#31 GKC | 👋 Jia Hong Shaw, Head of Ignite @ elev8.vc

💁‍♀️💁‍♂️ GOOD People

I started my career at one of the largest investment firms in the world. It was a dream industry and a dream job that I worked towards for many years, and worked hard to perform well.

After leaving that job, I took the advice of a close friend and bought an old bicycle, some bags, packed a tent, and started an open-ended bicycle tour.

That tour took me from coast to coast across Europe, starting in France and ending at the eastern coast of Romania, at the Black Sea.

A few years of COVID and the endless opportunities for self-reflection later, I learned to let go of old life goals and prioritize learning and growing from my very experience, planned and unplanned.

After a very realistic dream, I took inspiration and tried dreams into reality.

Embarking on yet another bicycle tour, this time building out an investment collective, investing in climate tech start ups at their earliest days.

Today, I continue to do very similar work across a broader Deep Tech mandate, as Head of Ignite at Elev8.vc.

👋🏼  How would you explain your job to your grandma?

I get the privilege to be paid to learn, to ask questions, to connect the dots and to celebrate the success of others.

🧐  What's something about you or your job that would surprise us?

The common saying is that in venture capital, it's about who you know. I would supplement that with “how you listen”.

🔍  What's an impact startup / investing trend you're watching?

I've been watching the energy storage vertical for a few years now, and the speed at which the learning curve and cost curves have been advancing is remarkable.

Energy storage is the connecting technology that enables new approaches to energy demand and supply.

Pathways of energy use get disrupted and has opened up very old and traditional energy markets for disruption and changing how we interpret energy in our daily lives.

💡 What's one book / podcast / movie that inspired you the most?

The Pathless Path by Paul Millerd.

Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Handbook of Silicon Valley's Bill Campbell

🎯  What’s one habit / new skill you are working on recently?

Trying to go back to handwriting with ink and paper.

Putting pen to paper is a meditative experience.

The blotches and the smudges and getting hands dirty with wet fountain pen ink is a joy in experiencing the flaws and imperfect realities of the physical world.

🏆 What would you offer to our Impact Founders Community in SEA?

Founder Mental Health is often overlooked and remains a high risk that affects not just founders but their teams, their friends, and their families.

I am the co-founder of Founder Daycare, a voluntary initiative to create a safe space where founders can address founder problems amongst a group of empathetic listeners who keep each other accountable.

I would be happy to share the methodology and the format that this is conducted and to offer advice in kicking off similar initiatives wherever you are.

~~

Feel free to connect with Jia Hong on LinkedIn. (Pro Tip: you can refer Good Karma Club for a warm intro!)

❤️ Great Content You’ll Like …

FREE Databases
Fellowships | Accelerators | Competitions | Fundraising Cases

Deep Dives
Climate | Education | Financial Inclusion | Healthcare | Agriculture | Gender Equality

Impact Frameworks
Impact Investing 101 | IRIS+ | SROI | B Corp | UN SDGs | OPIM

👍 How I Can Help

Whenever you’re ready, here’s how I can be helpful:

GKC Invest
Join our invite-only, impact-first investor club focusing on private credit deals in SEA.

10 deals a year // 6 - 12 months loan // 10% interest payback // min. US$ 5k per deal

Fractional CFO
Support on monthly financial reporting, capital strategy and fundraising advisory.

SEA Impact Program
Curate impact-focused programs for corporates (i.e. accelerators, deal flows)

Let’s chat on LinkedIn / email!