
Polly Barnes
With 20 years in people, transformation and psychometrics, Polly specialises in understanding leadership, decision-making, and team dynamics in fast-growth environments.
At EQT, Polly leads the tech talent team and has the unique opportunity to meet every founder —over 1,000 and counting of the strongest European entrepreneurs —and supports them as they navigate leadership, team-building, and scaling their companies. This firsthand exposure has given her deep insights into the key success factors behind entrepreneurial growth and high-performing teams that she brings to support the portfolio. With higher predictability, this approach not only helps distinguish high-potential founders from the general entrepreneur population but also de-risks early-stage investments.
Drawing from these experiences, Polly has just published The Founder Six, a framework capturing the essential traits and strategies of Generation defining founders.