Marketing Can Transform Doing Good Business into Doing Business for Good
Booth alumni leaders met in London to explore how to make a positive impact on the world.
Marketing Can Transform Doing Good Business into Doing Business for GoodAlumni Stories A Force for Founders
Meet Joanne Chen, ’14
As a venture capitalist, Joanne Chen uses a multidiscipline approach to support startups that will change the world.
- March 28, 2017
- Alumni Stories
Joanne Chen: 00:05
What we try to do is be good advisers, to play devil’s advocate, to try to foresee other possibilities that may happen in an uncertain market, and we work closely with the founders on that aspect of things.
Joanne Chen: 00:17
I think there are a couple of macro trends that have been happening that makes it super exciting for us to invest in startups. I think one is that the pace of innovation has never been faster, and this is due to increases in computing power as well as the awareness that Silicon Valley has generated.
Joanne Chen: 00:36
I also appreciated the collaboration that the school embodied. I saw that in the way that students worked together during Admit Weekend, I saw that in the ways that professors interacted with students. They were very welcoming and warm.
Joanne Chen: 00:54
One of the reasons why I got to Foundation Capital is because I met Kathryn. Kathryn Gould, who is one of the cofounders of Foundation Capital, her track record of investing is just phenomenal. She’s been doing it for probably 30-plus years. Her advice to me was, “You know what, Joanne, you have no idea what you're doing. You should not be in this industry.” Then I spent probably a year and a half trying to prove her wrong. Then when I caught up with her later, I think she was impressed that I had done all this work and was much more supportive.
Joanne Chen: 01:24
I felt like the school understood where I was coming from. Those were the things that attracted me about Booth.
“The most important thing that attracts me to venture capital is the ability to pick people, ideas, business models that would change the world in a very significant way,” says Foundation Capital partner Joanne Chen.
While in the Full-Time MBA Program at Booth she joined the Hyde Park Angel network and found that in order to gain hands on investing experience, she needed to change careers into venture capital. Chicago Booth, home to the Edward L. Kaplan, ’71, New Venture Challenge, a leading startup incubator in the United States, helped her gain the insight she needed to become an investor, while connecting her to a community of entrepreneurs and ultimately to a job in venture capital.
“I enjoy working hard and trying to understand difficult concepts. Booth has a strong emphasis on really driving that kind of academic rigor, and I really appreciated that.”
More Stories from Chicago Booth
A Celebration of the Black Community
Booth students reflect on Black History Month and share how their identities have played an important role in shaping them.
A Celebration of the Black Community
A Taste of Success
Coca Cola’s Fred Clark, ’20, drew on Kilts Center resources to make the leap from finance to marketing—for one of the world most recognizable brands.
A Taste of Success