Gillian Findlay

No, I haven’t lost my accent.
I came to Australia, from Scotland, on a two year secondment with Deloitte.
18 years later, I’m still here and get to call this amazing country home.
Not many VC partners in Australia have played both sides.
Over the past few years I’ve had the privilege of scaling up SaaS unicorn, SafetyCulture and leading marketing technology business, Vamp as their CEO.
Now I work as an Operating Partner, a relatively new concept in Australian venture capital.
My track record of scaling startups (and battle scars to show for it) should provide value to both current and new portfolio companies.
My focus is helping startups with decisions, execution and connections so they can get things done and reach their growth goals faster.
Think Customer.
Regardless of your role, there is very rarely a downside to having direct and regular communication with your customers.
They’re at the heart of everything you do.
I found speaking to customers can often help with important decisions.
At SafetyCulture, as part of new employee onboarding, everyone did time on customer support tickets.
I recommend it to all startups.
My advice to any founder or leader, would be to never lose touch with the teams on the front line of your business.
Time spent with them is invaluable.
My career highlight has been my colleagues.
I value all relationships.
Everyone has a story and no matter who you are, you will learn from that story.
I am so proud to see so many of the people that I have worked with in amazing roles and kicking ass in the global startup ecosystem.
I hope to see many in AirTree portfolio companies during their careers.
To be truly authentic was both the hardest (and easiest) decision I ever made.
When you meet me, you know what you are getting from day one.
I don’t waste brain capacity on deciding who I am going to be.
This consistency helps to build trust with the people I meet and has been overwhelmingly positive for me.