Inside Corporate Venture Capital — Maija Palmer

Why chase short-term profits when strategic partnerships can build long-term growth?

This week’s VentureFuel Visionary is Maija Palmer, the Editor-in-Chief of Global Corporate Venturing (GCV). It is a community and media platform that helps corporations drive innovation through strategic investments and partnerships with startups.

Episode Highlights

• Why Corporate VC (CVC) Is Harder Than Traditional VC – Maija explains that CVCs must excel externally and internally to navigate corporate politics, align with business units, and justify long-term investments to short-term-focused executives.
• Strategic Value Is the Real ROI – The biggest win for corporate investors isn’t always financial return — it's strategic alignment. Successful CVCs help parent companies access emerging technologies and market insights that would take too long or cost too much to develop in-house.
• The Role of Global Corporate Venturing (GCV) – GCV exists to support the CVC community through editorial content, conferences, and education. The goal is to provide a knowledge base, networking platform, and training for newcomers and experienced practitioners in the CVC space.
• The Fragmentation of CVC Structures – Maija notes that no two CVCs operate similarly. Organizational structure, metrics, and goals vary widely across industries and companies, making knowledge-sharing and best practices essential for success.
• Convincing the C-Suite: The Case for External Innovation – To skeptical executives, Maija offers a clear message: internal R&D, no matter how big, can’t compete with the scale and speed of global startup innovation. CVC is a way to tap into that external momentum before it disrupts your core business.

VentureFuel builds and accelerates innovation programs for industry leaders by helping them unlock the power of External Innovation via startup collaborations.