Transitioning from Tech to Venture Capital

Hi,

Sharing my POV having spent time in BCG's PE practice (worked with a couple of VCs) as well as also spending a very short stint in a startup

The VC hiring context

• Broadly speaking, the VC junior / entry level roles are investment analyst type roles where you will be doing
  • Support deal sourcing (depending on the size of the firm the scope of this will vary)
  • Due diligence
  • Deal / fund admin
  • Portfolio company support
• In my region, VCs love to take people in from either an MC or IB background (similar to what you have heard)
• However post-MBA hiring is also possible if you come from a top MBA program
  • The MBA ‘resets' your profile and makes you attractive from a general hiring POV
• The challenge however is that VCs are often very lean and small (relatively true compared to MC and IB even in the US) - so don't expect the same kind of OCR type of proactive hiring

How to break in?

• I think the best way is to start networking
• Ultimately VCs are run by the GPs - and they make the decisions. If a GP wants to hire you, you will get hired
• Start preparing for the interview (different styles of this possible) and focus on the relevant skills needed in the analyst role

Lastly, if your ultimate goal is to work in the startup space in a startup itself, you don't need either VC or MC or IB

• If you really want to work in a startup, you don't need VC nor MC nor IB background to do so
• Sure it gets you exposed, but many successful founders never spent a day in advisory/professional services
• A great business idea, some guts and risk taking appetite and a keen sense for value will get you way further in the startup world than an advisory background

All the best!

This might not be the best platform to ask this on, but happy to provide a perspective.

To me, it always starts and ends with the people. 

That means, start networking with the people who do the sort of role you have in mind. Figure out what worked for them. What are the steps they took before landing in that role? How did they manage the transition? 

These sort of conversations are priceless and no Q&A answer will superseed them. 

I can share with you a guide on how to identify the leads for such conversations and how to prepare for the chat:

• Expert Guide: How To Handle Networking Calls and Get Referrals

Best of luck!
Cristian

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Hi there,

Benjamin's answer is spot on. 

Bain (or a similar PE-focused consultancy) tends to allow for VC transfer far more easily than other consultancies. 

There are many pathways here (banking, tech in silicon valley, etc.). Ultiamtely, I highly recommend you pick up the phone and start speaking to people. Not only will you start to understand it all more, but you also stand a shot at getting an opportunity from someone that likes you!

I started working in the PE practice at Strategy&, moved into a startup and ended up in DeepTech VC. 

General answer is this is super dependent on your ability to build relationships in the VC ecosystem. VC roles don't come up often (centred around new fund launches). These roles are filled through network often (VC associates knowing peers across the market).

Key thing to note is I saw people generally move in as Associate/Investor post consulting, Principal post MBA. Partner is either folks who have been at the fund for 10+ yrs, or ex-founders who exited.

Generally would recommend working in a big tech/startup first  to make that transition easier