Debut @ Episode1
By
I joined Episode 1 at the beginning of June, when my MBA workload allowed me to take on other duties. It is easy to remember because it was almost at the same time when the team moved into the spacious new office just around the corner of Tottenham Court Road. But before jumping into the middle of it, let me tell you how it all started. I will also share with you, why I am so delighted about this experience, what I have learnt so far, and to what extent being here is similar or different from the CEE ecosystem.
My pitch
Without citing my whole resume here, I try to give you a glimpse of it. I moved to London last September after almost 4 years spent in the VC industry in Hungary. I was most involved in the investment process and portfolio management there, but I also had other hats including investor relations, fund administration and compliance. Working with early-stage startups and teams made me realize how important (people) management skills were. I have always loved learning and exploring new things thus, I decided to do a full-time MBA in my favourite city, London, and master those skills among others. The first three modules of my studies were so intense that I could hardly think about working, but I knew that the summer would be perfect for gaining some work experience in the UK, a very exciting place for a VC investor.
I was looking for early-stage VCs, who seemed a good match with my background and what I had to offer. When I started my job search, I got a lot of discouraging comments on how difficult it is to get a job at a London based VC because it is a very competitive space and kind of a locked system for ‘outsiders’. Therefore, I tried other options as well, but deep in my heart, I knew that this was still what I wanted to do. Whenever I had time, I reached out to people working for a VC, incubator/accelerator or a startup here, and after those initial comments, I was surprised in a positive way, how responsive and helpful everyone was. I had some great chats over a coffee, and people shared some very valuable insights with me.
I still remember the afternoon when I was working on my application for Episode 1. The questions they asked already told me a lot: this company does care about people and is looking for individuals, who can think out-of-the box. I would say that the interview process resembled the startup pitch process, so I could empathise with founders who need to prove that they are worthy. There were four rounds, and all of them were different (e.g. evaluating a pitch deck; talking about my anti-portfolio; sharing the biggest challenge that I faced in the past when working with startups). However, what I really liked about it the Episode 1 process is that they played with open cards. I had interviews with almost the whole team. This was not only about them getting to know me. They also wanted me to get to know them all. While the interviews were challenging, I had some very insightful conversations with the Partners that made me better understand their approach, vision and processes.
Throughout the process, Episode 1 was always very responsive and open with their communication. By the time when I got the confirmation call that I was the successful candidate for the position, I also felt that I resonated with their values and mindset.
Let’s do it!
The onboarding was quick and easy. The whole team was very welcoming and helpful thus, it felt quite natural to go to the office from the very start. During my first week, I was pulled into 9 meetings already. It was very intense, but I loved it. I have been accepted to the team and my opinion has always been sought. Coming from a more hierarchical culture, it has been a very encouraging experience. Not to mention that I got access to the biggest conferences such as CogX or the Blockchain Summit, which served as a crash course to immerse myself in the latest trends and the local ecosystem right away. The second week, I was already asked to represent Episode 1 at a networking event, and then other pitching / networking events followed. It demonstrates a mutual trust, which I much appreciate.
Through these meetings with UK startups and compared to my previous experiences, I quickly realised, which I suspected: the bar is set high when it comes to the quality of ideas, pitches and teams. I have met founders with impressive backgrounds, who know how to sell their ideas and are well prepared for the grilling questions of VCs. At the same time, they are humble, and they show a genuine enthusiasm towards their product. I believe that if we have more future entrepreneurs from the CEE region, who can breathe in this entrepreneurial mindset through their education or first work experience here, they will eventually help great tech ideas at home become a scalable reality.
Going back to my Episode 1 experience, it has been very exciting to attend these meetings with different Partners. Everyone has their own approach, style and preferences, but they have one thing in common. Their knowledge and experience speak for themselves. One of the best ways to get to know a person is through the questions they ask. It tells me that the Episode 1 team is a very diverse team in terms of backgrounds and opinions. If there is something that I have surely learned from my MBA experience, is that diverse teams are the most successful. You may ask, how these different, sometimes opposing viewpoints and approaches co-exist? Well, it is a valid question. But it works out well. Challenging ideas, decisions internally, asking even the unpleasant questions from each other, will eventually lead to a conviction or a dismissal. On that earned common ground, it is much easier to get to a consensus. Because as far as I see, decisions are made based on a consensus and not solely on majority at Episode 1.
Being a VC is not always a fairy tale. Most people only see the glamour of investing in startups. What they do not know is that there is much more work to do behind the scenes. No matter whether we are in Hungary or in the UK, operating a VC firm is almost the same. At Episode 1, these operational tasks (e.g. fundraising, investor relations, reporting, compliance, marketing, IT support) are distributed within the team. The nice challenge here is to build processes from scratch, continuously improve these processes, build the brand, enhance visibility, and meanwhile, create an organization. Very similar to building a startup, isn’t it? Therefore, the day-to-day job is not only to find the next unicorns, but to establish a going concern for long term. Part of my summer projects is to help out with some of these tasks and bring in some fresh ideas to the system. The Partners always find time for me to give an initial overview of the various processes, and while there have not been big surprises, I still identified some key differences compared to my previous VC experience:
- The ecosystem is more coherent in London: funnelling investment opportunities from incubators to VCs works well;
- CRM (meaning pipeline management) is more systematized;
- LPs are not part of the investment decisions;
- Fees and hurdle rates are standard in the UK, which is still not prevalent in the CEE region;
- VCs face a rapid increase in valuations, which results in a fierce competition for good deals.
And some similarities:
- The ecosystem is still head heavy (meaning London) in the UK as well;
- Fundraising for VCs is a lengthy process everywhere;
- Scoring systems for evaluating investment opportunities has the same criteria (e.g. founders & team, market potential, valuation);
- Early-stage startups look for hands-on approach, not just capital;
- Building a long-term VC requires discipline, resilience, track record and a credible team.
Practice what you preach
If I should highlight one core value about Episode 1 that is important to me, it would be credibility. They not only tell founders how to build a business, a team and an organization, but they speak from experience and they lead by example. Everyone adds value to the portfolio companies in a different way:
- Entrepreneurial experience and empathy towards startup founders;
- Building and managing a tech company;
- Creating go-to-market strategy;
- People management, coaching, building a culture;
- Identifying the right fundraising strategy;
- Building a brand.
When it comes to building a team and a culture, it is actually part of the Episode 1 DNA. Since I joined, I have been to a team building event, where we cooked delicious food together. I have to say there are great cooks and sommeliers in the team! And as I have recently learned, big football fans! 😊 There are also initiatives to hold sessions where everyone gets to know each other’s values and work ethics, which I find extremely important. I also attended a dinner with the portfolio companies, which was a very deep tech but relaxing evening together with wonderful people. Getting to know the founders, team members of the portfolio companies quickly tell you all about the Episode 1 philosophy.
Team building at Episode 1
My first weeks could not have been better with Episode 1. And while I am continuously learning, I am also about contributing to the most valuable way:
- Sharing some different perspectives (e.g. key drivers of the ecosystem, competition) based on my CEE experience;
- Discussing best practices for VC operations;
- Bringing in my insights and interest in mobility startups;
- Leveraging skills and knowledge from my recent MBA studies.
#VC #Internship #Startups #Tech
