What does a genuinely great VC fund look like today, from an LP’s perspective?

In this episode, James and Hector are joined by Dave Neumann, Investment Manager at Schroders Capital, one of the most experienced institutional investors in venture. With a career spanning decades and exposure to top-tier global funds, Dave shares how leading LPs actually evaluate venture firms, and where many GPs get it wrong.

The conversation covers what separates top quartile funds from the rest, why venture is increasingly about building a firm rather than just making investments, and how the best managers create a long-term flywheel across talent, track record and capital.

They also go deep on often overlooked topics including DPI, liquidity, fund size, and portfolio construction. Dave explains why access is everything in venture, why consistency matters more than one-off performance, and how LPs think about returns in a world where companies stay private for longer.

A sharp, practical look at venture through the LP lens and what it takes to build a durable, high-performing fund.

Topics Covered

•  What defines a top VC fund today 
•  The LP perspective on venture performance 
•  Why venture is about building a firm, not just investing 
•  Top quartile vs lower quartile returns and the compounding effect 
•  Talent, incentives and the VC flywheel 
•  Portfolio construction myths vs reality 
•  Fund size and where returns are really made 
•  DPI, liquidity and secondaries in Europe 
•  How LPs think about risk, time horizons and outcomes 
•  Why access is the biggest advantage in venture