VC Feature: “Many generational companies were born out of downturns, so these are times for big opportunities”, with Index Venture’s Hannah Seal

40 Minute Mentor

“VC should be a great career for people from diverse backgrounds, because it’s really a role where you’re judged on your output. At the end of a fund cycle, it’s pretty clear to see whether you’re a good investor or not.”

In our final 40 Minute Mentor VC Feature series episode, we’re joined by Hannah Seal, Partner at one of the most prestigious VCs in the world and one of JBM’s favourite clients, Index Ventures.

Index Ventures is an international multi-stage venture capital firm, investing in technology-enabled industry disrupters. Their portfolio includes multiple 40 Minute Mentors, such as Unicorns Ankorstore and Multiverse and category defining companies like Bloom & Wild and Sourceful. As well as household names such as Deliveroo, Revolut, Glossier, and many others.

In today’s episode, Hannah shares some brilliant insights into how Index work and what they look for when assessing Founders, as well as some great mentorship for anyone looking to get into VC, including:

• Why she decided to pivot from Operator to VC [06:23]
• What skills Hannah relied on when making the transition [07:22]
• Hannah’s advice for any Operators thinking of moving into VC [10:02]
• What differentiates Index Ventures from other VCs [11:22]
• How Index Ventures works with Founders [13:10]
• What Hannah looks for when assessing companies and their Founders [14:52]
• The trends Index Ventures are seeing at the moment and some of the sectors Hannah’s getting excited about [16:28]
• How the economic downturn doesn’t necessarily mean doom and gloom for Founders [18:58]
• What changes Hannah has seen in the European VC landscape, compared to the US [20:22]
• And why VC is actually a great career option for diverse talent [22:17]

⛳️ Helpful links:

➡️ More about Hannah: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-seal-78938a22/

➡️ More about Index Ventures: https://www.indexventures.com/

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