It is one thing to know diamonds exist, and an entirely different thing to see where you can find them. This analogy applies to the job industry where you could find a lucrative career if you only knew where to look. One such sector is venture capital firms.
What are Venture Capital Firms?
Venture capital firms raise capital from their partners who are institutions, funds, and other offices and use this capital to incubate new companies that could potentially grow exponentially. Venture capital firms fund these high-growth potential companies and get part ownership in them. Once these companies grow and reach their potential, the venture capital firm organizes an acquisition or initial public offering (IPO) and liquidate their investments for high profits. VCs invest in different industries that have high-growth-potential such as tech, pharmaceuticals, education, commerce, and any opportunity.
What kind of jobs can you get in Venture capital firms?
Venture capitalists usually try to find experts in different fields and integrate them into their workforce. Because they spend most of their time searching for the next unicorn, negotiating investment deals, and supporting companies in their portfolio, they tend to favor hiring analysts, specialists, and junior associates to provide business support. VC jobs are available in the following categories:
1. Sourcing and Research – identifying startups worth investing in and compiling a folder about them.
2. Deal Processing – Carrying out due diligence on potential investment opportunities to determine viability, financial targets, and favorable deal conditions.
3. Corporate Support – Assisting companies under management with administrative functions such as sales, marketing, financial planning, and recruiting.
4. Branding and Networking – Content publishing, events attendance, public appearances, workshop planning, and meeting with key opinion leaders in the community.
5. Internal Operations and Management – Recruitment, internal reviews audits, IT support, administrative functions
What skills do you need?
There are different skills and experience requirements necessary to enter the venture capital. Usually, there’s a Pre-MBA degree requirement, having a bachelor’s degree sometimes suffices too. It is also beneficial if you have a background in tech, finance, or other relevant industries before you enrolled in business school. Work experience is also desirable.
VC firms generally look for people who have a passion for investing, understanding, and distilling complex situations—having excellent communication and client management skills also come handy. It is essential to spend some time researching the VC’s company culture to find the right fit before applying for a job.
Top VC companies you can apply to
1. Techstars
Techstars is a US-based seed accelerator founded in 2006. Applicants to Techstars’ program face a screening committee that evaluates their potential and viability. Accepted companies receive up to $1M in different perks and a three-month accelerator program. Some of their successful startups include Digital Ocean, Sketchfab, Mocavo, and Graphic.ly.
2. Y Combinator
With over 2,000 investments and successful exits from over 200 of them, Y Combinator is one of the earliest and most successful VCs. New startups receive $120,000 and access to a wide range of support from experienced professionals and Forbes 500 executives as mentors. Successful Y Combinator investments include Airbnb, DropBox, Reddit, and Coinbase, which is now one of the largest cryptocurrency companies in the world.
This VC firm is predominantly active in energy, finance, technology, and healthcare, and are based in California. Sequoia employs over 500 employees and has investments in Stripe, Zoom, Instagram, Apple, WhatsApp, and NVIDIA
Final words
Working in venture capital firms has upsides that reach far into the future. Your annual compensation sometimes includes equity in some of the most highly sought-after companies that will set you on the path to financial freedom. Do your research and look out for job openings in your favorite VC firms, and you just might find yourself working in Silicon Valley in no time.
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