Investment Associate Columbus OH

Location: Columbus, OH

Investment Associate - Techstars Columbus Accelerator Powered by The Ohio State University

As an Investment Associate, you are joining a Techstars team responsible for sourcing, recruiting and helping to accelerate the growth of the companies we invest in.  You will have the opportunity to have a front-row seat of the creation of some of the most prolific companies of the next decade. You will bring to the program an understanding of early stage startup operations, investing and fundraising. You will consistently meet with entrepreneurs, mentors and venture funds; you should expect to be well versed on emerging trends and technologies in the venture capital industry. You will be intimately involved in the support of our founders in the program, helping them accelerate traction through customer development and sales support.  You will also be a critical partner for them in their fundraising efforts, helping them build their pitch decks, hone their pitch, make investor introductions, and help them run an efficient and effective process.  You’ll build strong bonds with the startups you bring into the program, acting as a resource and looking out for relevant opportunities to support their success.

In conjunction with the Managing Director, your responsibilities will include the following:

• Lead multiple investment decisions a year, directly attributed to you, with support from your Managing Director
• Source, recruit, evaluate, and close investments in target companies consistent with your program investment thesis utilizing direct outreach, paid marketing, events, referrals, and in-bound accelerator applications
• Do what it takes to identify, close, and help world-class founders to find success and to make sure our accelerator experience is authentic and extraordinary
• Form and foster authentic relationships with founders, investors, mentors, service providers, and other ecosystem partners in order to develop sourcing relationships and build a support network for our founders
• Help our founders secure additional investment during and post-program
• Deliver content and workshops during our 13-week accelerator programs
• Mentor our founders and provide them with the network, tools, and education they need to succeed
• Provide ongoing portfolio management and assistance for our companies

Your Qualifications:

• Deep understanding of, empathy for, and experience with, the zero-to-one entrepreneurial process - you quite likely have 1) been a co-founder or early employee at a startup company and have ideally been involved with a successful fundraise or two, or 2) have prior early-stage tech investing experience
• Experience engaging with and supporting a diverse entrepreneurial network
• 5-10 years of prior experience in the technology industry; product development, engineering, or go-to-market experience
• Experience constructing Investment Memos and supporting research 
• Understanding of venture deals, investment materials, and investor pitches
• An investment track record that demonstrates the ability to source, transact and grow early stage businesses
• Strong emotional intelligence, experience with recruiting, vetting or advising entrepreneurs
• A genuine passion for technology and startups, an entrepreneurial mindset and a desire to learn
• You are available to travel
• Systems thinker with an eye for things that do not scale and the capability to design new processes and systems for implementation across programs
• Expertise with Excel models, Google Suite, and other tools utilized by our founders and program
• Your verbal and written communication skills are razor sharp
• Initiative and comfort working through uncertainty/unstructured environments come naturally to you
• Analytically oriented - you make decisions based on data
• You can sell - you combine credibility and chemistry to convince people to join you on your journey

Compensation: $85,000 - $95,000 +10% Bonus

About Techstars

Techstars is the most active pre-seed investor in the world having invested through its accelerators in more than 3,700 companies. Founded in 2006, Techstars believes that entrepreneurs create a better future for everyone and great ideas can come from anywhere. Now we are on a mission to invest in an unprecedented number of startups per year enabling more capital to flow to more entrepreneurs around the world. We do this by operating accelerator programs and venture capital funds, as well as by connecting startups, investors, corporations, and cities to help build thriving startup communities. www.techstars.com

Techstars is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, age, national origin, religion, physical or mental handicaps or disabilities, marital status, Veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity nor any other basis prohibited by law.

Techstars uses E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires.  For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:

E-Verify Participation Poster (English and Spanish)

Right To Work Poster (English and Spanish)

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