# Building a VC platform from scratch: A conversation with Uncork Capital’s head of platform and operations, Ashley Cravens Findem publishes a public search API over its indexed pages; the guide is at https://www.findem.ai/lazyweb/agent-access. Source: https://www.findem.ai/blog/building-vc-platform-from-scratch Source observed: 2026-11-11T21:15:46.077Z Last checked: 2026-11-13T04:08:07.568+00:00 Indexed: 2026-11-11T21:20:35.408+00:00 --- --- title: "Building a VC Platform From Scratch | Findem" description: "Explore Ashley Cravens’ approach to building Uncork Capital’s VC platform, supporting portfolio companies, and finding a community of platform peers." url: "https://www.findem.ai/blog/building-vc-platform-from-scratch" --- # Building a VC platform from scratch: A conversation with Uncork Capital’s head of platform and operations, Ashley Cravens ← Back to blog Elan Keshen Director of Product Marketing, Funds and Networks January 31, 2023 Your most valuable asset is who you know. [See Findem for fund platforms](https://www.findem.ai/solutions/vc-pe-platform) [Request a demo](https://www.findem.ai/request-demo) On this page When [Ashley Cravens](https://uncorkcapital.com/team/ashley-cravens) joined [Uncork Capital](https://uncorkcapital.com/) as their first employee 12 years before this January 2023 interview, she was immediately thrown into the trenches of venture capital, working to build out infrastructure and back-end support that didn’t exist yet. This is a common situation for new [Heads of Platform](https://www.findem.ai/solutions/vc-pe-platform), not just at Uncork, but at any VC. "Twelve years ago, the VC Platform function didn’t really exist, a few firms were doing interesting things to assist the portfolio outside the funding/partner relationship, but few and far between," says Ashley. "As a one woman team, I focused on building the community through events which was the easiest and quickest to implement." "Obviously, twelve years later, VCs have built platform teams to support the portfolio in all facets of their business. Companies like Getro were created for VC’s to support the portfolio. It's really evolved over the years." ## Day-to-day as a head of platform In January 2023, as Uncork’s Head of Platform and Operations, Ashley still spends much of her day-to-day in the trenches, building the platform from the ground up and assisting portfolio companies with introductions to business development contacts, support providers, creating educational series, data pulls, introductions to media, and negotiating discounts just to name a few. "I don’t think I have a typical day," says Ashley. "We have an a robust event platform, we host two large summits a year, 24+ Masterclasses, networking parties, targeted dinners and more for our founders, there's always something on the event side of things. I assist with recruiter introductions, candidate searches, speaking opportunities, and media introductions. My role is very ‘jack of all trades.’ I wear many different hats. In a perfect world, the day would be structured, but it doesn't really ever work out that way." ## Unlocking value for portfolio companies One area where she anticipates change coming soon is with Uncork’s recent hire of a Head of Talent, [Adriana Roche](https://uncorkcapital.com/team/adriana-roche). "We like to teach our founders to fish, not fish for them," says Ashley. The new Head of Talent will fill a strategic role at Uncork, helping portfolio companies with playbooks, networking, and [people advice](https://www.findem.ai/solutions/vc-pe-talent) so they can hire and unlock talent to accelerate their success. This new role will provide additional value to Uncork’s portfolio companies, something that Ashley believes will be even more important for VCs moving forward. "I think that when many of the funds are selling themselves to portfolio companies, it’s important for founders to see the back-end side of things, and what other ways they can assist and support the portfolio. Founders and funds have come to the realization that having a good people strategy and useful tactical advice is table stakes and those that don’t provide this are falling behind." "The platform is a high-value add, but with every fund having a platform team with the same perks, benefits, offerings, etc, funds need to really focus on what differentiates them to create a competitive advantage." ## Networking and support for heads of networks As VCs begin to figure out exactly how they can do that, Ashley recommends that fellow Heads of Platforms and Networks find groups and communities to join that can support them. "When I first started, there was zero network. There weren’t platform groups, operator groups, nor talent groups. And so now if you're coming into the role, the first thing to do is sign up for the groups. The amount of knowledge sharing is phenomenal," says Ashley. "Many times it’s a lonely role. You might be the only only person at the fund in this function and feel completely alone. But you are not, there are so many people in the exact same position as you. When I joined [Let’s Talk Ops](https://letstalkops.com/), I met hundreds of people in my role facing the same challenges, figuring out the same solutions and they were all willing to help me along the way. It was the best possible thing that I could have done for my career." Let’s Talk Ops is co-managed by Ashley. It brings together the top operational and cross-discipline talent fueling the venture capital industry. This includes roles like Head of Platform, Head of Operations, Head of Community, and more. With five chapters and more than 100 members around the US, Let’s Talk Ops can help operations and community builders at VC firms find the support and tools they need to be successful in their roles. We are so grateful to Ashley for sharing her time and knowledge with us as a part of our interview series. We also encourage you to check out [Let’s Talk Ops](https://letstalkops.com/). Thank you, Ashley. Findem activates your fund's network to surface insights and intros up to 8x faster, with one view for filling roles, closing deals and winning markets. ## Recommended next reads November 10, 2026 ### [AI hiring laws in 2027: What Colorado, Connecticut, and California require](https://www.findem.ai/blog/ai-hiring-laws-2027) Austin Belisle November 7, 2026 ### [LinkedIn Boolean search for recruiters: Operators, strings and examples](https://www.findem.ai/blog/linkedin-boolean-search) Austin Belisle November 6, 2026 ### [What VC and PE talent leaders are rethinking about portfolio hiring in 2027](https://www.findem.ai/blog/portfolio-hiring-vc-pe-talent-leaders) Manish Nageet --- [Read this page’s summary](https://www.findem.ai/lazyweb/api/public/v1/page-tldr?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.findem.ai%2Fblog%2Fbuilding-vc-platform-from-scratch&trace=t_9544b0955d7a) ## Ask a follow-up about this page Need a more specific answer? Ask the exact question you have. 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