Up-and-Coming Platform Managers Working in VC

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1. Why It’s Important to Have a Platform Manager in VC
2. How to Succeed as a Platform Manager in VC
3. Best Practices for Platform Management
4. Resources for Platform Managers
5. Up-and-Coming Platform Managers in VC
6. Start Your Next Round with Visible

Why It’s Important to Have a Platform Manager in VC

Platform managers are instrumental in the success of startups, which is why the role of platform managers within VC firms has become increasingly important and there has been a surge in hiring for this position. By providing guidance and support to portfolio companies, they help founders navigate the challenges of building and scaling a startup. They offer advice and support on everything from product development and fundraising to talent acquisition and marketing. Platform managers act as a liaison between portfolio companies and the VC firm, helping founders access the resources and expertise they need to succeed.

Hiring a platform manager can also help VCs enhance their value proposition and differentiate themselves in an increasingly crowded market. Some other ways in which they can also add value to VC firms and its portfolio companies are:

• Strategic Focus: A platform manager can help VCs develop a strategic focus for their investments by identifying areas where they can add value beyond just providing capital. The platform manager can work with portfolio companies to help them leverage the VC’s network, resources, and expertise to scale their businesses.
• Portfolio Optimization: A platform manager can help VCs optimize their portfolio by identifying areas of overlap or synergy between portfolio companies. They can also help VCs identify potential acquisition targets and facilitate mergers and acquisitions.
• Value Creation: A platform manager can help create value for portfolio companies by providing access to resources such as talent, capital, and strategic partnerships. This can help portfolio companies grow faster and more efficiently.
• Brand Building: A platform manager can help VCs build their brand by creating and promoting events, content, and other initiatives that showcase the VC’s expertise and thought leadership in their respective domains.
• Investor Relations: A platform manager can help VCs manage their relationships with investors by creating reports, organizing events, and providing regular updates on the performance of portfolio companies.

How to Succeed as a Platform Manager in VC

To succeed as a platform manager in VC, individuals must have a deep understanding of the startup ecosystem and the challenges that founders face. They must be able to build relationships with portfolio companies and act as a trusted advisor to founders. 

Additionally, they must have strong analytical skills, as well as the ability to manage complex projects and navigate volatile market conditions. They must be able to analyze financial data and market trends to identify opportunities and make informed decisions. They must also have the ability to manage complex projects and navigate volatile market conditions.

To get into venture capital as a platform manager, individuals should focus on building a strong network in the startup ecosystem. They should attend industry events, participate in startup accelerators, and connect with successful founders and investors. It’s also important to gain relevant experience in areas such as product development, marketing, and finance. 

It also helps to read industry blogs and publications to stay up to date on the latest trends and funding rounds.

Best Practices for Platform Management

Some best practices include, how to identify potential portfolio companies, how to add value to portfolio companies, and how to optimize the firm’s portfolio.

Identifying Potential Portfolio Companies

The first step in effective platform management is identifying potential portfolio companies that align with the VC firm’s investment focus and criteria. To do this, platform managers should:

• Develop a deep understanding of the VC firm’s investment focus and criteria, including industry sectors, geographies, and stages of investment.
• Network and stay up-to-date on industry trends and emerging technologies to identify potential investment opportunities.
• Leverage the VC firm’s network to source and evaluate potential portfolio companies.
• Conduct thorough due diligence on potential portfolio companies to ensure they meet the firm’s investment criteria and have strong growth potential.

Adding Value to Portfolio Companies

Once a portfolio company has been identified and invested in, platform managers can help add value to the company by providing access to resources and expertise that can help the company scale and succeed. To do this, platform managers should:

• Work closely with portfolio company management teams to identify areas where the VC firm can provide value beyond just capital.
• Provide access to the VC firm’s network of industry experts, potential customers, and strategic partners.
• Help portfolio companies recruit top talent by providing access to the VC firm’s talent network and offering guidance on hiring best practices.
• Help portfolio companies develop and execute growth strategies, including marketing and sales strategies, product development, and international expansion.

Optimizing the Firm’s Portfolio

Finally, platform managers should focus on optimizing the VC firm’s portfolio by identifying potential areas of overlap or synergy between portfolio companies and helping to facilitate mergers and acquisitions. To do this, platform managers should:

• Conduct regular portfolio reviews to assess the performance of each portfolio company and identify areas where the VC firm can add value.
• Identify potential acquisition targets that can help strengthen the VC firm’s portfolio and create synergies across portfolio companies.
• Help facilitate mergers and acquisitions by providing guidance on deal structuring and negotiation.
• Work closely with portfolio company management teams to identify opportunities for cross-collaboration and knowledge-sharing across the portfolio.

Resources for Platform Managers

Resources From the Visible Blog

Up-and-Coming Platform Managers in VC

Meryl Breidbart Director of Investment Operations At One Ventures

•  How did you get into platform?
  • I started my career as a designer and founder of Chirps, so when I began at At One Ventures as an investor, I naturally gravitated to filling our platform holes. I started by organizing our first AGM and building some fund partnerships and from there, helped launch our platform and operations team, which now includes a VP of Talent, a VP of Marketing, and a Venture Partner with extensive commercialization experience.
• What’s the focus of your firm’s post-investment support; what’s your specialty?
  • We know we can’t be excellent at everything, so we have decided to double down on a few areas: talent, marketing, fundraising support, and commercialization. I specifically focus on fundraising. I build pitch decks, run pitch practice sessions, and make introductions for our founders to our vast network of follow-on investors. In addition to this work, I also support our firm with internal operations – assisting with our fundraising efforts and making sure we run a tight ship.
• What’s your favorite part of the role?
  • Working directly with our founders! I am an extrovert and get energy from talking to lots of different people. I enjoy reducing the amount of work our founders have to do and providing them with best practices and processes so that they can learn quickly.
• Advice for first-time platform managers?
  • You can’t be all things to all people. Figure out 1-2 strategic goals for the first year of the role and make sure to prioritize those. Otherwise, you will find yourself being a recruiter for company A and a PR firm for company B, which will not scale and will not help you deepen expertise.

Mal Filipowska Portfolio & Platform Manager Seedstars

• How did you get into platform?
  • For the first five years of my Venture Capital career, I was always on the investment side of the fund: sourcing deals, preparing investment memos etc. I executed over 30 transactions across Europe, MENA, and India. A big part of my role was building relationships with other VCs and sharing investment opportunities: that’s how I met Seedstars. I instantly fell in love with their investment thesis and commitment to empowering start-ups in emerging markets globally.It was mutual, and the Partners of Seedstars International Ventures invited me to join the team. The platform role was an obvious fit: it was 100% global (opposite to our Investment Managers, divided by regions). It allowed me to continue working with founders from diverse backgrounds from over 100+ start-ups in almost 40 different countries, be hands-on in supporting them in solving their most urgent challenges and have a tangible impact on their journey to success.
• What’s the focus of your firm’s post-investment support; what’s your specialty?
  • As a global fund, we decided to focus on the most urgent and universal aspect of every start-up: growth. As we can read in the famous Paul Graham essay: “if you get growth, everything else tends to fall into place”.After we invest, our portfolio companies get lifetime access to the “Growth Track” – a tailored consultancy program for start-up teams. It is delivered by growth experts and helps our portfolio companies to develop a long-lasting and sustainable growth strategy. We host such a program twice a year, so portfolio companies can always bring their new employees for us to teach them the growth mindset & methodologies.
• What’s your favorite part of the role?
  • My favorite part of the Platform role is how it fosters my professional growth within the Venture Capital industry. In the platform role, I am more exposed to the everyday challenges faced by founders, which enables me to actively participate in solving them together. There is no space for beautiful pitch decks or listening to what the VC wants to hear – we’re in the same boat now, so my entire focus is working towards a common goal. Personally, I find it very developing and satisfying.
• Advice for first-time platform managers?
  • Take your time: Spend some time to dive deep into the role and understand the needs of your portfolio companies. By doing so, you’ll be better equipped to help them succeed.Find your niche: Focus on common challenges your portfolio companies face and become an expert in addressing them. This approach allows you to add “scalability” to your support and significantly impact the board.Stay connected to the investment side: Don’t lose touch with the investment aspect of venture capital. Participate in investment committees and the investment process to maintain a well-rounded perspective and contribute more effectively to your portfolio’s growth.Collaborate with the VC community: Each player contributes uniquely to the world of venture capital. Instead of competing, work alongside your co-investors, join forces with your co-investors, complement each other and build on each other’s strengths.Connect with founders personally: Meeting your founders in person and getting to know them as individuals will help build stronger relationships and foster a deeper understanding of their needs and motivations

Cynthia Matar Head of Platform and Communications Swiftarc Ventures

•  How did you get into platform? 
  • Interestingly enough, I started my career at the Firm as an intern for an analyst position. During my time as an intern/analyst, I discovered how much I enjoyed everything other than the financial/diligence part of the role. I thoroughly enjoyed speaking with founders and finding ways to help, building the firm’s brand and image, networking with investors for business development efforts, and planning and executing activation events. They didn’t quite know where to place me, but understood there was a need for the types of services I was offering. The team very quickly realized the one thing missing (an emerging role in the VC space at the time) was a Platform role/division that could manage all post-investment support and services. I worked my way up from Platform & Media Coordinator to Head of Platform during my time at the Firm and couldn’t be more proud of what we as a team have accomplished together.
• What’s the focus of your firm’s post-investment support; what’s your specialty?
  • My specialty encompasses Public Relations, Internal & External Communications, Branding/Marketing, Investor Relations, Fundraising and Business Development, as well as Events & Networking. As an early-stage firm, a lot of effort is put into building the Firm’s image and network.
• What’s your favorite part of the role?
  • My favorite part of the role is quite simply, the versatility of it all. No day looks the same, which makes the role so engaging and exciting to be a part of. I jokingly refer to Platform managers as the “Jack or Jane of all trades.” These are individuals who are able to wear multiple hats and offer a multitude of post-investment support and services. I love the collaboration that comes with the role – you find yourself working closely with everyone across the board (Senior Executives, Founders, Team Members, Stakeholders, and Investors). One of the most exciting parts I’ve had to play was launching each of the Firm’s funds with differing investment theses, PR and Marketing strategies, digital content, activation events, etc. You have a hand in everything, which gives you better insight into the moving parts of how the “engine” runs at a firm.
• Advice for first-time platform managers?
  • My advice for first-time platform managers is to always be curious! Network with people across the industry, regardless of their roles – remember, you have a hand in it all. Share your thoughts, always. Your perspective is unique in that it offers an unbiased opinion and combines a variety of your experiences, making it refreshing to those who might have a standard set of questions or best practices they always use. Always be a student – your willingness to learn new approaches to apply across the firm is your superpower in this role.

Allie Mullen Director of Platform Wireframe Ventures

• How did you get into platform?
  • I’ve spent my career as a startup operator, early employee, and wear-er of many hats. I love working with founders and I love building companies. I’ve always kept a pulse on VC and since I didn’t have a background in finance or consulting, I didn’t think there was an opportunity for me to break in. But as soon as I found out about Platform roles, I knew it was for me. 
• What’s the focus of your firm’s post-investment support; what’s your specialty?
  • Wireframe specializes in helping extraordinary early-stage founders on a mission to improve the health of people and the planet. Our team has deep industry expertise, having been founders and investors in climate, health, and bio for over a decade. I joined the team as a Platform team of one and built the function from the ground up, supporting the fund’s operations, marketing, community-building, events, and post-investment support. 
• What’s your favorite part of the role?
  • It sounds cliche, but I love that every day is different and that I get to work across so many different functions. I also love that this role is still relatively new to the industry and continues to evolve. As Platform leaders, we get to define what Platform means to our fund. There is still a lot of room and opportunity for innovation for what the future of Platform looks like. I am excited to be part of it and to continue to accelerate growth for our founders.
• Advice for first-time platform managers?
  • Build relationships with other Platform leaders, especially those who have been in it for a while. Platform can be a lonely role, especially for those of us who are teams of one, so connecting with others early on can supercharge your success. Plus, Platform folks are usually pretty similar people and tend to get along well (type-A, social, creative, love a challenge, efficiency, and helping others). 

Anna Jacobson Operations & Data Partner at Operator Collective

Anna leads Operator Collective’s operations vertical, including data analytics, investment operations, internal operations, investor relations, fundraising operations, and fund administration. Prior to joining OpCo in 2020, Anna earned a Master’s in Information and Data Science from UC Berkeley, where she honed her data science expertise, concentrating on predictive analytics, machine learning, and data visualization. An engineer by training and experienced project manager, she is a cross-functional business leader, data strategist, and operations veteran who is passionate about combining technology with process and design to ensure outstanding collaboration across technical, business, and creative teams.

• How did you get into platform?
  • Very organically! I had never heard the term before I started this job; it does not appear in my job description and even today we don’t call ourselves a Platform Team with a capital P. But most of the work that I do – whether in Operations or in Data – is deeply integrated with our platform functions, so much so that I do now consider myself to be someone who works in platform.
• What’s the focus of your firm’s post-investment support; what’s your specialty?
  • In a word – connection. Our model is based on the power that is generated by making connections between our portfolio companies and our 200+ Operator LPs – exceptional tech executives – and their networks. My specialty is building and orchestrating the tools and processes that we use in each step of the connection process – to identify, facilitate, track, report, and everything in between.
• What’s your favorite part of the role?
  • I love it all – from high-level strategic thinking to hands-on building to information design and communications – I find it all profoundly satisfying.
• Advice for first-time platform managers?
  • Venture is a young industry and platform is an even younger function within venture. This means that practically every part of it is undefined and evolving. This can be a challenge – what exactly are we supposed to be doing?!? – but also an opportunity – we aren’t constrained by what has been done before! Seek allies to work through the challenges and be open and ready to seize on the opportunities.

Oleh Karizskyi Head of Platform at Flyer One Ventures

• How did you get into platform?
  • Initially, I joined Flyer One Ventures 2 years ago as a Growth/Operations Manager helping portfolio companies with growth, b2b sales, and performance marketing. We did not have a Platform Manager at that time. After 6 months, my team lead left the firm and I became a Band-Aid guy within the fund helping with partnerships and expanding perks, organizing webinars, creating a portal for portcos’ founders etc. Ultimately, the role transformed into Platform Manager combined with the firm’s Investment activity.
• What’s the focus of your firm’s post-investment support; what’s your specialty?
  • Our fund’s structure is pretty unusual. The majority of our team consists of operators. We have 17 team members, and only 4 of them are in the investment team. We help portcos with hiring, marketing&branding, PR&communications, fundraising, operations, legal issues, and finance support. We have a startup atmosphere in our fund, thus we do not super restrict ourselves with responsibilities zones. One of the major trends inside our Platform is switching from a Hands-on approach towards scaling support by expanding our network of advisors. Personally, I combine fund & community operations (the latest tasks were the implementation of the founders’ request tracking system, arranging webinars for portcos and for the Ukrainian startup community, compiling an internal newsletter for the fund’s community etc), business development & networking, investment activity responsibilities such as startup due diligence, expanding our pipeline and helping portcos with fundraising. We also have a Head of Operations, her responsibilities overlap with mine, so we complement each other.
• What’s your favorite part of the role?
  • Dynamism and helping founders. I do not get bored by doing the same duties, because they always change. Also, it is great to communicate with founders, find their pain points, and try to help them. It is crucial to show them that they are not alone in their journey.
• Advice for first-time platform managers?
  • Define what are the pain points of your founders in terms of the fund’s Platform and their businesses, because it will be a waste of time creating value that is not requested. A person can do it by gathering the notes from the investment team that join the board meeting and 1:1 calls. Also, it is helpful to conduct a couple of interviews with founders to get to know founders better. But it shouldn’t be a surprise for first-time managers to find out that smth that was requested is now not needed 🙂 My personal insight was that founders do not share all pains. Such interviews can help founders to reveal their problems and create a comfortable atmosphere for future sharing.

More Platform Managers to Watch:

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