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Alex Rossi of LIV Capital on Making Investment Decisions

August 10, 2016

Alex Rossi, Managing Partner at LIV Capital, points out that making an investment decision comes down to people during the LAVCA VC in NY in April 2016 at Civi Hall, New York, NY. This content is made possible with support from Omidyar Network and Telefonica Open Future_.

Making an investment decision comes down to the people

This content is made possible with support from Omidyar Network and Telefonica Open Future_.

Telefonica Omidyar

TRANSCRIPT

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Alex Rossi: Ultimately, so much about making an investment decision comes down to people. So when you evaluate an investment opportunity, I think more than 3/4 of that investment decision is about who you’re partnering with, and how that group or person or group of people are able to articulate their vision, and articulate their views on what the partnership with you as a fund and as a shareholder is going to look like. So we spend a lot of time really evaluating what that fit and chemistry is going to be. Just because we don’t invest in a company doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good opportunity, but we just feel that in some cases our fit with those firms is going to be better.

So the times that we’ve made some bad decisions has really been around people and not having the right fit and place, or at least not the right chemistry from the beginning of our investment, and having a clear path as to how we’re going to move forward. So unfortunately, what you learn is that it’s hard to change people, and if you don’t see eye to eye at the beginning, if then there become complicated moments down the road, it’s very unlikely that you’re going to see eye to eye in the future. So we spend a lot of time getting to know our entrepreneurs and executive teams in order to really feel that sympatico quality that we’re looking for between our partnerships.

LAVCA: Sounds a lot like a marriage.

Alex Rossi: It does yes, but marriages are supposed to be forever, and VC investment is to come in and then create value, and then to exit.

Alex Rossi: Al fin de cuentas, algo muy importante a la hora de tomar una decisión para invertir son las personas. Así que, cuando esté evaluando una oportunidad de inversión, pienso que más de 3/4 de esa decisión será sobre la persona con la cual se esté asociando, y cómo esa persona o grupo o personas pueden articular su visión y sus puntos de vista sobre lo que será asociarse con usted como inversor y accionista. Es así que pasamos mucho tiempo evaluando seriamente cómo será la química y si encajaremos como grupo. El solo hecho de que no invirtamos en una compañía no significa que no fuera a ser una buena oportunidad, sino que simplemente sentimos que en algunos casos nuestra relación con esas firmas será mejor.

Las veces que hemos tomado malas decisiones ha sido alrededor de personas y no tener un buen, o por lo menos no hubo la química correcta desde el comienzo de nuestra inversión, y no teníamos un camino claro sobre cómo íbamos a avanzar. Desafortunadamente, uno aprende que es difícil cambiar a las personas, y si no se miran a los ojos desde el principio, es muy poco probable que lo hagan en el futuro. Es por eso que pasamos mucho tiempo conociendo a los emprendedores y a los equipos ejecutivos para poder sentir esa calidad simpática que buscamos en nuestros socios.

LAVCA: Suena casi igual a un matrimonio.

AR: Sí, pero se supone que los casamientos duran para siempre, y una inversión se trata de llegar y luego crear valor para finalmente poder salir.

Alex Rossi: No fim das contas, algo muito importante ao fazer uma decisão de investimento são as pessoas. Então, quando você avalia uma oportunidade de investimento, acredito que mais de 3/4 da decisão de investimento é sobre com quem você faz parceria e como esse grupo ou pessoa ou grupo de pessoas são capazes de articular a sua visão e articular as suas opiniões sobre como será a parceria com você como um fundo e como acionista. Então, nós gastamos muito tempo avaliando realmente como serão a relação e a química. Só porque nós não investimos em uma empresa não significa que não era uma boa oportunidade, mas nós sentimos que, em alguns casos, o nosso fit com as empresas será melhor.

Assim, nos momentos em que tomamos algumas decisões erradas foi realmente em torno de pessoas e sobre não ter o fit certo e o lugar ou, pelo menos, não a química certa desde o início do nosso investimento e não ter um caminho claro sobre como iremos seguir em frente. Então, infelizmente, o que você aprende é que é difícil mudar as pessoas e se você não concordar totalmente no início e, se houver momentos complicados no caminho, é muito improvável que concorde totalmente no futuro. Então, nós gastamos muito tempo conhecendo os nossos empreendedores e equipes executivas, a fim de realmente sentirmos a qualidade simpática que estamos procurando entre as nossas parcerias.

LAVCA: Assemelha-se muito a um casamento.

Alex Rossi: E é, mas supõe-se que os casamentos sejam para sempre e o investimento VC é para entrar, gerar valor e sair.

Alex Rossi of LIV Capital on Making Investment Decisions was last modified: May 18th, 2017 by Claudia Rosenbloom
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MADE POSSIBLE WITH SUPPORT FROM

LAVCA’s gender diversity research is made possible with support from IDB LAB, Member of the IDB Group. Access information about WeXchange, a forum hosted by IDB LAB that connects high growth women entrepreneurs in LatAm with investors and mentors.

Methodology

This list includes 114 senior-level women investment professionals who are deploying capital in early and growth stage tech deals in Latin America, as well as notable women angels investing over USD50k across multiple deals in the region in the past two years. All investors were vetted for inclusion by LAVCA Research.

Every year since 2016, LAVCA solicits nominations of top women investors in tech from the investment community. The inaugural list included 37 investors; the 2017 list added eight new investors. In 2018, complementing the peer nomination process, LAVCA reviewed the investment teams of all active Latin American VC funds, producing a list of 82 senior-level and 47 mid- and junior-level investment professionals. In 2019, those numbers jumped to 88 and 87, respectively, and increased to 103 and 97 during 2020.

NOMINATE AN INVESTOR

This list is not exhaustive; if you know of a junior- or mid-level investment professional working on Latin American tech deals who should be on this list, contact [email protected].

TOP WOMEN INVESTING IN LATIN AMERICAN TECH

LAVCA’s companion list of Top Women Investors in Latin American Tech includes 114 senior-level women investment professionals who are deploying capital in early and growth stage tech deals.

About LAVCA

 

LAVCA is the Association for Private Capital Investment in Latin America, a not-for-profit membership organization dedicated to supporting the growth of private capital in Latin America and the Caribbean through research, education, networking and advocacy.

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