentor of startup founders, Oralia Alvarez. Oralia currently serves as a director of business development for Founders First Capital Partners, a fund committed to growing and funding small businesses led by diverse and inclusive founders. With over ten years of experience in distressed real estate investments and business strategy, Oralia works exclusively with cash investors in the acquisition of off-market properties. As an angel investor, Oralia is extensively involved in San Diego’s startup ecosystem by serving as a connector and mentor to entrepreneurs and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors at Startup San Diego. Dr. Silvia and Oralia talk about the daring journey of being an entrepreneur, why women of color make some of the most efficient founders and the importance of being bold and confident. 04:19 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Oralia Alvarez who speaks to her involvement in San Diego Angel Conference, her entrepreneurial origin story and her involvement in animal philanthropy 10:31 – Oralia provides her thoughts on why women of color are some of the best and most efficient entrepreneurs 14:13 – Oralia speaks to the brilliant work the winning founders at San Diego Angel Conference are currently doing and what impressed her the most by these founders 21:28 – The importance of communication and coachability when it comes to investing in founders 25:46 – Dr. Silvia and Oralia talk about their excitement for SDAC Fund III 31:16 – Oralia talks about her bold, confident nature and how she maintains balanced confidence  34:30 – Oralia shares what having an abundance mindset means to her Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/34

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 to the podcast business owner, consultant and investor, Amy Duncan. Amy has over 20 years of experience working in the high growth life sciences industry and is a seasoned marketing strategist. Amy co-founded Goldfish Consulting in 2008 with the goal of helping small businesses and life science entrepreneurs grow their business. Amy currently serves as chair of the communications committee for the San Diego Entrepreneurs Exchange (SDEE) and co-fund manager for the San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC). Dr. Silvia and Amy talk about the mindset transition Amy had to undergo from active angel investor to Lead Fund Manager, the importance of women representation in this field and the growth of the Women of SDAC. 03:59 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Amy Duncan who speaks to her involvement in the San Diego Angel Conference and the mindset that was required to take over as Lead Fund Manager 12:33 – Amy recalls a particularly impressive pitch from an entrepreneur finalist pitch at the San Diego Angel Conference and how Amy became a champion for her 20:17 – The transition to becoming a Fund Manager for SDAC III and what excites her most about this venture 26:23 – Amy talks about the group ‘Women of SDAC’ and the work that they do 30:12 – Amy shares what having an abundance mindset means to her Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/33

Excited to bring to you a new series for the She Invests podcast, a special Inspiring Women in Angel Investing 12-episode series. The genesis of this series rises from the exceptional work the San Diego Angel Conference does in funding innovative companies and the women who are part of this group who are creative, inquisitive and curious, a true alignment of my mission at She invests to give voices to the female angel investors who are actively investing and being an advocate for our amazing San Diego innovation ecosystem through real investor stories. Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/S3

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 to the podcast Vice President of Crescent Ridge Partners, Maria Gonzalez-Blanch. CRP is a female-led venture capital and private equity firm that invests in early stage companies and growth equity for more mature and proven businesses. Prior to CRP, Maria held senior roles in Operations, Sales and Strategy at Red Bull and Altamont Capital. Dr. Silvia and Maria talk all about investing in values-aligned founders, the impact COVID-19 has had on entrepreneurs and examples of innovative companies Maria and CRP have recently invested in. 03:34 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Maria Gonzalez-Blanch who shares her origin story, the work she does at Crescent Ridge Partners and the respect she has for entrepreneurs 11:04 – Maria speaks to her career transition from private equity to venture capital and the investment criteria that Crescent Ridge Partners utilizes 17:27 – Maria identifies some examples of innovative entrepreneurs CRP has invested in 20:40 – How Maria and CRP adapted and pivoted during COVID-19 23:53 – The work Maria is doing with Ad Astra Ventures 28:45 – Maria speaks to yet another company that is doing tremendous work and earned an investment from CRP 31:07 – Maria shares what having an abundance mindset means to her Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/32

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 strategic advisor, entrepreneur, and investor Sonia Steinway to discuss the work she’s doing with Village Up. Sonia has a wide array of experience helping startups and entrepreneurs achieve their goals. Most recently, she has focused on helping companies with underrepresented founders, specifically women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Dr. Silvia and Sonia discuss investing during COVID-19, the exciting future of Femtech and what abundance mindset means to Sonia. 03:38 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Sonia Steinway who shares the exciting work she’s doing with Village Up and the importance of supporting aspiring entrepreneurs from all walks of life 08:14 – Sonia opens up about barriers that LGBTQIA entrepreneurs and founders continue to face 15:55 – Sonia highlights a specific company she’s extremely excited about 21:10 – Sonia shares her investment criteria and the importance of promoting and fostering true diversity 27:14 – Sonia shares her excitement for the future of Femtech 33:30 – Sonia discusses what having an abundance mindset means to her Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/31

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 inspiring global leader, strategist and advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, Maisha Cobb. Maisha is committed to helping organizational visionaries bring their boldest aspirations to life. At her own core, Maisha believes we all have a unique vision that contributes to the great societal benefit. Dr. Silvia and Maisha explore the concept of leadership through servitude, the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace and the value of having an abundance mindset. 04:30 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Maisha Cobb who talks about her passion for giving back and empowering women of color, her career journey and the importance she places on servitude 11:00 – Maisha speaks to her book, Epiphany Marketing, and how she shifted her own career path 15:22 – Maisha speaks to how COVID-19 has impacted herself, our society and minority communities 19:10 – Maisha opens up about the tragedies of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd 22:13 – The importance of promoting and fostering true diversity and change in the workplace 26:17 – Maisha recalls a powerful seminar she attended recently and shares what she learned from it 29:44 – Maisha speaks to the value she places on her role as a mentor 32:42 – Dr. Silvia and Maisha share their thoughts on motherhood 36:47 – Maisha provides best practices and advice on returning to your authentic self 39:04 – Maisha discusses how her meditative practices focus on an abundance mindset Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/30

At the end of what has been arguably one of the most challenging years ever, Host Silvia Mah recaps the year and highlights several key takeaways. She first talks about Impact, Innovation and Isolation and how we persevered through what she describes as a Triple Pandemic - Health uncertainty, Social injustice and Economic insecurity. She highlights shining examples of entrepreneurship, and how leaders demonstrated awareness, open communication resilience and problem solving skills. Truly inspiring. Full show notes: 2

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 Teri Ijeoma to the show to discuss Teri’s incredible transition from education to the stock market. Teri details the decision to quit her job, travel the world and begin trading full-time. She speaks to how she successfully parlayed her skills as a trader into an online curriculum that shares her investing strategies with people all over the world. Today, Teri is focused on investing, lobbying for social change, and helping all groups – primarily women and minorities – to gain financial freedom. 01:12 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Teri Ijeoma who shares her journey from teacher to investment expert 10:28 – How Teri has been able to transform the lives of the African American community by helping them build their wealth 13:19 – Teri speaks to why COVID-19 impacted minority communities the hardest 23:06 – The value Teri places on traveling the world 25:18 – Teri provides insights on investing via the stock market 32:10 – The criteria Teri utilizes to identify companies to invest in 35:22 – Other tips and best practices for trading in the stock market and the importance of having confidence 38:42 – Teri provides final thoughts on everything that’s going on in our current social climate 41:08 – Teri talks about the value she places on having an abundance mindset 42:13 – Dr. Silvia thanks Teri for joining the show and recaps highlights from the episode Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/28

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 Mysty Rusk to the show to discuss the San Diego Angle Conference (SDAC), angel event funds, and the challenge of building networks during the Covid-19 crisis. Mysty shares her passion for creating dynamic angel investor ecosystems to help start-up entrepreneurs live out their dreams. 00:45 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Mysty Rusk who speaks to her background in investing 08:05 – The San Diego Angel Conference and challenges of building networks during the Covid-19 crisis 13:28 – Mysty breaks down the different types of funds including an angel event fund 21:18 – How start-up entrepreneurs are curating Covid-19 response plans 23:56 – Mysty explains the investment term doubling down 29:02 – How has risk mitigation strategies have changed due to Covid-19 35:31 – Mysty speaks to her professional experience on why angel investors do what they do   42:42 – Strategies for how best to use funds and communicate financial projections to angel investors 44:12 – Mentorship programs for new angel investors 45:45 – How virtual online pitches differ from in-person pitches 49:11 – Dr. Silvia thanks Mysty for joining the show Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/27

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 Barbara Bickham to the show to discuss Barbara’s work with Women’s Innovation Fund Accelerator. Barbara expounds on the mindset of an investor, the importance of ecosystem building and the concept of risk mitigation. 01:03 – Dr. Silvia Mah introduces today’s guest, Barbara Bickham who speaks to her work with Women’s Innovation Fund Accelerator 05:40 – Entrepreneurial strategies for pivoting and adapting in the midst of Covid-19 10:24 – The process of communicating strategic pivots to investors 12:40 – Barbara explains the concept of risk mitigation 16:26 – The mindset of an investor 20:36 – Barbara speaks to the importance of communicating with your network and limited partners (LPs) 24:00 – Doubling down on relationship and ecosystem building 25:30 – Barbara talks about her involvement in Innovation City and the upcoming virtual Women of Color Pitch Competition 30:42 – Barbara speaks to her experience with risk assessment and gender balance 33:50 – Barbara shares her ongoing fundraising projects 39:07 – Barbara provides her insights on maintaining a mindset of abundance  42:07 – Dr. Silvia thanks Barbara for joining the show Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/26

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. 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 Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/25

Silvia Mah, host of She Invests!, welcomes listeners to this new COVID-19 inspired series of interviews.

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.   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]? 29:50 – Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/24

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. 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 32:27 - Susan’s favorite angel investing resource 34:24 - Susan’s favorite book 35:25 - Major influences in Susan’s life 37:03 - What “abundance mindset” means to Susan Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/23

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. 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 42:41 - Julie’s favorite angel investing resource 42:55 - Julie’s favorite book 43:44 - Major influences in Julie’s life 44:37 - What “abundance mindset” means to Julie Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/22

Colleen Poynton is the Vice President of Core Innovation Capital where she sources and invests in companies that make financial services more efficient, affordable, accessible, and secure for individuals and businesses. Prior to her involvement in Core, Colleen worked on the sourcing and selection team at Endeavor Global and helped launch and scale the commercial real-estate startup, IIC, as the first employee. She has a MBA from Columbia Business School and graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University. In this episode, Colleen speaks about her experience with investing and her role in Core Innovation Capital as well as emphasizing the importance of networking in order to become a strong investor. 03:38 - How Colleen got involved with 37 Angels in the beginning 05:50 - Getting an investor’s perspective at an early age 06:37 - What Core Innovation Capital invests in and does 07:36 - How Core Innovation Capital founder, Arjan Schütte’s investment thesis brought  Colleen into the world on investing 09:28 - Core’s investment thesis and mission 12:25 - How the members of Core assembled together 14:54 - Challenges in raising an institutional fund 17:28 - What would Colleen tell her younger self 21:00 - Walkthrough of soft due diligence at Core 24:09 - How teams are mentored at Core 27:21 - The importance of being self-aware and receiving feedback 29:46 - What are the typical advice startups receive 32:02 - Follow on investing and helping startups fundraise at the next level 34:12 - Relationships with early stage accelerators 36:10 - How to build enterprise value 39:04 - Trends in the FinTech industry Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/21

Managing partner and one of the founders of Golden Seeds, Loretta McCarthy, speaks about her passion for supporting female entrepreneurs and women’s role in business. She emphasizes the importance of gender-diversity in the workplace and the benefits it will yield, especially for women-led companies. Golden Seeds strives to provide support and encouragement for female-led startups and angel investing groups. According to McCarthy, optimism and realism are the two main factors that help startup companies have the confidence and judgement to succeed in the business world.   01:50 - Loretta’s business experience prior to Golden Seeds 03:22 - History and foundation of Golden Seeds 04:41 - Creating an environment for the female entrepreneur 07:52 - Best success of Golden Seeds in supporting the female entrepreneur 08:57 - Investment in gender-diverse companies 10:33 - Research on the advantages of gender-diversity 11:28 - First Round Capital research on women-led companies and return for investors 15:56 - Getting more and more women involved as investors 18:02 - Golden Seeds on figuring out where to open doors for female-led companies 19:48 - What does it take to be an angel investor and debunking myths 22:30 - Golden Seeds training to motivate women 24:03 - Technology’s impact on growing angel network and helping people participate from afar   26:40 - The importance of leadership in angel organizations 28:19 - Synergy between the entrepreneur and the angel investor 30:47 - Criteria for first pitch to Golden Seeds 33:10 - Every startup team needs a ratio of optimism and realism 37:20 - New member orientation at Golden Seeds to learn more about angel investing 40:37 - Global push to recognize the importance of women entrepreneurs 41:25 - Loretta’s favorite angel investing resource is her colleagues   42:30 - Major influence in Loretta’s life is her mother Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/20    

Sue Baggott is the President of Power Within Consulting LLC, an insights-based strategy and innovation firm, which she founded in 2014. Early in her career, Sue spent 18 years in Global R&D at Procter & Gamble, leading the delivery of game-changing consumer products innovations across hair care, beauty/cosmetics, and baby care categories. In 2015, Sue began working with Queen City Angels (QCA) on a strategy refresh project, which ignited her interest in angel investing and fostered her passion for participating in the growing entrepreneurial ecosystem in Cincinnati. In late 2015, she joined the inaugural Rising Tide cohort and in 2016 became a member of QCA. Sue is active in screening and due diligence work, as well as co-leading QCA’s diversity/inclusion strategy pillar. She thrives on mentoring and coaching entrepreneurs helping to guide consumer/customer insights, design thinking, lean startup, and business planning and innovation strategies. In this episode, Sue shares her passion for innovation, social impact ventures, and her goals to lower the barriers for women entrepreneurs and investors. 02:07 – Next Wave Impact’s business model, being part of the investment committee 07:05 – ‘learn by doing’ method applicability in growing start-ups 08:22 – advantage of collaboration from different industry backgrounds within the VC ecosystem 09:55 – what qualities of a startup she considered for Next Wave Impact from an innovation standpoint 14:22 – her learning journey with Queen City Angels and Rising Tide 19:22 – efforts to lower the barrier for women entrepreneurs and investors 25:11 – her transition venture philanthropy to impact investing with Impact 100 31:33 – Rapid-Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/19

Julie Kantor is an all-in roll up yourselves social impact entrepreneur committed to building mentoring cultures to drive engagement and elevating women potential in the STEM workforce. Whether working in a boardroom with executives or with collaborative startups, Julie instills excitement, inspiration, commitment, and unwavering drive to help other succeed to invest in others. Julie is the CEO of Two mentor LLC, her 5th startup. As a sought-after global speaker & connector, Julie is well networked to the national community of top business, academic, non-profit, & government leaders. She has worked and consulted with clients such as Cisco, Samsung, Tata (TCS), Intel, MasterCard, Sony, Carnival, BP and more. In this episode, Julie shares her love for mentorship and youth empowerment. 02:39  – Julie’s entrepreneurial journey and Two Mentor LLC 05:39  – Mentor and Mentee relationship, Power of Mentorship, Mentor road trip 11:09  – Julie’s advice to people on how to be an effective mentor 15:00 – importance of communication and clarity in a mentor-mentee relationship 16:05 – how soon is a company culture starts in a startup 18:00 –mentorship as an integral part of a millennial’s career development 20:36 – importance of multi-generational mentoring and knowledge transfer 21:42 – sponsoring and mentoring young women in the STEM industry 31:23 – what ‘coopetition’ means 37:30  – Rapid Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/18

Mimi Hui is a Senior Director of Product Management with a Fortune 50 company. She offers product strategies that combine the empathy of designers with the functionality of engineers. In 2011, she joined Pipeline Angels boot camp which opened opportunities for her in the angel investing industry. In this episode, Mimi shares her investing story, how she joined Pipeline Angels and her considerations when choosing her investment ventures. 01:35  – Mimi and the Pipeline Angels 02:48  – Mimi’s career background 04:02  – what is pipeline angels all about 11:33  – her rising tide experience 12:33  – Top game changer qualities in selecting ventures 14:22  – Qualities of a coachable founder 16:42 – Soft pitching and mentoring 18:30 – importance of mentoring 21:27 – acknowledging challenges and opportunities as a women 27:08 – Mimi’s investment thesis 32:26 – Mimi’s upcoming blog: Madam Money Bag 39:08 – decision making process 41:31  – Rapid Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/17

Gioia Messinger is a serial high-tech entrepreneur, founder, and CEO of Linked Object, a technology and business strategy firm specializing in the internet of things. Prior to that she was also the founder of Avaak/VueZone (acquired by NETGEAR) that defined the home video monitoring category and changed the way you watch your life from anywhere. In this episode, Gioia shares why coachability and tenacity to entrepreneurs are important to help them thrive in their business. 02:39  – Gioia’s entrepreneurial journey 04:17  – Gioia’s investment thesis 05:41  – Importance of coachability and tenacity of a founder 07:11  – Why surrounding yourself with a great team is beneficial 09:22  – How to attract like-minded founders 11:42  – Importance of customer discovery and market fit research 13:31  – Transformative advantage of technology trends 16:36  – Challenges and opportunities for SEED funds 18:10  – Risk mitigation strategies when investing in early-stage startups 21:55  – Gioia as an advisor at entrepreneurial ecosystem at UCSD 24:42  – Xprize and Women Safety Prize 33:25  – What myStartupXX is all about? 37:49  – Giving back as a mentor for female founders, accelerators and incubators in the university 40:00  – Rapid Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/16

Carolyn Leonard is a seasoned investor who is a pioneer in the women options trading industry. She is the third female independent trader to ever own a seat at the CBOE. Her 21 years in the trading pits gave her a ringside view into the emotional ups, downs, fear, and greed that drives the volatile market. DyMynd , her latest venture helps and creates tools that correct misconceptions and connect financial advisers to high net-worth women. In this episode, Carolyn shares her trading journey and her advocacy to tear down the next wall that stands between women and the world of finance. 03:02  – Reign of the Options Queen: Carolyn’s turning moment where she knew that she will be a trader 06:16  – Experiences she had as a women trader 08:06  – Mentoring other women traders 09:44  – advantages she had wearing her cotton candy pink trading jacket 13:26  – fashion and style as her powerful business tool 16:42  – Emerging market for women investors 18:31  – Social impact philanthropic investing 19:53  – Raising tide opportunities for female investors 21:06  – Carolyn’s investment thesis 25:48  – Impact of women’s emotional security to her financial decisions 32:09  – Dymynd’s advocacy to change misconceptions about women investors 40:00  – Rapid Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/15

Vicki Saunders is the founder of SheEO and #RadicalGenerosity, a global initiative to radically transform how we support finance and how we celebrate female entrepreneurs. SheEO provides a platform in which generous women Activators act as advisors, early customers, suppliers, connectors and follow-on investors to set up emerging female entrepreneurs for immediate and accelerated growth. In this episode, Vicki shares the need of a new model to support female innovators to creating a better world. She also talked about the gender and culture challenges of female investors in the ecosystem. She also gave insights on how radical generosity changes the face of venture capital. 01:50  – Vicki walks us through how she created SheEO, and the breakthroughs along the way 04:03  – Impact Investing vs. Venture Philanthropy 05:17  – Due diligence process in venture capital 05:47  – How to be a member of SheEO? 09:16  – What is an ideal activators persona? 16:20  – SheEO in New Zealand Conference 22:53  – Vicki shares success stories of SheEO venture capitals 24:50 – Impact of #RadicalGenerosity in the venture ecosystem 29:38– Rapid Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/14

Vidya Dianamani is the principal and co-founder of Product Rebels, a company founded to help product managers, business owners and entrepreneurs make product breakthroughs and help every company to stand up for their customer. She has 18 years of experience in business, technology, strategy, product design, and development. In this episode, Vidya shares the process of evaluating startup pitches and the importance of knowing how to bring value to customers, the advantages of being coachable of a startup entrepreneur to the business growth and funding and she shares the ways how an angel investor help seed startups to get their follow-on funding. 02:03 - Vidya walks us through the startup pitch evaluation process 06:05 - Vidya’s investment thesis 07:39 - Key traits of a successful startup founder 12:33 - Importance of iteration to know the hits and misses and adjust your business 16:00 - Top investment tips to give to other female investor 18:47 - How being in the Rising Tide Fund helped Vidya to be a better investor 23:17 - Her most exciting and valuable story of a start-up 25:10 - Soft skills that a seed startup must have 33:00 - Hera Venture Summit and Vidya’s vision about female investors impact in the ecosystem 33:33 - Top 3 Criteria on Vidya’s List for her funding ventures 36:45 - Rapid Fire Final Four Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/13

Andrea Guendelman is the CEO and co-founder of BeVisible Latinx, a professional career community that connects US millennial Latinas searching for careers. Andrea is an advocate of promoting Latina education and entrepreneurship through her nonprofit works. She created a community where they enabled Millennial Latinas to embrace each other and support one another’s dreams building their social capital. In this episode, Andrea shares ways on how she leveraged on her Latina network that eventually helped her get her VC funding. They also talked about the importance of tenacity and coachability of a startup founder. 02:11 - Andrea walks us through what is BeVisible is all about and its mission. 04:00 - Andrea discusses her business background and her ventures. 06:40 - She shares ways on how she expanded her network 09:10 - She shares steps that she did to leverage on her network that eventually helped her get funding 15:31 - Percentage demographics of Latino and Latinas in the VC ecosystem 17:20 - Importance of tenacity and coachability of a startup to get funding from your network 20:27 - How other people mentor you? 24:47 - What is the importance of having that connection Latina to Latina in the venture community? 26:19 - What’s more for Andrea 32:12 - Final Four Rapid Fire Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/12

Mindy Tucker Fletcher is a partner in Crux Partners,a San Diego based venture capital firm. She has been a communication strategist to a president, governor, numerous companies and non-profits. She advises,works and promotes San Diego’s Young Scrappy start-up companies. She is a believer of the potential of San Diego’s startup ecosystem.It is her mission to tell a story of ideas , technologies and businesses growing up in San Diego. In this episode, Mindy shares ways on how a startup can grow its network and make it robust. 01:48 - Mindy walks us through how she partnered with Crux Partners. 03:37 - How she finds and selects the startup niche that you want to work with? 07:25 - How does she help connect startups to the right network? 10:15 - 3 Things an investor can do to grow his network and be more robust? 11:46 - Startup Buzz: Inclusion, Equality, and Sexism in the San Diego Startup Ecosystem 17:00 - How do you support thriving women-founded startups? 21:00 - Ways to increase female investors exposure to the ecosystem whether it be women-owned companies or women directed startups. 24:00 - Ways to support ventures that are serving a larger women’s audience 25:32 - What can Mindy say about the emerging market of businesses shifting to the female space? 30:00 - What’s more for Mindy 34:12 - Final Four Rapid Fire Questions Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/11

Terri Mead is an angel investor, IT consultant, expert witness, speaker, angel investor and a startup advisor. She is President of Solutions2Projects LLC a consulting company for IT project management and IT compliance for life sciences and high-tech companies. She is the former VP of Sand Hill Angels in Silicon Valley. She is an advocate of supporting start-ups that offer products and services that improve people’s lives and supports the female founders. In this episode, Terri shares how having a diversity of thought can be an advantage in having new business perspectives. Also, she shares how she advocates female investors and help them penetrate the male dominated investment industry. 01:55– Terri walks us through how she accidentally stumbled upon angel investing coming from IT and entrepreneurial background? 03:14– What is Terri’s investment thesis about? 04:38- How did she transitioned from being an individual angel investor into VP of Sand Hill Angels? 10:36 – Terri shares how diverse thought can bring new startup perspective. 11:36 – What are the challenges faced by the Silicon Valley angel invertors and what value have you’ve seen you brought to the ecosystem? 22:15 - Why Terri chose to advocate in supporting startups with female founders or co-founders? 25:00 – What is Terri’s investment portfolio looks like? What kind of startups does she advocate? 30:20– What is more for Terri 40:16– Final Four Rapid Fire 39:04– Silvia’s episode recap Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/10

An overview of our upcoming Hera Venture Summit. Saturday, September 16, 2017 7:30 AM to 7:00 PM (PDT) University of San Diego 5998 Alcalá Park Mother Rosalie Hill Hall School of Leadership & Education Sciences San Diego, CA 92110-2492 Full details and tickets available here: http://www.heraventuresummit.com/

Kim Folsom is a serial entrepreneur and BC fund manager. She founded two accelerators, The LIFT Development Enterprises, Inc. and co- founder Founders First Capital Partners, a small business growth accelerator and revenue based venture fund focused on helping underserved employer-based small businesses with funding to meet exponential growth. She is a high-tech executive and serial entrepreneur with 25+ years of experience growing pioneering tech companies. She has experience founding, leading and building startups for where she has raised over $30 million an institutional venture financing. In this episode, Kim shares tips to up level your start-up and how to build up the next generation of diverse start-up leaders. 02:21– Kim walks us through how she gets involved in the diversity space of investment. 03:52– Kim talks about gender investing gap and its impact on woman entrepreneurs 05:22– How the sibling rivalry of being a middlechild helped Kim thrive on the industries that she chose. 06:57 – How having that big hairy audacious goal can help as a motivator and driver for you to reach your goal. 08:40 – How gender gap inspired Kim to put up her accelerator companies? 12:40 – How mentoring underserved diverse business owners with a coach same as their ethnicity can help them succeed. 17:29 – What is results driven financing is all about? 24:44– How revenue based accelerator differ from a traditional business model? 26:16– What type of investors do you see in the asset class revenue based private equity funds? 28:14– What are the new solution that is entering the market for gaining access to risk capital for diverse founders? 30:00– What’s more for Kim? 34:08– Final Four Rapid Fire 39:04– Silvia’s episode recap Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/9

Xandra Laskowski is a startup consultant, angel investor, and startup advisor. She offers unique expertise from her 25 years of diverse entrepreneurial experience with large multinational tech companies as well as start-ups. As a startup consultant,angel investor and advisor, she works directly with entrepreneurs to develop their startup roadmap and help them identify the most critical next steps for the business. She helps and educated them to understand the early stage business aspects and offers an advisory framework to build and support the startup roadmap.She helps them with their business, strategic and revenue plans, company messaging and key connections. In this episode, Xandra shares her wonderful insights into angel investing and how her ecosystem continuously grow, continuously educated other angel investor and continuously build their membership. She also shares how grit and determination help get funding. 02:14 - Xandra walks us through how she started in the startup ecosystem. 04:11 - How do she advocate for an angel investor to be a board member in their portfolio company? 05:55 - How important is a board seat role for check and balance of a company? 07:37 - Define smart money. 17:21 - Why does having grit and determination an advantage for startups to close funding deals? 19:36 - How can an angel investor know what event or conference to go to for them to be exposed in the ecosystem? 22:06 - What is your innovation ecosystem and how to you chose the industry you will venture in? 24:56 - What is your investment thesis? 26:12 - How long is your due diligence process before qualifying startups? 27:51 - Why is it important to have a lead investor other than yourself? 35:00 - Importance of active networking and connections to be able to pitch your business and get funding from investors 35:00 - What’s more for Xandra 37:57 - Final Four Rapid Fire Questions 40:14 - Silvia’s episode recap Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/8

Angela Lee is an educator and entrepreneur with a passion for education. She is the Chief Innovation Officer and  Executive Director of Academic Integration at Columbia Business School and an Adjunct Assistant Professor teaching Strategy and Leadership courses. She teaches Strategic Problem Solving, Entrepreneurial Thinking and Executive Communication at Columbia Business School, NYU, and General Assembly. She is the founder of 37 Angels, which is an angel investment network and training bootcamp for women investors. In this episode,Angela shares the 4P’s that she consider before venturing in any angel investment. She also  talks about the importance of immersion in the ecosystem before starting any investment ventures. 02:14 – Angela shares why she started 37 Angels.
 03:30 – What are the characteristics that defines a female angel investor?How do they invest compared to old players in the market?
 04:35 – How do we keep the partnership with the startup entrepreneurs transparent and successful?
 08:08- How do you require entrepreneur to do monthly update regarding the flow of the business startup?
 09:10- Angela shares some of the successful investment stories of 37 Angels members.
 10:30- How does 37 Angels choose and qualify  the start ups that they will be helping?
 11:30- What are the advice that you can share to first time angel investors before they make their first venture?
 14:39- What is your personal investment thesis?
 15:51- What are the red flags that you consider that makes you not venture in a company?
 16:58- What opportunities do you see in the emerging market for angel investment in the next years?
 20:10- Advice on how other angel investor can do their valuation process
 21:28- Advice on how we can make the ecosystem better
 22:56- What advantages do you see in the university setting that an angel investor can look into,in terms of getting new talent and idea?
 26:38– Final Four Rapid Fire Questions
 29:25– Silvia’s episode recap.
 Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/7

Ellen Chang  is an experienced defense innovation professional working in areas from aerospace to informatics. She has over 25 years of experience in strategy, business and product development, and systems engineering in the technology and aerospace industries. She used to work in the Navy, then eventually left at her mid-career  to pursue a business degree and later joined JP Morgan where she was part of the client management team during the exciting dot.com period where she was able to explore and facilitate investment in start-ups. In 2002, she joined Northrop Grumman but left in 2015  then  co-founded Lightspeed Innovations, which is  an accelerator for startup and early stage companies in the technology field in aerospace, addressing New Space, unmanned/Robotics, autonomy, big data/analytics and cyber security. She is also chair of the Wharton Alumni Angel Network Southern California Chapter. They fosters an entrepreneurial community backed by the strength of the Penn and Wharton alumni network. They help members and entrepreneurs develop,build relationships around investment opportunities, learn about angel investing and discover the tools needed to become a better investor and also connect with exceptional mentors. In this episode, Ellen shares how an angel investor look into the opportunities technology related investments. She will also give an insight on the red flags to consider in venturing to tech companies. 03:00 - Ellen walks us through how she got from a very technical career to where she is today imparting her wisdom onto entrepreneur as an angel investor. 04:00 - How does Lightspeed Innovation work as a business accelerator? 04:57 - Ellen shares that Lightspeed Innovators helps aerospace start ups using commercial technologies and make the start up cost lower down to a no longer a $50 million cost. 06:47 - Do you think by going to accelerators, angels become more open to looking to start up cycles through the help of an accelerator? 07:53 - What are the other success factors you’ve seen over the years, with Lightspeed as an accelerator? 09:21 - How did mentors helped and been part of your success as a woman in the technology field and as an angel investor? 11:21 - How does Wharton Alumni Angels start? 12:59 - How do Angel investor provide connection to those start-ups in the local community to meet larger communities? 13:25 - When I see a company strapping a little bit more but possibly able to exit without doing many venture rounds I am kinda happy because I am less diluted and possibly make out better. It’s those trade offs that one has to think about.” 14:10 - What types of companies are beats the traditional startup setup? 16:54 - How do you select, connect and qualify the startup that you will invest in? 18:21 - How do Light Speed Innovation select the astropreneurs startup they will help? 19:05 - How much time do you spend managing your investment companies? 20:47 - What is it about your investment theses that you feel strongly about? 22:00 - Ellen shares the red flags she considers that makes you not invest in a business. 24:50 - Any advice you can give to start-ups as an angel investor in the technology space, going after NIH: SBIR and STTR grants first before going angel route option? 32:37 - Sylvia shares that as an angel investor it is important to know your industry pipeline. 35:03 - Tell us something about Wharton Alumni Angel Network.What are the benefits and added pros of being a member? 38:14 - Who are Angel Syndication Network? What do they do? 41:24 - Final Four Rapid Fire Questions 44:18 - Sylvia’s episode recap Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/6

Suzanne Andrews is an angel investor, a global connector, and author of the book, “Impact with Wings”.She calls herself a ecosystem builder. Suzanne speaks and writes about women’s innovations in practices that are creating business culture where all people can pursue their dreams and thrive. Previously, as the director of the Anita Borg Institute, she supported the techwomen program, bringing the technical woman from the Middle East and North Africa to The United States for partnerships with Silicon Valley Women.From these experience, she learned the power and opportunity and her dream to women's global network of investors and entrepreneurs. In this episode. Suzanne shares ways to be able to build your own ecosystem better and what it means for a female angel investor to pursue and bringing all of one's resources to create the future. Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/5

Amy Chang is the CEO of Delta Nutrassentials, a consumer health supplement company and an active Angel Investor with a corporate, financial, and entrepreneurial background. She previously worked at AMN Healthcare for 14 years and also at Mitchell Madison Group as a Strategy Manager. Amy is also involved in various angel groups and despite her demanding schedule still finds time to give back to her community. She’s involved in homeless ministries at The Rock Church in Point Loma and has also served as a foster youth mentor and a foster parent. We talked about why she became an Angel Investor, the importance of networking, how budding entrepreneurs can get involved with Angel Investors and much, much more. 02:24 - Her decision to leave AMN Healthcare after 14 years 03:25 - Why she decided to become an Angel Investor 05:44 - What convinced her to make her first investment 08:48 - The skills she learned as a Strategist in the corporate world that helped her with angel investing 12:42 - The types of investments Amy feels the most comfortable with and the “catalyst moment” 14:57 - Angel Investors as catalysts for the next movement 17:22 - Her involvement in the Angel Groups, Keiretsu Forum & Wharton Alumni Angel Network (WAAN) and the importance of networking 20:36 - How entrepreneurs can best get involved with Angel Investors 22:13 - Tips for entrepreneurs who want to pitch to a group of investors 23:54 - The story of a founder she has recently invested in and why she invested in her 27:18 - How she met the founder of Jewel Toned  32:44 - The benefits of good communication between investor and founder 36:26 - How she became involved with Delta Nutrassentials 39:25 - Her future investment plans and the importance of supporting small businesses, founders, and entrepreneurs 41:41 - Starting a relationship as a mentor to opening up capital as an investor  44:02 - The mentors who have helped shaped Amy’s career  47:39 - Her favorite Angel lnvesting resource 48:39 - The person who had a major influence in her career 49:51 - What comes to mind when she hears the word, ‘abundance’ Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/4

Alicia Robb is an author, academic and Founder and CEO of Nextwave. She discusses why creating an “learning by doing” fund was important to her. Why it’s important to selectively mentor, and the importance connecting companies to subsequent funders. She lists her top female VCs and highlights the importance of diversity. All in all, a great conversation with an inspiring leader of the female VC community. 02:20 - Alicia’s story of how she became a VC 05:44 - How the mentors really help with investment decisions 06:50 - What was the biggest red flag those early investors had? 07:30 - The benefit of a group of investors 08:40 - What the existing investors received out of being a mentor 10:30 - Silvia ask about Alicia’s portfolio. 12:35 - What are Alicia’s thoughts on mentoring a large portfolio 14:15 - Connecting companies to subsequent funders 16:00 - Why it’s important to =clearly define “impact investing” 17:10 - What is the current mix of women and men in the pilot funds? 19:00 - Impact investing is still relatively young. 22:25 - Alicia’s passion with emerging markets 26:05 - Defining Homophily 28:00 - Alicia talks about diversity struggles 29:30 - Estimates of female angel investor percentages 30:50 - What other companies have helped Alicia along the way? 33:00 - Listing out female led VCs 36:25 - A preview of Alicia’s upcoming book 39:35 - Silvia’s episode recap. FULL SHOW NOTES: http://www.sheinvests.com/3

In this interview we meet Allison Long Pettine, founder of Seed San Diego and Crescent Ridge Partners. Allison delves into her early life as a female early-stage angel investor, as well as why she decided to plant her business in San Diego. She explains the difference in mindset when you're an early-stage investor and why it's more key to hone in on someone's potential instead of numbers or data. As a female investor, she is motivated to work with both male and female investors as complementary partners rather than just creating an environment for only female investors. Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/2

To kick off the podcast, our first interview is with Trish Costello, founder and CEO of Portfolia, which focuses and supports the female investor community. In this inaugural episode, we learn of Trish’s humble beginnings, and about her first investment, which was actually in a daycare. Trish mentions the ‘ick’ factor as contributing to men’s avoidance to investing in fields that they can’t directly relate to, and why that’s a great open field opportunity for female VCs. She touches on the importance of avoiding the “shiny objects”, why it’s important to not have tunnel vision when you’re looking into niche markets, and why you should treat your portfolio as your children, giving your investments equal importance. A great start to the podcast! Full show notes: http://www.sheinvests.com/1

This is the show where we highlight the growing number of female angel investors, the real unicorns. My mission is to equip female angel investors with more knowledge about how to invest, finding their tribe, and collaborating. From deal flow to exits, women have been gaining experience. Let's learn from each other. We can only improve our representation around the venture table by truly sitting at it and having a voice. New episodes weekly: http://www.sheinvests.com/si