This week, we are excited to host Ray’Chel Wilson, CEO of Raise the Bar Investments and ForOurLastNames. Formerly a teacher during the pandemic, Ray’Chel is now a dynamic founder bridging the gap between financial literacy and wealth building. She is the CEO of Raise the Bar Investments, guiding institutions in personal finance and productivity, and of the soon-to-launch ForOurLastNames, a gamified app empowering early career professionals to build generational wealth for their last names. Alongside these accomplishments, she is also an award-winning educator, published author, & international speaker, and her workbook series, Black Wealth Freedom, has impacted over 2000 readers in 7 different countries. In May, she was also featured in NASDAQ for small business month!

We loved discussing her journey from the classroom to entrepreneurship, the role of financial therapy in personal finance, and how her workbook series, Black Wealth Freedom, has inspired readers worldwide. Ray’Chel also opens up about her upcoming app, ForOurLastNames, and how it’s gamifying wealth-building for early career professionals. 

Whether you're a founder, a financial enthusiast, or just someone looking to level up your money game, this episode has something for you. We wish Ray’Chel all the best with her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc 

This week, we are excited to host Kaitlyn Albertoli, CEO and Co-founder of Buzz Solutions! Buzz Solutions is a visual asset intelligence platform that helps power utilities manage and analyze the vast amounts of visual data collected through drones, helicopters, and other inspection methods. 

After graduating Stanford with a background in finance, Kaitlyn worked as a wealth management analyst at JPMorgan Chase and has experience running a sustainable food nonprofit. In 2017, Kaitlyn co-founded Buzz Solutions with her Co-Founder, Vic Chaudhary, aiming to address the challenges utility companies faced in managing and analyzing their growing visual inspection data. Kaitlyn was named Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2021 and was recognized for her work in building Buzz and driving innovation in the utility infrastructure space.

We loved hearing Kaitlyn’s passion for sustainability, data innovation, and her mission to create space for more women in male-dominated industries. Her insights remind us of the transformative power of mentorship, diverse experiences, and finding the profession that speaks to your interests. We wish Kaitlyn all the best with her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc 

This week, we are excited to host Mary Grove, Managing Partner at Bread and Butter Ventures! Mary leads digital health and enterprise SaaS investing, bringing two decades of leadership in technology, early-stage investing, and building startup ecosystems. Mary’s career began with the Google IPO, and she went on to lead global business development at Google, negotiating product and tech deals worldwide. As the founding director of Google for Startups, she supported entrepreneurs in over 100 countries.

Following her 15 years at Google, Mary joined Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, where she led investments across healthcare, enterprise software, and fintech. She also co-founded Silicon North Stars, a nonprofit that empowers young Minnesotans from underserved communities to pursue careers in tech.

In this episode, Mary shares her journey from tech to venture capital, discussing Google’s mantra, “constraints breed creativity,” the importance of building user trust, and seizing opportunities when they arise. We dive into her advice on building a career in VC, from getting involved in your local community to developing a personal investment thesis. Mary’s insights on balancing career and family, creating a meaningful life, and the power of partnerships are not to be missed!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and don’t forget to join us next week for another inspiring conversation!

This week, we are excited to host Kriti Krishna, Venture Associate at Hearst Lab! Kriti's career began in finance at Fitch Ratings before transitioning into venture capital, where she now invests in early-stage, female-founded startups across the globe. At Hearst Lab, she is dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs and closing the gender funding gap. Outside of HearstLab, Kriti is a Young Executive Board Member for iMentor, a nonprofit that empowers first-generation high school students through mentorship, and one of the founding members of Capital Collective, private network for the next generation of women in VC.

We loved hearing Kriti’s insights on the importance of building strong relationships and the untapped potential in regions like the Middle East for female innovation, as well as her true passion for mentorship. Her emphasis on fostering connections not only highlights the critical role of collaboration in VC but also underscores the need to support women entrepreneurs in emerging markets. In a landscape where female founders often face unique challenges, Kriti's perspective is vital for driving change and closing the gender funding gap. We wish Kriti all the best with her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc 

This week, we are excited to host Courntey Pettway, CEO and co-founder of KidVestors (kidvestors.co). KidVestors is a pioneering social impact enterprise providing equitable financial education. Courtney transitioned from working in corporate America to focusing on financial literacy, driven by her own experiences and a commitment to addressing educational disparities. At KidVestors, fueled by her mission to bridge the wealth gap, she is working to create innovative and engaging financial learning tools for the next generation. 

We loved hearing about how Courtney leverages financial literacy to create more equitable opportunities, including her strategies for increasing global financial literacy and the success stories of students whose lives have been transformed. We also dive into Courtney's approach to making finance both accessible and enjoyable, her partnership model with banks and schools, and her commitment to empowering young people from underserved communities. We wish Courtney the best in her future endeavors! 

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc 

Episode Description: 

This week, we are excited to host Colleen Konetzke, Principal at Ironspring Ventures! Ironspring Ventures is an early-stage fund focused on making industrials more productive, secure, and sustainable. It invests across manufacturing, construction, transport and logistics, and alternative energy. Colleen holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration in Accounting, Master’s in Finance from Texas A&M University, and an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. Before and during her MBA, she worked for several of the nation’s largest utilities at Bain & Co.

We loved hearing about the exciting post-pandemic shift in the energy sector driving innovation in U.S. manufacturing and digital transformation, along with the growing focus on ESG initiatives. While standards and incentives are still evolving, there’s hope that these efforts will further accelerate meaningful sustainability progress in the near future.We wish Colleen all the best with her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc 

This week, we are excited to host Lata Setty, the First Investor at The How Women Invest Funds (https://www.howwomeninvest.com/)! Lata’s diverse background spans from science and patent law to leading digital transformation ventures, and now, to venture capital. At The How Women Invest Fund, she is focused on addressing the gender disparities in VC funding and empowering female founders. 

We loved hearing about Lata’s mission to mobilize women investors and her dedication to closing the gender funding gap by founding the How Women Invest Fund! We dive deep into her strategic approach to investing in women-led startups, the critical role of community in driving change, her favorite startups she’s funded, and how her unique background equips her to lead this charge. We wish Lata all the best in her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc

This week, we are excited to host Rachel Knepp, Co-Founder of Mozaic! Rachel is an innovator who has transformed the creator economy with Mozaic, the world’s first global payment platform dedicated to automating split payouts. From her early days at Jamber to leading Mozaic’s evolution during the global pandemic, Rachel has set new standards for fairness, efficiency, and innovation in creative collaborations. In 2022, Mozaic won the prestigious “Visa Everywhere Initiative,” leading to a strategic partnership with Visa to expand the platform’s reach. Building on this success, Mozaic raised $20 million in Series A funding from Volition Capital last year, further solidifying its position as a game-changer in the industry.

We loved hearing about Rachel’s mission to transform the creator economy and her dedication to empowering creators with Mozaic's innovative payment platform! We dive deep into her strategic pivot from Jamber to Mozaic, the importance of recognizing market gaps, and how her unique vision is setting new standards in the industry. We’re excited to see where Rachel takes Mozaic next and wish her all the best in her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us at https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram@girlsintovc

This week, we are excited to host Emma Ohanian, Founding Partner of Y&Z Ventures! Y&Z Ventures (https://www.yzventures.vc/) is a Los Angeles based multi-family office investing on behalf of immigrant and first-generation entrepreneurs. As a mergers and acquisitions professional (most recently at Uber, which acquired Postmates, Drizly and more!), Emma's experience uniquely positions her to work with companies to build for the end game, or the Y&Z. An honest optimist, Emma believes each shortcoming is an opportunity to create change. It all comes down to mindset.

We loved hearing Emma’s journey creating Y&Z Ventures to give back to the Armenian community and her involvement with GenShe! Her story goes to show the power of trust, relationships, and community in the VC space, and we admire her passion for paying it forward. We wish Emma all the best with her future endeavors as Y&Z Ventures takes off!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!
Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc

We are elated to host Avni Barman, CEO and founder of Gen She, on this week’s episode! GenShe is a media platform building and leading the next generation of female talent. Avni has built a community of 200,000 women across Instagram, TikTok, a newsletter, a podcast, and a job board. With 4+ years in Big Tech as an engineer and product manager, she is now on a mission to unlock the potential of every young woman in entrepreneurship, tech, venture, and media. Learn more at generationshe.co and @gen.she on Instagram.

We loved hearing Avni speak on her experiences founding GenShe and the evolution of GenShe to what it is today! It was especially interesting to learn about how anyone can expand their network with a few simple steps. Avni’s passion for empowering women to level up in their lives is clear, and we wish her the very best with her future endeavors!

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode, and be sure to tune into our next episode highlighting a new guest in the field!

Find us on https://www.girlsintovc.com and follow us on Instagram @girlsintovc