#ZincFellowMonday - Jivan Virdee
Jivan Virdee has been working in product roles for the past 8 years in start-ups and as a consultant, and has experience in scaling products (and product teams) from seed to series B. In her current role, she's leading on the launch of new products at a health-tech start-up. Jivan is passionate about user research and has a 'test and learn' approach to product development. She also has a strong interest in health both personally and professionally - mainly working in health-tech and her academic background is biology in cognitive science.
Read below to hear about Jivan below to hear about why she became involved in Zinc and more!
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Q&A
How did you become involved in Zinc and our missions?
I first heard of Zinc a few years ago and became a Fellow for the current cohort. I was particularly drawn to the mission this year on children’s health. If children are able to develop good physical and mental health, it will have a long-term impact on the rest of their lives, and on society.
How do you use your learnings from your career to advise the Founders?
In my career so far, I’ve launched new products from scratch, grown products and product teams, and solved a wide range of problems. I share the learnings and mistakes I’ve made over the years with the Founders - but ultimately I believe the best way to learn is by doing. I hope I’ve helped the Founders I’ve supported to develop a practical understanding of product development that empowers them to understand their users and test ideas.
What has been your favourite part about being a Fellow so far?
Getting to spend time with interesting, passionate people working on impactful problems! The energy from the teams and at the Zinc offices is great. The people and this process will make a change in the world - as we’ve already seen from the companies created in previous cohorts.
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Who do you believe makes a great Zinc Founder?
Firstly, being mission-driven. Zinc Founders need to be focused on the impact that solving their chosen problem will have on people’s lives. The mission will help define their success metrics, persuade others to join them when it comes to growing a team, and keep them going when they face setbacks.
Secondly, resilience. Successful people aren’t necessarily smarter than everyone else, but what often sets them apart is they keep going when others would give up. This is particularly important in creating a startup - Founders need to be able to push forward through failures and setbacks.
One of Zinc's values is to bring what you enjoy along for the ride. What brings you joy?
Over lockdown I started writing, and it’s turned into a hobby I really enjoy. It helps me process my thoughts and develop new perspectives. It’s nothing to do with my day job, and gives me an opportunity to work on something just for myself.
I write a weekly newsletter on health, science and technology. Take a look and subscribe if you like!?https://jivan.substack.com
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Connect with Jivan Virdee online:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jivanvirdee