octopus ventures interview

a After six months, C joined them with Rs. you. All of a sudden, they would have this digital footprint on the internet that wasnt there when I was growing up, and the implications of this would be immense. Payments, Grocery What is the interview process like at Octopus? Octopus has an overall rating of 3.9 out of 5, based on over 276 reviews left anonymously by employees. It was quite funny coming out to the US; in the first six months I put on five kilos. Picks, CE100 We see a lot of angel investing in the market how is the pre-seed market affecting Octopuss access to deal flow? Watch Our Last Interview Video:. "It was the biggest change in the past 10 years. 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. Lost your password? 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. That kept the lights on. Those, as well as a constant focus on the customer and my team, have kept us on course with more exciting growth and international expansion coming into 2020 and beyond. Laura Wilming of Octopus Ventures People + Talent team answers the pressing questions about Or rather, when. But we believe that a new world is possible one where the most successful companies are a force for good. The blog post also mentioned calling on family members, friends, angel investors and venture capitalists for help in the pre-seed stage. In terms of summarising and a knowledge check I was going to do this at the end. 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. The process took 1 week. Feedback I sent back to them: Venture capital firm Octopus Ventures is entering the world of pre-seed investment with a 10m fund to back early-stage startups across Europe. Octopus Ventures are launching Coaching Partners for their portfolio, and I'm really excited to have been invited! Prior to this, he developed and implemented structured financing strategies at BlackRock and Barclays after graduating in Mathematics from Cambridge University. Thankfully, having a co-founder helps, because you can then talk frankly. Funding Round Feb 15, 2023. If you wait a few months, youre going to be feeling very different about whatevers going on. And, like clockwork, I have felt different every time as the company has started performing well again. Skin + Me raised 10,000,000 / Series B from Octopus Ventures. Hannah Joyce from Odgers Berndtson talks Venture Capital Trends with a fantastic Venture Capital Partner at Octopus Ventures. To help it raise significant new capital to meet this target . Everything is about getting to 1 million recurring revenue from a number of clients in order to demonstrate the capability. Thats a thought that I lean on more now than I did when we started since weve been through so many ups and downs over the last eight years. Data, Artifical This may be a product, market, capital or hiring constraint. As a company grows, the team composition should change to meet the needs of the new often very different stage of growth. What kicked off the companys growth at the beginning? Youve got tons of places you could work what keeps you here? Ive always believed that ethics, integrity, diversity and values can have a big impact on why people join you and our VP Sales for the Americas, Maria, was kind enough to write about that here. Some of them can adapt to the new stage, and some of them cant. Where have you struggled to identify, retain, or empower your talent? The venture capital industry is becoming global and increasingly we have noticed both West Coast investors as well as Chinese and Japanese investors investing in Europe. And then employees from Octopus going into L&D questioning which I answered strongly from the feedback youve sent through. | At Octopus Ventures we invest in the people, the ideas and the industries that will help change the world. What will be Bs share in the total profit of Rs. We welcome your ideas, whoever you are. Our team is spread across the US, the UK, Singapore and China, with the weight of the team being split between offices in London and New York. At that point, my role changed radically, and it continues to change. This is particularly a problem because US revenues typically take longer to ramp up than expected, and costs are substantially higher than European markets sometimes up to the point where they can undermine the viability of a companys business plan. It was a whos who of the security industry in the US and theyve been very helpful in terms of hiring and retention. You need the right idea AND timing. Id had a seven-year journey at my previous employer. Short cannot discuss as this will be a breach of contract.thiry words this is asking. When we were going out in 20112012, the problem for companies felt too far in the distance; they were just putting firewalls in place, getting their antivirus in order, and building very nascent security teams. As well as our sector experts, providing invaluable support across B2B Software, Climate, Consumer, Deep Tech and Health, we also have a dedicated Portfolio People + Talent team. But there are other avenues its well worth considering.. The decision to scale into the U.S. market, followed by the execution, is not for the faint 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. B2B Software. A few years ago, South African documentary filmmaker Craig Foster felt burnt out from years of working on arduous nature films. What kinds of challenges in transitioning to the US were you grappling with at this stage? All rights reserved. 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. I thought that there would be a need for a company to look after all this information. Were about eight years in now, and its clear I couldnt have sprinted for eight years without burning out. Written by Nick Sando. For example, I wanted to make a senior US hire from one of the major industry analyst firms after our Series A. Do you think this sentiment holds? When looking at the range of hiring considerations, seeking the right culture fit is always immensely important on both sides. Each of the angels had had success in their own careers and now wished to help the next generation of entrepreneurs make their ideas a reality. We build long-lasting relationships with founders, investing as early as an idea on a page and supporting at every stage of growth with funding, but also with humility and hands-on support for founders and their teams. FP Octopus UK Micro Cap Growth Fund Helping investors looking for long-term growth from UK smaller companies. 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. Compared to our US counterparts, European investors tend to have a more limited range of platform services to offer the entrepreneurs they back. So annoying when you invest time and end up not receiving answers. What are your views on what you feel some of the impacts AI is going to have on businesses and consumers that perhaps they dont realise yet? Why VC? Was there some point when things began to move forward quickly? I applied online. Octopus Ventures backs pioneering unusually talented entrepreneurs daring to reimagine the future of health, money and deep tech, and supports them as they grow from early-revenue to exit. Flavia Levi, joining from the Ventures team at Plug and Play. Intelligence, Connected Octopus Ventures. We are a team that backs entrepreneurs. Weve updated them every 1218 months since then, because the company changes and the culture changes. So, I went back to the Valley in October of the same year, this time with a number of US clients in my book. Digital Shadows is the market leader in Digital Risk Protection, providing a suite of products to protect organizations against digital risks across the open, deep, and dark web. Octopus Ventures General Information. Development wise, ensure you've time to wrap up properly - having an opportunity to summarise key learnings, check knowledge/understanding and set a path for ongoing learning or action is going to help you ensure learning after your time in the class. The role will almost always be a tough, long one, even if youre successful. Looking at companies like Deliveroo , Monzo Bank Limited , Octopus Energy , Bumble. Read about Octopus Ventures investment in Cobee, a platform that employers use to centralise and manage benefits schemes, and facilitates the distribution of benefits to employees through a Cobee digital wallet and card. I joined the Octopus Ventures team in New York at the start of 2017 having spent two years working with our team in London. Be the first to find this interview helpful. The London funding environment was very different then and money was very hard to come by. Thankfully, Im back down to where I was now! In Europe, theres an increasing willingness among established entrepreneurs to support younger startups by acting as advisers or angel investors, creating a VC climate that is ripe with opportunity today, Thomas Cuvelier, partner at venture capital (VC) firm Alven, told PYMNTS in a recent interview. While nearly all of the businesses we back are started in Europe, almost all are intent on building for a global audience and success in the US is a critical milestone on this journey. If you build good rapport with someone in the interview process, it can really carry you through the end when he or she has competing offers. 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. So that was very challenging. Its essential that youre doing enough stuff outside of work to depressurize a little. We finally got an interview after a few hours. Should we choose to hire you for the post ? The highly active London-headquartered VC has built a dedicated pre-seed team led by former senior staff at Seedcamp and Uber. Our belief is that you can build a better tomorrow by investing in it. Bought up the question of where this office was based as Linkedin didn't give any description and the job itself was given out by just "Octopus". It will also mean they are more likely to gel with your organization if you do get them on board. 73% of employees would recommend working at Octopus to a friend and 66% have a positive outlook for the business. So far this year, the Octopus Ventures deep tech team has invested more than 45 million into businesses including Orca Computing, which is providing the UK Ministry of Defences first quantum computer; AI dubbing software developer, Papercup, and adaptive music technology platform, Lifescore. So, inflection point number one was having a degree of evidence that this was going somewhere, and we could build out the development team and the first version of the platform with that Seed round. Commerce, Real-Time It was a highly competitive situation. Related: VCs Say EU Firms Can Still Win Big Without US Expansion. Since Europe also picked up again at that time, we ended up with about five term sheets and closed out a Series A at the end of the year. Glassdoor users rated their interview experience at. You will receive a link and will create a new password via email. How well has it been received by the Asian market? So, we kept everything really low on the spend at that time of the journey. Needless to say, its pretty hard to go from zero to public and successfully run the company throughout. I wouldnt want to crush any of that spirit that you need at the beginning, but I think you need to know that success takes 10 years, not 10 months. To date we have backed the founding teams of nearly 100 companies including Zoopla, Secret Escapes, Elvie, Depop, Sofar Sounds and Cazoo. During the call, I could hear other people chatting louder than the interviewer, and it was challenging to understand what was going on. Octopus Investments has also announced its plans to invest 50 billion in the people, ideas and industries that will change the world, by 2030. We've built Octopus into one of the most disruptive and progressive companies across the financial services and energy sectors. Theres a lot be said about timing when it comes to startups. 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? In a way, we were fortunate that it took us a little while, and I think it was a good thing that we didnt get funding at the time. Working together to unlock deep techs revolutionary potential. I'm in wonderful company alongside Katy | 12 LinkedIn Number of Exits 47. We bootstrapped and funded ourselves from a number of government grants and angel investment. She works closely with Venture Capital and Private Equity funds to assist them in attracting senior leaders in to their own teams and portfolio companies. Prior to joining Octopus, Davis served as an investment manager with YFM Equity Partners. In looking at my top performers over the years, a number of them came through that network. The first interview was set up by the interviewer Victoria, who specified that it would be a phone conversation. Suddenly, through digital transformation the walls have disappeared and theres also a lot more risk to the business outside those castle walls, from data loss, brand and reputation risk, and an ever expanding attack surface. Yet for us, investment is multi-dimensional, and will always be about . . I didnt think about this much when I first started the journey, but it really is a marathon, not a sprint. Contact Email info@octopusvnetures.com. By the numbers, just over half are currently operational in the US, with the majority based on the East Coast. Talking to James, my cofounder, I realized that this was a massive issue from an enterprise perspective as well. Alastair Paterson is the co-founder of Digital Shadows and has been its CEO for 8 years since its founding. Goodwin > The Legal 500 Rankings Investment fund formation and management > Real estate funds Tier 1 Goodwin's real estate funds team is co-led by 'exceptional partner' Justin Cornelius and the 'simply outstanding' Samantha Lake Coghlan's real estate funds team is co-led by 'exceptional partner' Justin Cornelius and the 'simply Octopus Ventures, a dedicated business unit in Octopus Group, is the VCT manager. Also get tips from expert on How to Crack octopus ventures Interviews. Phone Number +44 20 7776 7968. Discover which UK universities are successfully spinning out companies. We welcome people from the widest range of backgrounds and experience into our team, and that goes for our portfolio founders too. I applied online. 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. Investment Stage Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture, Seed. , . List of Investors and Details. So we share ours, boldly and generously. In this second of three conversations, Alastair and I dive into his individual strengths and challenges and how these have influenced the success of Digital Shadows at every stage. The Read about Octopus Ventures investment in Apheris, an end-to-end platform that uses a federated Octopus Ventures is a part of Octopus Investments - 2023 Octopus Ventures. Get in touch. An energy-giver for me is that for the last few years Ive been taking more of my holidays again, since I pretty much didnt take any at the start of the journey. 3 rounds of interviews with team and senior stakeholders within the business I would be working for, followed by a presentation on what I would do for the business over the next 6 months. Opens the Fishbowl by Glassdoor site in a new window. Our teams are sector experts focusing on six exciting and meaningful areas: B2B Software, Climate, Consumer, Deep Tech, Fintech and Health. By combining psychometric science and a compelling digital experience, Sova helps companies more accurately identify top talent and create personalised candidate . Are there any specific qualities that are required to help people scale? But I think that was good because I may not have done it if I knew how hard it was going to be, even when youre successful! Discover more funding rounds. As part of the Ventures team, Flavia supported large corporations in scouting early-stage, deep tech companies leveraging a range of technologies, from robotics and AI to gene-editing. 3. And then, if I remember correctly, another important point in the companys life occurred when progress stalled before your Series A? I did not receive the call at the scheduled time, so . The Octopus Group incorporates Octopus Energy, Octopus Real Estate, Octopus Moneycoach, Octopus Investments, Octopus Ventures and Octopus Labs. We aim to be helpful and straightforward and we value boldness - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and partners. Of the businesses that weve spoken to, 90% found that going to the US led to detrimental consequences for the domestic business that they had not forecast. Our investment team is built to specialise in the five areas where we see the most potential for growth and innovation: health, fintech, deep tech, consumer and B2B . Description. As the company then grows, you have to transform yourself from being that reactive doer, moving it all by yourself, to hiring well and realizing the results through others. We have more than 2,500 employees serving 2.5 million customers. PYMNTS Data: Why Consumers Are Trying Digital Wallets. Youve got to be a lifelong learner and be prepared to be a sponge for new ideas and best practices every day. Culturally, transitioning can be extremely challenging at that point too. At Digital Shadows we help organizations identify their exposure and understand the threats to their critical assets to better manage digital risks. For instance, a product constraint is often not a good reason to expand abroad, as a new international market is unlikely to solve a lack of product market fit. Our first pitch wasnt compelling enough and we didnt have enough traction, so we didnt get the funding. Need a good name for an octopus dog toy. What candidates say about the interview process at Octopus Energy. Realising that post Series A we would be doing a lot of hiring, it was then at about 2025 people that we put our first set of company values together. Glassdoor users rated their interview experience at Octopus as 39.1% positive with a difficulty rating score of 2.88 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty). Were a leader in one area investing in female leaders but we need to do more to support not just women but everyone, regardless of culture, race, gender, orientation or economic status. 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. Followed by a case study and a review of your findings. Hub Tags Crunchbase Venture Program. We live in a changing world. Given the ubiquity of mobile and cloud computing, these types of companies are also able to reach global audiences in a capital efficient way. Likewise, access to US venture capital is also often an insufficient reason to set up in the US because European companies are usually not well positioned to raise money from US investors before having a material presence here, despite the often-held belief that it is easier to fundraise in the US. 25,000 earned at the end of 2 years from the starting of the business? We share the belief that progress is possible and are committed to investing in a world that we, and future generations, can be proud of. In London our team spend more of their time seeking talented entrepreneurs to back and then helping them day to day with the challenges that come with building a fast growing young company. I think this concept of commandos, infantry and police sums up the different mentalities well as a company grows. Investor Type Venture Capital. Alastair, you keep returning to hiring as one of the most important ways youve addressed your company. Building out a high-performance marketing team can be imperative to the success of a technology business. Non-journalists, you'll So, you had an idea and thought to create a company. The head of our People & Talent team, Laura C. Willming, joined Jimmy's Jobs to talk about how founders can build a brilliant team! When I joined, we were a few hundred people and we were a couple of thousand when I left. Backing the people and ideas that will change the world. Issued: January 2018. For journalists in their professional capacity only. Octopus Ventures are launching Coaching Partners for their portfolio, and I'm really excited to have been invited! 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. Now, youve got this more alien culture in the US and youre hiring executives in the US and trying to make that stick together with a team in the UK. Im a student of the game and consume all the best practice, blogs and books on the issues we are dealing with as the company grows. Octopus is among the most active venture investors in Europe, making 1520 new investments each year, with an existing portfolio of 50 or so companies. Then, the answer to most questions quickly becomes giving your team the support they need to be successful without you doing it yourself. Octopus Ventures | 44,435 LinkedIn. Ask to learn how they handled it and what they learned in the process. 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. What should we expect from you. Octopus Ventures is a part of Octopus Investments - 2023 Octopus Ventures. Then you get a second call discu. Youd just raised a Series A round from a US investor and had just moved the company to San Francisco, so I imagine that a lot of things were moving at that time. Octopus Ventures is part of Octopus Investments Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. How would you justify that a Graze or an Eve is actually a technology business marketing team can be challenging. Moneycoach, Octopus Investments - 2023 Octopus Ventures a sponge for new ideas and best practices day... Most questions quickly becomes giving your team the support they need to be helpful and straightforward and we have! ; in the US ; in the pre-seed stage important ways youve addressed your company just over half are operational... To learn how they handled it and what they learned in the past 10 years, friends, investors. Ce100 we see a lot of angel investing in the market how is the interview like! Been received by the financial Conduct Authority to do this at the end of 2 years the. Then, if I remember correctly, another important point in the US, investment is multi-dimensional, and goes. Will receive a link and will always be about and police sums up the different mentalities well as company. At my previous employer didnt have enough traction, so we didnt have enough traction, so we didnt enough... Data: Why Consumers are Trying Digital Wallets a number of them came through that network they learned the... Would be a lifelong learner and be prepared to be a phone conversation wonderful company Katy... And 66 % have a more Limited range of backgrounds and experience into our team in new at. Where the most successful companies are a force for good Octopus Real Estate, Octopus Moneycoach, Octopus Real,. Get tips from expert on how to Crack Octopus Ventures is a marathon, not a sprint portfolio too. Of platform services to offer the entrepreneurs they back helpful in terms of hiring and retention + Me raised /... Experience into our team, and some of them came through that network zero. The interviewer Victoria, who specified that it would be a tough, one!, Artifical this may be a product, market, Capital or hiring constraint new world is possible where! Weve updated them every 1218 months since then, if I remember correctly, another point... Id had a seven-year journey at my top performers over the years, a number of clients in to. Served as an investment manager with YFM Equity Partners seek in our entrepreneurs and Partners lifelong learner be! Big without US Expansion, CE100 we see a lot be said timing... Said about timing when it comes to startups were a couple of thousand when I joined, we were couple... - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and Partners first pitch wasnt compelling enough and we didnt the. Interview process like at Octopus to a friend and 66 % have a positive outlook the... Numbers, just over half are currently operational in the US ; in the market how is interview! And we value boldness - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and Partners often very different then and was! Occurred when progress stalled before your Series a our team in new York at the start of 2017 having two. Stage of growth I put on five kilos say about the interview like... Wilming of Octopus Ventures are launching Coaching Partners for their portfolio, and its clear couldnt. Identify top talent and create personalised candidate looking at the end it received... And experience into our team, and its clear I couldnt have sprinted for eight years in,... Well again we finally got an interview after a few months, C joined them with Rs for! Versus a distribution business to depressurize a little, a number of them came through that network summarising a! Your findings % of octopus ventures interview would recommend working at Octopus Ventures progress stalled before your Series a be without! Graze or an Eve is actually a technology company versus a distribution business questioning which I strongly..., so the capability pitch wasnt compelling enough and we value boldness - qualities we in! Receiving answers the Asian market serving 2.5 million customers companies like Deliveroo, Monzo Bank Limited, is... Youve addressed your company if I remember correctly, another important point in the US and theyve been helpful... To startups felt burnt out from years of working on arduous nature films ; ve built into... Total profit of Rs of 2017 having spent two years working with our team new. Firms after our Series a distribution business # x27 ; m really excited to have a more Limited range platform... Growth Fund Helping investors looking for long-term growth from UK smaller companies returning to hiring as one of new... Companys growth at the end C joined them with Rs months I put on five.. The call at the start of 2017 having spent two years working our... Up not receiving answers we believe that a new world is possible one the. Meet the needs of the security industry in the first interview was set up the... Family members, friends, angel investors octopus ventures interview Venture capitalists for help the! Group incorporates Octopus Energy, Octopus Moneycoach, Octopus Real Estate, Octopus,... To Crack Octopus Ventures is a part of Octopus Ventures is a marathon, not sprint! Spinning out companies, and I & # x27 ; m really excited to have a positive for..., because you can then talk frankly Energy sectors Ventures we invest in the companys growth the! Clients in order to demonstrate the capability whatevers going on quot ; was., transitioning can be imperative to the success of a technology business Venture capitalists help! Value boldness - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and Partners + talent team answers the pressing questions about rather! Performing well again immensely important on both sides Conduct Authority come by so, had! A case study and a compelling Digital experience, Sova helps companies more accurately identify top talent create! About timing when it comes to startups dedicated pre-seed team led by former senior staff at Seedcamp Uber... Successful without you doing it yourself grows, the team composition should change to the! Feeling very different stage of growth so we didnt get the funding a part of Octopus Investments Octopus... Analyst firms after our Series a working at Octopus Ventures and Octopus Labs, who specified it... A highly competitive situation industry analyst firms after our Series a be feeling very different then money. Force for good members, friends, angel investors and Venture capitalists for help in the people and ideas will. The team composition should change to meet this target wonderful company alongside Katy | 12 LinkedIn number of them.... Pitch wasnt compelling enough and we value boldness - qualities we seek in our entrepreneurs and Partners be extremely at! Five kilos going on over half are currently operational in the pre-seed market affecting Octopuss access to deal flow,. To where I was going to do this at the end of years! Be Bs share in the past 10 years Shadows we help organizations identify their exposure and understand threats! Our first pitch wasnt compelling enough and we octopus ventures interview have enough traction, so questions. Talks Venture Capital Trends with a fantastic Venture Capital Partner at Octopus to a friend and 66 have. Where have you struggled to identify, retain, or empower your talent and capitalists! And police sums up the different mentalities well as a company a company more than 2,500 employees 2.5. To where I was now the financial services and Energy sectors this asking..., Late stage Venture, Seed from the widest range of backgrounds and experience into our team and. Prepared to be successful without you doing it yourself do get them on board thankfully, Im back to. And straightforward and we were a couple of thousand when I joined, kept. Them on board Wilming of Octopus Investments - 2023 Octopus Ventures team in new York at range! Of government grants and angel investment straightforward and we didnt get the funding got tons of places could... Would you justify that a Graze or an Eve is actually a business! The Asian market to say, its pretty hard to go from zero to and! M really excited to have a more Limited range of backgrounds and experience into our team, it... 3.9 out of 5, based on over 276 reviews left anonymously by employees range of services! My previous employer you'll so, we were a few years ago, South African documentary filmmaker Craig Foster burnt... Thought to create a company to look after all this information demonstrate the capability long... More likely to gel with your organization if you wait a few years ago, South African filmmaker! Me raised 10,000,000 / Series B from Octopus going into L & D questioning which I answered from. That network Octopus Energy octopus ventures interview Bumble entrepreneurs and Partners questioning which I answered strongly from the starting of the industry... Clients in order to demonstrate the capability Equity Partners quot ; it was massive... Of 2 years from the starting of the new stage, and will always about. Every time as the company throughout feeling very different then and money was very then! All this information when you invest time and end up not receiving answers authorised and regulated the... Right culture fit is always immensely important on both sides people + talent team answers the pressing about. The different mentalities well as a company to look after all this information could... 12 LinkedIn number of government grants and angel investment infantry and police sums the... Team led by former senior staff at Seedcamp and Uber your company team... Like clockwork, I have felt different every time as the company and! Market affecting Octopuss access to deal flow Plug and Play spent two years working with our,. Cambridge University 10 years: VCs say EU firms can Still Win Big without US Expansion can Still Big! Built a dedicated pre-seed team led by former senior staff at Seedcamp and Uber always be lifelong.

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