Our November ‘VC Voice’ is Chris Fisher, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Myriad Venture Partners. In an exclusive interview, Fisher shares his perspectives on how HR tech startups can play to the pain HR teams are facing.
Welcome to the sixteenth edition of VC Voices, our Editorial interview series profiling leading investors in the HR tech space.
This month we speak to Chris Fisher, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Myriad Venture Partners.
He shares his route into investment, and his perspectives on what makes a great founder in the overcrowded HR tech market (hint, being customer-centric is essential).
Founded in 2023, Myriad Venture Partners takes a unique approach to investing.
“Today’s corporates and startups are under immense pressure to stay relevant in an evolving market – we’re bridging new connections between startups and industry leaders to help companies adapt and thrive,” Myriad’s Co-founder and Managing Partner Chris Fisher tells UNLEASH in an exclusive interview.
This means that Myriad is stage and sector agnostic – the aim instead is “investing in solutions that offer new efficiencies and innovation to drive businesses forward”.
One example in the future of work sector is Cascade AI – for Fisher, this startup exemplifies Myriad’s investing approach. This is because of its “high-impact, scalable technology designed to uplevel HR operations to improve the employee experience”.
Fisher continues: “By automating repetitive tasks like benefits management and leave, HR teams are able to focus on people-centered initiatives.”
In fact, Cascade AI claims to have “already reduced HR inquiry volume by 50%, with the expectation of reaching an 85% reduction as user adoption increases”.
Another recent portfolio addition is Patlytics – Myriad’s investment “reflects our commitment to advancing the future of work through next-generation business solutions”.
Patlytics uses AI to automate patent processes – this reduces time and effort and driving efficiencies for legal and compliance teams.
UNLEASH is thrilled to welcome Fisher as our November ‘VC Voice’
This is the sixteenth edition of our exclusive interview series with leading the investors.
Fischer follows in the footsteps of Bobby Jäckle from Visionaries Club, Livia Moore of Antler and 776’s Katelin Holloway.
Read on to find out Fisher’s route into the VC world, and his perspectives on what makes a great HR tech founder and startup – spoiler alert, it is about truly understanding the pain points of HR leaders.
Allie Nawrat: Let’s start at the beginning, how did you get into investing? What is the one piece of advice you would give to your younger self?
Chris Fisher: My path into investing was shaped by a diverse career spanning banking, business operations, law, finance and corporate strategy.
I practiced law at Jenner & Block and then Ropes & Gray LLP, advising private equity firms and multinational clients on M&A, complex transactions, early-stage investments and corporate governance.
Prior to my legal transactional work, I was an Assistant Vice President at Bank of America, working in structured finance and global operations and strategy.
These roles ultimately led me to Xerox, where I served as SVP and Chief Strategy Officer, and as a member of Xerox’s Executive Committee, where I oversaw global strategy, M&A, and venture activities.
I later founded Xerox Ventures, the company’s corporate venture capital arm.
These experiences provided a well-rounded perspective on business and set the stage for launching Myriad Venture Partners earlier this year, with $100 million in initial commitments, anchored by a key investment from Xerox.
AN: You’ve had a multifaceted career. Who inspires you, and why?
CF: I have a number of personal and professional inspirational role models.
First and foremost, my grandparents worked extremely hard to provide my parents with a great education, quality of life and amazing work ethic.
I’m extremely thankful to my parents, who harnessed and internalized these values to provide the same to me and my brothers.
With a foundation rooted in honesty and fairness, they created an atmosphere that welcomed spirited debate. To me, these elements are fundamental to success in life and in business.
Second, I have been fortunate to work with amazing individuals at every step of my career. Two individuals immediately come to mind: Neill Jakobe at Ropes & Gray and Louie Pastor at Xerox.
Both Neill and Louie are incredibly intelligent, loyal, hard-working, and always open to new, innovative ideas.
In addition, my Myriad partners Tim Chiang and Dean Mai are daily collaborators and thought partners.
AN: What gets you up in the morning, and what keeps you up at night?
CF: My family is the most important part of my life, bringing me an immeasurable amount of joy.
Venture comes next, one of the most exciting and interesting careers I have ever experienced in my life by far.
Every day, I’m speaking with and inspired by driven, intelligent people who are changing the world around us.
Funny enough, what keeps me up at night are probably the same things!
AN: You spend a lot of time talking to founders – what makes a great founder? What are the common mistakes they make?
CF: A great founder exudes passion, experience, leadership, and domain expertise (lived or learned).
However, a frequent pitfall I see is the absence of common, clear goals and vision.
To truly excel it’s important to have a deep understanding of the vision and culture, and make sure everyone is rowing in the same direction.
AN: What makes a company, and a founder, really stand out in overcrowded markets like the HR and future of work space?
CF: In HR and the future of work space, standout companies and founders must understand the evolving needs of HR teams and employees, and how those functions impact and influence the broader organization.
They need to have a clear vision of the pain points and challenges they’re solving, and design solutions that drive efficiencies to employees and/or replace outdated legacy processes while still easily integrating into existing workstreams.
Cascade AI, for example, keenly understands how routine tasks take up a majority of HR professionals’ time, which has directly led to high turnover and rising dissatisfaction.
The tool is purpose-built to reduce the administrative burden. That’s why it has become the primary global HR support resource for many customers.
As the needs of the workforce change, companies that excel will embrace flexible, scalable technology to support and empower their most valuable asset: its people.
AN: Our audience, HR leaders, are the key customers of HR and future of work tech. What is your advice on what HR leaders should look out for when buying tech? What should they avoid, and why?
CF: When choosing HR tech, look for solutions that can grow with your organization.
Adaptability and seamless integration are key – your tech should evolve alongside your company, enhancing existing systems without creating silos.
The best tools meet today’s needs, with the flexibility and capacity to adapt to tomorrow’s challenges.
AN: What are some of the most exciting innovations on the horizon for HR tech? Is there a HR technology that is overhyped, or that the world would be better without?
CF: AI is truly changing how HR teams operate and how we work in general, and we believe new HR innovations can impact business ecosystems overall.
As the AI landscape continues to rapidly develop, we believe incumbent solutions will need to rapidly evolve to ensure they are meeting HR teams needs in a flexible, specific and cost-effective manner.
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Chief Reporter
Allie is an award-winning business journalist and can be reached at alexandra@unleash.ai.
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