Kellogg VC Alums Recommend
John Gannon's Blog
Valuation and Term Sheet Resources
- Founder Shield: De-Risking the Fundraising JourneyFree downloadable eBook that takes you through the exciting but complicated journey of VC fundraising, from defining your company mission to vetting investors, from writing the perfect pitch deck to negotiating your term sheet.
- Skoden Ventures: Valuations Made Easy GuidebookDesigned to help you navigate through valuing your company, ensuring alignment with investor expectations.
Firsthand/Vault Resources - Venture Capital
- Vault This link opens in a new window
Vault.com provides in-depth intelligence on what it's really like to work in an industry, company or profession—and how to position yourself to land that job.
Browse company rankings, career guides, valuable career and industry insights, and find the career advice you need to launch your career. Guides provide insider insight into various roles within industry sectors. Register for an account with your Kellogg email address.
- Vault Career Guide to Venture CapitalRegister for an account with your Kellogg email address to access.
- Vault Guide to Venture Capital JobsRegister for an account with your Kellogg email address to access.
Industry Overview
Created by the CMC Career Coaching and Employer Relations teams, this guide offers insight into preparing for a career in Venture Capital. It details unique characteristics of this industry, what you can expect during the recruitment/job search process, examples of recruiting partnerships, recruiting trends, and data for Kellogg grads who have recruited for this industry.
This webinar provides insights into the Venture Capital landscape, trends, and key players. Watch to learn more about roles that MBAs commonly pursue within this industry and relevant professional backgrounds that align with industry needs. Learn when companies in this industry typically recruit and plan your job search accordingly, with actionable advice on how to maximize your chances for securing the right opportunities.
Venture Capital Alumni Insights
- VC Alumni Q&AThe CMC reached out to four Kellogg alums currently working in the Venture Capital industry to find out more about what it takes to land a job in VC.
Club Recruiting & Interview Prep
Other Recruiting Advice
- Cowboy Ventures: Breaking Into & Thriving in VCIncludes Interview tips and a template for tracking your interview pipeline, plus advice on what to prioritize in your first year in VC and sourcing strategies.
Analyst Reports: Industries
Impress a Recruiter With Your Industry Knowledge
Industry Analyst Reports: Venture Capital
- IBISWorld This link opens in a new window
Provides analyst reports for hundreds of US industries.
Watch a brief
on how to find industry analyst reports
Don't see the one you need? Watch this 
to find out how find a specific industry report!
- Statista This link opens in a new window
NOTE: Some users are experiencing intermittent connection/access issues on Statista. If you are having trouble connecting or being asked to pay to access Statista reports, please connect to GlobalProtect VPN first and then try connecting again through https://www.statista.com/.
Provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on over 600 industries.
- PitchBook: Venture Capital Research
You must first create your PitchBook account to access the research. Select Venture Capital from the Report Type dropdown menu at the top.
- PitchBook & NVCA Venture Monitor Q3 2024You must first create your PitchBook account to access the report.
Industry Pathways and Trends
- CB Insights: What is Venture Capital
Explores the foundations of venture capital by diving into its key terms and definitions, the motivations and thought processes of VCs, and what VCs — and startups — look for at each investment stage.
- PitchBook’s VC Ecosystem Rankings Dashboard - The World’s Top Startup Cities
PitchBook’s VC Ecosystem Rankings compare global cities based on the size and maturity of their startup networks. The framework helps founders, operators and investors assess locations when deciding where to expand or invest.
- National Venture Capital Association (NVCA)Includes info about VC resources and careers, operational principles, insights, and research, particularly the PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor report.
- PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) MoneyTree ReportCollaboration of PwC and National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) to produce a quarterly study of venture capital investment activity in the U.S.
Investment Thesis/Memo Resources:
- Bain: Writing a Credible Investment ThesisReprinted with permission of Harvard Business School Press.
- The Importance of Reading Earnest: How to Create Your Investment ThesisTips on how to construct a investment presentation that you can share with VC firms.
Interview Resources:
- Wall Street Prep This link opens in a new window
Wall Street Prep has partnered with Kellogg School of Management to offer students unlimited access to Wall Street Prep’s entire catalog of online self-study courses, including Excel & PowerPoint crash courses, financial modeling and LBO modeling, and technical finance interview prep.
Register for an account with your Kellogg email address to access the largest online catalog of Applied Finance courses used by over 150 investment banks, private equity firms, investment funds, and Fortune 1000 companies to train their finance professionals every year.
Once you have registered for an account, view and select courses from the Full Course Library dashboard.
Who is this for?
Students pursuing careers in investment banking, private equity, asset management, corporate finance, business development, capital markets, equity & credit research, and sales & trading.
- Cowboy Ventures: Breaking Into & Thriving in VCIncludes Interview tips and a template for tracking your interview pipeline, plus advice on what to prioritize in your first year in VC and sourcing strategies.
- John Gannon's VC Jobs & NewsletterA detailed, comprehensive collection of venture capital (VC) jobs and information about how to get a venture capital job.
VC Diversity & Inclusion Resources:
- BLCK VC: State of Black Venture 2023This edition of the report highlights Black women’s disproportionate under-representation in the industry, expands BLCK VC’s examination of the Black venture ecosystem to incorporate junior to mid-level talent, exposes the adverse impacts of the industry’s homogeneity on decision-making and financial returns, and provides actionable guidance on how stakeholders can collaborate to build an equitable and inclusive ecosystem.
- Chicago:Blend 2023 VC-Backed Startups Diversity ReportAnalyzing demographic trends within the Chicago venture-backed startup workforce.
- Deloitte: VC Human Capital SurveyWhat does the venture capital (VC) industry workforce look like in terms of demographics? What is the current state of VC diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)? The VC Human Capital Survey, powered by Deloitte, Venture Forward, and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), answers these and other questions for VC firms seeking to expand DEI within both their teams and portfolio companies.
- Venture ForwardDriving the human capital, culture, values, and narrative of venture capital including D&I.
Professional Associations & Conferences in Venture Capital
- Investment Company Institute (ICI)Leading association representing regulated funds globally, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, and unit investment trusts (UITs).