Basis Set Ventures (BSV) is one of the only Machine Learning (ML) focused and ML enabled seed funds. It recently closed its $165 million second fund, with $300M+ AUM.
We’re looking for a Chief of Staff to support Dr. Lan Xuezhao, BSV’s Founding and Managing Partner (and one of the VCs with the best founder reviews).
This person will diligence investments, support portfolio companies, help with fund management, manage our community, and everything in between.
Location:
Flexible with necessary travel.
About Lan:
Lan is the Founding and Managing Partner of Basis Set Ventures. Prior to BSV, Lan built and led the Corporate Development Strategy team at Dropbox during its most acquisitive time. She previously managed teams at McKinsey in New York and Shanghai, advising Fortune 500 companies on issues including big data, AI, and growth strategy. Earlier in her career, Lan designed and developed brain training games as a founder and studied human brain functions for her Ph.D. She also received her M.A. in Statistics, both from the University of Michigan.
About Basis Set Ventures:
Basis Set Ventures invests in early-stage technology companies that fundamentally transform the way people work. We believe artificial intelligence delivers core value by improving productivity for all parts of the economy; from factories to offices. Our fund is dedicated primarily to Seed stage startups.
Past investments include Scale, Rasa, Path Robotics, Workstream, Ergeon, and Lime.
About the role:
We think of BSV as our own small, fast-moving startup, and we’re looking for someone that has that same startup mentality. No two days will look the same.
On any given day, your work could include:
- Conduct diligence on a potential new investment (e.g. taking notes on reference checks, conducting market analysis, doing financial analysis)
- Sourcing investments from communities
- Build community through planning a community event and handling logistics necessary with the help from our admin team, from coming up with email messages to sending out swags when needed
- Come up with, getting team buy in on, and then implementing a new fund initiative to expand our outreach to early-stage founders
- Support a portfolio company by finding potential candidates, conducting pro forma analysis, coordinating reporters for a big funding announcement, or delivering a personalized gift to a founder
- Help with fund management work, including coordinating internally for logistics
About you:
- You have solid experience in financial modeling through working in consulting, investment banking, or studying a quantitative discipline
- You have an extremely high capacity to learn
- You are humble, easy to work with, low maintenance, and no drama. We believe entitlement is the enemy of success
- You are loyal and interested in joining a team for the long-term
- You are a good problem solver and enjoy solving challenges. You are not easily stressed out. You do well with fire drills
- You are honest and direct, can communicate clearly
- You have unique insights
- You are organized and detail oriented and can keep the trains running on time
- You are proactive, can handle ambiguity, and don’t need to be managed
Why you might be excited:
This is a career-changing opportunity for someone who learns fast, has no ego, and does whatever it takes to get the job done. We believe the right person can basically learn anything, and are excited to give you the opportunity. The work you do here will be some of the craziest and most exciting work you will ever do, and you will be exposed to all aspects of venture capital.
We also love to bring in people who will be here for the long-term. There is potential for this person to become a partner at the fund down the line, if there is the right fit.
Finally, we are excited to speak to those with unique backgrounds and different perspectives. You may even be underestimated in your current role, and eager to come into a new role where they can put in the effort and grow and take on more and more responsibility.
Why you might not be excited:
If you are looking for a regular 9-5 job, this is not a good fit.
You should be comfortable with short timelines and last-minute changes. This is not the kind of job where you show up and we tell you exactly what to do every day.
If you have a big ego or are high maintenance. Our team is small and moves very fast. Everyone does pretty much everything and learns constantly.
How to apply:
Apply here: https://airtable.com/shrhqfwppDf8AIJ3b
If you have questions, please email recruiting@basisset.com
