Battery Ventures has its roots in traditional VC but has now been doing PE/buyouts for several years. Can anyone help me understand BV's reputation within PE? Is it a recognized brand, and if so, is it still viewed as primarily a venture fund or a hybrid VC/PE fund? I ask because I'm considering a a pre-mba PE/buyouts position with BV and would like to better understand how doing so would affect my post-MBA positioning. Any insights would be much appreciated. Thanks!
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In my view both sides of Battery are well respected. They made their name in venture, but the PE side has become a pretty significant part of the operation, and are fairly active in the technology middle market.
Thanks Capt. That's exactly the info I was looking for.
Anyone else have any info on BV? i.e. pay and lifestyle?
Bump -- any comments on the culture and pay at Battery Ventures for a pre-MBA associate?
agree with CaptK but it's still mostly known as a VC and growth equity shop. i think their PE/buyout teams are still underrated. people there are VERY smart and well respected across the industry.
don't know about their pay, but heard their culture is strong and collegial.
How strong is their Silicon Valley presence compared with Boston?
cold calling all day mate, my friend used to intern over there and he learned nothing but picking up the phone and cold calling a shit load of companies
Thanks, kalice. From what I gather, the associate role at BV is heavily focused on the buyout and growth equity side of things as opposed to earlier stage VC. That makes sense though...
ews, this is presumptuous, but it seems both Silicon Valley and Boston have roughly the same number of employees (though just three GPs in SV), so I would guess the experience in both locations are about the same.
I've met a GP from the Boston office and he seemed like an extremely chill dude... I can very much see the culture being very strong there. And given the background of their associates, it seems they place a much stronger emphasis on fit than prestige of bank/undergrad.
maddb, really? It's quite possible it was because your friend was just an intern. Was this a summer internship during undergrad? If so, they probably had him do that because there's not much value he could add elsewhere...
oh yes, i forgot to mention that, they do use sourcing model, but it's not nearly as bad as summit, TA, polaris of the world.
bump. any additional info on these guys?
Fucking bastards had me come in for an interview, meet with one VP, provided me lunch, and in the middle of my lunch told me the 2nd VP couldn't meet with me. I ate the rest of my sushi and got the fuck out of there. Didn't think I did that bad.
Was this recently?
Good shop with smart guys, but I've always gotten the sense that they are somewhat disorganized at the partner level (from having shown them several deals and closed one with them). I'm not sure if it's that their partners are overtaxed or what. They will put in a ton of work and DD on a deal and then walk away at the end without making an offer. Maybe it's that they were never as interested as they initially indicated and don't mind wasting resources, but I've always felt that there was some senior level lack of communication or disorganization involved.
That said, I do like most of the guys I've interacted with at BV, and they have invested in plenty of great companies.
Battery Ventures (Originally Posted: 06/25/2015)
Hello,
I have searched the forums however found little information (or it was old) on Battery Ventures. Can anyone with close insight/knowledge tell me more about the private equity group ? How is compensation/responsibilities/hours/interview process?
Thanks!
I believe Battery's in the process of opening up an SF office (they may have already done so), with a focus on late-stage growth investments and buyouts in the tech industry. This is likely a way to justify raising multibillion dollar funds, and an avenue to compete for opportunities in the frothy private capital market that has come to define the tech industry.
Battery is a very respected firm in the technology industry, and the firm has an illustrious history of successful early- and late-stage investments that have exited to great multiples. I'm not sure about LBO activity, but I know for a fact that they are looking to hire junior talent to their later stage and buyout funds and will likely be able to achieve great returns and get some great deals if they're able to leverage the success of their early-stage investment franchise.
The role will likely be focused on sourcing, with growing involvement in the due diligence and research process as time goes on, if you can prove yourself as a good analyst on the sourcing front. Battery is unique in that it is a private equity firm that values internal progression and the existence of a clear path to partnership. You can be promoted internally to the highest levels within the firm directly from the analyst level, which provides unique value compared to competitor firms in the industry that require an MBA for advancement.
Interview is two phone screens - one with an associate and one with a partner - followed up by an in-person interview in their office. I would study current trends in the technology industry, be able to talk about headlining startups leading those trends in both early-stage and late-stage arenas.
For some background information, I would look through KPCB's Internet Trends report and listen to some of A16Z's podcasts. Some VC partners operate great blogs as well - notable examples include:
http://tomtunguz.com/ Tomasz Tunguz with Redpoint Ventures
http://cdixon.org/ Chris Dixon with Andreessen Horowitz
http://avc.com/ Fred Wilson with Union Square Ventures
http://www.strictlyvc.com/ http://fortune.com/tag/term-sheet/
TechCrunch has a lot of noise, but it's a valuable way to find the pulse of the industry.
I don't know about how Battery pays - I'd expect it to be in-line with market. Hours are similar to banking during the week (perhaps 60-70) with no weekend work. Culturally it seems fantastic - really enjoyed talking to the guys over there.
Good luck if you're going through the process.
Do you know what comp is like for BV? The WSO database says $150k all in, but that seems low?
any update on the status and comp of battery ventures in 2020?
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