Ben Lerer

Origin Story: In a couple sentences, how would you describe your path to becoming an investor?

I started as an operator and founded a company that was venture-backed at a time in New York when there were not a lot of VC-backed companies or many venture investors. We realized my friends and peers were being drawn to entrepreneurship and because I was an operator, I was part of the budding ecosystem. In addition to being an operator, I wanted to invest in my peers as well. This led to us raising our first $8M fund in 2010.
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Investment Approach: What are the key factors you consider when evaluating a founding team?

It’s a cliche but it’s generally about the people. Gut plays a role at the early stage more than later stages. There’s also the market & category and the results & progress to date. There’s a balance of the 3 with the largest emphasis being on the founder(s).
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What's your style and approach when it comes to working with founders post-investment? What are the characteristics of founders you've worked well with?

Leave it to the founder to make decisions and follow their lead. It’s my job to serve as a sounding board to help founders make the right decisions for themselves; it is not my role to make decisions for companies. At Lerer Hippeau, we also have a Platform team dedicated to helping our companies through post-investment support and services. I’ve worked well with founders who are transparent and passionate.
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If I'm coming to pitch to you or your firm, what's the one piece of advice you'd give me?

Be transparent about your progress and passionate about what you’re building.
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How would you describe your own personal mission and values, and how do they impact the way you invest?

Life is short and I want to work with people who I trust and who bring real soul to the things that they work on. I am very long term focused in terms of betting on people. If a specific idea or company doesn’t work out, that’s okay, as long as people have integrity and work hard and smart.
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What do you like best about investing in NYC, and what’s your outlook on the future of NYC tech?

I grew up in NYC and I’m a huge believer in New York’s ability to be the best at anything it sets its mind to. I think it’s pretty clear that NYC has set its mind to being the best place for entrepreneurs to build businesses.