[100 Emerging Women Leaders] JITO Angel Network CIO Pooja Mehta tells how to get things done

When Pooja Mehta was on her sabbatical in 2017 and taking care of her one-year-old daughter, she came across a community of Jain individuals looking to invest in the startup ecosystem. The community took shape in the form of JITO Angel Network, a sector-agnostic, early-stage angel network that invests from pre-seed to Pre-Series A rounds. 

Pooja wanted to join the company but also demanded that her new role allow her to devote equal time between her career and her family.

“I am well versed with the work-from-home concept, even before the pandemic hit,” Pooja says. “But jokes apart, this was one of the reasons why I joined JITO—they agreed to my terms.”

As the Chief Investment Officer of JITO Incubation and Innovation Foundation, Pooja manages everything—from scouting the best startups looking for investment to overseeing the exit of investors. She feels that having a way with words has helped her convince the community of investors.

“I love talking to people, meeting them, and analysing them to understand where they would be interested to invest and what will be the right investment for them. But sometimes, people do mock me, especially because this community is highly male-dominated. But I remain adamant,” says Pooja.

It is her love for talking and interacting with different people that made her a known figure among stakeholders and investors.

“People in Tier III and IV cities are loaded but they do not know any alternatives to investing in stocks. Today, because of my love for communicating with these people, I have built a level of trust where people blindly follow my lead and invest in companies. They never second guess my opinions,” she adds. 

However, she also feels that society is far from being equal. So, how does a woman play on a not-so-level playing field? Pooja shares three golden mantras for making this happen.

“First, always have clarity of your thoughts. Second, do not believe in ‘he-said, she-said’ and always take steps based on first-hand information. And third, be transparent. It was my transparency and clear communication that helped me to work with my team, investors, and startups. It helped me overcome the conscious and unconscious biases that come my way,” Pooja concludes.