The Startups Shaping Our Future

An interview with Monika Radclyffe

Tech startups are sparking excitement across the UK, promising significant economic growth. The government's recent pledge to double the Alan Turing Institute's budget to £100m underscores this sector's potential.

To offer more insight into this space, we’re spotlighting Monika Radclyffe, the Director of Innovation Programmes at Plexal, the innovation company solving society's challenges through collaboration with government, startups, industry and academia. Having navigated the world of investment through the lens of startups, academia, venture capitalism and government, she is a goldmine of knowledge for startups hoping to scale.

A Rare Perspective

“I navigate entrepreneurs through many viewpoints,” explains Monika. “Having sat on boards investing in startups, advised investors, and run incubators in corporate settings, I offer unique insight from the perspective of the people entrepreneurs need to impress and get on board.”

“Investors need to tick certain boxes. Most entrepreneurs are rightly enthused by their ideas but forget to put themselves in the investor's shoes. They have a pot of money that they ultimately need to make a return on.” She advises those seeking investment to do thorough due diligence on the investor and have all their documentation available for review from day one.

“Ensure you have relevant examples of other exits that have taken place in your space. Research who your competitors are and how long it took them to raise money.” When asked where to find such information, Monika says a lot is available in public databases. “I often hear entrepreneurs say that they have no competition. They do; they just need to think outside the box. Similar business structures can be valuable research.”

 Many of the startups Monika works with are led by technically and creatively advanced individuals. But it’s important for them to be very self-aware of what they lack. She encourages startups to “Look at what skills you lack, such as admin or accounting, and either upskill or outsource these critical roles.”

Introducing Plexal

Plexal is closing the gap between organisations – small and large, local and global, private and public – and working towards a common goal: using science and technology to deliver national security and prosperity. Within her role as Director of Innovation Programmes, Monika oversees a variety of successful government-funded initiatives such as Cyber Runway and National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) For Startups.

NCSC For Startups was designed to provide startups entering the programme with unique insights, support and access from within the organization, to help them shape their products and prepare for growth as they develop, adapt and pilot solutions. 
 
The programme has supported startups at all stages of maturity, from developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to those with established solutions looking to expand into new markets. “Startups can often be more agile than governments; partnering with them enables them to move quickly.”

Cheltenham’s Tech Startup Ecosystem

London has a mature startup scene that attracts entrepreneurs, investors, and mentors from all over the world. With Plexal Headquarters being based in Stratford, they are strongly embedded into the London ecosystem.

However, Plexal also has regional offices in both Cheltenham and Manchester. When asked what the benefits of being in Cheltenham and Manchester are for startups, Monika explains that they get more tailored and in-depth guidance from their investors and community. “Cheltenham and Manchester have emerging startup scenes due to government authority bases in these areas. The re-investment cycle takes time; we’re waiting for the current startups here to exit and reinvest in the next wave of entrepreneurs.”

 “The community in Cheltenham is geographically smaller, which allows a close-knit network to flourish here. Both reliable and passionate, the Cheltenham community has an understanding that working together supports everyone and we’re proud to be a part of it. I’m particularly excited to be embedded within the local ecosystem, working to grow it alongside the Golden Valley development. Although London has heavyweights in terms of influential people, it’s much harder to build that valuable community, and it’s only two hours by train from London if you do need to meet an international investor.”

Powerful Alumni

Berta Pappenheim, the co-founder of CyberFish, is a great example of the powerful alumni from NCSC For Startups. CyberFish design scenarios that help organisations determine how to be 'crisis-ready’. Since graduating from the programme, Berta relocated her business from London to Cheltenham and, while still a board member of her startup, she now works as an Innovation Lead at Plexal. Berta is passionate about the human side of cybersecurity and encouraging awareness and education.

Another NCSC For Startups alumnus Dr Rachel O’Connell is a leading expert on online child safety. After examining children’s online safety for her PhD, Rachel set up the first UK Internet safety centre in 2000. She became part of NCSC For Startups through her business TrustElevate, which builds secure, accurate age verification for children and parental control. “Rachel has since become a subject matter expert for the Government and guides online programmes on a national level,” Monika details.

Unconscious Bias is Limiting Innovation

Unfortunately, when you look at women-led businesses, only 2% secure venture capitalist investment, while 98% go to men-led businesses. Investors, especially on all-male boards, are starting to recognise their own unconscious bias.

“We’ve noticed a huge difference in the questions asked to men vs women when pitching for investment” Monika states “Men are always asked about their vision, whereas women are always asked about their past and why they made such decisions. This ultimately leads to incomparable conversations. Recognising the limitations of this and adapting your behaviour as an investor is key to supporting innovative women-led technologies and businesses”

Golden Valley offers a great opportunity to elevate innovation within all industries in Cheltenham. This series aims to highlight leaders in our community, Do you know a changemaker we should highlight? Get in touch at goldenvalley@hbd.co.uk