Associate - Investments

ABOUT PRANA VENTURE MANAGEMENT:

Prana Venture Management (‘Prana’) invests in mission-driven entrepreneurs who are passionate about solving deep, structural problems in the daily lives of Indians, especially for the hundreds of millions of aspiring Indians in the lower-middle-income and lower income population segments, through the innovative use of technology. Our goal is to drive access, affordability and empowerment at scale.

We make equity investments in early-stage, i.e. Seed to Series B, startups innovating in critical, utilitarian areas such as Agriculture, Climate, Education, Financial Inclusion, Healthcare and MSME (digitization). We currently manage Omidyar Network’s India equity portfolio that includes the likes of M2P, VerSe, Farmart, Vedantu, Intrcity and Pratilipi and are in the process of raising a new fund vehicle in 2025.

We are a young firm eager to make a mark in the impact investing landscape through our focus on technology-led investments, differentiated sectoral-thesis-based investing based on key insights on our target population, and collaborative approach of working with founders on strategy, hiring, financial management, governance etc.

POSITION SUMMARY:

We are seeking an Investment Associate to join our team. The role provides a unique and immediate opportunity for the Associate to work directly and individually with our portfolio companies, many of whom are segment leaders, to help them scale and exit through IPOs or strategic sales over the next couple of years.

As the new fund is set-up, the Associate will be responsible for deal sourcing, assessing business plans, performing research / competitive analysis / due diligence, and supporting deal execution. As a people-first firm, Prana believes in creating opportunities for career progression and upward mobility for every person in the firm.

Responsibilities will include the following:

New Investments

• Work with the team on building/refreshing sector-level strategies

• Help develop thematic investment thesis and build a pipeline of potential investment leads

• Support deal execution –build financial models and prepare investment memoranda

• Support due diligence efforts – review business plans and conduct competitive analysis

Portfolio Management

• Provide analytic and strategic support to portfolio companies

• Market scanning on potential competitors, acquisitions & partnerships

• Participate in follow-on financing discussions, build investment materials

• Work closely with portfolio companies on building strategy, building and executing hiring plans, staying abreast of market trends impacting portfolio companies, working on fundraising (debt and equity) and exit efforts as appropriate

• Assist in building exit pathways

Education, Experience and Skills requirements:

• 3-6 years of business experience with exposure to company evaluation and financial analysis, ideally at a venture capital firm, investment bank, management consultancy or startup

• Experience of having worked with CXOs in an investing/ operating/ strategic advisory role
  

• MBA from a good business school preferred

• Domain knowledge (either work experience in the sector or consulting/banking experience) in sectors above will be very useful

• Strong analytic, strategic thinking and project management skills

• Strong communication and writing skills

• Comfort with working in a highly collaborative environment

• Prior demonstrated interest in / experience with entrepreneurship and creating positive social impact

Location: Bangalore