Paulina Szegda’s Post

☕ This morning I was able to attend the "New to VC: Taking the Platform Route" hosted by nextNYC !! "New to VC is an educational series for a group of relatively new investors who want to be exposed to the best venture and startup thinking. Each event is attended by accredited investors and non-partner VCs that skew intentionally, but not exclusively, toward underrepresented backgrounds." 🎤 Charlie O'Donnell is a phenomenal moderator and brought the audience together to discuss the platform role in VC and the career paths around it with 3 venture professionals who have experience on both the investment and platform teams. 💸 The panel consisted of Olivia O'Sullivan, Partner at Forum Ventures, Cat Middleton, GP at The Venture Collective (TVC) and Lexi Quirk, Head of Product and Platform at 645 Ventures. 📓 It wouldn't be one of my event recaps without some takeaways right? ⬇ When discussing the importance of nurturing relationships in the ecosystem: “We ask ourselves, how do we get to know the people before they become the company?” When discussing what's the best way to move up from a platform role: "Have a very candid conversation with partners about growth early on." When discussing how to drive value to portfolio companies: "Try to be proactive... build a team and process that goes to the founders at onboarding and says 'here’s our playbook on X, here’s our playbook on Y' " 💥 And for my favorite - what to do to make sure you stand out to Partners? "You need to have skin in the game, and find a way to contribute to the bottom line as an operator." 💪 Be sure to follow nextNYC as well as these awesome professionals, especially if you're looking to learn from some of the brightest in NYC Venture Capital And stop if you've heard me say it before, Cooley LLP's NYC office is always so great to visit!! #VCplatform #venturecapital #nextnyc #newtoVC #femalefunders

Here are my key takeaways from last nights Tech Companies to Watch event and the very candid discussion on raising growth capital. 1.     Focus on the customer, not just hitting the metrics. 2.     Female founded companies typically generate twice the revenue and exit on average a year earlier than male-only founded startups. 3.     Investors are desperate to speak to IP rich businesses. The key is how you deliver your pitch and have you got the product right. 4.     The process is scatty and chaotic. It’s just the way it is. 5.     You are being watched, so be noisy. 6.     Identify what investors want and target the investors that are right/aligned for your business. 7.     Get help. Bring in a Fractional CFO who can help you build a business plan, where to deploy capital and when. 8.     The search for market truth must exceed your ego. Listen to what the investors tell you and carry out a thorough customer discovery to validate what you’re doing and prove retention. 9.     Don’t raise too early if you can avoid it. Startups are about resourcefulness, not resources. Do you really need that capital? 10. Valuation must be right for everyone. It takes time to get to something of any value. There are some very sharky VCs out there so don’t take something if you don’t absolutely need it. 11. Demand is higher from investors. Seed stage SaaS might have expected to be delivering £100k ARR, that’s now £250k ARR, and Series A has doubled from c.£1m to £2m ARR. Need to have tangible evidence of product/market fit at this point. 12. Before you go to an investor, can you demonstrate you have 3 to 10 customers who want your product and can’t live without it? Then can you build a plan to find more of those customers. Only after this do the metrics come in. 13. Get your cohort analysis ready before you do anything. 14. Be ready to answer all the questions an investor will ask. 15. A fractional CFO is worth their weight in gold. They can feed the investors what they need to know and leave you to build the business. Don’t lose momentum on the business by getting distracted. Thank you Praetura Ventures, DSW Ventures, Par Equity, Sedulo and Lifted Ventures for a very insightful session. #growthcapital #venturecapital

🚀 Introducing scaling | grow together: Our Newest Business Member at The Startup Network! 🚀 We’re thrilled to welcome Scaling to our community, opening doors for business heroes to thrive, grow, and succeed. 🌟 Check Out Scaling: https://scaling.com.au/ Scaling is more than a platform—it’s a vibrant community of visionaries, disruptors, and innovators who are pushing the boundaries of what's possible through strategic connections and impactful partnerships. At Scaling, they believe in: 🔗 Growing Together: Building trust and integrity as the foundation for powerful relationships that lead to shared success. 🌱 Curiosity & Learning: Never stop exploring and innovating—our imagination is the only limit! 💡 Embracing Transformation: Empowering businesses to create and nurture deals that positively change their trajectory and unlock their full potential. From partnerships and capital raising to startup pitches and business sales, Scaling provides a structured way to connect with the right opportunities and create lasting value—all at zero cost to sign up! ✅ 🔍 Ready to Explore? Post your deal, browse opportunities, and connect with fellow entrepreneurs, investors, and business owners who believe in making things happen. And to celebrate our collaboration, join us on October 17th at Cremorne Digital Hub for our upcoming event: "An Unexpected Journey: Discovering the Ring of Partnerships." 🎫✨ Together with Scaling, we’re diving deep into how to unlock the power of partnerships to achieve transformative success. Expect inspiring talks, gamified networking experiences, and valuable insights from industry leaders. This is your chance to connect, discover new opportunities, and set your business on a path to greatness! 💥 🔗 Join us and be a part of the journey: https://lnkd.in/gWUESENg #StartupNetwork #Scaling #BusinessPartnerships #CapitalRaising #StartupGrowth Bern Blake Kate Russell Ryan Burns Desmond John Vicki Stirling

Batter Up is a live pitch event for founders. After 2 successful runs in the US, we're bringing it to Singapore on August 1! Here's how it'll work: - RSVP to the event and submit your pitch deck: https://lu.ma/93xj47x6 - Up to 8 founders will be picked live and have 2.5 minutes to pitch a panel of investors from Hustle Fund's Angel Squad - The investors will ask follow-up questions and offer feedback to the founders.... just like in a real VC meeting. - By the end of this event, you'll have a deeper understanding of why investors decide to invest in a company (or not). And the winner takes home a prize! This is for you if: - you're a founder looking to get feedback on your pitch - you're a founder just looking to learn from other founders - you're an investor looking to meet more founders, or learning more on how to evaluate companies We'll leave some time at the end of the event for your questions. Come curious! Spaces are limited: https://lu.ma/93xj47x6

What a week! Raising capital is no joke – the secret sauce? Build relationships before you need the $$$. Conferences and events are prime for expanding your network, but real talk: human connection is the key to everything, whether you’re selling or raising capital. Someone asked me recently, “How do I know if an investor is the right fit?” Here’s my take: don’t dive in with your pitch. Start by asking the right questions. Find out what brought them to the event, how their portfolio is doing, and whether they’re actively deploying capital. Then, share a bit about what you’ve built/scaled and why you were excited to meet them. (Seriously, prepare this!) The goal of this first interaction? Get them on your prospective investor list, so you can keep them updated and show, not tell, how awesome your startup is. It all boils down to finding the connection. Without that, nobody’s writing checks. Wrapping up my second year at Venture Atlanta, and wow, hats off to Allyson Eman! This year was next-level – new friends, incredible panels, and inspiring founders. Huge thanks to all the amazing sponsors for putting the southeast on the map! And yeah, I know I usually post with travel photos, but this is the real startup grind. Drained, blurry-eyed, but grateful for the connections.

Buckle up, founders! Investor Speed Dating is about to launch! This is more than just a networking event — designed to spark real-time connections between startups and investors. With just minutes on the clock, you'll need to pitch your ideas with precision, engage potential investors, and start your journey towards securing critical funding and partnerships. Why you can't miss this: • Fast-Paced Pitches: Make a lasting impression with concise, impactful presentations. • Direct Investor Access: Meet seasoned investors eager to support groundbreaking projects. • High-Value Connections: Build relationships that could propel your startup to new heights. Ready to skyrocket your startup? Join us on 🗓️ 27th September, 7:30 PM IST (+5.30 GMT)! Pitch. Engage. Grow. 🔗 Claim your spot now: https://lnkd.in/gtaYmfZg The future of your startup is calling. Will you answer?

Batter Up! -- a pitch event for founders and investors -- is coming to Atlanta on March 27. Connect with the Atlanta startup community, meet 100+ founders and Angel Squad members, listen to founders test out their pitch over pizza and get real time feedback! If you’re unfamiliar with our Batter Up! events, here’s what’s in store: 🚀 Live Pitch Opportunity: Up to 8 founders will be selected to pitch live to a panel of 3 seasoned investors from Hustle Fund's Angel Squad. You'll have 2.5 minutes to make your mark! 🚀 Real-time Feedback: Our investors will ask follow-up questions and provide valuable feedback, just like in a real VC meeting. Plus, the winner walks away with a fabulous prize! 🚀 Q&A Session: Come ready to learn and prep your pitch evaluation. Stick around for a Q&A session to satisfy your curiosity. Batter Up! is free to attend, but space is limited (especially to pitch) - RSVP below to secure your spot, and have your pitch deck ready if you’re a founder looking to pitch! https://lnkd.in/g5Twku99

Are you an early stage founder stressed out about finances and wondering where you should focus your attention? “Often, a lot of founders are too busy to track metrics. They have a million and one things happening at once,” says Growth Partners' Managing Director, Jordan Hill. “But there’s the old adage that what gets measured gets managed, and what gets managed improves.” Check out the top 5 tips on how early stage startups can optimize their financial stack: https://bit.ly/3yQfpwY #RBCxPowersBold #EarlyStage

Are you an early stage founder stressed out about finances and wondering where you should focus your attention? “Often, a lot of founders are too busy to track metrics. They have a million and one things happening at once,” says Growth Partners' Managing Director, Jordan Hill. “But there’s the old adage that what gets measured gets managed, and what gets managed improves.” Check out the top 5 tips on how early stage startups can optimize their financial stack: https://bit.ly/3KCkHyT #RBCxPowersBold #EarlyStage