Women in VC: Professional Bootcamp (Cohort 2)
Women in VC: Professional Bootcamp is a free bi-annual program available to Women in VC community members over a 10-week period beginning February 17, 2021.
The Women in VC: Professional Bootcamp has been curated to develop a unique collection of skills that will help investment professionals thrive in the VC ecosystem. This bootcamp series aims to equip and advance the development of technical, personal and industry-specific skills for those in the early stages of their venture career.
We are extremely grateful to have the opportunity to collectively learn and prosper together. This would not be possible without the generous support of MaRS and our fantastic roster of facilitators.
We acknowledge the support of the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
Nous reconnaissons l'appui du gouvernement du Canada à travers l'Agence fédérale de développement économique pour le Sud de l'Ontario.
Bootcamp Curriculum
Module 0: Cocktail Reception / Meet & Greet
Module 1: Personal & Fund Branding Read More
Module 2: Financial Metrics for Venture Capital & Impact on Valuations Read More
Module 3: Term Sheet Trends & Tactics Read More
Module 4: Confronting Tension & Conflict Read More
Module 5: Venture Capital Negotiations Read More
Module 6: Being On A Startup Board Of Directors Read More
Module 7: Fund Thesis Creation & Management Read More
Module 8: LP Mindset & Fund Analysis Read More
Module 9: Process of Raising Capital From LPs Read More
Module & Facilitator Information
Module 1: Personal & Fund Branding
Facilitator: Janet Bannister (Managing Partner at Real Ventures)
What: Branding as an individual and for a venture fund are developed over the course of days, weeks, months, quarters and years. In this session we will look at strategies and considerations for developing your personal brand as you grow in your Venture Capital Career, along with how to develop a Fund’s Brand. After this session you will:
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Better understand differences in brand tone/personas
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Have strategies to develop a brand and increase exposure
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Have a toolkit of online and offline branding tactics
Facilitator's Background: Janet has been part of the Real Ventures team since 2014. She has led investments in over a dozen companies and works actively to help them accelerate growth and create meaningful impact. Janet’s experience as a founder, and her work with industry leaders like Procter & Gamble, McKinsey & Co. and eBay, have given her great insight and practical knowledge, which she passes on to the teams she mentors. Given her background transforming eBay from a Collectibles to a Mainstream marketplace and launching and growing Kijiji into one of the most visited websites in Canada, Janet primarily works with entrepreneurs in marketplaces, fintech, future of work, and AI in enterprise settings.
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Module 2: Financial Metrics for Venture Capital & Impact on Valuations
Facilitator: Zach Brauer (Senior Corporate Development Analyst at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota)
What: In this module participants will hone their skills through review of financial statements, modeling techniques and practical application of concepts. Information covered will include techniques for a bottoms-up revenue build for different business models, key components of the Income Statement and Cash Flow Statement and discussion around how different elements of the financial statements impact valuation. After this workshop you will:
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Understand and be able to develop an income statement with common revenue metrics for companies with a SaaS-based business model and companies with a product-based business model
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Model a full customer cohort schedule that includes different customer types, tiered pricing and breaks down bookings, ARR, and revenue on a monthly and annual basis
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Learn how the income statement impacts cash and how the timing of a fund raise influences valuations.
Facilitator's Background: Zach, in addition to being a Senior Corporate Development Analyst at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, is an instructor of Modeling for Venture Capital, which has received enrollment from 100 students across 15 countries. His day-to-day responsibilities include providing support on M&A, joint ventures and divestiture transactions, evaluating and executing venture capital opportunities (in early-stage healthcare companies and through limited partnership investments) and working with his existing portfolio companies / funds. Prior to venture capital, Zach worked in the private equity and debt space with Northwestern Mutual Capital.
Module 3: Term Sheet Trends & Tactics
Facilitator: Chad Bayne and David Jamieson (Partners at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP)
What: This module will provide an overview of the basics of term sheet and the context around major terms, in addition to comparing instruments such as convertible notes and priced equity rounds. In this module, you will:
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Gain an understanding of investment instruments (SAFEs, Convertible Notes, Preferred Shares)
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Enhance your knowledge of the components of a term sheet
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Receive insights on current market trends and how terms are used to achieve specific outcomes
Facilitator's Background: As Partner of Osler's Emerging and High Growth Companies Practice Group, David focuses on corporate finance, M&A and general corporate and commercial matters with an emphasis on emerging, high growth companies throughout their lifecycles and advising venture capital and private equity funds. David also plays an active role in Osler's relationships with Rotman's Creative Destruction Lab (CDL), Next Canada (including Next AI, Next 36 and Next Founders) and the C100.
Module 4: Confronting Tension & Conflict
Facilitator: Kirby James (President at Unleash Potential)
What: In this module participants will learn how to navigate difficult conversations that often cause tension or conflict. With a combination of tactics and practical examples, this module will give you the skills to:
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Foster confidence and effective listing to create more fruitful conversations
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Use communication frameworks to better achieve your goals across different stakeholders
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Effectively address topics that commonly create tension and conflict
Facilitator's Background: Kirby is an in-demand facilitator and keynote speaker. A teaching fellow for 8+ years in the Canadian Board Diversity Council Board certification, Kirby specializes in governance and Board operations. A past Board Chair with ~15 years of service, combined with >10 years as a strategic advisor to Boards, owners and startups. Kirby regularly runs workshops for Vistage/TEC/Innovators Alliance, private CEO groups, and Ph.Ds across Canada with a focus on project management, communication, resilience and cultures of excellence. More than 12,000 people have gained powerful insights and skills from these workshops.
As well, Kirby has deep experience in strategic change management (Rotman), LeanSigma (Master Black Belt) and organizational culture diagnosis. Kirby delivered leadership programs at Ryerson, the Rotman School and national management organizations.
Module 5: Venture Capital Negotiations
Facilitator: Laura Lenz (Partner at OMERS Ventures)
What: This module will provide participants with practical tactics for common venture capital / investment negotiations. These negotiations are typically collaborative in nature and involve relationship management alongside term negotiation. This workshop will provide insight on how to manage both of these factors while obtaining the outcomes you want. During this workshop you will:
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Develop a mental model for how to prepare for a negotiation
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Understand various tactics for approaching collaborate negotiations
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Learn how to maintain founder relationships in initial deals and after follow-on negotiations
Facilitator's Background: Laura is a Partner of OMERS Ventures leading the fund’s investment activity in Canada. Laura has over 15 years of venture investing experience, including prior roles as a Partner with Generation Ventures, an Investment Director with MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, and a Principal with EdgeStone Capital Partners. Laura started her career with BMO Nesbitt Burns as an investment banker focused on media and technology companies and extended her public market acumen into private equity investing for the firm with roles in Toronto and New York City. Throughout her career, Laura has focused on understanding and investing in Canadian emerging technology companies.
Module 6: Being On A Startup Board Of Directors
Facilitator: Kirby James (President at Unleash Potential)
What: This virtual workshop addresses the key knowledge and skill areas needed to serve on a startup Board with impact. This session will also give participants an understanding of the operations of a mature board, and what to do when your board is still in its infancy. After this workshop you will:
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Understand the types of boards and what effective board oversight looks like
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Learn actionable responsibilities and levels of influence as a board director versus board observer
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Be able to implement tactical approaches to issues common in early-stage boards
Facilitator's Background: Kirby is an in-demand facilitator and keynote speaker. A teaching fellow for 8+ years in the Canadian Board Diversity Council Board certification, Kirby specializes in governance and Board operations. A past Board Chair with ~15 years of service, combined with >10 years as a strategic advisor to Boards, owners and startups. Kirby regularly runs workshops for Vistage/TEC/Innovators Alliance, private CEO groups, and Ph.Ds across Canada with a focus on project management, communication, resilience and cultures of excellence. More than 12,000 people have gained powerful insights and skills from these workshops.
As well, Kirby has deep experience in strategic change management (Rotman), LeanSigma (Master Black Belt) and organizational culture diagnosis. Kirby delivered leadership programs at Ryerson, the Rotman School and national management organizations.
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Module 7: Fund Thesis Creation & Management
Facilitator: Margaret Wu (Lead Investor at Georgian)
What: As the funding landscape continues to mature across Canada and internationally, it becomes increasingly important for funds to have strong corporate and investment theses. Being able to communicate these with key stakeholders and refine them over time as trends change is equally as important. By the end of this module, you will be able to:
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Think like a futurist to identify trends and develop a net-new thesis
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Understand the value of a fund strategy and how to differentiate yourself from other funds
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Execute tactics to test and refine a thesis within your organization
Facilitator's Background: Margaret Wu is a Lead Investor on Georgian’s investment team and is involved in deal sourcing and due diligence for startups exploiting Applied AI. She is also actively involved in Georgian’s thesis development and fund strategy, including Georgian’s recent re-brand. Prior to Georgian, she was a Product Manager for mobile marketing at Amazon, co-founded a biotech company and served as COO at a OneSpout.com, a local e-commerce startup. Margaret began her career as a consultant in Accenture’s technology practice and holds an MBA from Cornell University, as well as a BSc and BES from the University of Waterloo
Module 8: LP Mindset & Fund Analysis
Facilitator: Kristin Shearer (Vice President at Northleaf Capital)
What: In this module participants will learn about LPs’ mindsets as they look to invest in venture funds. LPs’ differences from one another, priorities, and deal-breakers will be discussed. By the end of this module, you will be able to:
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Identify different types of LPs and determine which LPs are best suited for your fund
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Internal process of LP analysis/evaluation of venture funds
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What LPs look for in teams/theses/etc
Facilitator's Background: Kristin is a Vice President at Northleaf Capital Partners where she participates in the origination, evaluation and monitoring of Northleaf’s private equity investments. Since joining Northleaf in 2015, Kristin has played an active role in Northleaf’s Canadian venture investment program. Prior to joining Northleaf, Kristin was a Manager in M&A Transaction Services at Deloitte. Kristin is currently the Co-Chair of the Canadian Venture Capital Association’s Young Professional Committee.
Module 9: Process of Raising Capital From LPs
Facilitator: Jean-Francois Marcoux (Managing Partner at White Star Capital)
What: In this module we will demystify the process of raising capital from limited partners. This module focuses on the behind-the-scenes process including your fund’s deck, data room, and overall fundraise timelines. In this session participants will:
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Learn about the fundraising journey, conveying your thesis and pro-tips on how to develop a playbook
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Understand common market terms, unspoken rules, structuring a fund and important mechanisms in a limited partner agreements
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Learn the do's and dont's of fundraising – how to avoid common mistakes and overcome challenges
Facilitator's Background: Jean-Francois (“JF”) Marcoux is a co-founder and Managing Partner at White Star Capital. JF has 25 years of experience in managing start-ups and investment projects. He was the co-founder of Ludia, a leading digital videogame publisher, and managed all non-product related operations including Finance, Legal, Strategy and HR. JF gained extensive operational experience with his role at Ludia which grew from a startup in 2007 to a highly profitable 250 employee company at the end of 2013. Ludia was acquired in late 2010 by FremantleMedia, a leading global TV producer. Prior to co-founding Ludia, JF held senior positions in mergers and acquisitions, financing and venture capital in the media and technology sectors, with a large publicly-traded media and printing company, a leading Canadian Investment Bank and one of the largest institutional fund managers in Canada.
JF graduated from HEC Montreal, holds an M. Sc. in Finance from the University of Sherbrooke, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. He divides his time between New York and Montreal.