It all started with my mother, Thelma Bataille, who spent 30 years working in Silicon Valley. For me, she was one of those “Hidden Figures”. I grew up watching women working with technology, science and computers. They were the women in our kitchen, talking, laughing and complaining about things at work. Over the years, I have heard stories of black women who are innovative in technology.
How did you get started in finance?
After graduating from the University of Michigan and a time in Israel and Singapore, I moved to Wall Street. I wanted to get in the game and be part of that world.
What motivated you to launch the WOCstar Fund?
I was working in my office [at JPMorgan Chase & Company] when I received the news that I had cancer and I thought: “I cannot die in this chair and on this table without really having an impact like the pioneers of before and those women like my mother”.
After I overcame my fear of dying, I gained the courage to live. And in that moment, I became bold and fearless to be a champion for the women I knew – women who looked like me.
You worked on mergers and acquisitions at JPMorgan. How was that useful?
Much of what investing is not just choosing companies and doing due diligence, but also helping them build, so that we can monetize and return capital to investors.
Now I am a middle-aged black woman and I have achieved a lot in my career. I am now at an age when I can authentically give this to start-ups.
Where are things now?
I don’t live in fear of knowing where my next payment will come from, of how my mortgage will be paid. I am at a point in my life when I can take everything I have done and put it in favor of those I believe are worth investing in. It became my why.
My fellowship and I do not always have a seat at the table, and we are not always invited to the room, but I was very comfortable being a penetrator.
It’s just a little secret … the party is always better when my fellowship and I show up.
What is the economic scenario that stimulates the demand for venture capital from women founders of color, and what can be done to improve it?
The fundamentals have not changed: people love the winners. Markets love winners. The money follows the winners.
People need to put money where their mouths are. What is happening today is that there are many press releases being issued by individuals and large corporations proclaiming their financial commitment to black businesses or racial equity, but dollars appear as marketing, sponsorship or loans.
We need more checks for the Black businesses and new Black venture capitalists who are investing in blacks, led by women, diverse companies and less headlines about people’s intentions.
What advice would you give to other black businesswomen?
I always tell them to be bold, brave and double the number. Whatever you are asking for, fold. You have options, so look for investors who will build with you.
Be a problem solver. Entrepreneurship means being a problem solver. Build things that are great ideas, that will change the way we work, live and consume.
What was the biggest challenge of your career?
I get paid not every day. The worst is the silence, or the friendly “let’s keep in touch” and the pat on the head. Those cut deeper than those that don’t. At least with a no, you know where you are. My mother always said: “Go ask. Nobody ever died with the word no. “
And really, don’t tell my mom, but I stopped asking. Now I am inviting, and only inviting those who really understand. Black women and women are crushing this in the world of technology and many will miss the opportunity to share our success.
What were your biggest rewards?
My biggest reward is the people who have mobilized around the fund since we launched it. I am not alone in this. The fund is a network of allies and mentors. I love how we raise the money. JPMorgan contributed initial funding to what is now the WOCstar Fund.
Two of our initial investors were Caucasian men, who live in my neighborhood in New York City. It is essential to know that I can see them at the supermarket or at the gym, and they did not share experiences like me, or look like me, but trust me to know the best investments of people of color.
Finally, it is the conversations with the founders. It’s mentoring. It is difficult love. That’s where I get my joy and energy.
What interests you most?
I love cinema and media and getting more women and people of color in the media.
For many years, I have been involved in building the next generation of diverse storytellers and filmmakers. In the past, I was on the advisory board of the Ghetto Film School and I am still involved with them and the Bronx-based creative content house by their former students called Digital Bodega. And now, I’m very lucky to have creative channels like Southbox Entertainment, a film and television content studio where I combine creativity and capital, and serve on the board of the Nantucket Project Academy, which is a community of change agents and storytellers powerful.
This conversation has been edited and condensed.