Why GTM Leaders Make Great Angel Investors

​Go-to-market leaders are uniquely positioned to succeed as angel investors. Your deep understanding of customer needs, market dynamics, and scaling strategies gives you an edge in identifying promising startups—and supporting them as they grow. But how do you actually break into angel investing?

​Join us for a dynamic conversation with Carrie Cowan and Vivian Luu, two powerhouse GTM operators and active investors with The Council Angels. Carrie and Vivian have led growth and marketing at top-tier companies like Microsoft, NVIDIA, Uber, and Adobe—and now bring that same strategic expertise to the startup ecosystem as investors and advisors.

You'll walk away with:

✅ Why GTM skills translate to strong investing instincts – and how your operator experience can be your superpower

✅ A behind-the-scenes look at a recent investment decisions, with practical insights into evaluating early-stage startups

✅ Actionable advice for getting started as an angel investor—including how The Council can help you plug into the right networks and opportunities

Who Should Attend?

• ​GTM professionals exploring the world of startup investing

• ​Operators and founders curious about angel investing

• ​Anyone curious about early-stage startup investing

​Speakers:

• ​Carrie Cowan, angel investor and former GTM exec at NVIDIA, EA, Microsoft, and Gartner
  
  Carrie Cowan is an accomplished marketing executive who specializes in helping emerging tech companies transform technical complexities into compelling stories and go-to-market strategies.
  
  Carrie also brings founder perspective to her advisory work, having co-founded a gaming startup that secured $3M in seed funding, co-authored six registered patents, and launched three products in under 18 months. This founder experience, complete with battle scars, drives her empathetic approach when working with early-stage entrepreneurs. Now in her second act as an angel investor and fractional marketing leader, Carrie combines institutional-grade strategic intelligence with hands-on operational experience to help founders scale without losing what's already working.

• ​Vivian Luu, Head of Product & Solutions Marketing at Uber Freight
  
  Over the last 15+ years, Viv led and partnered with cross-functional teams at Fortune 500 companies and hyper-growth startups including IBM, Microsoft, Adobe, NIKE, and Convoy to launch and scale products. Her “happy place” is the intersection of human expertise, emerging technology, and essential industry.
  
  Prior to joining the product marketing world, Viv served in agency and in-house full-stack marketing and creative strategy roles. Her and her team’s work has earned industry awards including the Hermes Creative Awards, American Business Awards, and Communicator Award.
  

• ​Amy Kepler (Moderator) is a seasoned marketing executive with over 20 years of experience leading brand, growth, and go-to-market strategy for companies ranging from high-growth startups to global enterprises. She has held senior roles at companies like Visa, Cruise, and Future, where she built and scaled marketing teams, led brand refreshes, and drove measurable business impact across channels. 

​💬 Live Q&A: Come ready with your questions—Carrie and Vivian will be answering them live!

👋 About Us
​The Council Angels is a curated angel investing community for operators. Our members join this network to learn more about startups, hear pitches from founders, and socialize with other talented tech employees.