Powerhouse Hon. Pauline Truong Shares Global Entrepreneurship And Funding Strategies

Hon. Pauline Truong is an ex-Vietnamese refugee, who has had many years of experience as an international lawyer, GlobePreneur, investor, adviser and writer, with a track record of awards. She featured on major mainstream media globally, is a frequent guest lecturer/public speaker at international universities and other professional events, and enjoys life to the fullest around the world. We are honored to share her advice, insights and wisdom on global entrepreneurship, funding and technology.

Media (‘M’): What is a GlobePreneur? What do you do?

Pauline (‘P’): A GlobePreneur is a global entrepreneur. As GlobePreneur and traveler who enjoys life to the fullest, I try to make a difference to the global community whilst having an adventurous life combining international law, innovation, investments, entrepreneurship, social justice, humanitarian work etc. My passion is to further develop GlobePreneurs.com. It is a global platform endorsed by celebrities, that empower and celebrate global entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds in a ‘different’ way. We have over 40,000 global entrepreneurs, lawyers, professionals and interested members from over 48 countries and we are growing rapidly. Our events in the U.S. and Asia have attracted over 100 professionals from around the globe. As the Founder and C.E.O. of Ascendo International Group and a stake-holder in a conglomerate of global companies, entrepreneur, and investor, my team and I are also working on some interesting global innovations.

M: What types of companies are you involved with? What types of companies are you interested in?

P: I have advised many emerging global companies, major health-related companies, MD PhD’s, scientists, disruptive technology companies, health professionals from respected institutions in their product development, commercialization and global expansion of their inventions and companies. They were very learned, and many of them had been in research in their respective areas and projects for many decades prior to product development and commercialization. We were able to grow the companies to a reasonable size. Hence, it was natural for us to initially lean towards biotech, medtech and other global disruptive companies in regards to funding, although we have widened our scope. We are very humbled to have been approached by the major universities like Harvard and MIT and others for a wide array of projects and innovation from around the globe. Some projects are quite amazing!

M: As a gate-keeper to a lot of funds, what factors help you make decisions?

P: Some factors that help us make our decision include (but not limited to):

1. The innovation: There are so many great ideas, but we actively explore ‘rare gems’, ‘unicorns’ and unique innovations.

2. The documentation, financials, market, potential etc.: We want to ensure there is alignment, consistency, practicality and results.

3. The team: The human resources and team work is of utmost importance and can make or break a deal.

4. Our rigorous due diligence processes: My law, science, investments and business training and experience helps me complete this process efficiently.

5. Intuition and instincts: Many times, we were close to investing a reasonable amount, but decided against it based on intuition and instincts. Sometimes we provide services, and keep the funding situation open for the future.

M: What are your three tips to help entrepreneurs approach investors?

P: My three tips for entrepreneurs to approach investors:

1. Be prepared – Imagine that you are going on ‘SharkTank’ and have to be able to answer hard questions and cross-examinations well and convince the investor to spend time on you and your project. You need to be prepared with convincing evidence and acceptable responses to their questions. This may sound strange, but many people cannot answer basic questions like ‘How did you come up with that valuation’ ?

2. Be in tune with the investor – You usually only get one chance. Be familiar with their background and selection criteria and try to engage their interest based on their criteria. Entrepreneurs should understand their competitors. Furthermore, you should not try to ‘bluff’ investors. Too many times we hear that ‘this project is one of a kind’ and ‘the best deal around.’

3. Do not waste an investor’s time – Wasting an investor’s time is almost akin to ‘burning your bridges.’ If you don’t make and leave a great impression, they will probably not take your future projects seriously.

M: How do you process applications?

P: Our applications are usually by high-end referrals from around the globe. As we are looking for the ‘hidden gems’ and very unique startups and companies, we have many international parties vetting investment opportunities in advance. Recently we opened up the opportunity for digital applications and widened our scope. We have seen many AMAZING projects globally, so we know the ‘right ones’ when we ‘see them.’  My background in law, science and entrepreneurship helps me to determine our level of interest, undertake negotiations and execute the contracts reasonably quickly, if interested. Hence we like to keep our processes very efficient.

If you know of a unicorn and there are synergies, please ask your contacts to fill out this form or email us at globepreneurs1@gmail.com. Feel free to share this article and pass the form along.

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