風(fēng)投行業(yè)教會我的那些事
????大約一年半前,我從柏尚風(fēng)險(xiǎn)投資公司(Bessemer Venture Partners)辭職加入了Pinterest。自那以來,我遇到過、也接到過一些年輕風(fēng)投人或MBA們的電話,詢問我是從風(fēng)投轉(zhuǎn)型到營運(yùn)的心得。迄今為止,我遇到過的最常見的問題大概就是“你從風(fēng)投行業(yè)學(xué)到了什么真正有用的東西?” ????是的,我們今天就來聊聊這個(gè)話題。
????1.我學(xué)會了提問。任何人都可以提問。但如何提問,并藉此發(fā)現(xiàn)一家公司商業(yè)模式的真相或者一位工程師架構(gòu)的妥協(xié),是需要一些訓(xùn)練的。風(fēng)投資本家花大量的時(shí)間提問,因此懂得如何問正確的問題。我轉(zhuǎn)型至Pinterest時(shí),這項(xiàng)技能對我來說極其重要。 ????2.我學(xué)會了識人。我在柏尚做第一次績效評估時(shí),識人是我的一個(gè)弱點(diǎn)。現(xiàn)在,我可以說這是我的強(qiáng)項(xiàng)。風(fēng)投資本家需要經(jīng)常與創(chuàng)業(yè)者會面,需要建立自己的識人模式。處在商業(yè)或企業(yè)拓展職位時(shí),這項(xiàng)技能特別有用。但正如提問一樣,這類橫向技能不管走到哪里都能用得上。 ????3.我學(xué)會了學(xué)習(xí)。風(fēng)投行業(yè)的人經(jīng)常要硬著頭皮了解新的領(lǐng)域。你評估的每一家公司都有獨(dú)特的生態(tài)系統(tǒng),需要你去了解。類似的,科技生態(tài)系統(tǒng)的趨勢變化這么快,一旦停止適應(yīng)和學(xué)習(xí),人很快就會變成老古董,連什么是Snapchat都不知道。這種持續(xù)學(xué)習(xí)的動力能幫助你適應(yīng)新的環(huán)境和挑戰(zhàn)。 ????但這三點(diǎn)也存在另一面: ????1.在初創(chuàng)公司中,你必須回答問題。我在Pinterest很早就了解到的一件事是,我的提問能力遠(yuǎn)超回答能力。和提問一樣,回答也是一門藝術(shù)。鍛煉這項(xiàng)技能很重要。 ????2.我不知道如何解讀一個(gè)組織。風(fēng)投公司往往是規(guī)模較小的合伙企業(yè)。雖然在我離開時(shí),柏尚已經(jīng)有了大約45人,但每次我在辦公室里時(shí),辦公室里從沒超過10個(gè)人。隨著Pinterest從我加入時(shí)的30多人發(fā)展到了如今的200多人,我必須學(xué)會如何理清公司的結(jié)構(gòu)。來自大公司的人們在這方面當(dāng)然比我強(qiáng)很多。 ????3.我沒有專長的領(lǐng)域。風(fēng)投資本家很少專長某一領(lǐng)域。當(dāng)然 -- 我很了解電子商務(wù)生態(tài)系統(tǒng),我見識過大量的消費(fèi)公司和廣告科技公司,但這都不比不上在谷歌(Google)工作幾年。但凡事總有個(gè)開始... ????祝你好運(yùn)!(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)) ????本文作者薩拉?塔沃在Pinterest從事業(yè)務(wù)和公司拓展職務(wù),此前6年就職于柏尚風(fēng)險(xiǎn)投資公司。 |
????It's been more than a year and a half since I left Bessemer Venture Partners to join Pinterest. Since then, I've taken quite a few meetings and phone calls from junior VCs or MBAs asking about my transition from VC to operating. By far, the most common question I get from this bunch is something along the lines of, "Did you learn anything actually useful in VC?" ????Yes. ????1. I learned how to ask the right questions. Anyone can ask questions. But learning how to ask the right questions -- to use questions as a mechanism to uncover the hidden truth in a company's business model, or the tradeoffs in an engineer's architecture, is something that comes with training. VCs spend a huge amount of their time asking questions, and thus learn the craft of asking the right ones. This skill has been enormously valuable to me as I transitioned to Pinterest. ????2. I learned how to read people. In my first performance review at Bessemer, people judgment was one of my weaknesses. I'd now say it's one of my strengths. As a VC, you're constantly meeting founders and building your pattern recognition for reading people. This skillset is particularly useful when you're in a business or corporate development role but, as with asking the right questions, it's one of those horizontal skills that will serve you anywhere. ????3. I learned how to learn. In VC, you're constantly ramping up in a new area. Each company you evaluate comes with its own ecosystem that needs to be understood. Similarly, trends in the tech ecosystem turn over so quickly that, if you ever stop adapting and learning, you'll quickly become a dinosaur and won't know a Snapchat when you meet one. That drive to constantly learn will help you adapt to new environments and challenges. ????There's a flipside to these three though: ????1. In startups, you've got to answer the questions. One thing I learned early on at Pinterest is that my muscle for asking questions was a lot stronger than my muscle for answering them. As with asking questions, there's an art to answering questions well. It's been good to exercise this skill. ????2. I didn't learn how to read an organization. VC firms tend to be smaller partnerships. Although Bessemer was about 45 people when I left, I was never in an office with more than 10 people. As Pinterest has grown from 30-odd people when I joined to more than 200, I've had to learn how to navigate a company. People who have come from larger companies definitely have a leg up in this regard. ????3. I'm not specialized. VCs rarely specialize. Sure -- I knew the e-commerce ecosystem cold, met with countless consumer companies, and quite a few adtech companies, but that doesn't compare to spending several years working at Google. But you've got to start somewhere ... ????Good luck! ????Sarah Tavel works in business and corporate development at Pinterest, after spending six years with Bessemer Venture Partners. |
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