At Bain Capital Ventures, we partner with incredible early-stage founders who are building disruptive startups transforming entire industries or inventing new ones. We are looking to add new associates to our investment teams in San Francisco and New York City. If you love technology, are intellectually curious, are passionate about startups and disruption, and enjoy spending time with builders and founders, we’d love to meet you!

The role of an associate at BCV gives you a front-row seat into the world of startups and innovation. Our associates have met, worked closely with, and been partners to the founders of Jet, LinkedIn, Attentive, DocuSign, Clari, Finix, Flywire, Moveworks, and Airbase, and so many others. There is no job quite like this, and for our investment team, including the various partners here who started out as associates, it is the greatest early-career job in the world. Whether you are committed to venture long term or want to try it out for a few years before starting your own company, being an associate at BCV is a bit different than at other firms.

Our associates contribute to every aspect of our work and are integral teammates who tackle the same challenges as any of our investors. Associates meet with and support entrepreneurs, actively help build companies, and become domain experts capable of providing critical, differentiated insights. Of course, associates are just starting out in their careers, so it goes without saying that the more seasoned BCV partners provide mentorship, support, and long-term guidance to our newest team members. We want you to succeed in venture, and that means learning everything you can about entrepreneurship, investing, and company-building by hands-on, boots-on-the-ground doing.

Over the next few weeks, some of our associates will write blog posts to tell their personal stories: how they got where they are today, what their day-to-day lives are like at BCV, and what paths you might want to take if you’re looking to get into venture. Our associates are a diverse bunch. They’ve studied different majors, from history and political science to finance and Hispanic studies, worked a few years in consulting, finance, or operational roles at startups, and each have different passions, from fintech and SaaS, to retail-tech and security. But they all have one thing in common: a boundless curiosity for technology.

What do we look for in associates?

Anyone with a passion for discovering and nurturing promising technology ideas and talent has the right raw materials. That said, there are a few specific skills we tend to prioritize:

• A few years in the trenches. Around 2–4 years of work experience, ideally with a high-growth tech company or startup, particularly in roles like product management, business operations, or engineering. Having walked in a founder’s footsteps, or at least journeyed alongside them, helps you become an empathetic and intuitive investor.
• A self-starter mindset. A high level of self-motivation, creativity, and comfort with lack of structure. No one at BCV will script your days, so an entrepreneurial, inquisitive, figure-it-out mindset is incredibly valuable.
• Curiosity about technology. At BCV, there will be a lot of discussions, reading, and research deep-dives about all kinds of cutting-edge ideas. That wouldn’t be much fun if you’re not genuinely excited about technology and how it impacts every industry.
• A community person. BCV is all about building long-term relationships within and outside of our walls. We work together on every investment, and we form close partnerships with each and every founder we back. You should genuinely enjoy getting to know diverse founders, investors, operators, and partners.

How can you apply?

To ensure consideration, please submit your resume through our application by Monday, November 29, 2021, which includes a one-paragraph answer to either of these prompts:

• Describe an experience you’ve had that illustrates why venture capital is exciting to you.
• Share your perspective of a technology trend or opportunity that you believe Bain Capital Ventures should be spending time on

If you progress in the interview process, we will ask you for a one-page investment memo outlining a pre-Series B team or company that you believe Bain Capital Ventures should invest in.