The National Venture Capital Assn. and Dow Jones VentureSource released their 2011 Venture Census survey this past week, the first since 2008. And while it shows venture capital jobs are still pretty much dominated by white males, although there is an increasing diversity, particularly among newer entrants into the field.
“As the venture capital industry continues to contract and the number of professionals declines over the next five years, we could very well see more dramatic demographic shifts within the industry,” said NVCA President Mark Heesen.
This year’s Census interviewed nearly 600 professionals. 79 percent of respondents were male; 21 percent female. However, of those who identified themselves as investors, 89 percent were male, slightly higher than the 2008 Census. Women were over-represented in administrative functions, with nearly 62 percent. The CFO position was evenly split, with 53 percent women and 47 percent men.
While the percentage of venture capitalists who are white stayed nearly the same at 87 percent, among those who have been in the industry for fewer than five years the number drops to 77 percent white, 17 percent Asian, three percent African-American or Latino and three percent mixed.
In terms of work life, venture capitalists work long hours; nearly half work more than 60 hours per week. They travel frequently, and remain loyal to their firms. Movement within venture capital jobs tends to be among the youngest and oldest groups, rather than the stable middle group in their 30s and 40s.
Venture capitalists are also, not surprisingly, more plugged into social media than other financial professionals (especially when compared with hedge fund professionals). Nearly two-thirds use Facebook and 30 percent use Twitter. LinkedIn is still the most popular platform, with 85 percent of VCs.
A whopping 37 percent of VCs interviewed attended one of five top universities: Stanford, Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Berkeley and MIT. This percentage hasn’t changed much over three years. Most professionals studied economics, business or mechanical or electrical engineering. However, roughly half of all respondents have MBAs.
In terms of employment history, 15 percent of investors were once a CEO or founder of a venture-backed start-up and 14 percent were the CEO of a private (non-venture-backed) or public company. Forty-four percent were employees at public companies, 28 percent worked at private (non-venture-backed) companies and 25 percent worked at venture-backed startups. Twenty-six percent were consultants, 20 percent were investment bankers, nine percent were scientists and five percent were attorneys.
Do you see the venture capital industry growing more diverse in the years ahead? Add your comments below.
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