Wait! Questions to Ask Before You Join a VC Firm

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The Early Newsletter | 17th Edition

Hi all! Here’s what we have on deck for this week 👇️ 

💹 Today’s schedule:

• New VC Roles This Week 💫

• 5 Questions to Ask Before You Join a VC Firm 🤔 

• Reads of the Week 🧠 

• Refer a Friend 🙂

• Resources 📝

• Say Hi 👋

New VC Roles This Week 💫 

Internships 🤓 

• Summer Intern @ Riffle Ventures (Remote, US) - Apply Here by May 17th

• Intern, Investing Team @ DraperU Ventures (San Mateo, CA) - Apply Here

• Summer MBA Intern @ XRC Ventures (Remote or New York, NY) - Apply Here

Analyst 😍 

• Senior VC Analyst @ CareFirst (Washington, D.C.) - Apply Here

• Program Analyst - Climate Tech @ Marble (Paris, FRA) - Apply Here

Associate/Senior Associate 😄 

• Associate @ Prelude Ventures (San Francisco, CA) - Apply Here 

• Associate/Senior Associate @ XRC Ventures (Los Angeles, CA) - Apply Here

• US Associate @ Flourish Ventures (Hybrid - Washington, D.C.) - Apply Here

• Sustainability Senior Associate @ Yamaha Motor Ventures (Palo Alto, CA) - Apply Here

• Senior Associate @ Rakuten Capital (Seattle, Washington) - Apply Here

Operational Roles 🤠 

• Platform Operations Manager @ Forum Ventures (Toronto, CAN) - Apply Here

• Chief of Staff @ Union Heritage Ventures (Detroit, MI) - Apply Here

• Digital Marketing Communications Manager @ Flourish Ventures (New York, NY) - Apply Here

Roles Still Open From Last Week 🏃‍♀️ 

• Summer Intern @ Azolla Ventures (San Francisco, CA or Cambridge, MA) - Apply Here

• VC Analyst @ AP Ventures (San Francisco or London) - Apply Here

• Associate @ M13 (Hybrid - Los Angeles, CA) - Apply Here

• VC Associate @ Planetary Scale (US, Remote) - Apply Here

• Marketing Data Analyst @ Alumni Ventures (Boston, MA) - Apply Here

• Events Coordinator @ First Round Capital (San Francisco, CA) - Apply Here

❗️ Note that many VC roles are posted without application deadlines and filled on a rolling basis - if you see one you like, I’d recommend applying within a week, or as soon as possible!

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Wait! 5 Questions to Ask Before You Join a VC Firm 🤔 

It can be tempting to jump on any chance to join a VC firm, but the reality is, like any company, the experience will depend on the structure and culture of the firm you join. After reflecting on many conversations with aspiring VCs about the interview process, I put together a few questions to ask before committing to a VC role. 💭 

👩‍💼 1) Who will I directly be working with in this role? Will I have a manager or someone I’m directly reporting to, or is this completely self-directed?

VC firms differ a lot in terms of internal structure - some firms expect junior investors (analysts, associates, senior associates) to be fully independent, while others will pair you with a more senior team member (principal or partner) to show you the ropes. From my own experience and that of many junior VCs I’ve spoken with, having a mentor figure within your firm is a huge plus for learning and career progression.

💹 2) What are the opportunities for growth as a junior investor? Is this expected to be a “pre-MBA” role, or is there room for me to grow in my career here? 

Both options (two-year stint and long-term growth role) can be a great fit depending on your stage of career, but I hear from a lot of junior VCs who didn’t know when they took their role that there was no path to partner from their position. It’s helpful to know career growth expectations from both sides ahead of time.

💸 3) How do you allocate carry to junior (non-partner) investors? Is there an opportunity for my allocation to grow as I show that I’m adding more value? Will I only have carry on the deals I source for the firm, or is it a percentage of the fund’s total returns?

In VC, the ‘big money’ is made by receiving carry in the fund, not salary. It’s important to establish expectations for carry early on. If a firm is not ready to offer junior investors carry on the full fund, it can sometimes be worked out that the junior team member will receive carry on the deals they source and get through to investment.

🛠️ 4) What core skills will I build in this role? If I need to develop additional hard skills (financial modeling, market sizing) to excel in this role, will there be an opportunity for me to learn these skills on the job?

VC is known for being a ‘soft skills’ profession, where it’s expected that investors have already honed hard skills in previous roles. But, what if VC is your first role? If a firm is requiring a set of hard skills to ultimately progress in your career there, make sure you have a strong understanding of how you’ll be able to develop those skills at that firm. This can be through classes (I took TTS during my first year in VC) or learning sessions with more senior members of the firm.

💌 5) How does the firm approach portfolio support? In what ways does the firm uniquely support founders?

When I was deciding on my first VC role, it was important to me to choose a firm that genuinely helps its founders beyond just writing a check into the company. I wanted to fully understand the value proposition of the firm and make sure it aligned with my own core values of supporting founders through all stages of the building process. I also knew I would learn more at an operationally-focused firm.

Reads This Week 🌟 

⌛️ The ‘time machine approach’ to investing in Venture Capital (Jaap Vriesendorp)

🤔 Why Your Startup Isn’t Venture Backable (Halle Tecco)

💪 The 4 Traits of Successful Founders (Jennifer Carolan - Reach Capital)

Check Out Our Recent Posts 👇️ 

Refer a Friend 👭 

Enjoying the newsletter? Click the button below to refer a friend 🙂 

Resources 📝 

• Download my meeting notes template for VC/investment pitches 🧠

• Check out my previous post for a list of VC interview resources that I use!

• Take a look at the Early VC job board with roles updated twice weekly 🤗 

• Join the waitlist for our VC candidate portal 🤝 

Say Hi! 👋 

And that’s all for this week! You can find me on LinkedIn and X. As always, feel free to reach out to [email protected] with any questions and/or feedback. I’d love to hear from you! 🙂 

-Mic