VC Associate @ TDK Ventures in San Francisco, CA

This person will ideally have a deep technical background with strong business acumen and help research, source, screen, diligence, invest and assist the next cohort of world-changing technology companies. The Associate would report to the Managing Director and would be involved in all aspects of the business. We are looking for someone who is a motivated and enthusiastic self-starter who works on own initiative with light supervision. The candidate must be confident and positive, high-energy, cultured, capable of easily interacting with senior management of a large multinational organization.

This role requires the candidate to have a degree in a relevant science, technology, or engineering discipline in addition to relevant work experience in a related field. The successful Associate will be passionate about science and technology and will be enthusiastic about getting into the details of how a technology works in addition to explaining it to others.

Responsibilities

Market Research: Identify new investment trends and opportunities by performing market research in frontier technology areas (Robotics, Advanced Manufacturing, AI, IoT, Healthtech, Cleantech, 5G, Mobility, Neuromorphic Computing, Quantum Computing, etc.)

  • Analyze new investment opportunities by working with the team to create start-up ecosystem maps
  • Perform top down and bottom up market research that includes customer and key stakeholder analysis

Deal screening: call and/or meet with prospects, evaluate start-up opportunities

  • Screen deal flow, perform due diligence by understanding technology, intellectual property analysis, and financial analysis
  • Execute new and/or follow-on financings, including deal structuring and financial modeling

Technology Research: Research and talk with TDK experts and technical/business consultants to evaluate the target company’s technology including IPs

  • Perform research and analysis of new markets, technologies, competitive landscape, and share findings to the team

Investment Memos: Assist in the preparation of internal investment memos:

  • Evaluate and perform due diligence on potential investment opportunities, including preparing investment memos
  • Benchmark company metrics (engagement, retention, growth, scale, etc.)
  • Review the underlying technology and perform independent competitive analysis
  • Compare and evaluate products

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications​​​

  • Must have a PhD degree or equivalent in a technical field (Materials Sciences, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Physics, etc.)
  • Must have a minimum of 2 years relevant science, engineering, or technology work experience

Additional Qualifications & Experience

  • MBA preferred
  • 1-2 years of relevant investment experience is a plus (venture capital, private equity, corporate development, investment banking, startup)
  • Interest in working with early-stage businesses focused on material science, energy/power, biomedical, and related areas typically underrepresented in venture capital portfolios
  • Outstanding analytical skills, detail-oriented, proactive and self-motivated with ability to articulate ideas in group setting
  • Strong experience in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel
  • Ability to interpret scientific data and provide relevant conclusions/recommendations
  • Excellent project management, organizational skills, and technical know-how
  • Experience with creating start-up market landscapes and investment valuation, financial modeling techniques
  • Excellent interpersonal and written/verbal communication skills with proven ability to develop and maintain effective business partner relationships

If interested, please apply here.

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