About
Will Richardson is Partner at Giant Leap Fund. Based in Australia, they focus on impact investments.
Reviews (3)
I've sought Will's advice on many occasions and have always come away grateful for both his generosity and wisdom - especially given his depth of insight across so many domains spaning fundraising, co-founder dynamics, sales, the operational realities of building a business etc etc. He listens carefully, asks the right questions, and offers perspective that is both candid and constructive — the kind of counsel that genuinely shifts how you think. In addition, he is an exceptional connector. The introductions he has made both for my startup but also personally have been thoughtful and incredibly invaluable.
The review states Will offers "counsel that genuinely shifts how you think" and provides "incredibly invaluable" introductions both for the startup and personally, indicating a profound and transformative impact on the founder's perspective and network.
Fortunate enough to have Wills direct support during my Startmate 2020 Cohort as a mentor/advisor and now working with Giant Leaps portfolio directly. During Startmate the founder support was second to none from sales role plays, customer discovery unlocks and being challenged on growth strategies and product thesis. Will opened doors I did not have the keys to with health tech specific investors and lead to warm conversations. Now on the other side 6 years later working directly with Giant Leap portfolio on GTM it has been amazing to see that support has not changed from the checkins, to the coaching and introductions. Giant Leaps reputation is well earned but more importantly well deserved.
The review highlights 'opened doors I did not have the keys to with health tech specific investors and lead to warm conversations,' indicating a critical, career-defining impact on fundraising and networking essential for a startup's survival and growth, sustained over six years.
Giant Leap backed modo when we were still working out what we were actually building. What we got wasn't just a cheque and some check-ins. They offered genuine thought partnership every step of the way. Will was the first person I'd want to call when we needed help to clarify things, fill in blindspots, and get unstuck.
They also opened a bunch of doors for us, and through that I learned the difference between a warm intro and a meaningful endorsement. VCs, angels, and grant-making bodies told me they took our calls because Will told them they should.
The team also understood the impact we were trying to have. Plenty of investors find that uncomfortable, but Giant Leap's tools helped us turn handwavy motivations into structures and processes that connected the dots between impact and commercial returns without slowing things down.
But perhaps the realest test of any investor relationship is what happens when things go wrong. Investors have less reason to show up once there's nothing left to gain, but as we approached the end of the road, Will and the team showed up even harder. They mentored me through a pragmatic wind down that protected every stakeholder, including me.
I came out feeling clearer and stronger than I went in, as a founder and as a human. That's not what failure usually looks like, and much of the credit goes to them.
The founder described coming out of a company wind-down 'clearer and stronger than I went in, as a founder and as a human,' indicating a transformative, deeply personal, and potentially career-defining impact even in the face of failure.