Lindsey Taylor Wood
Founder and General Partner, The Helm
Over the last decade, Lindsey has built and run two companies, including The Helm’s operating company and first two funds. A proven operator and investor, she has invested in some of the country’s best women-led companies, including Tia, who last year raised a $100M Series B. She is a leading voice and thinker in the gender-lens investing space with an extensive and diverse network. As The Helm’s Founder and a GP, she directs the Fund’s strategy, fundraising efforts, sources and diligences deals, and supports a growing portfolio.
Under her leadership, The Helm has grown to include two venture capital funds, a 100+ -woman angel syndicate, more than 20 portfolio companies, and a newsletter readership of 50K. The Helm was also home to a robust content and commerce platform, which was acquired in 2021.
An expert in the empowerment of girls and women, prior to The Helm, Lindsey founded LTW, an impact studio with an emphasis on contemporary feminism. Clients include actor Matt McGorry, MAKERS, The Conversation with Amanda de Cadenet, The Harnisch Foundation, Women Moving Millions, and filmmakers Jill Bauer, Ronna Gradus, and Rashida Jones, among others. In partnership with these clients, LTW designed and implemented a wide range of programs, products, and systems, including funding mechanisms and mentorship programs for media makers, content strategies for films and television programming, philanthropic strategies for family foundations, and social impact campaigns. Her ability to use philanthropy and culture symbiotically, and with a gender lens, has made her a sought after strategist in the women’s rights movement.
Prior to consulting, Lindsey was on the founding team of Catapult, a crowdfunding platform for girls and women. Incubated as a project of Women Deliver, Catapult was designed to establish and maintain a sustained, long-term funding infrastructure capable of scaling to many thousands of projects and delivering millions of dollars in funds to benefit girls and women over the next decade. While there, she led the marketing, communications, and outreach initiatives. Lindsey also worked for Women Deliver, a leading global advocate for girls’ and women’s health, rights, and wellbeing — and among the first organizations to promote the investment case for girls and women. Cornerstone projects of her time there included the Women Deliver 50 Campaign which showcased the top 50 ideas and solutions for women and girls internationally and the training of youth advocates from 11 countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa as part of an invitation-only regional consultation in Kampala, Uganda with government officials and agencies, policymakers, researchers, experts, and advocates focused on achieving the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goal 5.
Pre-NGOs, Lindsey worked with the Broadcasting Board of Governors, where she explained U.S. policy to Voice of America's worldwide audience through editorials broadcast on television, radio, and the internet; acted as an off-air reporter and producer for the TODAY show; and as the External Relations Manager for The Lunchbox Fund. She has contributed to a variety of campaigns centered on conflicts in Central Africa, as well as “The Enough Moment,” a book by John Prendergast and Don Cheadle. She has been named one of the 20 Young Champions for Women by The White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood, currently serves on the Feminist.com Board of Directors, and advises the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art at the Brooklyn Museum.
You can hear from Lindsey in the panel Founders and Funders: Negotiating For Your Business at WIN Summit 2022 on June 1, 2022.
Join us for WIN Summit 2022
Be a woman who lifts up other women. Attend the leading negotiation and leadership summit for women!
RESERVE MY SPOT
