#MeetTheTeam: Q&A with Robert Brandis, Intern at signals Pre-Seed
- Please introduce yourself! What is your background and what has attracted you to the VC world?
Robert: Four years ago, I moved to Berlin to study Business at Humboldt University. The more time I spent in Berlin, the more I got attracted to its startup ecosystem. While my first year was very much focused on my studies, I later had the opportunity to gain initial experience working at a fast-growing PropTech Startup. Joining McMakler ignited my interest in entrepreneurship because I started to understand the significant role startups & scaleups can play in shaping economies and improving our way of living. After working in McMakler’s Finance and later Business Development department, I joined PwC for an internship. I was curious to see what it is like to work for a big corporation and how it differs from the startup mentality. At PwC’s New Ventures department, we were building a digital online store selling software solutions for companies of any size to drive their digital transformation. Equipped with the know-how of setting up go-to-market strategies and product roadmaps, I applied for an internship at a VC firm to sit on the other side of the table and evaluate young entrepreneurs’ approaches and ideas.
2. What motivated you to apply for an internship with signals Pre-Seed?
Robert: I was looking for an early-stage fund because I was eager to learn how to evaluate ventures not primarily on their financials, but also on their business ideas and team setups. Especially at the pre-seed stage, you are confronted with a lot of uncertainty. The ventures are often pre-revenue and sometimes even pre-product, which makes discussions within the investment team a crucial part of the daily work–something I thought I could learn a lot from.
Also, I was intrigued to talk to founders at such an early stage because you get a great overview of where the market is headed and which technologies are on the rise. You cannot be more at the forefront of innovation and at the origin of disruption.
Another significant factor for joining signals was that you are part of a small team, allowing you to be involved in every stage throughout an investment cycle. With all that being said, I can only recommend signals to everyone looking to learn the ropes of venture capital investing.
3. Which were your favorite tasks during a typical week?
Robert: My favorite task during a typical week was definitely talking to founders and presenting promising business ideas to our investment team in the weekly pipeline meeting. The discussions in our team about the opportunities and weaknesses of certain ventures helped me to understand how important it is to always challenge what is being pitched to you, regardless of how convincing the business model may sound at first glance.
4. What did you like best about your time at signals?
Robert: I had the chance to work and learn from really experienced individuals with wide-ranging backgrounds. From day one I felt like a fully accepted team member and I appreciated that I was given the chance to dig into topics that interested me. The balance between being supervised and working freely was one of the best aspects of the internship.
Even during the pandemic with periods of working fully remote, we always stayed in contact through our daily stand-ups or virtual team events, which really strengthened the team spirit. The work was very varied and every single day was different. During my internship, I grew not only professionally but also personally.
Overall, I had a really great time at signals — Thank you again to the team!
5. Do you have any advice for future applicants? What skills does it take to excel at signals?
Robert: My most important advice is — Do not hesitate to apply for an internship at a VC firm, just do it! It is such a great opportunity to grow on many different levels, build a great network, and meet interesting founders throughout the time. Try to find unique knowledge you can contribute to the investment team and be informed about what is happening in the startup scene. I would recommend reading Gründerszene or TechCrunch regularly and listening to the Podcast of Startup Insider to get the newest updates in the Startup scene.
6. What’s next for you after the internship?
Robert: I am going to begin my Master’s in Lisbon in September. After finishing my degree, I plan to travel around the world and do some additional internships to widen my expertise and dig into different fields. However, venture capital is definitely a field I could see myself focusing my future career on.
Interested in joining our team? Find all open positions here.
