Emerson Collective deploys a wide range of tools — from investing to philanthropy to advocacy — in pursuit of a more equal and just America. We focus on creating systemic change in education, immigration, climate, and cancer research and treatment. Established and led by Laurene Powell Jobs, we work to create new possibilities for individuals and communities.
Emerson Collective is impatient but optimistic, and bold but pragmatic in its approach. To meet the ambitious goals of its founder, Emerson Collective is seeking colleagues with both the audacity to dream up new ways to improve the world, and the determination to make them a reality.
The Opportunity
The venture team focuses on accelerating the growth of companies positively impacting the world and ensuring people are not left behind. We look for venture-scale economic returns with the added lens of impact. It’s not a trade-off. Overall, we are flexible in terms of stage and sector. Some sectors we invest in include financial technology, digital health, mobility, energy, government technology, education technology, and the future of work. For 2021, we are looking to hire 5 full time MBA Summer Associates, with a focus on growth stage (Series B+), early stage (pre-Seed – Series A), sustainability (Series B+, with a focus in energy and mobility), and health (stage agnostic, with a focus either on oncology in biotech or digital health) investments. You will need to specify your interest in one of our 5 venture investing groups at time of application.
Role and Responsibilities
As a summer associate on the venture investing team, your job would consist of:
- Using quantitative and qualitative skills to perform diligence (i.e., business, financial, technical, and impact diligence) on our target investments, and communicating your findings in a clear, concise manner. This will include the preparation of powerpoint presentations, valuation and returns models, and investment memos.
- Preparing deep industry sector analysis to guide our investment strategy, including thesis creation, market maps, industry research, and network building through pro-actively meeting with promising entrepreneurs and cultivating relationships across the start-up ecosystem. You will be responsible for leading and presenting one market deep dive in a sector of your choice.
- Supporting one current portfolio company on an in-depth, high-impact summer project and the full portfolio on an ad hoc basis.
- Engaging with the broader EC and venture capital networks to facilitate collaboration opportunities, build relationships, and help promote impact at scale.
Qualifications, Skills, and Requirements
- Deep commitment and passion for making an impact in the technology space
- You have 2–6 years of relevant work experience in venture capital, a startup/technology business, private equity, investment banking, management consulting, or lab research. You are currently pursuing a graduate-level degree and have the ability to work full-time for at least 8 consecutive weeks over the summer.
- You have demonstrated interest in supporting a diverse range of purpose-driven entrepreneurs who are solving important, complex problems.
- You produce thorough and concise quantitative and qualitative analyses to form opinions about companies. You are comfortable building accurate financial models and valuing companies. You communicate directly, empathetically, and concisely in both written and verbal form.
- You thrive in entrepreneurial, diverse environments. You are comfortable taking on new tasks or projects with little direction and adjusting course quickly in response to feedback.
- You respond to new ideas, projects, and tasks with enthusiasm and are able to operationalize them after looking at them from multiple perspectives (considering the opportunities, risks, creative alternatives, and possible paths forward).
- You are a collaborative team player with high integrity and work ethic. You invite different perspectives into your work and have a commitment to improving yourself and others by seeking and delivering specific performance feedback.
- You love meeting new people and learning about new companies and industries. You enjoy building relationships and feel comfortable taking the lead in conversations in your areas of expertise.
Location
Emerson Collective is a Bay Area-based organization with offices in Chicago, New York, Oakland and Washington, D.C. This position is located in Palo Alto and will also have access to our San Francisco office.
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Health and safety are our top priorities. At this time, we plan to proceed with the 2022 summer internship program in person. We will continue to closely monitor the COVID-19 situation and will provide updates as needed on a shift to remote / virtual internships.
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Compensation
The internship will be paid on an hourly basis.
Duration
The length of this summer internship can range from 8 to 13 weeks, depending on candidate availability.
To Apply
Please apply via the interest form (full URL below). The application deadline for this position is February 11, 2022.
