Cambridge Future Tech (CFT) is a technology-first venture builder working to commercialise exciting technologies from top-tier UK universities and corporate research departments. CFT focuses on DeepTech with strong commercial applications in massive global markets, all underpinned by world class teams.
CFT was founded in late 2020 and has since established 10 ventures; in total, these companies have created dozens of new jobs, filed multiple patents, and raised many millions of pounds in funding. The CFT portfolio spans a wide range of technology areas, from semiconductors and robotics to advanced materials and synthetic biology.
Position Description
We are seeking an ambitious and versatile Venture Analyst to support our day-to-day operations as a venture builder. You will play a crucial role in supporting our growing portfolio of ventures, in selecting new ventures to work with and in enabling key emerging technologies to realise their commercial potential. You will be directly involved in the research, due diligence, strategy and operations across the portfolio of companies, supporting the delivery of critical content and insights which will guide and define the journey that each company takes.
Key to your success will be the ability to work under pressure and whilst managing uncertainty, whilst maintaining collaborative relationships with key stakeholders from across the wider ecosystem. You will need to be highly organised, with excellent interpersonal and communication skills. You will be in regular contact with potential partners, suppliers, investors, and customers. You will need to be inquisitive, engaged, and receptive to new technologies and business ideas, while being comfortable giving your opinion and challenging the status quo.
This role will rotate through different functions in the venture builder, supporting both portfolio companies, corporate clients and other key aspects of the business. The three main areas of responsibility are as follows:
- Venture Support: You will work closely with portfolio venture founders and the rest of the CFT team to support all aspects of early-stage venture building for portfolio companies. You will be empowered in this task by our collective experience to date, with full access to the extensive resources and networks already developed within CFT.
- Opportunity scouting and validation: You will support the team to identify, assess and develop candidate technologies and projects for venture building. As with venture support, this involves a range of tasks such as building trust and working relationships with stakeholders behind these ideas, critical technical and commercial assessment, and creative narrative development needed to build the first theses for potential portfolio companies.
- Project delivery: You will support and lead projects with corporate customers of CFT. These tasks typically involve some subset of venture support, technology scouting or validation tasks, but delivered against a specific briefing and timeline as defined by a corporate client.
The role will report to the Research Director and will involve close work and collaboration across the CFT team and the portfolio ventures.
Key Role Responsibilities
- Maintaining an up-to-date knowledge of key technology sectors such that you can credibly represent CFT when discussing spinout opportunities
- Scouting for promising IP and talented individuals through our academic and corporate partners and wider networks, to identify, assess and on-board new venture prospects
- Supporting portfolio companies:
- Supporting communication and project management activities between CFT’s portfolio companies, other nascent commercial opportunities, the core CFT team, and where relevant, our corporate partners.
- Conducting market and competition analysis
- Conducting commercial market validation exercises (e.g. building relationships with potential customers and partners within a sector, to learn about an industry and develop towards commercial milestones)
- Helping to define strategy for IP and technology development
- Identifying key talent needs (leadership, technical, scientific, etc.)
- Identifying and applying for applicable grants
- Supporting investment documentation
- Creating promotional material, sales collateral, and other supporting content
- Supporting corporate partners and our commercial team through the scoping, delivery and follow up around specific projects, typically based on a subset of activities seen within the venture builder
- Representing CFT at events: attend industry, ecosystem, and other networking events to develop relationships with new and existing stakeholders, including representing CFT as a speaker if required
- Contributing to regular CFT meetings and operational reviews
This role is for a nominal 40-hr week, with flexible working hours and potential to work a mix of home and office in Cambridge (expected minimum 3 days per week). Travel (UK and overseas) may be required to attend events, meetings, and more.
Specific experience in the following areas would be ideal, though not essential:
- Degree-level qualifications in any relevant field. Further academic qualifications (MBA, MSc, PhD, etc.) are also valued, but not essential.
- An understanding and passion for start-ups and entrepreneurship, particularly where it relates to the commercialisation of technology. Direct involvement in start-up communities (e.g. as an investor, founder, operator or otherwise) is preferred but not essential.
On top of this, the fast-changing environment around start-ups means that ideal candidates should also be able to demonstrate the following more general skills:
Ideal Candidate Experience
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment, including managing multiple projects simultaneously
- Resilience under pressure
- Excellent relationship & rapport building, and networking within the wider ecosystem, including building relationships with multiple different types of stakeholders at once
- Creative thinking, problem solving, and a drive to develop compelling innovative solutions to dynamic problems
- Understanding of start-up processes, including regulatory and legal constraints
- Excellent presentation and communication skills
What We Offer
- Competitive salary and benefits package
- Private healthcare plan
- An ‘unlimited’ holiday policy (within reason); we advocate for a minimum of 4-weeks leave per year in addition to English bank holidays.
- Other benefits including gym membership, cycle-to-work scheme, your birthday as leave, volunteering days (organised by the company, nominally two per year) and regular family-friendly social events.
- Regular domestic and international travel
- Exposure to a diverse range of technologies and industries
