Board Partner at First Round Capital
Check size: Not applicable to his current role: First Round states that Chris has made no new investments since becoming a Board Partner in 2019. Historical round or check data should not be used to imply current investment authority.
Chris is now a portfolio-support and board partner rather than an active new-investment partner. His historical investing centered on advertising and marketing technology, social and mobile products, ecommerce and travel, connected devices, and gaming. The through-line in his current work is relationship-driven company building: connecting founders to people, resources, partners, and advice that can help them go the distance.
Do not pitch Chris as a current check-writer; First Round says he stopped making new investments in 2019. For an existing portfolio company seeking his help, frame one concrete relationship, business-development, board, or resource need, explain the desired outcome, and make it easy for him to identify the right connection or next action.
Entrepreneurs who inspire him and people he genuinely likes working with; opportunities to use trusted relationships, business-development experience, and ecosystem knowledge to help existing companies. His historical record includes category-defining consumer, marketplace, advertising, and connected-device businesses.
Chris does not make new investments in his current Board Partner role, according to First Round. A founder seeking a new First Round check should approach the current investing team rather than treating his historical portfolio or sector experience as an active mandate.
Build relationships by being useful before asking for anything, making specific high-quality introductions, following through reliably, and maintaining the connection over years.
For a portfolio-company need, define the business outcome first, identify the exact person or resource that can unlock it, and make a context-rich introduction with a clear reason both sides should engage.
Separate historical investing expertise from current authority: route new fundraising to active investors and reserve Board Partner engagement for existing-company support, governance, and networks.
“Connecting with people has always been my core competency.”
— https://www.firstround.com/team/board-partners/chris-fralic
“I continue to work with existing companies, but no longer make new investments.”
— https://www.firstround.com/team/board-partners/chris-fralic
Durable networks are built through generous, specific, trustworthy follow-through and long-term relationship maintenance—not transactional collection of contacts.
Long-duration venture partnerships reward founder conviction, patient support, community focus, and the ability to keep learning through a company's many phases.
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