Investing in the Future of Work: A New Path for Venture Capital | Virginie Raphaël

Ideas don’t grow on their own. Something has to amplify them. Universities amplify what they teach, consultants amplify what they recommend, and money amplifies the ideas it chooses to back. If we want to understand how work changes at scale, we have to look at how capital shapes which ideas take root. Virginie Raphaël is redesigning that amplifier. 

In this episode, Dart and Virginie discuss how venture capital amplifies ideas, how trust networks shape who gets funded, and why rethinking the incentives behind early-stage investing may be key to building a more equitable future of work.

Virginie Raphaël is the Founder and Managing Partner of FullCircle, a perpetual pre-seed venture fund. She invests in founders building a more equitable, sustainable, and prosperous workforce.

In this episode, Dart and Virginie discuss:
- How money amplifies ideas and shapes systems at scale
- Why traditional venture funds push short-term returns
- How a perpetual fund changes founder–investor alignment
- Why trust networks shape who gets funded
- The danger of capital crowding into the same ideas
- What pre-seed investing really means for founder risk
- Why geography still matters in early-stage innovation
- How AI hype is distorting investment decisions
- What she looks for in founders who want to change work
- Why impact and market returns don’t have to conflict
- And other topics…

Virginie Raphaël is the Founder and Managing Partner of FullCircle, a perpetual pre-seed fund focused on building a more equitable and sustainable workforce. Before founding the firm, she was a Managing Director at Tusk Ventures and previously worked in banking at Lehman Brothers and Barclays. She has spent her career supporting early-stage founders in complex and highly regulated sectors.

Resources Mentioned:
FullCircle: https://www.fullcirclefund.io/

Connect with Virginie:
Twitter: https://x.com/VirginieRaphael
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/virginie-raphael-7197271/ 

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.