Liz Wessel

Yo, have you heard of Liz Wessel? She’s the real deal in the startup world. So, she jumped into the scene back in 2014 when she co-founded WayUp, yeah, the platform that helps young folks find jobs and makes recruiting way easier for companies. And get this, she crushed it. Grew that thing to over 6 million users, snagged thousands of clients, and raised like $40 million in venture cash. No small feat for a startup that started out just a few years ago.

But Liz’s story isn’t just about building a killer platform. She’s one of those people who’s been in the trenches at big tech too. Before all this, she worked at Google as a Product Marketing Manager over in California, then took her skills abroad to India to lead branding stuff. Basically, she’s been around the block, understanding how giants tick, which totally helped her build WayUp from the ground up.

And she’s not just about startups. She’s also jumped into the VC scene, serving as a Visiting Group Partner at Y Combinator for the S22 and W23 batches. She’s been giving advice to other founders, helping them crush it, all while taking some maternity leave in 2023. That shows she’s got the hustle, but she also knows how to balance life.

Plus, she’s been recognized a ton. Forbes 30 Under 30? Check. Named one of the ’18 Coolest Women in Silicon Valley’ by Business Insider? Yup. And one of New York Business Journal’s ‘Most Influential Women’? Absolutely. She’s also a frequent speaker at big events like TechCrunch Disrupt, SXSW, TedX, you name it. Always sharing her story and inspiring others.

What’s crazy is, she met her co-founder JJ Fliegelman at Penn, so she’s a smart, ambitious Ivy League grad with a clear vision. Her process? It screams motivation. She saw a gap, jumped in early, and refused to stop until she built something that really changed the game for young job seekers and companies alike.

So, in a nutshell, Liz Wessel is this unstoppable force who’s been in the trenches at Google, then took all that tech and marketing know-how to create WayUp, turning it into a major player in the HR tech space. Now, she’s shaping the next generation of founders at YC, all while being recognized as one of the coolest women in the scene. Basically, she’s proof that if you’re hungry and willing to work, you can build something legit from nothing. That’s why she’s so important.