Anthemis Voices: Connection
In celebration of Women’s History Month this year, we are shining a light on some of the entrepreneurs, investors and innovators within the Anthemis ecosystem that are paving the way for a new generation in financial services. This week, we hear from Madelaine D’Angelo (Arthena), Rhian Horgan (Kindur), Lucy Mullins (StepLadder) and Briana van Strijp (Anthemis).
What’s your current hustle?
Madelaine: I’m Founder and CEO of Arthena — we’re focused on bringing transparency to art investing.
Rhian: I’m Founder and CEO of Kindur. I’m also a mom to a five-year-old daughter and seven-year-old son.
Lucy: I’m a Co-founder and COO of StepLadder. We help people buy their first homes faster, better and with support.
Briana: I’m a Partner at Anthemis. I wear two hats within the business — COO and CPO. I have a real passion for organizational design and progressive work practices.
Is there ever a ‘right’ time to start a business?
M: No. It’s like having kids. There is never a ‘right’ time and, inevitably, something else will always come up. The right time is when you feel passionate enough to take the plunge.
R: The right time is when you are super inspired by the problem you want to solve and you feel you’re at a moment in life when you can take these ‘risks.’ It is that ability to be ready to take the risk of working long hours and below market compensation for a period of time.
What has been the most important resource throughout your journey?
L: My network or my squad are my cheerleaders. I’ve always emphasized the importance of knowing a diverse range of people who I can rely on and trust to give me different perspectives and to help answer the tough questions.
M: Investors and advisors are super important but there is also whiplash. Everyone will see something different in your company, in what your company can be, so just make sure you’re able to temper and analyze that advice.
What does authentic collaboration mean to you?
B: To remain competitive in this global market, successful companies need to evolve rapidly and effectively — but this does not happen in a vacuum.
Anthemis is built on an ecosystem philosophy, through which authentic collaboration includes accelerating interoperability, and powerful business partnerships between startups and incumbents; leveraging distributed networks of knowledge and talent; sparking serendipity and connection between our portfolio companies; and working in concert, ultimately, to solve the most complex problems within the industry.
What’s one thing we can all do to move the needle on diversity across financial services?
R: It seems that we have made good strides at the top of the funnel (i.e. entry level jobs) in increasing diversity in financial services but, mid-funnel, we are seeing significant drop off, which a good product manager would tell you leads to even weaker bottom-of -the-funnel numbers (aka C suite). I think organizations like NYC Fintech Women and 100 Women in Finance are making huge strides to create community within the mid-career and senior leadership ranks in fintech and the finance community more broadly. Encouraging our female employees to join and engage with these networks will help us build a stronger community and network. When I’m hiring for a new role at Kindur, in addition to tapping more established recruiting platforms — like LinkedIn — which often do not have the diverse pool of candidates I’m seeking, I reach out actively to women in the NYC Fintech Women community for recommendations and intros. And I am very clear to any recruiter we work with that diversity is a critical part of the search.
L: I have been thinking about this a lot. It’s this idea that inspiration and ideas are completely independent of biology and background.
Let’s focus more on people’s self-awareness, on their own strengths and abilities and really celebrate these strengths in a positive psychological way. This labelling of “being a woman” is really difficult. Let’s move away from these labels and more towards “I’m an energetic, dynamic, analytical person.” We should look past X and Y chromosomes and look at the skills of people rather than gender.
B: Being better allies. This could include being an advocate for those who may be underrepresented or who have less power, or speaking out against a lack of inclusion. Hear something inappropriate in the office? Say something. Not sure if your company has robust diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) work practices? Champion an audit. Notice that DEI isn’t a focus in your boardroom? Ask why not.
What is your advice to women with plenty of ideas but equally overwhelming fear?
M: You’re always going to be scared. What has anyone ever gotten from being fearful? Just do it. If you fail, so what? At least you tried to do something that was important to you. A lot of success comes from learning what your failures have taught you.
What’s one thing you wish you’d known earlier in your career journey?
B: It takes courage to say “yes” to rest and play, particularly in work cultures where exhaustion is seen as a status symbol.
At Anthemis, we have created a dynamic and diverse ecosystem with more than 10,000 investors, entrepreneurs, incumbents and high growth fintech companies around the world. The ecosystem cannot perform at its best if it is not made up of promising talent, regardless of background. We are proud to partner with these incredible women and celebrate their successes as they continue to break down barriers within the industry. Learn more about our team and portfolio companies at anthemis.com.
