Femstreet Readers Predictions for 2019
We have asked venture capitalists, founders and startup operators what 2019 will hold for tech.
Genevieve Wastie, Head of Talent at Backed VC
2019: Human Capital > Venture Capital in tech
“Our industry has never benefitted from greater financial resources to drive growth. 2018 was a record year for investment in European tech — $23bn, up 4.3x from $5bn in 2013.
Writing this as a rallying call to investors, founders and people ops practitioners alike, I predict that 2019 will see a paradigm shift in how this industry perceives, identifies and harnesses the power of human capital: the most essential and most misunderstood resource fuelling our collective potential.
Three main activities will drive this shift:
- Having been invited out of the back office to sit at the executive table in recent years, experienced people ops leaders actively nurture a nascent but growing talent pool, attracting world class talent to the function.
- With greater awareness of the diversity problem in our industry and sharper skills for fostering inclusion, we make all career paths in tech accessible to “underestimated” talent.
- By recognising the failings of how we’ve framed and managed people ops to date, employing new levels of creativity and a human-centred approach, we design better ways to help people and teams to increase their agency.
Please reach out to genevieve@backed.vc if you’d like to help me make this happen!”
Joyce Liu, Principal at Dawn Capital
Continued volatility and a further correction in public markets
“Over $1TN of corporate buybacks were announced in 2018 — the highest ever recorded. This amount represents ~60% of the increase in S&P 500 market cap last year. 75% of the 500 largest public companies are signalling their own stock is undervalued. They believe it is more worthwhile to buy their own stock and inflate share price than to invest in operational initiatives, such as a new product launch or geographic expansion. Significant declines in the stock market and an economic recession have historically followed a heavy buyback period.
In 2019, we will continue to experience market volatility and downward pressure. This will negatively impact valuation and funding for private companies, though this will take some time. Growth for young businesses will be slower — especially those selling a ‘nice to have’ product or service, such as B2C startups in Travel & Hospitality and B2B companies targeting digital transformation or innovation budgets.”
Lina Wenner, Principal at firstminute Capital
2019 — #MeToo: From Words to Action
“It’s been more than a year since Alyssa Milano’s #MeToo tweet helped uncover the scale of sexual misconduct against women. The sad truth is that even in 2019, women will continue to share their traumas and shock the public with high profile cases of harassment. But we’ll also see companies take more practical steps — not only to safeguard against sexual misconduct, but to improve workplace conditions for women and gender equity more generally.
We’ll see a rise in harassment and bias trainings, misconduct reporting tools, scrutiny in hiring practices and male ambassadorship.
More companies will abandon forced arbitration clauses altogether. #MeToo is not going away and I much look forward to seeing this seminal feminist movement continue in 2019 — a year in which we will start to institutionalise change with concrete measures.”
Stephanie Manning, Director of Platform at Lerer Hippeau
In 2019, Platform will shift from a nice-to-have to a need-to-have for venture capital firms.
“Since I joined the VC world in 2015, the number of Platform roles has skyrocketed and there are now hundreds of us offering post-investment support and services to founders. A Platform hire can be responsible for one or all of the following functions: recruiting, business development, marketing/PR, events, community, and general fund operations.
As new firms emerge or existing ones mature, they’ll see a need to differentiate. Soon, there will be an expectation that a VC firm should offer more for their companies after writing a check.
In the next year, I see firms doubling down on Platform in two ways: firms without Platform will make their first hire and firms with a Platform team will make hires in the most pressing areas of need for founders.
Our team is a prime example of that. I joined Lerer Hippeau in April 2017 as Director of Platform, overseeing all our post-investment services. In the last year I made two hires, one focused on Content & Brand and another on Talent, in response to founder feedback and the needs of our portfolio. I believe others will do the same.”
Tania Boler, Co-founder and CEO of Elvie
Better Understanding Women’s Health Through Technology
“It’s an exciting time for women’s health tech as a feminist surge is leading to more individuals talking openly about topics shrouded in taboo for centuries, such as incontinence, fertility, postpartum depression or female pleasure. Women are not only taking over the conversation, but also creating elegantly designed products and better solutions to address feminine needs. Building on this year’s massive expansion of women’s health and wellness products, there will be a focus in 2019 on women using technology to better understand their health, and make more informed decisions.
Our perceptions of health and wellness will continue to dramatically change from one of doctor-patient to individuals taking control for themselves. The internet and innovations in sensor technology means real-time body monitoring is now feasible, and this technology will make it possible to have meaningful insights and data about your own health and wellness immediately.
Technology has the potential to improve lives on a global scale, and the continued innovation next year will help to allow women to understand their bodies, giving them the freedom to live happier, healthier lives.”
Nikita Singareddy, Ops & Strategy at Oscar Health
More outdoor and social spaces will become the hub of affordable health and wellness
“Yoga, cycling, barre, Barry’s Bootcamp, and CrossFit facilities are popping up globally. According to the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), the fitness club industry generated $87.2 billion in 2017, as more than 201,000 clubs served 174 million members. But the exercise divide between the low-income and wealthy is expanding. In the US, the poorest quartile of the population gets about half the exercise of the wealthiest quartile. Boutique fitness chains like SoulCycle exacerbate this divide by privatizing fitness (even at-home exercise startups like Peloton and Mirror require spending $1000+ on equipment). We need to make physical activity more accessible, not more expensive and exclusive.
We can expect more individuals and communities leveraging outdoor and social spaces (an adult playground startup, unused malls becoming a location for subsidized fitness for adults/the elderly, group running, coaches-in-training offering affordable digital/physical classes for community groups, etc). At-home fitness (Peloton, Mirror, Aaptiv) will reach a ceiling like fitness videos did in the 1990s.”
Andy Ayim, Director London at Backstage Capital
2019 will be the year D2C redefines social eCommerce
“What most people don’t realise is that unlike Facebook Ads or email newsletters, direct mail has a 100% open rate when shared within a delivery box. That’s why companies such as Amazon, ASOS and D2C brands such as Birchbox have unparalleled access to consumer attention. However not all go beyond sales to facilitate connections for their communities.
72% of Millennial’s make purchasing decisions in fashion and beauty influenced by Instagram. Strong behavioural trends from Millennial’s increase the need for innovative startups like Threads Styling to remove friction from discovery and purchasing decisions by bringing customer assistance to Whatsapp and Instagram. Whilst Glossier turned over $100m in revenue this year and shows the importance of offline experiences by not only facilitating one-to-one connections with customers but also connecting them to each other.
90% of retail purchases still occur offline and D2C brands recognise this and now use the same targeting they would in Facebook, Instagram and Google ads to provide location-smart pop-up experiences for their customers to not only shop but connect as a wider community.
2019 will be the year of high quality connections with consumers.”
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