Investment Director- Chicago, IL or Decatur, IL This is an exempt level position. Position Summary: The Investment Director for ADM Ventures will work closely with the VP of ADM Ventures to establish and build this business division. ADM Ventures will assess, develop and manage new product platforms to expand our portfolio and drive significant sales and profit growth for ADM. Successful new products may be coordinated into existing ADM Business Units or potentially provide the base for a new business unit. This position’s primary focus will be on innovative technologies that are being developed outside of ADM with a focus on technologies for food, feed and sustainable materials platforms. The Investment Director role will have broad responsibilities to identify, assess, recommend and execute high value opportunities that deliver both strategic and financial value. Overall, this position is responsible for end-to-end sourcing, negotiation and execution of deals, as well as post-close oversight of on-going relationships. The Investment Director will directly report to the VP, ADM Ventures and will work collaboratively with other ADM Ventures team members. Job Responsibilities:
- Key member of the ADM Ventures team. Provides thought leadership to build and drive ADM Venture’s strategy. Leverages corporate venture capital (CVC) standard methodologies for effective performance of the external arm of ADM Ventures. Works with VP, ADM Ventures and the Ventures team to develop group functions, capabilities and processes, and develop team talent.
- Demonstrates an existing deep external network to generate deal flow.
- Partners with and builds effective relationships with our business unit (BU) and R&D teams. Understands and influences BU strategies to focus external search. Build support and gain consensus for ADM Ventures projects. Provides periodic reviews
- Completes market landscapes to proactively educate ADM on high potential areas and make recommendations.
- Scouts for companies developing relevant technologies in scope for ADM Ventures – builds a pipeline of relevant opportunities. Works with other ADM Ventures Investment Director(s) to Review deal for relevant opportunities; captures deal flow in our tracking software.
- Works with internal partners to assess and build business cases including recommendations for business model execution and investment opportunity. Presents investment recommendations to VP ADM Ventures and ADM Ventures Steering Board – May present investment recommendations to ADM’s capital committee
- Works with relevant ADM functional leads on due diligence for possible investments
- Works with appropriate ADM teams to negotiate deal terms and communicate with entrepreneurs, management teams, syndicate partners and other partners, including attorneys, advisors, consultants and board members.
- Coordinates on-going relationships with portfolio companies to improve value to both ADM and the portfolio company. This may include taking possible board seats or observer roles positions to develop technologies, companies and management teams that help us to strategically grow and transform our business.
- Provides effective updates and reviews on deal flow status and the portfolio to manager, Steering Board and other ADM groups. A variety of communication vehicles may be used such as Powerpoint presentations, written reports, etc.
- Provides effective updates and reviews on deal flow status and the portfolio to manager, Steering Board and other ADM groups. A variety of communication vehicles may be used such as Powerpoint presentations, written reports, etc.
- May participate in the advisory boards of the Venture Capital funds ADM is a LP in; may also ensure ADM is reviewing all relevant deal flow opportunities that come from the VC funds
- Provides periodic emerging trend observations to the business and for the ADM Board
- Recommends additional pathways for innovation such as use of accelerators, university entrepreneurship programs, research organizations, pitch programs, etc. Recommends conferences for ADM to sponsor and attend.
- Participates in and may speak at industry events such as conferences, tradeshows or other related events. May lead internal Venture’s events such as hosting our own pitch events, etc.
- Other duties, as needed
Job Requirements:
- Minimum 10 years of experience in a Corporate Venture program or VC organization, or working with new technologies companies in corporate or business development/M&A roles
- Relevant experience in the specialty ingredients industry (food/feed) preferred
- Experience working directly at a start-up desired
- Track record of deal flow execution and deal negotiation
- Professional attitude with outstanding communication (written, verbal and presentation skills) and interpersonal skills, with experience in leading and managing teams to launch new technologies
- Experience in large corporate environments, desired
- Self motivated with ability to influence cross functional teams and to collaborate across many different disciplines; Ambitious with ability to work in a matrix environment
- Demonstrated ability with MS Office tools (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
Educational Requirements:
- Degree in engineering, Food Science, chemistry or other technical area preferred. Other relevant degrees may be considered with appropriate industry experience
- MBA strongly preferred!
Core Competencies: Every position in ADM requires commitment to integrity, safety, diversity, quality and the following for this position:
- Strategic vision and passion for building the future!
- Intellectual curiosity about business, technology and business models
- Outstanding networking and relationship building skills
- Excellent influencing, decision making, communication and presentation skills
- Adaptable and able to solve problems in uncertain situations
- Strong business, financial and investment acumen
- Comfortable working in matrix and entrepreneurial environments
- Ability to travel; could be up to 30% – 40% of the time
If interested, please apply here.
