MassVentures: the Unique VC

“MassVentures?” I would not be surprised if I told you where I started my internship. You might repeat MassVentures, showing a big question mark on your face. Maybe you would think of organizations like Mass Challenge, MassDevelopment, or Mass Life Sciences, showing you are familiar with the abundant resources Massachusetts has.

“Yes. MassVentures.” This is how I usually respond “Mass for Massachusetts; Ventures for venture capital. We are a quasi-governmental organization.”

I know. More questions are asked after the word “ quasi-governmental” is spoken. This is exactly what happened between me and my supervisor, Jennifer Jordan, right after I launched my internship job.

“Are we a nonprofit or not?” I asked, knowing that the company has a 38-year history and only aims at investing in startups in the Commonwealth.

“Yes and no. Yes-because we are a nonprofit on official documents. No, as our operation is totally independent, partners’ salary and bonus come from returns on our investments. To this extent we are like private venture capitalists in your understanding. We would like to generate VC-level returns, definitely.” Jennifer responded.

Alright, I should admit that I probably should not quote Jennifer as I did not literally record what she said back then, but I hope you get the idea. Most importantly, I would like to share my internship journey with you with more conversations and stories. I wish you, no matter who you are, to come on board with me and enjoy this journey. You will see how much a quasi-governmental organization can do to help entrepreneurs and the startup community.

I would not be surprised if you did not know about us before. However, I am confident that after being in my position and following my journal, you will remember the name, MassVentures and you will recommend our venture capital team to talented entrepreneurs and other VCs.

Because we are the “Unique VC”.