The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (LinkedIn, Crunchbase) is dedicated to advancing human potential and promoting equal opportunity through technology, grantmaking, impact investing, policy, and advocacy work. We look for bold ideas — regardless of structure and stage — and help them scale by pairing world-class engineers with subject matter experts to build tools that accelerate the pace of social progress.
What We Believe
We engage directly in the communities we serve because no one understands how to address our society’s challenges better than those who live them everyday. These partners help us identify problems and opportunities, learn fast and iterate toward our audacious goals for the next century. We strive to be humble, empathetic and scrappy life-long learners who work collaboratively to develop community-centered solutions.We believe that high-performing teams include people from different backgrounds and experiences who can challenge each other’s assumptions with fresh perspectives. To that end, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative actively seeks a diverse pool of applicants including those from historically marginalized groups — women, people with disabilities, people of color, formerly incarcerated people, people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or gender nonconforming, first and second generation immigrants, and people from low-income families.
THE ROLE
Within CZI, Ventures makes investments in for-profit companies, both as a lead and co-investor. Our Ventures effort has initially been focused primarily on Education, where we invest in innovative for-profit companies led by impact-focused entrepreneurs that are transforming lifelong learning globally through personalized learning while building scalable, sustainable businesses. Our education investments include AltSchool, Andela, Bridge International Academies, Brightwheel, BYJU’s, Ellevation Education, MasteryConnect, Newsela, and Sawyer, among others. Our Ventures team also led the acquisition of Meta for our Science initiative. Over the past six months, Ventures has begun to explore investments to support our Policy and Science initiatives, and will look to more closely define these investment priorities over time.
As our Partner of Ventures, you will report into our Managing Partner of Ventures and be instrumental in developing investment theses, leading the execution of new investments as well as actively engaging in the monitoring and support of portfolio companies, at times as a board director or observer. Aside from applying rigorous investment discipline to making venture investments, you will also be regularly collaborating with the broader Chan Zuckerberg Initiative team on strategic projects that cut across our impact investing, grant making, engineering support and policy work to advance our overall mission. In order to align closely with the objectives within each of our initiatives, you will stay closely integrated with the respective teams and leverage your knowledge and expertise of the technology landscape, market mechanics, scaling and distribution strategies to assist them in decisions to invest, buy, build and partner.
This role is for a highly experienced investment professional with demonstrated experience sourcing, negotiating and executing venture capital or private equity investments as well as serving on boards and supporting portfolio companies. A successful candidate will be excited to leverage their honed investment skills to achieve our impact objectives, and to support our other strategies. An ideal candidate will care deeply about impact, especially through education, science, or strong communities, and preferably have demonstrated knowledge of the education/education technology or scientific/biomedical company landscape.
The position is full-time and based in our Palo Alto headquarters.
Responsibilities
- Execution of venture investments including strategically identifying, evaluating, structuring, negotiating and executing new investments
- Responsible for taking a leading role in running impact, business, financial, market and legal diligence
- Support portfolio companies, including board involvement where appropriate
- Develop investment and impact theses, measuring results and driving learning
- Work closely within our various initiatives to understand strategic priorities and to serve as a resource in advising on invest, buy, build, and partner decisions
- Represent the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative in a range of formal and informal settings
Qualifications
- Passionate about impact through education, science and/or policy
- Background ideally in venture capital or private equity; otherwise fund of fund management, corporate development, corporate venture, strategy consulting and investment banking
- 10+ years of relevant experience preferred (minimum 5 years of investment experience); impact experience — professionally or in meaningful volunteer roles
- Prior experience in education, science or our policy areas a plus
- Superior analytical and problem solving skills, as well as demonstrated business and investment judgment
- Proven leadership with high integrity and conscientiousness
- Demonstrated comfort with ambiguity, flexibility and resilience, as well as ability to thrive in a fluid and fast-paced environment
- Poise and ability to interface with C-level entrepreneurs and fellow investors
- Willingness to travel domestically and internationally (Up to 33%)
If interested, please apply here.
