Last week, we announced that Baiyin Zhou joined Ascent Venture Partners as our newest senior associate. This is particularly exciting because adding to our team is the most important thing we do – and it’s not something we do often. Baiyin is our first new investment team member in 10 years. At Ascent, we treat […]
Hi everyone! Yet another VC hiring announcement coming your way… I’ve joined the Ascent Venture Partners team as a Senior Associate! It’s only been a month but I can already tell I’m surrounded by a top notch team of smart and caring people. Actually, there’s more to my joining than meets the eye. Ascent hasn’t […]
For more than 30 years, we have been laser focused on investing in early stage business technology in the northeast U.S. because we believe an ideal combination of factors exist: B2B tech has the potential for capital efficient and rapid growth which fits the venture model well, the competition is lower than the west coast, […]
While most of us have spent the summer enjoying the beach and maybe a few too many meals al fresco, our VP of Finance, Tom Scanlon, has qualified to race at the IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, HI this fall. Having completed four marathons, more than a dozen half-IRONMAN triathlons, and three IRONMANS, Tom finished […]
I’m thrilled to announce Ascent’s newest portfolio company, Codeship, a leader in continuous integration and continuous delivery. The company offers a cloud-based platform for developers to automate the laborious process of testing and deploying software updates quickly, reliably and securely. Codeship is 100% SaaS-based, providing the ease of trial and ease of use that is […]
It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years since I earned my MBA from MIT’s Sloan School of Management. The resources, network and opportunities it offered in many ways helped steer me on my career path and to where I am today. Recently I was lucky enough to serve as a panelist in an alumni […]
For years the tech community has been concerned about worker shortages, especially programmers and engineers. Fast-growing software companies always bemoan the challenges of finding skilled workers, and have tried to fill the gap by recruiting from abroad, and even by offering significant signing bonuses (see Hubspot’s $30,000 offer for someone who refers a developer). Still, […]
While our singular focus at Ascent is enterprise IT, our portfolio spans a wide range of tech subcategories: Software & SaaS, Data & Analytics, Cloud Business Services, Mobility & Communications, Financial Services & Transaction Technology, and Security & Compliance. Each sector witnesses regular news and innovation, and each has numerous compelling stories. To help facilitate […]
For part one of “Everything I Know About Pitching VCs I Learned From Monty Python,” click here. With help from The Pythons, Matt Fates and I collaborated on some ideas to help turn your exceptional slide deck into an exceptional fundraising pitch. 5) Then, you must cut down the mightiest tree in the forest… with… a […]
Most VCs number the annual business plans they see in a year in the thousands, but the implication is the same: There has to be more to distinguish your fundraising pitch than ten or 15 slides in 30-point font. That’s where Monty Python comes in. John Cleese, Eric Idle and their associates were a VC’s […]
