Week of VocTech: Impact Investing

Ufi Ventures, the Resolution Foundation and guests explore the future of investment in impact, with a focus on skills technology

The session will explore:

• What is the opportunity for early-stage investing in new solutions to tackle ‘future of work’ skills and employment challenges?
• What is the market outlook for impact businesses compared to others in the changing market conditions?
• What do impact investors in skills technology look for?
• What does success look like for venture investing in this space?
• What’s the benefit to a founder of finding an impact investor? What advantages do impact driven companies have?
• How effective are the emerging models being used in impact investing.

Our panellists

Helen Gironi

Director, Ufi Ventures

Helen is Director of Ufi Ventures, the UK’s specialist investor in adult vocational technology giving people and businesses the skills needed for work, now and in the future. Leveraging Ufi VocTech Trust’s experience in the development of vocational technology, Helen is responsible for investing Ufi’s capital in early-stage companies looking for mission-aligned pre-seed and seed investment.

Helen has been investing in early-stage ventures since 2002 and early-stage impact ventures since 2016. Before joining Ufi Helen was Investment Director at Nesta Impact Investments, where she led several investments in high-growth businesses (Applied, Third Space Learning and Oomph) and managed successful exits for the fund (Applied and Reconnections). Helen currently sits on the board of Learnerbly and Learning Labs.

Louise Marston

Director of Ventures, Resolution Foundation

Louise joined the Resolution Foundation in 2020 as Director of Ventures, after working in technology and innovation policy and research for 10 years. Louise works on Resolution Ventures, the social investment activities of the foundation, with a focus on worker tech and financial health and resilience.

Prior to joining the Resolution Foundation, Louise was Managing Director at Doteveryone, a responsible technology think tank. She has also previously worked as a business and requirements analyst and IT project manager, and as an investment analyst for venture investment group Blenheim Chalcot. Louise grew up in Somerset, and holds an MA in Neuroscience from the University of Cambridge and an MSc in Computer Science from UCL.

Paul Moynihan

Co-founder, TaskHer

Paul is an experienced, entrepreneurial leader with 11+ years’ experience in developing innovative products and services, growing successful businesses, and establishing award-winning teams. He is currently Co-founder of TaskHer, an award-winning, impact-focused tradeswomen booking platform.

Sunil Suri

Co-founder, greenworkx

Sunil is Co-founder of greenworkx, a startup tackling the net zero workforce problem by accelerating the growth of skills and jobs we need to make the transition to a low carbon economy. He also serves as a Trustee at Social Tech Trust and advisor at Lighthouse Pedagogy Trust

Previously, Sunil was Head of Community at Odin, a community-driven investment platform and before that he was Head of Ventures and Innovation at Catch22.

Maria Wagner

Partner, Beringea

Maria is a Partner at Beringea, responsible for sourcing investments, executing deals and monitoring portfolio companies. She currently sits on the boards of Learnerbly, Dealroom, Social Value Portal, My 1st Years, YardLink, AccessPay, and Arctic Shores. Maria previously served on the boards of MyOptique, Big Data Partnership, Monica Vinader, and Honeycomb.tv.

Maria was previously Managing Director of Birchbox UK, a beauty ecommerce and subscription business. Prior to this, she was on the investment teams at Virgin Group and GMT Partners, where she made investments and monitored portfolio companies, mainly in the digital and media sectors. Maria began her career as an analyst at Goldman Sachs and an Engagement Manager at McKinsey in New York.

Maria has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from MIT.

About the Resolution Foundation

The Resolution Foundation is an independent think-tank focused on improving the living standards of those on low-to-middle incomes. We work across a wide range of economic and social policy, combining our core purpose with a commitment to analytical rigour. These twin pillars of rigour and purpose underpin everything we do and make us the leading UK authority on securing widely-shared economic growth.
www.resolutionfoundation.org

Ufi VocTech Trust + Resolution Foundation Strategic Partnership

Ufi VocTech Trust and the Resolution Foundation are working together to back a new wave of innovators to improve the prospects, power and progression of low-paid workers.

You can find out about our Strategic Partnership here:
www.ufi.co.uk/strategic-partnerships/ufi-and-resolution-foundation.