Anne Mitchell, Senior Advisor

• Made first foray into the stock market at age 10
• Joined Fidelity Investments in 1994 as part of prestigious research rotation program
• As the Internet took hold, Anne’s early “buy” call on U.S. Robotics was prescient, and a positive one for its Fidelity shareholders
• In 1997, joined Rob Ketterson to help build Fidelity Ventures
• Noteworthy exits include: IPO for Nuance, InterNAP and ONI Systems and Acquisitions of Webspectives, Airespace, ONISystems, Service Metrics and Nexabit by Inktomi, Cisco, Ciena, Exodus and Lucent Technologies respectively
• Deep industry experience ranging from Communications to Software to Financial Technology

 

“I learned at an early age, it pays to be on your toes.”

First she appeared on stage at Lincoln Center as a ballerina cast as the soldier in The Nutcracker.  Second, she made an exceedingly wise investment decision.  After perspicaciously examining financial statements and annual reports, quizzing her investment banking father and attempting to forecast market trends, she invested the money she earned from the stage in Coca Cola.

“It was that or Disney. It was the right decision.”

While at Harvard, Anne did summer internships in law, investment banking and equity research, ultimately deciding to join Fidelity Investments as an equity analyst in 1994.

“On the buy side, you own your decision. That’s where I belonged,” says Anne.

Her area of concentration was technology, one of a handful of college graduates selected nationwide for a coveted research rotation with the nation’s mutual fund leader, Fidelity Investments.  On her first day, Anne was handed a list of 50 holdings and asked to evaluate each and every one, returning with buy, sell or hold recommendations.  It was the perfect next step for the investor in Coca Cola. It was also a path that would lead her to success in venture capital.

“My training was on the ground with many of the best and brightest investors—theirs was an art to figuring out how to invest in the best companies.  My job was to find those emerging companies that could potentially unseat and challenge market share.”