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12
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Bindi Karia,
venture
capitalist
Bindi Karia, 38, is venture capitalist
of emerging business at Microsoft.
She lives alone in Bayswater, London
I get up around 7.30am and pick out my
outfit for the day. I’m a real fashionista
so living near Notting Hill is dangerous.
At the moment I’m in love with my
Topshop harem pants. They’re so comfy!
I get into the office at around 9am
and grab an Americano, fruit and
yoghurt at my desk. I have the kind
of job which no one ever really
understands but basically my
objective is to find the thing that
could potentially be the next
Facebook. It’s sort of like a Dragons’
Den for technology companies. I hear a
lot of pitches from start-up businesses
and I decide which ones we as a
company should help develop. It’s
massively exciting because, although
it’s very niche, I’m at the forefront of
the software of the future.
I spend most of my day networking.
It could be internal networking, walking
up to my colleague’s desk and saying,
BILLIE HOLIDAY IS ONE
OF BINDI’S IDOLS
6
“Hey, have you got a minute to grab a
coffee?” so that we can discuss one of
my start-up businesses, or meeting
venture capitalists or new businesses
out of the office to hear their pitch. With
an office of 600 people and more than
2,000 businesses on the UK Bizspark
programme I buy a lot of coffee!
Two of the most exciting people I’ve
come across recently are Andy
McLoughlin and Alistair Mitchell, the
founders of Huddle. Their software lets
companies work off the same document
from a portal – perfect for government
BINDI KARIA’S JOB AT
MICROSOFT KEEPS HER AT
THE FOREFRONT OF
TECHNOLOGY
agencies and big business. They’ve just
received £10m funding.
Lunch is my most productive time
so I prefer to be at my desk flying
through all my emails with a salad.
Then, from 4pm onwards I’m on the
phone to Silicon Valley in California
(the biggest technological media
“It’s massively exciting
because I’m at the
forefront of the computer
software of the future”
PLAN�B��SINGER
investment hub in the world) pitching
my UK start-ups to US investors.
I spend 80% of my time out of the
office. A couple of weeks ago I had
to take four of my businesses to Paris
for a Microsoft European venture
capitalist summit. We got the train
on Monday, took them to dinner that
night, worked on their pitches all day
Tuesday and then I had my birthday
with them on Tuesday night! On
Wednesday I arrived back at St
Pancras at 8pm and was on the 9pm
train to Newcastle ready for another
event. That’s typical for me. I’m
completely committed to my job.
When one of my entrepreneurs called
me with a crisis on Christmas Eve
I sorted it out happily. This is people’s
livelihood after all.
Entrepreneurship runs in my blood.
Both of my grandfathers left India to
set up shop in Kenya. My dad is a
doctor but my uncles all own their own
businesses and I grew up visiting family
members in London, India, the US and
Kenya who all have that drive and
entrepreneurial spirit.
I leave work around 7pm and go for
a run. I’m doing my third marathon in
Paris in September so I train at least
twice a week after work. Then I’ll
have a shower at home and go to a
networking event at around 8.30pm.
Weekends are my down time. I’ve
just done a juice detox after an
unhealthy few weeks. I go for a run
in Hyde Park or for brunch with my
friends at Tom’s Kitchen in Notting
Hill. I went to a party last week at
Silicon Soho – a tiny hub of five new
start-up businesses crammed into one
ramshackle office. They threw a party
for 250 industry people. I asked if they
wanted me to bring a bottle but they
asked for lamps. That’s typical of
entrepreneurs – you have to be
resourceful to succeed.
Obviously I’m a bit of a whizz with
technology; I’ve got the latest
Microsoft smartphone and was one of
the first to use Spotify. We tend to use
the latest technology for a year before
it hits the market at work. Look out for
Microsoft 2010. That’s all I can say!
microsoft.com/bizspark;
microsoftstartupzone.com
I was a singer, stage performer and chorister for 15 years when I was at school. I was always given the lead
role in school plays and community musicals and I almost studied voice at university, but decided to pursue
business instead. I still miss music and singing. I love old-school jazz singers and I’d love to have had the
opportunity to sing a duet with Ella Fitzgerald or Billie Holiday. I have everything from all musical genres
on my iPod. Music accompanies everything I do; I’ve got songs for running, working, sleeping, dancing,
socialising, cooking… everything! And I love attending live shows, which is why I’ve never left London –
there are live gigs everywhere.
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