Venture Analyst | CFT
Overview
Company: Cambridge Future Tech
Location: Cambridge (3 days in office)
Role (Part-Time / Full-Time): Full-Time
Application Deadline: Open
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We are seeking an ambitious and versatile Venture Analyst to support our day-to-day operations as a venture builder. You will play a crucial role in supporting our growing portfolio of ventures, in selecting new ventures to work with and in enabling key emerging technologies to realise their commercial potential. You will be directly involved in the research, due diligence, strategy and operations across the portfolio of companies, supporting the delivery of critical content and insights which will guide and define the journey that each company takes.
Key to your success will be the ability to work under pressure and whilst managing uncertainty. You will also need to maintain productive and collaborative relationships with key stakeholders from across the wider ecosystem. You will need to be highly organised, with excellent interpersonal and communication skills, as you will be in regular contact with potential partners, suppliers, investors, and customers. You will need to be inquisitive, engaged, and receptive to new technologies and business ideas, while being comfortable giving your opinion and challenging the status quo.
The three main areas of responsibility are as follows:
Venture Building & Support: You will work closely with portfolio venture founders and the rest of the CFT team on all aspects of early-stage venture building for portfolio companies. You will be empowered in this task by our collective experience to date, with full access to the extensive resources and networks already developed within CFT.
Opportunity scouting and validation: You will support the team to identify, assess and develop candidate technologies and projects for venture building. As with venture building and support, this involves a range of tasks such as building trust and working relationships with stakeholders behind these ideas, critical technical and commercial assessment, and creative narrative development needed to build the first theses for potential portfolio companies.
Consulting project delivery: You will support and lead projects with corporate customers of CFT. These tasks typically involve some subset of venture support, technology scouting or validation tasks, but delivered against a specific briefing and timeline as defined by a corporate client.
The role will report to the Chief Operating Officer and will involve close work and collaboration across the CFT team and the portfolio ventures.
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Maintaining an up-to-date knowledge of key technology sectors such that you can credibly represent CFT when discussing spinout opportunities
Scouting for promising IP and talented individuals through our academic and corporate partners and wider networks, to identify, assess and on-board new venture prospects
Supporting portfolio companies:
Supporting communication and project management activities between CFT’s portfolio companies, other nascent commercial opportunities, the core CFT team, and where relevant, our corporate partners.
Conducting commercial market validation exercises (i.e. building relationships with potential customers and partners within a sector, to learn about an industry, validate commercial potential within a venture and develop towards commercial milestones)
Helping to define strategy for IP and technology development
Identifying and recruiting key talent for ventures and projects
Identifying and applying for relevant grants
Conducting market and competition analysis
Supporting development of investment documentation, including both governance paperwork drafts (alongside other experts both within CFT and in external partners), and supporting resources such as investor “data rooms”
Creating promotional material, sales collateral, and other supporting content
Supporting corporate partners and our commercial team through the scoping, delivery and follow up around specific projects, typically based on a subset of activities seen within the venture builder
Representing CFT at events: attend industry, ecosystem, and other networking events to develop relationships with new and existing stakeholders, including representing CFT as a speaker if required
Contributing to regular CFT meetings and operational reviews
This role is for a nominal 40-hr week, with flexible working hours and potential to work a mix of home and office in Cambridge (expected minimum 3 days per week). Travel (UK and overseas) may be required to attend events, meetings, and more.
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Specific experience in the following areas would be ideal, though not essential:
Degree-level qualifications in any relevant field. Further academic qualifications (MBA, MSc, PhD, etc.) are preferred, but not essential.
An understanding and passion for start-ups and entrepreneurship, particularly where it relates to the commercialisation of technology. Direct involvement in start-up communities (e.g. as an investor, founder, operator or otherwise) is preferred but not essential.
On top of this, the fast-changing environment around start-ups means that ideal candidates should also be able to demonstrate the following more general skills:
Ability to work in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment, including managing multiple projects simultaneously
Resilience under pressure
Excellent relationship & rapport building, and networking within the wider ecosystem, including building relationships with multiple different types of stakeholders at once
Creative thinking, problem solving, and a drive to develop compelling innovative solutions to dynamic problems
Understanding of start-up processes, including regulatory and legal constraints
Excellent presentation and communication skills
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Competitive salary and benefits package
Private healthcare plan
28 days of holiday per year in addition to English bank holidays.
Other benefits including gym membership, cycle-to-work scheme, your birthday as leave, and quarterly family-friendly social events.
Regular domestic and international travel.
Exposure to a diverse range of technologies and industries.
A collaborative, supportive, and innovative work environment
Opportunity to play a key role in shaping the future of DeepTech ventures with significant global impact
Should you feel deficient in one or two of the “Ideal Candidate” areas please apply nonetheless! We are looking for a strong cultural fit and a can-do attitude above all else.
We are determined that Cambridge Future Tech is a diverse team made up of the best and brightest individuals without discrimination.
