Jennifer Zhu Scott, one of Forbes’ World’s Top 50 Women in Tech in 2018, on success: ‘It’s not just a number’
- Founding partner of investment platform IN. Capital says we need a healthy mental and physical well-being to enjoy achievements
- In her free time she loves to run or hike on city’s scenic trails, and if stressed puts away her phone to listen to her heartbeat
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Success is not just a number, says prominent tech investor Jennifer Zhu Scott
Jennifer Zhu Scott, founding partner of the digital-forward investment platform, IN. Capital, has achieved many things during her life, but she has never forgotten the extreme poverty she endured as a child in Sichuan, China.
“Sometimes we even struggled to have sufficient food and basic necessities in life,” says Scott, a prominent figure in the tech industry, who was named one of Forbes magazine’s “World’s Top 50 Women in Tech” in 2018 and Fortune China’s “Most Influential Business Women in China” in 2021. “The contrast between my upbringing and my life now couldn’t be further apart.”
Yet perhaps it was this hardship that instilled in her a determined character trait, which has led her to where she is today. After studying for a bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics and computer science at Sichuan University, she went to Alliance Manchester Business School at the University of Manchester, in England, where she gained a master of business administration degree in finance.
Scott runs her company from Hong Kong, which has been her home for 22 years. Her business identifies post-product start-ups with high potential and provides them with guidance, connections and expertise alongside traditional capital to help them grow.
“This is a knowledge-driven field with a tremendously high potential upside, so many parties are interested in pushing for the maximised return and rushing for it,” she says.
“High-quality, intelligent advice, both in terms of tech investment and tech development, is extremely important. [Otherwise] you may end up falling to the majority who don’t make it, or creating something that might not be the best for society.”
While her professional life is about helping companies grow, Scott is not consumed by material wealth – of how much things cost.
“To me, that is the balance in success, and it’s not the absolute number – who has the biggest house, or who has the most money,” she says. “Make sure your basics are covered, but beyond that, you have to find a balance.
“You have to have a healthy mental and physical well-being to be able to enjoy the success you have and also have personal relationships with people you love to enjoy with – and have the time to enjoy.
“[You should also] do something that nourishes your heart while integrating everything you do into [having] a more positive impact on people around you and society.”
Scott admits that, like everyone else, her life can be stressful, but she has developed a coping strategy. “When I am overwhelmed, and when I feel challenged, which happens all the time, I just pause and take a few deep breaths,” she says. “I put my phones and all the [electronic] screens away, close my eyes, and listen to my heartbeat and my breath.”
When she has enough free time, she enjoys exercising. “I love to go running or hiking,” she says. “Hiking is such a huge gift to everyone who lives in Hong Kong. There are so many beautiful trails in this magical city and they are so accessible to everybody.”
Scott says it is only when you take good care of your mind and body that you can truly appreciate what success really means to you. For her, it seems to be making sure that success also involves making positive contributions to society.
“Doing good is an important part of my personal ‘true north’,” she says. “In everything I do, if I could make sure that the output is more positive to the environment, to the world, to the society, to people around me, then that adds more in terms of my personal success metrics.”
Editor’s note: Part of the video was filmed at the AIA Alta Wealth Management Centre, which provides one-stop professional services. AIA Hong Kong financial planners work with an on-site wealth management and legacy planning team to provide customers with convenient expert advice. The centre also teams up with many international organisations to provide customers with advisory services through referrals on trust, legacy, tax, legal and premium financing.
