628: What It’s Like to Found a Venture Capital Firm For Developing Markets With Chris Schroeder, Next Billion Ventures [Main T4C Episode]

Christopher Schroeder is an entrepreneur, CEO, advisor and writer focused on interactive technologies and social communications both nationally and internationally. He is the co-founder of Next Billion Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in entrepreneurs working in developing markets around the world. Chris has also been the CEO for a number of organizations and startups including LEGI-SLATE; The Washington Post’s online platform, Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive; and HealthCentral, one of the nation’s leading social consumer health and wellness interactive platforms.  After he graduated from Harvard with a degree in diplomatic history, Chris worked as an investment banker before finding a job in government working for the ‘88 Bush-Quayle presidential campaign. He then worked as a special assistant for then Secretary of State, James Baker,  before getting his MBA from Harvard Business School. Chris is the author of best-selling book Startup Rising:The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East.  WHAT YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE: What the difference is between a startup and a small business (1:44) What Next Billion Ventures does (5:04) Why you should start thinking global on day one of college (11:30) How COVID-19 has accelerated life and created a new mindset for students to approach their studies (25:09) How to foster a deep mentor-mentee relationship (29:24) How HealthCentral came to be (36:01) Why it’s important for a boss to find the right fit for everyone she works with (41:38)