Meet the Harvard Sophomore Empowering the Next Generation of Female Venture Capitalists
Meet Isabella Mandis, the Harvard sophomore empowering the next generation of female venture capitalists.
Then meet the community of 200+ women and allies who gathered in Cambridge, Massachusetts yesterday to envision a more inclusive venture capital and startup landscape.
I first met Isabella over the summer when I interviewed her about Girls Into VC, the organization she founded to bring more girls into venture capital. “I have been interested in technology and entrepreneurship for as long as I can remember,” said Mandis “…[and] after gaining hands-on experience both sourcing and investing, I began speaking to female venture capitalists. I was looking to join a community of young women similar to me who wanted to enter VC. When I couldn’t find it, I built it.”
Her timing couldn’t be better.
With women accounting for only 9% of venture capitalists, 8% of VC firm partners and 7% of board seats at firms, it’s not a moment too soon to get girls interested in venture capital and introduce them to mentors in the field.
Isabella Mandis
Recognized as a Forbes 30 Under 30 in Boston and a Kleiner Perkins fellow, Isabella is now pursuing her interest in venture capital by becoming the first and sole Harvard undergraduate Campus Investment Partner for The MBA Fund, and by organizing the inaugural Girls Into VC Summit.
When I was asked to participate on a panel, I delightedly said yes.
“It was truly amazing to witness the enthusiastic participation of so many talented and ambitious women who flew in from diverse areas, spanning from California to Canada,” Mandis commented after the event, “[and] the energy and passion in the room was palpable. It was heartening to see a community of like-minded individuals coming together with a shared goal of reshaping the venture capital and startup landscape.”
Absolutely heartening. Convening speakers with a wide swath of experiences alongside sponsors like Bloomberg BETA, Gunderson Dettmer, Rough Draft VC, and The MBA Fund, the day felt energized from the moment we stepped onto campus.
“I think this is so amazing,” Olivia Seltzer, another Harvard sophomore and founder of Gen-Z news site TheCramm told me as guests checked in, “because while there are a lot of programs dedicated towards getting women into one field or another, VC seems like an insurmountable gap to a lot of people."
“The fact that Isabella has identified this as a problem area is fantastic, and deciding to bring all these incredible women together shows there are so many women in this field and that is a potential career path for women. It’s just so inspiring. ”
It truly was.
Opening with a panel on venture capital, speakers like Abigail Risse from Hyperplane, Amber Yang from Bloomberg Beta, Lynna Halilou from Defiance Capital, Adela Jamal from Milemark Capital and Emma Ohanian from Y&Z Ventures talked funding options, pitching pitfalls, honest optimism, and exit strategies.
When the second panel on startups began, I shared the stage with Alexandra Debow, co-founder and CEO of swsh, Marley Brown of Republic, Aidan Kittredge at Techstars Boston Accelerator and serial entrepreneur Miriam Haart, and we swapped origin stories, lessons learned through bootstrapping, legal entity choices, and epic mentorship moments.
Indeed, Girls Who VC is steeped in mentorship, as evidenced by this recent blog post. “Mentorship plays a pivotal role in the VC world,” they note, “acting as a catalyst for success and growth.”
“As the VC industry continues to evolve and expand, it becomes increasingly crucial to empower the next generation of investors through mentorship.”
Other Summit highlights included a thrilling pitch competition (more on this in a future newsletter), smart branding advice from Gianna Prudente at LinkedIn, and workshop sessions led by Melissa Li from Dorm Room Fund, Milemark Capital’s Adela Jamal and Laura Stoffel from the law firm Gunderson Dettmer. I especially loved Gunderson’s motto when it flashed on the screen:
We represent what’s next.
It felt like the motto for the day. Empowering the founders of tomorrow with advice from VC leaders of today, every panelist and member of the audience had their eyes fixed on what’s next.
And that feeling stayed with me as I walked slowly through Harvard’s campus to head home. With gratitude to Isabella Mandis for organizing such an impactful event and deep respect for every idea articulated, more women and girls in VC absolutely seems like what’s next.
Looking forward,
Illana
ÊXTRAS: Three additional pieces of advice from Girls Into VC you won’t want to miss: a selection of college programs to get students involved in VC, tips on how to craft a successful elevator pitch, and a helpful library of VC blogs to read on the regular. Looking for more female-focused advice in the VC space? Follow Girls Into VC on Insta to stay in the know.
