The hardest thing for a VC—and perhaps even more so in impact investing—is having to say no.

Each month, we receive an average of 150 decks and select just one startup, for which we assemble a team of entrepreneurs and C-level executives who will bring both investment and expertise.

We have to say no to dozens of projects whose impact potential was obvious. And it's heartbreaking.

How can we ensure the entrepreneurs behind these projects don't stop at a rejection from us?

What can we put in place so they can be referred to and/or funded by others?

If we ultimately decide to bet on only one team per month, how can we make our decision-making process as transparent as possible?

A few answers in this article.

Our investment funnel

Let's start with the selection process.

Every month we receive 150 decks on average.

At the end of our weekly process, we engage with 4-5 teams and launch 2 to 4 in-depth due diligences per month. Resulting in one investment per month.

How does the screening process work?

Of the 150 decks received, around one-third do not meet one of the following two criteria and are not selected:

1) There is an "impact at scale" thesis

2) the vision is expressed clearly enough.

Each team member rates all the decks from 1 to 5 (1 being the best score).

The lower the average score, the more time we take to discuss our perspectives on the project.

At the end of the weekly process, 4-5 startups are selected to move forward.

Partner/analyst pairs are formed to engage with founders.

Generally, we kick off between 2 and 4 in-depth due diligences per month, with the goal of closing an investment.

What makes us decide not to move forward?

The impact is not sufficiently systemicThe market is too smallLack of at-scale ambitionThis is the nth project on the same vertical without a strong differentiatorThe company is located outside Europe (for now)

What makes a startup rise to the top of the list?

A fresh perspective on the world A compelling impact thesis Strong storytelling ability A large addressable market Team / market fit

Are we still aligned?

No.

In fact, all partners have the ability to champion a project on their own

Is a "no" final?

Neither do we.

Our community regularly sends us decks that we review again.

Including one startup in which we ultimately decided to invest.

So what about projects that ultimately don't make the cut?

We make it a point of honor to inform all founders with a detailed rationale. So that this feedback can be as useful as possible to them.

2. For projects that lack maturity, we facilitate multiple introductions between projects with similar profiles or between complementary founders, and/or refer them to support and acceleration programs such as Alliance for Impact, makesense, and 50 Partners Impact.

3. We refer all the projects we love to partner funds such as makesense, Investir&+, Raise, Ring, Citizen Capital, 2050, Founders Future, Quadia, Evolem, FAMAE Impact, IMPACT Partners, MAIF Impact, Alter Equity, Elzeard, Satgana, @made for all, Leia Capital, or equity crowdfunding platforms like LITA.co, Sowefund, and Tudigo