Emily Calkins, Annaliesa Routh, Emily Fox, and Anna Yu Named Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing

The 2026 GrowthCap Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing list has recognized Spectrum Equity’s Emily Calkins, Principal; Annaliesa Routh, Principal; Emily Fox, Principal, Market Research and Investment Operations; and Anna Yu, Vice President.

“Behind many of the most successful growth investment firms, portfolio companies, and value creation strategies are exceptional women whose talents and capabilities help drive exceptional outcomes year in and year out,” said GrowthCap in an official press release. “The individuals being recognized here represent an exceptional group, reflective of the many other women across the growth investing field who are rising stars and future leaders.”

Emily Calkins and Annaliesa Routh were previously recognized for their leadership on the list in 2025 and 2024; Emily Calkins was also recognized in 2023.

Awardee Bios

Emily Calkins

“The bar for preparation and insight keeps rising—and it should given the massive leverage AI is giving all of us to get the commoditized work done well. But what AI hasn’t touched is the rarer thing: being the person a founder actually wants to call from the trenches, who they trust to shoot them straight, and who they still want to get breakfast with the next morning. That’s not a function of how fast you can run diligence. It’s a function of how much you’ve earned the right to." - Emily Calkins

Emily Calkins is a Principal at Spectrum Equity, where she invests in product-led, fast-growth business and the scrappy, ambitious teams who build them. She joined in 2021 as a Vice President and has appeared on GrowthCap’s Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing list in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Emily serves on the boards of both Poppins Payroll and Presence Learning, served on the board of Litmus prior to the firm’s exit, and played a central role on the investment team for Sponsor United and continues to engage with management post-investment. Inside the firm, Emily has helped build a deeper, more diverse junior bench and refined Spectrum’s approach to mentorship and career development. The culture she has helped shape pairs ambition with genuine respect; underpinning it all is the fundamental belief that ‘directness is kindness’. For Emily, the act of relationship-building is the central joy of the work: with portfolio company CEOs, with entrepreneurs, and with every member of the Spectrum team.

Before Spectrum, she originated and executed several investments for Mainsail Partners as both an Associate and Senior Associate and held investment banking roles at Credit Suisse. She earned her MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, where she was Co-President of her class, delivered the commencement address, and received the Arbuckle Award for leadership. She graduated with honors from Williams College, where she studied creative writing.

Annaliesa Routh

“I’m grateful to the founders who let me be a small part of their success. I try to show up the way good partners do: curious, steady, and focused on making a real impact.” - Annaliesa Routh

Annaliesa Routh is a Principal at Spectrum Equity, where she partners with growth-stage software, AI, and data businesses. She first joined as an MBA intern in 2020, completed her MBA at Harvard Business School, and returned full-time as an investor. She has appeared on GrowthCap’s Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing list in 2024 and 2025, and holds board seats at RapidRatings, Tenstreet, and Quavo; her recent transaction work runs across several of the firm’s deals. A curiosity-first approach defines how she works with founders. She asks the hard questions and stays useful as companies move from product-market fit to repeatable, scalable growth.

Within Spectrum, Annaliesa is a trusted advisor to her portfolio companies and a regular source of guidance for the junior team. She plays a hands-on role in recruiting and talent development and leads content planning for the firm’s annual sales and marketing summit. Before Spectrum, she worked at Thomas H. Lee Partners across healthcare and manufacturing investments. She earned her undergraduate degree with Distinction from the University of Virginia.

Emily Fox

“In my biased opinion, I have the best job in growth equity. I get to work across the deal lifecycle. I get to work on how AI is impacting our industry. And I’m surrounded by a team at Spectrum that is a special combination of brilliant and humble. It’s hard to imagine a more rewarding place or a more exciting time to be doing this work.” - Emily Fox

Emily Fox is a Principal at Spectrum Equity, where she leads market research and investment operations. She joined the firm in 2023 and was promoted to Principal in 2026, and in a relatively short tenure has become one of Spectrum’s most cross-functional contributors. Her work spans buyside and sellside diligence, sourcing optimization, vendor management, and AI enablement.

Emily runs market research, competitive analysis, and voice-of-customer work for new investments and portfolio companies, and leads the analytics behind Spectrum’s sourcing operations. This year she launched Spectrum’s flagship program dedicated to AI projects. She is also a frequent presence at portfolio company summits, where her research translates directly into value for management teams.
Before Spectrum, Emily was a Project Leader at Boston Consulting Group, focused on commercial diligence and growth strategy for technology investments within the firm’s private equity practice. She spent several years at EY-Parthenon in a similar capacity before that. She received her MBA with Distinction from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, where she was named an Edward Tuck Scholar, and holds a BA in economics with honors from Williams College.

Anna Yu

“Founders have an uncanny ability to combine deep customer empathy with an unwavering willingness to challenge convention. Earning the right to be a trusted thought partner requires curiosity, preparation, and a genuine commitment to understanding their business and helping them succeed.” - Anna Yu

Anna Yu is a Vice President at Spectrum Equity, where she invests across consumer internet and B2B software. Since joining the firm in 2023, she has worked closely with several of the firm’s portfolio companies. Anna brings a high-energy, curiosity-driven approach to investing, with a particular interest in understanding how evolving customer needs and technology adoption create opportunities for transformative businesses.

Most recently, Anna is a core member of the investment team behind Spectrum’s 2026 investment in splose, an AI-enabled practice management platform used by more than 20,000 Allied Health clinicians across Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand and now holds an observer sear. She also sourced and played a central role in originating and executing Spectrum’s investment in an unannounced consumer gaming business in 2023, an experience that sparked a growing appreciation for founders creating products that earn an enduring place in the lives of their users.

Read more about the full list of awardees here: The Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing 2026

The GrowthCap “Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing ” award is issued by GrowthCap, an independent 3rd-party that is not affiliated with Spectrum Equity. Spectrum Equity paid a fee to GrowthCap in connection with the promotion and distribution of this announcement following the award designation. The award was announced July 1st, 2026, and the time period for which the award was based May 1st 2025-May 1st, 2026. Spectrum Equity submitted the nomination for consideration on May 12th, 2026, along with requested information about the firm. This award reflects GrowthCap’s determination based on its own criteria. For more information about GrowthCap and its award methodology, please visit www.growthcapadvisory.com. The award is not indicative of Spectrum Equity’s future performance and is not an endorsement by any client or investor.