20VC Exclusive: Sequoia's Luciana Lixand...

Luciana Lixandru is a Partner @ Sequoia, one of the world’s most renowned and successful venture firms with Sequoia-backed companies accounting for more than 20% of NASDAQ's total value. As for Luciana, at Sequoia she has led investments in the likes of PennyLane, Xentral, Veed and Ledgy to name a few. Prior to joining Sequoia in 2020, Luciana was a Partner @ Accel where she made investments in Hopin, Miro, UiPath, Tessian and Deliveroo. As a result of such investing success, Luciana was #2 on the Midas List in 2021.

1.) Origins:

• How did Luciana make her way from a small town in Romania to being Partner @ Sequoia?
• What were the 1-2 crucible moments in her life that changed the course of her life?

2.) Luciana: The Investor

• How has Luciana's investing style changed and developed over the years?
• How does Luciana reflect on her own relationship to price? What misses caused these changes?
• Hopin, Miro, Deliveroo, UiPath, how did having such winners so early impact Luciana's investing mindset?
• What would Luciana say is her biggest insecurity today? What drives this?

3.) Sequoia: The Team

• What are Luciana's biggest takeaways from working with Doug Leone, Alfren Lin, Roelof Botha and Pat Grady?
• What does the decision-making process look like for new deals within Sequoia?
• How does the Sequoia partnership create an environment of safety where everyone can discuss and debate freely?
• How does Luciana approach training and mentorship? What works and what does not?

4.) Sequoia in Europe + Sequoia's Arc:

• What is Arc? Why was now the right time for Sequoia to do it?
• What is the structure for the program?
• How many startups are part of it? Who is able to apply?
• How much capital do the startups receive? What else do they receive in mentoring etc?
• In 5 years time, what would success look like for Luciana with Arc?

Luciana’s Favourite Book: The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War