During her time as a media executive, Hauser built a rich network of founders and VCs alike. She also discovered a pain point. There were so many women ready to launch new businesses, but very few women investors to not only fund those companies, but also to mentor and advise. With two young children, Hauser was looking for more flexibility in her career and began investing on the side. Realizing how much she loved it, it soon became a full-time pursuit.

“I want to see that a founder is adaptable, that they're open to different ideas, and that they have a curiosity mindset.” - @fran_hauser
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In the eight years since she began investing, Hauser has built a portfolio of 30 companies, 28 of which are led by female founders. For female founders struggling to land that first check, she emphasizes the importance of network building. While it is critical to have a great pitch deck, she explains that it’s getting the pitch in front of the right people that counts. This means developing an inner circle, and tapping them for who they know. Perhaps you don’t have direct relationships with VCs, but can you build an advisory board of people who can create those intros?  

There are a few common mistakes which Hauser sees founders are making. One is that they sometimes get too stuck in their vision for the product, and don’t process feedback well. “I want to see that a founder is adaptable, that they’re open to different ideas, and that they have a curiosity mindset.” It’s important that founders engage in active listening with investors. Being open to new ideas and capable of adapting is critical. “When you’re starting a new business, a big part of it is being able to adapt, and being able to adjust because stuff happens.”

“When you're starting a new business, a big part of it is being able to adapt, and being able to adjust because stuff happens.” - @fran_hauser
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Another mistake is focusing too much on the product and not talking enough about the other aspects. “At the end of the day, you’re investing in the founder, because the product might change. It’s really about whether this person has what it takes to launch a successful business . . . being really clear and confident about why you’re the right person to be tackling this opportunity is really important.” Too often, Hauser sees a dynamic founder present an entire pitch deck, and not really begin to introduce themselves until the final slide. Additionally, Hauser likes to see context to go along with the product. What is the pain point the product solves or what market trend is it responding to? Painting a broader picture around your company’s purpose can go a long way.

“At the end of the day, you're investing in the founder, because the product might change. It's really about whether this person has what it takes to launch a successful business.” - @fran_hauser
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What Hauser does like to see in a potential investment is market opportunity. Being able to clearly articulate the consumer value proposition is so important, as is knowing one’s own weaknesses. No founder is perfect at everything, so how do they fill in the gaps when it comes to their own shortcomings. If they are the visionary, is there someone on the team that is great with day-to-day operations? Another thing Hauser loves to see in future investments is traction. Knowing there is already a lead investor who has done their due diligence goes a long way in convincing her. But traction comes in many different forms. For a company that has not launched, 10 clients that have given verbal agreements is a big mitigation of risk, as is a few hundred people who have filled out surveys for a direct-to-consumer product.

Originally brought up in India, Vinita Rathi later moved to London and began working at Goldman Sachs. For five years – with initially, no financial knowledge – she worked her way up in the fast paced environment, eventually becoming VP of the interest rate product teams. When her time with Goldman Sachs came to an end, she then started her own company Systango, an end-to-end IT service provider called Systango, which now has 300+ employees and works with names such as Grindr, Dialpad, ResearchNow, Deloitte, Oracle and Porsche. 

Not only does Rathi have 5.5 years in a tier 1 investment bank specializing in trading technology and 14+ years as a CEO of Systango, she is also the founder of Studio Fintech, a company that specializes in dealing with Fintech and blockchain ventures with a focus on blockchain-centric projects. Studio Fintech is arm of Systango focussing specifically on Fintech and blockchain. 

Additionally, Rathi is the founder of WomenHackForNonProfits currently made up of 1200 women in tech who are building open source projects for non-profits and individuals with a cause. She is also the founding director of Women Who Code (London Chapter), aimed to inspire women to excel in technology careers. To top it all off she is a Google Women Techmakers Lead, focusing on helping bolster the cause of feminism in Tech.

All of the above when put together indicate she has been playing this game for a long time.

“You start looking for analytics when you are solving a specific user behaviour problem. Thinking about it as part of product build enables you to solve the initial teething problems faster, quicker and efficiently.” - @VinitaKRathi
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During the early years, Rathi’s experiences at Goldman Sachs and now, working with a wide range of entrepreneurs under Systango and more, have given her some valuable insights about the role data science plays in building product strategy and how startups and scaleups can leverage it not only for increasing the efficiency of their businesses but also deciding the future course. Here are just a few of the takeaways Vinita will be speaking about.

• Planning your Data Strategy
• Data Mining
• Data Visualization
• Leveraging Visualization Techniques
• Other aspects of Data Engineering
  

“Often data during product build is an after thought. You start looking for analytics when you are solving a specific user behaviour problem. Thinking about it as part of product build enables you to solve the initial teething problems faster, quicker and efficiently.” Rathi says.

“Having right data strategy and appropriate tools in place early on enables you to learn more about your product and its usage than you can imagine.” - @VinitaKRathi
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This can be integrated into building your team early. Systango approaches its client’s problems with a human-centered and data-focussed methodology. They believe that there are no silver bullets in their space, and that the best solutions come from involving the right people in every step of the process, establishing KPIs for your teams and then tracking them with data you collect. 

Vinita says “When you are a CEO, you need to be able to see Sales, marketing, logistics, product analytics all in one place and be able to connect the dots.” Different departments/teams end up using their own tools, they end up collecting huge set of data but miss out on the holistic view. This has an impact on ability to see trends and spot patterns. You have to make sure that not only you define and collect but also aggregate and analyse the data points to optimise the effort/ROI across each channel. 

“When you are a CEO, you need to be able to see Sales, marketing, logistics, product analytics all in one place and be able to connect the dots.” - @VinitaKRathi
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Data science is slowly becoming essential for a lot of businesses, startups and enterprises alike. It helps organizations with crucial decision-making and helps companies gain a competitive edge in the market by leveraging any insight to increase efficiency and productivity by making the right decisions. It is important to ensure that you have an infrastructure in place that will allow you to monitor and analyze the data you collect.

To learn more about leveraging product strategy, see if you qualify for membership and check out the webinar from August 9.

The first thing to do is to define the data collection of which is going to be helpful to the business. Then collect and aggregate this data in one place.  Data mining (the practice of analyzing large databases in order to generate new information) aids you in learning how to improve your product or service and how to create a better marketing and sales strategy, while predictive models help to monitor customer behavior. In order to keep up with the competition and trends, you must know the activity of the customers. Setting up data strategy right from start allows you to monitor your business KPIs and build on them. 

“Only when you have KPI for your business and teams, you will be able to measure them.” - @VinitaKRathi
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Data visualization gives you the ability to interpret, convert, and eventually summarize data to a comprehensive language that you can also present to stakeholders. 

To learn more about leveraging product strategy, see if you qualify for membership and check out the webinar from August 9.

As a founder in Mexico City, Deborah Dana has worn many different hats. She runs Canasta Rosa, a growing marketplace startup for unique, local  and handmade products in Latin America. In 2009, she founded Kiwilimon, a social recipe platform that became the largest digital cooking platform in Mexico with over 20 million monthly visits. And in between, she was managing partner at the venture firm Soldiers Field Angels, and one of the co-founders of the Asociación de Emprendedores de México (ASEM).

Mexico’s startup market is booming — notably in areas like ecommerce, fintech, blockchain, and more. It’s also the largest Spanish-speaking country in the world, and the second-largest market in Latin America behind Brazil. That makes Mexico a critical market to master if you’re a founder seeking to build, grow or expand a startup in the region as a whole. 

“I think the most untapped ecommerce market in the world is Mexico. Especially right now with COVID-19, current data shows that Mexico’s e-commerce market has had 900% revenue growth since confinement.”
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“I think the most untapped ecommerce market in the world is Mexico,” Dana says. “Especially right now with the COVID-19 situation, current data shows that Mexico e-commerce market has had a 900% revenue growth since confinement.”

Understand the opportunities and unique challenges

Founders must also understand both the opportunities and unique challenges of growing a startup in Mexico. In e-commerce for example, delivery and logistics infrastructure is less developed than it is in the United States. Historically, government postal service has been poor; Dana said: “the whole logistics chain was not reliable,” and fraud was not uncommon. 

That’s changed over the past couple of years, she adds — but founders who launched e-commerce startups a decade ago largely “just couldn’t succeed because of the environment,” Dana adds. “And I think it’s similar in a couple of other countries in Latin America, but I’ve heard that Mexico was the worst.”

Don’t rush into an investment

Some Mexico-based investors have pulled back on new investments in the COVID-19 environment. But there is still money to be raised in Mexico, particularly if your startup isn’t particularly negatively impacted by the pandemic. 

“Talk with international funds, or with angel investors or family offices, because many of the VC funds in Mexico right now are reviewing their investment strategies to make sure that their portfolio companies stay afloat.”
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“There are a couple of funds that must continue to invest their portfolios, but many are on hold, Dana says. “So another recommendation would be to talk with international funds, or with angel investors or family businesses, because many of the VC funds in Mexico right now are reviewing their investment strategies to make sure that their portfolio companies stay afloat.” 

And don’t rush into an investment just because the money is green: Founders must closely examine terms and understand if the relationship makes sense. 

“You really have to understand if there’s a fit, because it’s not, in the future that could cause issues,” Dana adds. 

Dare to innovate

The current environment has amplified many existing challenges in a market — not just in Mexico, but everywhere. But in a crisis or a difficult moment, don’t be afraid to innovate and take the opportunity to drive your startup forward. 

“A lot of entrepreneurs are kind of waiting to see what happens before they venture out, or maybe they're being more cautious with their startup. But there are so many great stories of startups that boom during a crisis.”
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“I think a lot of entrepreneurs are kind of waiting to see what happens before they venture out, or maybe they’re being more cautious with their startup. But there are so many great stories of startups that boom during a crisis,” she said. Cornershop, the Latin American grocery delivery startup, is a good example: Instead of pulling back in an uncertain environment, they are expanding their product to select U.S. cities. 

“Many times, the crisis makes you think of new ways of approaching problems,” she adds. 

Be part of a network

Finally, don’t go it alone. Being part of a network — one with extensive ties not just in Mexico, but internationally — is also very important to successfully growing a startup Mexico and Latin America at large. 

“Founders Network has been a good space, particularly for asking recruiting or talent-seeking questions. For example, we’re looking for more international talent for our tech team,” Dana says. “For fundraising, I’ve also talked with a couple of founders who are helping to introduce me to funds in the States. This is a great way to tap into that.”

Request an invite to learn more about managing startups from Deborah Dana and 600+ fellow tech founders through interactive webinars and forum conversations featuring over 9 years of archived knowledge.

Home to tech giants including Microsoft and Amazon as well as droves of other locally based tech startups, Seattle’s pipeline of locally based tech startups has been strong for years but recently climbed to be the nation’s fastest growing tech hub. Many factors cooperate and feed off of each other to position Seattle for success: Global companies that attract the world’s best tech talent, local venture capitalists that continue to invest in emerging and mature local startups, University of Washington’s world-class computer science program and the sought-after graduates it produces, and a wide network of startup incubators and accelerators.

The launch of the Founders Network Seattle chapter means that the local Seattle ecosystem of startup founders have now gained a different kind of resource to tap into – invaluable peer mentorship from a community of founders helping founders. Founded in 2011, Founders Network has offered lifelong peer mentorship to over 600 tech startup founders globally. Our Founders Network platform, programs and high-touch service facilitate authentic experience sharing, warm introductions and long-term professional relationships.

Founders know firsthand how valuable their network is. Their personal network can mean someone taking a chance on their idea, their first round of funding, meaningful introductions, their founding team, their first customers. Founders being able to get advice and feedback from others who are doing what they’re doing – that’s where Founders Network comes in.

“It’s the type of community you haven’t  heard of until another trusted founder, after listening to you talk about your current startup challenges, mentions:  “Have you heard of Founders Network?”. – Will Bunker, Founder of match.com.

The Founders Network Vision

“My vision was never to build the largest network of startup founders, it was not to become a LinkedIn or Quora for founders. Being the biggest has its place, but when it comes to advice and support, big can be noisy and impersonal. So initially, I sought to build a small, close-knit peer network of founders where offline relationships could form and advice could be more trusted” says Founder Kevin Holmes when asked why he started Founders Network.

Staying true to Kevin’s original ethos of quality connections over quantity, every single member of the invite-only Founders Network community is screened and onboarded along with their small cohort of tech founders. Each month a new cohort is added to the thoughtfully growing community made up of founders in the technology space who are working on their startup full-time.

Founders Network Seattle Pitch Competition

On April 24, 2019, Founders Network kicked off its Seattle Chapter with a pitch competition featuring a panel of Seattle-based movers and shakers in partnership with Create33, Microsoft for Startups, and Stackpath. Join us in thanking our panelists for sharing their expertise with the Founders Network community!

Meet the Panelists

Chase Jarvis
CEO + Founder
CreativeLive
$58.3M Raised

CreativeLive is the world’s leading e-learning platform for creative entrepreneurs. Classes span topics including Photo, Music, Design, Craft, and Business. More than 10 million students have consumed more than 3 billion minutes of video via CL’s online education.

Alok Nandan
General Partner
Emergent Ventures

Emergent Ventures is an early stage venture capital firm investing in Silicon Valley and India that invests in Seed to Series A stage IT and IT enabled businesses.

Gillian Muessig
General Partner
Outline Venture Group

Outlines Venture Group is chartered to source and fund diverse founding teams who are building better ways to live and work together. Their mission is to increase opportunities for all people of all genders and ethnicities, regardless of age, location, or accessibility requirements, to build profitable, scalable companies.

Dave Lambert
Managing Director
Right Side Capital Management

Right Side Capital Management, or RSCM for short, invests in pre-seed technology startups. They make 75-100 investment per year and often work with incubators including Accelerprise, Alhemist, and TechStars.

Colleen O’Brien
Senior Marketing and Communications Manager
M12 Ventures

M12 is Microsoft’s Venture Fund with the goal of empowering entrepreneurs through investments, insight, and unparalleled access to Microsoft.

T.A. McCann
Managing Director
Pioneer Square Labs

Pioneer Square Labs is a Seattle-based studio that creates and launches technology startups. They are funded by 14 VCs and 50 angel investors from Seattle, Silicon Valley, Colorado and other parts of the country.

Meet the Founders who Pitched their Startups

Congratulations to Melissa Strawn, the winner of the Founders Network Seattle Pitch Competition!

Melissa Strawn
Founder & CEO
My People Now

My People Now is a peer-to-peer network for social productivity. What does that mean? You can offer services for the things you enjoy doing on the platform, earn money, and connect with others. You can find dog-walkers, video editors, foreign language instructors, artists, bakers, professional organizers and more right on the platform.

Howard Behr
President & Co-Founder
Lapa Lopa

Lapa Lopa provides services and tools to help people who live in apartment (multifamily) communities consolidate neighbor buying power, starting with cleaning service Lapa Lola Clean. The population density of neighbors in these communities allow Lapa Lopa to optimize the scheduling of services, so vendors walk from unit to unit rather than drive from house to house across town.

Sarah Haggard
Founder & CEO
Tribute

Tribute is a modern mentorship app for the enterprise that connects users for mentorship on-demand through shared life experiences and stories. Tribute’s mission is to redefine mentorship by providing a mobile-first platform for employees to discover and connect with mentors.

Barret Newberry
Founder & CEO
Leasera

Leasera is a unified listing, leasing, & loyalty-management platform. The Leasera platform effortlessly merges a long term rental marketplace with the travel ecosystem. Leasera replaces the previously fractured services, marginalized consumer and accessibility issues formerly caused by duration-of-stay limitations.

Amy Boes
CEO & Co-Founder
Globespinning

Globespinning is a travel app that creates a picturesque and informative itinerary of your past trips by using photos on your phone. It can then be shared with friends to help them plan their next trip to that location. Globespinning is easy to use, fun, and free.

Meet our Launch Partners

Over the next two years, Microsoft has pledged 500 million dollars to support startups with access to technology, community spaces, and sales opportunities.

Fenwick & West provides a broad range of services to emerging companies in technology and life sciences. We currently represent more than 600 VC-backed companies, and are ranked by Dow Jones and Chambers USA as one of the top VC practices in the U.S.

Launching a successful startup requires more than hard work and a big idea. You need tangible resources, strong insights, and expert advice. We created StackPath Propel to provide qualifying early-stage companies thrust to get off the ground and accelerate towards success.

Founders Network is thrilled to now be a part of the fabric that makes up the Seattle tech startup ecosystem, and we’re looking forward to continuing to build our community of Seattle-based founders and provide value through peer mentorship.

With change-makers entering the scene like the #MeToo movement, Women Who Code, and Women in Technology, steps are being taken in the right direction. But amidst the noise, women startup founders are in a unique position. They operate in a heavily male dominated industry, and must navigate not just internal politics, but the fundraising landscape as well. The highly competitive tech industry, especially in Silicon Valley, is just as much about who you know as what you do. Getting in the door is tough regardless. Now add being a woman.

In an effort to alleviate the added strain of inequality in an already tough industry, the women of Founders Network have formed a Women’s Leadership Committee. This committee acts as a watch dog for the private network of 600+ tech founders. The goal is to maintain diversity by staying above the current national average (17%) of women founders. Each committee meeting is rich with thoughtful insights on how to survive as a woman in this industry. Below, the Founders Network Women’s Leadership Committee’s advice for women on how to make it in tech:

Stay United

No more “there’s only room for one at the top” mentality. In order for women leaders to survive, they need to be united. Our advice is to join a community of like-minded women founders, and build your network so that you can go further and farther together.

“Quite simply, I believe that we can do more together than we ever could individually.”- Barbara Tien (Founder, Ponga)

“I consistently network within my circles to promote women and put them up for positions in companies – I am like a match maker!” Tracie Wagman (Founder, XX).

“As a manager and a leader I have always worked closely with my female employees to make sure they feel empowered and inspired, to mentor and help them achieve their full potential. It is so rewarding to see someone years after you worked together who is thriving in a job which they were dreaming of when we worked together.”

Find Male Advocates

There are men in the tech industry who want to propel women forward, they exist, and can be powerful allies in the fight to raise the glass ceiling. As a women founder, it is important to identify and nurture relationships with male advocates in your space.

“On one hand, I’ve worked to provide mentorships and introductions to women in my network and on the other to work with the men in my network to help them better appreciate the perspective and insights of the women they work with.”- Barbara Tien (Founder, Ponga)

“Our workforce is made up of both men and women. So we need leaders, role models, mentors and change agents who represent both.”- Geetika Agarwal (Founder, VAWAA)

“I recommend women as an option whenever a man is being considered. In my line of work, giving the mic to women helps reinforce, “if they see me, they can be me” mentality.” – Christina Lor

Hire For Diversity

According to a study by Clear Company, diverse teams outperform non-diverse ones by 35%. Women founders have the opportunity to shape their companies to reflect society as a whole. To hire diverse talent and be thoughtful about how they grow their teams. Hiring takes time, something founders are severely lacking. But if women and male founders take the time to hire for diversity, it will benefit their companies in the end.

“Everyone needs to see themselves in their leadership and feel there is a path for success. And to run a successful company you need to have a diverse leadership that represents your customers.” – Tracie Wagman (Founder, )

“Representation of women in leadership means advocacy, inclusion and consideration for women. Women in the C-Suite can level the wage gap, increase accessibility to career paths, and bring diversity of thought to the table.”- Christina Lor (Founder, )