Liz Keehner Joins Next Level Ventures

 

Join us in welcoming Next Level Ventures’ newest hire, Liz Keehner.

 

Liz brings several years of experience in investments and early-stage tech startups. Having been interested in venture capital and entrepreneurship early on in life and her career, Liz has been able to work with a variety of startup founders and various stages in their businesses.

 

Liz graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 2013 with a degree in finance and an emphasis in investments, as well as a certificate in entrepreneurship. Knowing venture capital would blend her skills in math, as well as her interest in investment, Liz moved to Austin to start her career in venture capital.

 

Since Liz graduated, the startup community and venture capital ecosystem has grown quickly in Des Moines. Liz and her husband moved back to Iowa, where Liz spent a lot of time learning about the Des Moines community and meeting with industry leaders.

 

When Next Level Ventures began a hiring process for someone with Liz’s background and expertise, she knew it would be a natural fit for her and her interests. Liz is excited to be a part of the community in Des Moines and is looking forward to working with local startups as well as startups across the nation.

 

At Next Level Ventures, Liz hopes to find opportunities to work with founders who have unique experiences in their industry and a deep understanding of the problems they hope to solve. Knowing that many times, a company is only as good as the founding team, Liz looks for founders that have real passion as well as the ability to execute. Additionally, diversity within teams is something that Liz hopes to see in startups she works with – from ethnic background and race to skillset and work experience.

 

Someday, Liz hopes to work on her own fund that invests specifically in women and female founders. Today, not a lot of VC funding is specifically allocated to female-owned businesses. Promoting diversity in the VC and startup world is something that Liz is very passionate about, and she’s excited to be a part of the movement and help accelerate the cause.

 

In her spare time, Liz is a member of a women’s angel group in capital, which is the first women-only angel network in Iowa, and she sits on the board for One Million Cups DSM. Liz is always looking for ways to contribute to the startup community, through board positions or mentoring entrepreneurs and startups. She and her husband volunteer with Special Olympics and enjoy running, traveling, and spending time with their two Golden Retrievers, Stevie and Scout.

 

Liz and her husband areexcited to welcome their first baby in March 2022.