A Brief History of Venture Capital

July 29, 2009

Prior to World War II, venture capital was primarily the domain of wealthy investors and families. In 1958, the government passed the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 which allowed the Small Business Administration to license private small business investment companies (SBICs) to spur entrepreneurial activity. Government officials felt there was a gap in capital […]

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A Brief History of Private Equity

July 27, 2009

Private equity investing can be traced back to the industrial revolution when merchant banks in Europe and later, the U.S., financed industrial projects and the building of the Transcontinental Railroad. When J. Pierpont Morgan bought Andrew Carnegie’s American Steel Company in 1901, it marked one of the earliest known major corporate buyouts. J.P. Morgan would […]

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Venture Capital Job Culture

July 22, 2009

The venture capital world is comprised of a few hundred small firms, usually structured as partnerships and employing between 2 and 50 people. They are lean and flat organizations, dedicated to the entrepreneurial culture and usually focused on a particular industry niche such as technology, biotech, or more recently, clean technologies. Venture capitalists enjoy a […]

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Private Equity Job Culture

July 20, 2009

The top private equity firms tend to have what Bain & Company calls a “performance culture,” meaning managers and employees are determined to do everything possible to increase the value of the companies in which they invest. Nothing is allowed to get in the way of making their portfolio companies more profitable and valuable. Thus, […]

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Tools to Helps Your Venture Capital Job Search

July 15, 2009

ONLINE RESOURCES VentureBeat.com Founder Matt Marshall covered venture capital for the San Jose Mercury News until he left in Sept. 2006 to launch VentureBeat as an independent company. In 2008, the New York Times called VentureBeat one of the “best blogs on the Web,” and now the NYT runs VentureBeat’s articles on its Web site. […]

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Tools to Help Your Private Equity Job Search

July 13, 2009

ONLINE RESOURCES Reuters Buyouts A source of news, data, analysis and interpretation of trends in the private equity industry. Delivered to their subscribers bi-monthly, every issue has reports on new funds and fund closes, deals, exits, general partners, limited partners, deal makers, intermediaries and more. They also publish Private Equity Week, which provides weekly coverage […]

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Working with Venture Capital Recruiters

July 8, 2009

Many of the same principles for working with private equity recruiters apply in the venture capital world. Develop relationships with 1-2 top recruiters … understand that they have the hiring firm’s best interests in mind … treat recruiters as an important information resource … and always be courteous and professional with them. However, given the […]

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Working with Private Equity Recruiters

July 6, 2009

If you want to improve your chances of landing a private equity job or moving to a better position, then sooner or later you may with executive recruiters. Recruiters who target the private equity industry have extensive networks and often have access to jobs you may not hear about otherwise. However, there are a few […]

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Networking for a Venture Capital Job

July 1, 2009

More than most industries, in venture capital, it’s who you know that counts. So building your personal network is absolutely crucial to landing a venture capital job interview. There are a number of strategies that can help you get started. Start with your own personal contacts, family, friends and classmates who may know someone who […]

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Networking for a Private Equity or Venture Capital Job

June 29, 2009

No matter where you are in the private equity world – just starting out, mid-level or in a senior position – networking is critical to your success. So much of the work is highly personal; it’s who you know that counts, whether it’s finding potential investors or uncovering the next investment opportunity. So it should […]

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