We’ve seen from the statistics that when more People of Color and women invest in ventures, more companies founded by People of Color and women get those funds. With a background in founding and investing, our guest has some very unique insights that can help us see the big picture. This week’s episode 35 of How Women Inspire Podcast is about the foundational skills needed for both founders and investors!
In this episode of How Women Inspire Podcast, Julie Castro Abrams and Nancy Hayes share the importance of confidence in both founders and investors. They also chat through some actionable steps you can take right now to find strategic support at the right time in your business.
After serving as a senior executive in a Fortune 5 corporation, CEO of 2 non-profit organizations, dean of a large college of business, and CFO of a state university, Nancy Hayes became an entrepreneur and then an investor. She consults on leadership, career, and organizational effectiveness, with a special emphasis on coaching women executives. She is an active angel investor and advisor/mentor to women entrepreneurs and founders of color.
Nancy left the IBM Corporation as a senior executive after a long and satisfying career to bring her leadership and management skills to the nonprofit social services sector. She became CEO of the STARBRIGHT Foundation, an innovative national nonprofit chaired by Steven Spielberg and General H. Norman Schwarzkopf. It developed technology and media-based solutions to help seriously ill children deal with the psycho-social aspects of their illnesses. Later, she was CEO/President of WISE Senior Services, a nonprofit tackling the issues of isolated low-income seniors and fighting elder abuse and financial fraud against the elderly.
Nancy also served 6 years as dean of the College of Business at San Francisco State University and then was CFO and Chief Administrative Officer of SF State for 2 years. In 2013, she co-founded MoolaHoop, a unique rewards-based crowdfunding platform for women-owned small businesses. She’s been an active angel investor since 2014 with a portfolio of more than 30 women-led companies. She was Managing Director of Golden Seeds, an angel group focused on women entrepreneurs, for over 3 years.
Some of the talking points Julie and Nancy Hayes go over in this episode include:
Why it’s essential for People of Color and women to invest in venture capital.
Long-term strategy and tactical impact are what make a successful founder.
What we need to capitalize on women and people of color run companies.
Essential leadership skills needed at each phase of growing a business.
How to understand when you might need to step out of the business you’ve founded.
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