ER to VC?

I pivoted from a MM ER role to late stage VC early on in my career but it took a lot of hustle and luck.

To set expectations: VC and even GE built around tight knit networks. They don't often have recruitment cycles and if they do, you're unlikely to land a job with a simple resume drop. You need to be proactive, do your homework on the partners and potential deals, and convince them that you can bring value in terms of industry knowledge and/or contacts from day 1.

1. You better be covering tech -- If you're not doing that, you're going to have a hard time. All the ER professionals I know that have made the jump all covered consumer internet, semis, or software.
2. Start reaching out to associates -- Pitch them ideas and ask for coffee chats. Offer them copies of your research or even your models as a resource during their diligence processes. You likely have some unique TAM analysis, commentary on trends, and access to data that they generally don't. Associates are going to be the ones that can give you a heads up if there's a role opening up and will likely be one of the people that interview you.
3. Track a hot deal and do a write up -- Look for a Seed or Series A company that raised 12 months ago and start doing analysis on their solution, sign up for Tegus and grab some of their calls if you can afford it, and write a 1 page memo on why this company could be a breakout. Try to layer in data, trends, and any insights you can find to show that you're being resourceful. Then, send it to the founder to see if you're on the right track. Even if they don't respond, when you say to a VC that you reached out to the founder for feedback, it shows you're willing to hustle to get noticed.
4. Go to VC/start up events -- Meeting people and connecting others to each other is what a VC's job is besides actually investing, so start doing it proactively. Don't angel invest unless you actually have a lot of discretionary income, that's a trap.

There's a lot more you can do once you're in the interview process but showing that you're already plugged into the ecosystem, are scrappy with your outreach, and are willing to learn quickly will put you in a position to take on new opportunities as they come.

The role I landed was open for a year and I had heard from friends that had interviewed for it, so they gave me insight into the process as well as the headhunter that was running it. I rewrote my resume to tailor it directly to that firm and the role and then shipped it directly to the recruiter, telling her I'm a uniquely good fit. Then i reached out to all the associates that worked for the partner I'd be supporting to get insight on how best to navigate the process. Finally, I got close with one of the associates on the team and started texting him about a deal that he was working on that I guessed based on the industry and company size. I ended up building him a quick model and write up that he used to ultimately convince the partners not to do the deal.

During the interview process I followed up with each person using a personalized email and asked one of the associates what the biggest ding against me was. My grades in college were meh and since I didn't to a top tier school I needed to come up with a good explanation. I walked him through how I spent my college years working at multiple hedge fund internships (30hrs+ a week) since I was focused on learning as much as possible. After 5+ rounds of interviews with 10+ people I got the job!

I know this isn't replicable by any means, but hopefully it gives you a sense of the effort you need to put in to make this transition successful.