Waypoint’s Diane Vrkic Talks PropTech, Venture Capital Fundraising

Diane Vrkic

SILICON VALLEY, CA—Leaders in both technology and commercial real estate almost always fit a particular mold and Waypoint’s founder and CEO, Diane Vrkic, is a pioneer for future females in both industries. Waypoint, launched in 2015, is a smart asset management platform for the commercial real estate industry. It had a record year in 2018 and it is on-track for another this year.

PropTech Corporate Titles

As Vrkic meets with various clients and partners, she has noticed a significant change in the people who are seated at the table for real estate investment firms. Chief Information Officers and Chief Technology Officers are increasingly becoming senior members of real estate companies.

“These folks are beginning to drive firm strategy by incorporating and using data and technology as a competitive advantage. This is a big change from what we have seen from real estate companies historically. Additionally, firms are implementing full-scale data management strategies, which are becoming integral to the growth and success of modern real estate companies,” Vrkic tells GlobeSt.com.

Venture Capital Fundraising

Venture capital fundraising has been historically difficult for women with 98% of VC funding going to males. In 2018, US female founders raised 2% of the $130 billion total in venture capital money invested over the year (via Pitchbook & All Raise), a decline even from 2017.