human again.”
Years later, Manus would gift these women a large sum of
money which allowed them to move back to Russia and to build
a house there. But her first stop after the salon was a temp agency,
where she worked a variety of jobs, including a graveyard shift
switchboard operator, a shoe model and a roller skating waitress
for MTV. Nothing was beneath her. She says her slow, careful
re-entry into society was timed to help her regain a sense of self.
Soon enough, though, she felt the pull of the business world
and she dove back in. She became associate publisher of two national
magazines and in the decades that followed, she founded
three companies: Global Goal Sports Management, Manus
Media & Literary Agency and Broad Strategy. The latter offered
branding, communications and growth strategy for clients who
included business leaders, politicians, professional athletes, celebrities
and more. The list includes Kamala Harris, Carlos Santana,
Meg Whitman, Jerry Rice and plenty of other notable names.
Through the years, Manus continued to build up her network,
her brand and a boatload of goodwill to become the Silicon Valley
superstar she is today. In 2016, the San Francisco Business
Times named her one of the Most Influential Women in Bay
Area Business.
A New Kind of Investor
At present, Manus is a managing partner at Structure Capital,
which has provided early stage funding for companies like Uber
48 South Bay Accent
and Salesforce, among many others. For
Manus, Structure is about much more
than making money; it’s also about offering
strategies and support to founders
to help them succeed, eliminating waste,
leveraging underused resources and creating
jobs.
According to Josh Muccio of The
Pitch podcast (on which Manus serves as
a panelist), getting Manus to fund your
company is like getting an Oprah stamp
on your book. And there are plenty of
hopeful founders lining up to get Manus’
stamp of approval.
“By being an early stage investor,
I’m not only investing in the founders
but also in the creation of companies
and, most importantly, jobs,” she says.
“My life is based on the idea that people
should be given fishing poles, not fish,
and if everyone has a job, a purpose,
this is the path to personal dignity and
self-sufficiency.”
To help realize that vision, Manus
works closely with her partners, Jacob
Shea and Mike Walsh. “We text each
other all day long,” says Shea, adding
that sometimes he receives texts from
Jillian at 2 a.m. “I’ve never seen a woman
work so hard.
“She’s awesome though,” he adds. “She eats clean, she doesn’t
drink alcohol really, except tequila sometimes, and she keeps herself
in great shape, which reflects in her energy level. I’ve learned
a lot as a man with bad habits trying to get better.”
Shea also says that Manus will give almost anyone attention
if that person is honest and authentic. “Her phone rings off the
hook all the time.”
At present, 30 percent of the founders who receive support
from Structure VC are women, compared to the industry average
of 4 to 7 percent. “We’re not a women-designated fund,” Manus
explains, “but I do give women more of an opportunity to pitch
me.” Her partners are all for that. “They want to invest in women,
too; they brought a lot of these female founders to the company.”
According to Manus, “Founders and investors must mirror society.
Investing in women not only guarantees a stronger business
ROI but a better societal one. We are a key economic driver;
diversity across the board and boardrooms is essential.”
In addition to supporting women through her VC work,
Manus devotes her time and resources to “creating paths to selfsufficiency
for women and children” through her Manus Family
Foundation and other organizations. A passionate advocate for
veterans, domestic abuse victims and the homeless, she has built
and supported shelters and women’s clinics worldwide. She also
joined Maria Shriver to create the Woman’s Conference, which
drew over 15,000 women. She supports a number of educational
programs as well.
Jillian Manus
and former Secretary
of State
George Shultz