03942880. In the final part of our conversation, Alastair and I focus on hiring, founder CEOs growing a company all the way to maturity, and the advice he'd give a CEO starting the journey. Lots of portfolio and VC companies have expanded into the US market, where do you see the opportunities and challenges for portfolio companies that have expanded into Asia? So, I had witnessed that stage of a companys journey and all things involved long before my current role. .Got a free coffee and biscuits at reception and had a tour of the office upon arrival. But of course, dont listen to any one person too much either you need a range of opinions. What is the interview process like at Octopus? But there are other avenues its well worth considering.. I applied online. Octopus Ventures General Information. firm Alven, told PYMNTS in a recent interview. Phone Number +44 20 7776 7968. We were just surviving, really. If you're a journalist, you'll head to our Newsroom section. Are there any specific qualities that are required to help people scale? This didnt happen due to the questions I was asked about psychometric tools in L&D etc, which students in a session wouldnt ask - only L&D staff would ask. You will receive a link and will create a new password via email. The London-based startup has raised over $30.5 million in funding to date, with backers including the media titan Sky (now owned by Comcast) and to VCs including Octopus Ventures, LocalGlobe, Sands Capital, and Guardian Media Group Ventures. Once your team is hired, I think you need to develop personal relationship equity with each of them by trying to understand whats going on in their lives and the issues they have that may be affecting their work. (Fortunately, it was a 11 game). I had some great meetings and got through to final round partner meetings with some of the big funds, but when we entered the summer at that time, our sales in Europe just dried up. I joined the Octopus Ventures team in New York at the start of 2017 having spent two years working with our team in London. Were about eight years in now, and its clear I couldnt have sprinted for eight years without burning out. Octopus Ventures recruits five new investors in deep tech, 2023 Octopus Capital Ltd - All rights reserved, Richard Anson, Academic Lead at Conception X and former CEO of Reevoo, Flavia Levi, joining from the Ventures team at Plug and Play, Owen Metters, previously a deep-tech investor at Williams Advanced Engineering and Licensing and Ventures Manager at Oxford University Innovation, Maiuran Chandrakumaran, former Group Portfolio Manager at East African Holding and VP at BlackRock, Mat Munro, former Conversocial Chief Product Officer and InPost Director of Product. FP Octopus UK Micro Cap Growth Fund Helping investors looking for long-term growth from UK smaller companies. Feedback I sent back to them: Our investors have first-hand knowledge and experience in their focus sectors, from NHS doctors and deep tech PHDs to beauty entrepreneurs and web3 founders. After signing it and sending it back, I started preparing for the case study. Octopus Ventures has closed a $12.3 million pre-seed funding round that the company plans to use to continue the expansion of its B2B FinTech . How would you justify that a Graze or an Eve is actually a technology company versus a distribution business? Hannah Joyce VC Interview Series Hannah's expertise involves partnering with high growth consumer internet and technology companies helping them to attract and develop world class leaders. Then you get a second call discu. Creating a team with this as our core focus and culture is critical.not just in their first business, but over the lifetime of their entrepreneurial endeavours. Investors hold a portfolio of ten to fifteen early-stage companies selected by one of Europe's largest venture capital firms. I went out in April 2014 to try to raise money from a number of US VCs. We power the people tackling todays biggest challenges. If the product or service meets a well defined consumer pain point, a company with technology at its core may be able to scale explosively. Youve got tons of places you could work what keeps you here? Contact Email info@octopusvnetures.com. One of the best ways to reduce interview stress is to conduct homework on the company When I joined, we were a few hundred people and we were a couple of thousand when I left. PYMNTS Data: Why Consumers Are Trying Digital Wallets. Id had a seven-year journey at my previous employer. So, the next inflection point really became about proving we could sell in the US, which led to a lot of challenges in transitioning to the US and its way of working. News Feb 15, 2023. Short cannot discuss as this will be a breach of contract.thiry words this is asking. Also, Ive always been motivated by learning about how to be successful at the next stage. Common stages of the interview process at Octopus according to 64 Glassdoor interviews include: Glassdoor has millions of jobs plus salary information, company reviews, and interview questions from people on the inside making it easy to find a job thats right for you. Intelligence, Connected So, its been quite a shift! Ultimately, most people are best suited to particular stages of the journey and thats ok. Each situation is different, but of course its important to treat everyone with dignity and respect when changes do need to be made. Relative to most European markets, the US market is larger on almost all metrics and the Bay Area is home to many of the most successful technology companies of the last 50 years. We aim to be helpful and straightforward and we value boldness - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and partners. Now While venture debt is an option, it is generally considered later. No matter your experience, interviewing can be a stress-inducing event. I applied online. I joined the Octopus Ventures team in New York at the start of 2017 having spent two years working with our team in London. Fintech Portfolio. Being a B Corp means our social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency have been assessed and certified. you. We bootstrapped and funded ourselves from a number of government grants and angel investment. Two days before my agreed deadline, I was told the position had already been filled. Recently I've started to venture into the promising agri-business of SE Asia. About Octopus Ventures. I interviewed at Octopus (London, England) in Jan 2022. Medium . All rights reserved. We can invest from the earliest phase of business creation to later stages of growth, but our sweet spot is pre-seed through to Series A. . Had an initial screening call then a follow up 1 hour first stage interview with the recruiter and the department lead split between 30mins each. In some cases, we were too slow to act on this. Then, you can help in the right moments, and they realise that you care about them as human beings, not just as execution machines for the company. Why Fintech? One of those milestones has to be revenue, and if youre trying to raise from US investors, they prize US revenue over everything else. What did you learn? There is a common sentiment in the early stage industry that founder CEOs are often not built to grow from the two-person team all the way to the CEO of a mature company, or in some cases just do not wish to do so. Interview. Were backing teams who are eliminating carbon footprints, creating cancer vaccines, building the next phase of the internet and charting a greener approach to space travel, to name just a few. The role in the UK is slightly different to the US though. Octopus Ventures is a collective of experts and individuals. Compared to our US counterparts, European investors tend to have a more limited range of platform services to offer the entrepreneurs they back. I interviewed at Octopus (London, England) in Nov 2022. A man said to his son, I was two-third of your present age when you were born. After six months, C joined them with Rs. In January 2020, Octopus Ventures, one of the largest early stage investors in Europe and backers of mental-health-tech company Big Health, published results of new research showing that in . I interviewed at Octopus (London, England) in Nov 2022. Various factors seemingly contributed to the maturity of the sector. Also get tips from expert on How to Crack octopus ventures Interviews. We are a team that backs entrepreneurs. We like to be in early and follow through from one defining moment to the next. Be the first to find this interview helpful. Minimum, a Y Combinator backed start-up that helps businesses across all industries to make their [] (My name) set the tone for the session well and set out clear objectives and a nice structure. Ready to start measuring customer happiness? We have more than 2,500 employees serving 2.5 million customers. Practical support and insights from the team at Octopus Ventures, a multi-stage London VC backing unusual talent intent on global impact. Octopus Ventures. What advice would you give CEOs when they are scaling their businesses? Thankfully, Im back down to where I was now! Working together to unlock deep techs revolutionary potential. We want to invest in an entrepreneur not just in their first business, but over the lifetime of their entrepreneurial endeavours. Alastair Paterson is the co-founder of Digital Shadows and has been its CEO for 8 years since its founding. Owen holds a Ph.D in Chemistry and spent time as a research assistant before joining Oxford University Innovation to manage the licensing and spinout of technologies developed at the university, spinning out Refeyn and working on IP licensing with Oxford Nanopore. . Octopus Ventures, part of Octopus Group and one of the largest and most active VCs in Europe, today announce the arrival of five new investors in the businesss specialist deep tech team. Working at @OctopusVentures seeking unusually talented entrepreneurs, based in NYC. Venture capital for the founders building a better tomorrow. What do you like about it? Why octopus VC? I take as many inputs as I can get, but Ive also realized over time to trust my own gut instinct in most situations. Prior to joining Octopus, Davis served as an investment manager with YFM Equity Partners. The group joins at an exciting time for the deep tech team which saw its largest ever exit in 2021 through WaveOptics $500m acquisition by Snap Inc. Octopus Ventures are launching Coaching Partners for their portfolio, and I'm really excited to have been invited! As a result of the digital innovation happening at the time, there was a lot of corporate information leaking out to the cloud, mobile devices, and more. ; FP Octopus UK Future Generations Fund We're targeting long-term capital growth by focusing on investing in companies, aligned with our sustainable investment themes. The process took 1 week. ), overview of key performance (operational and fund performance) and then highlight any risks you saw (in relation to operations and how this translated into performance). Ive fortunately always been good at handling stress and functioning on minimal sleep while keeping high energy. Related: VCs Say EU Firms Can Still Win Big Without US Expansion. Payments, Grocery Octopus Ventures most recent successes build on a long history of backing deep tech and university spin-out businesses. If so, why do you think youve had this success? This process was quite important in crystallizing what we are, which then helped with the hiring, because you hire for your values even if things change. , . Pay Later, Cross-Border By the end of the game Id convinced him to join us. Registered office: 33 Holborn, London, EC1N 2HT. I applied online. Get the latest on the people, businesses and ideas that will change the world. greg jackson octopus wife | February 26 / 2023 | where can i use my klarna credit cardwhere can i use my klarna credit card At the Series A, while you are trying to get the product right your product is still very much stuck together with tape and string youve got to start to show momentum. Given the ubiquity of mobile and cloud computing, these types of companies are also able to reach global audiences in a capital efficient way. By the numbers, just over half are currently operational in the US, with the majority based on the East Coast. Lost your password? I was repeating the same phrases again. Started off with simple hellos then basic questions like what I like about the company, I had brought up that Octopus has it hands in things like energy and such. Kapag na-expand, nagbibigay ito ng listahan ng mga opsyon sa paghahanap na magpapalit ng mga input sa paghahanap para tumugma sa kasalukuyang pinili. Funding Round Feb 15, 2023. I interviewed at Octopus (London, England) in Mar 2022. Our aim is to have an impact in everything we do, and to make a vital contribution to the UK economy by helping people, companies and institutions generate wealth. ( My name) has a friendly and informal / conversational style which was really liked by the attendees. I have actually accepted a job offer up here as an L&D Manager before this second stage interview in an insurance company to set up an L&D department due to my skills. So we share ours, boldly and generously. No matter how important the company might feel to you, its still not as important as family and we all have lives outside work. Its harder to instinctively identify good people for a role that you, as CEO, are less familiar with: you have to spend more time trying to vet them independently and use background references. By one of Europe & # x27 ; ve started to venture into the promising agri-business of SE.... Its founding years since its founding, Grocery Octopus Ventures team in York! Of platform services to offer the entrepreneurs they back years since its founding and! Your experience, interviewing can be a stress-inducing event New password via email Ventures Interviews Graze an. Free coffee and biscuits at reception and had a seven-year journey at my employer! 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