What it takes to be a 26-year-old partner at a major venture capital firm

Unlike many venture capitalists who arrive at the job only after building a typical financial background – usually involving a master’s degree in business and a few years in an investment bank – Melisa Irene hadn’t set her sights on joining a VC firm.

“I did not plan my way to become a VC – in fact, I had very little knowledge about it until a former East Ventures associate brought it up,” she says. Irene applied for a job as an associate at the VC firm in 2015, noting that she was lucky to get the job despite her relative lack of industry.

She’s come far since then. In January, East Ventures welcomed Irene – who’s just 26 – as its first female partner. (Disclosure: The firm is an investor in Tech in Asia)

Founded in 2009, East Ventures focuses on seed- to early-stage startups and has offices in Singapore, Indonesia, and Tokyo. In less than 10 years, the firm has invested in more than 150 companies across Asia, which run the gamut from mobile food-ordering app Eatsy, specialty coffee provider Fore, to micro-retail technology company Warung Pintar.

See: These are the most active investors in Southeast Asia’s startups

During Irene’s first two years at East Ventures, her work involved sourcing deals and helping senior associates acquire market research data from the firm’s portfolio companies.

Her job scope gradually expanded to include portfolio monitoring, communicating with startups and their founders, reading reports, and assisting Willson Cuaca, the firm’s managing partner.

Irene’s entry into Indonesia’s VC industry could not have come at a more opportune time. A growing consumer class and increasing enthusiasm about digital technology in the country were driving demand for new products and services, which, in turn, created an ideal environment for aspiring entrepreneurs.

“I wanted to know before anybody else how Indonesia’s consumer trend would change,” she recalls.

The journey towards making partner

One of Irene’s key formative experiences as an associate was co-leading an investment into CoHive (previously named EV Hive) – an operator of co-working spaces in Indonesia – with Agung Bezharie Hadinegoro, co-founder and CEO of Warung Pintar.

Initially starting off as an internal project to rent out East Ventures’ unused offices, the firm eventually spun it into a separate co-working company, complete with shared desks and private offices, as well as a restaurant, retail areas, and event spaces.

“We found investors and created two locations as a result,” Irene explains. “As interest from investors and the government grew, WiIlson realized the company needed a CEO.”

Irene and Hadinegoro served as interim co-managers at CoHive until a permanent management team was brought in to expand the company to more than 25 locations.

Closing deals fast