Originally published on Kainjoo Ventures.
TLDR: At the earliest stage an investor underwrites the founder, not the plan — presence, composure under challenge, and evidence of action decide the cheque.
What the cheque actually backs
Emi Naganuma of Apprecia Capital reveals in her account of the Venture Kick jury room that the decisive judgment forms early — would she want to support and work with this founder? At pre-product stage the product will change and the plan will be wrong; the variable being underwritten is the person who navigates that, read through thin-slicing and the halo effect.
The signals an investor weighs
The strongest founders treat questions as conversation, combining conviction with coachability, and they prove that actual actions speak much louder than talking — a pilot that runs, an early paying customer. For investors, the practical lesson is to weight resourcefulness under constraint over the polish of the projection.
References
- Emi Naganuma / Venture Kick. Inside the Jury Room. https://www.venturekick.ch/Inside-the-Jury-Room-What-Makes-Investors-Believe-in-a-Founder-by-Emi-Naganuma
