Table 3.
Areas of training emphasis for a career path as a VC. There are several ways to build the skill sets and portfolio necessary to be successful and obtain an entry level job for the VC career path. Additionally, resources to guide in exploration and pursuit of this career path are provided. VCs display a variety of skills that include the ability to ingest vast amounts of information quickly, prioritize and form opinions about that information, and be comfortable making decisions even when certain information is not available. Experience in finance, entrepreneurship, and journalism can in many ways provide these transferable skills, given that absorbing the information in these fields is often like drinking from a firehose. This information is also rarely perfect, yet decisions still have to be made. Therefore, developing skills in knowing where to fact check information, how to get more information, and how to build strong pattern-recognition are important, as well.
| What you need | Rationale | How to get started | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strong social media presence | 85% of VCs have a presence on LinkedIn and Twitter | Create content in written, blog form, podcasts or another form. Demonstrate time spent thinking critically about investing in startups. | ||
| Expertise in a specific technology | To be seen as the go-to for answers on the technology | Obtain technical, consulting, legal or finance experience in the field of interest, plus an MBA or a PhD. | ||
| Up-to-date knowledge of top VC blogs and technology news sites | Know the current landscape and markets in the field of interest | Read voraciously – there are many online resources, but a few resources are listed below. | ||
| Investment experience | Establish a track-record to show how you think about investing money | Angel invest from personal funds, or contribute to equity crowdfunding campaigns, or create a shadow portfolio that tracks investments you would have made (and how they performed) if you had the money to invest. | ||
| Known strengths and/or unique experiences | Lean on and amplify strengths to make you an attractive candidate for one firm or another. | |||
| A network | The networking mindset is an important part of the VC job | Go to industry-specific events and meetups, get an intro from a VC, or get an intro from an entrepreneur a VC firm has invested in, participate in information interviews with VCs |
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| Resources for exploring the VC career path | ||||
| Job Sites | Podcasts | Books | Websites/Newsletters | Investment Sites |
| John Gannon’s Venture Capital Jobs Stephan von Perger’s European Venture Capital Jobs |
20 Minute VC Invest Like the Best How I Built This This Week in Startups |
Break into VC by Bradley Miles Venture Deals by Brad Feld The Business of Venture Capital by Mahendra Ramsinghani The Lean Startup by Eric Ries Angel by Jason Calanis |
StrictlyVC TechCrunch Avc.com Investopedia |
SeedInvest WeFunder AngelList Funder’s Club |