Venture Capital

I am a lawyer working with investments, private equity, and venture capital. My work often crosses over into operations, decision-making, and collaboration with finance and investment professionals.

I took the Venture Capital program to see if there were any gaps in my knowledge, identify them, and learn how to fill them. There were a lot of things that I knew and was very familiar with, but it was great to have multiple professors looking at venture capital from various perspectives. They are not only finance academics but also have a tremendous amount of hands-on experience, and helped me gain real life skills. The program was truly a master class in the field, fantastic for anyone who is serious about venture capital at any stage of their career.

I wasn’t sure if a virtual program would draw the caliber of participants that would come on campus. But the group was very impressive, coming from varied backgrounds and with different professional experiences. We also had different gaps in our knowledge. The format worked quite well for us to get to know one another, and the content was at a high level that kept everyone interested. We went into breakout rooms to work on assignments in groups, which was a great way to maintain interaction and stay engaged. When the program was over I organized a WhatsApp group so we have continued to stay connected.

I am always looking to grow professionally, but before the lockdown I spent a lot of time on planes traveling around the world. It is very difficult for me to find time in my schedule to advance my education and improve my skills. The fact that the Venture Capital program was online was a big selling point; I was able to take advantage of a learning opportunity that would not have been possible for me otherwise."

Katya Fisher Investment Director and Legal Advisor, Runa Capital

I’m the founder and CEO of Capital Safi, an asset management firm. Most of the funds we invest in are in Bolivia, but we’re currently expanding into other Latin American countries. We’ve also partnered with UBS and Morgan Stanley in a fund that invests across the world.

I enrolled in Venture Capital because I needed to acquire additional venture capital tools for myself and my team. I’m very familiar with Wharton and the strength of the school especially in finance, and I had no second thoughts about signing up. Some of my associates will be going through the program too. We also took a previous Wharton Executive Education program, Private Equity.

The course gave me knowledge that can be readily applied back on the job for high-impact results. We went through the most important areas of VC investing such as deal sourcing, deal flow, investment selection, valuation, deal structure, and exits. We received powerful tools for evaluating business models, which really addresses a blind spot in venture capital. Investors should pay special attention to business models when screening investments. I also liked the fact that the program supplied us with a post-program website and some amazing resource material including articles and book recommendations.

The faculty were stellar. They literally were the ones who wrote the book on the subject. The professors brought to the classroom their deep knowledge of academic theory combined with real-world experience. That’s very powerful and unique, and makes the learning experience more immersive. And the guest speakers were at the top of their fields.

I’m always going back to what I learned in the program, applying it to my everyday work, with just a few tweaks because my market is much smaller. We’re planning to start a new venture capital and private equity fund, so I’ve been constantly going back to my notes and the resource materials. The class was a very collaborative environment of mostly world-class, high-caliber people, which made the program even better.

The experience was amazing. I left energized with fresh thinking and empowered with valuable tools and perspectives in the field of VC. I highly recommend it for those seeking a top-notch education in both the qualitative and quantitative approaches to venture capital. The course was an asset to my company and my career."

Jorge Quintanilla CEO, Capital Safi, La Paz, Bolivia

I work for Midea Group as U.S. investment lead, looking for technology opportunities for my company. I’m based in the San Francisco area, but the company’s headquarters is in China.

When you’re evaluating early-stage startups, valuation is tricky, so Wharton’s Venture Capital program was very beneficial. I studied finance and did investments for many years, but my experience was mostly in private equity, meaning mergers and acquisitions. To evaluate a startup is difficult; it’s not just a financial number. The Wharton Venture Capital class gave me good lessons on how to evaluate startups.

Right now, there are many so-called unicorn startups with a high valuation, but many of those companies don’t have profit or EBITDA. When I first relocated to the Bay Area, I was puzzled by those situations. The Venture Capital program largely solved my questions — how to value the early-stage startups, structure VC investment deals/term sheets, effectively adjust valuation to the investors using various investment terms. For most investment professionals, we don’t have a legal background, and the term sheet sessions gave us insight into legal as well as valuation.

I loved the course. I would definitely recommend it, especially for people starting a career in venture capital. I’ve taken finance courses at MIT and Harvard before, but the executive education finance courses at Wharton are still very helpful for me because they are practical, connect finance with overall business strategies from executives’ point of view, and solve real life finance/investment puzzles. I’m in Wharton’s Advanced Finance Program now and will be taking other Wharton courses as well."

Carly Xiao U.S. Investment Lead, Midea Group, San Francisco, CA

I enrolled in the live online version of Venture Capital. Even though it was online, Wharton made a lot of effort to facilitate connections among the students and with faculty. The faculty really made themselves available, sharing contact info and opening the door for future questions and conversations. In particular, the Pulse of the Market session gave us the opportunity to pick their brains and get their take on what is going on. It was very beneficial from a learning standpoint.

The class was divided into teams that met in virtual breakout rooms. There was a lot of socializing and networking, and it really felt like a cohort. Now we are staying in touch through WhatsApp, and I have connected with many of my classmates on LinkedIn.

I work in the equity crowdfunding space and I work with a lot of startups that are seeking investors. I was able to learn from current and former entrepreneurs, VC investors, and tech experts about how deals are structured, and what to look for.

The way a deal is structured really impacts investor returns, which is something I am focused on in my role. Now I can better put myself in their shoes and know what terms are more beneficial from their standpoint. It was beneficial for me to be with a mix of such experienced people at various stages in their careers. They had a lot of experience from which to speak and they shared insights that were helpful to me.

Gaining access to the quality of the faculty was a really valuable experience. They make you feel like you’re in the seat of one of their MBA classes. The content was challenging, and having it delivered online was really convenient in these crazy times. I was able to be at home, learning from Wharton faculty, and attending with other business professionals. It was an exceptionally rewarding experience."

Stephen Beauchamp Financial Researcher at Money Map Press, Deal Flow Coordinator for the Angels & Entrepreneurs Network

I’m currently the vice president for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at NeoPhotonics Corporation. I’m based in Milan, Italy and San Jose, California. In my region, I am in charge of sales, marketing, R&D, manufacturing, corporate VC, and mergers and acquisitions. I wanted to enroll in Wharton’s Venture Capital program because I deal with mergers and acquisitions in my job, so it’s corporate VC. Another reason is that I’m planning to leave the company at the end of this year and open a venture capital fund in Milan, where I will be a general partner. We will focus on artificial intelligence, robotics, IoT, digital health, and fintech.

The Wharton program was very valuable for me because so far I’ve only worked in the corporate VC and M&A world. What I learned at Wharton is extremely useful to setting up my own venture capital firm.

It was a well-rounded course and a good overview of everything. Plus, whenever we had questions, the professors were available to us. My most valuable takeaways from the course were, first, understanding the different points of view of the limited partner and general partner; second, learning about how a fund is structured; and third, learning about option pricing methods, which was very valuable.

I enjoyed being with the other participants because it wasn’t a homogenous group where you have people saying the same thing and they’re from the same types of companies. There were angel investors, corporate VCs, and people changing careers, like in my case, moving from a huge public company to a small fund. So we were from all different backgrounds and experience, and we were actually tremendously helpful to each other. Even now, we still have a group where we ask each other questions and share information, and there’s always somebody who knows the answer.

Completing the Venture Capital program will help me professionally because Wharton is a big name and it’s a great university. I would absolutely recommend Wharton’s Venture Capital program to others."

Novica Mrdovic Vice President, NeoPhotonics Corporation, Milan, Italy

I am an attorney who represents venture-backed companies and institutional capital funds looking to invest in high-growth companies in Michigan, Illinois, Texas, and California.

I decided to take Wharton’s Venture Capital course to learn more about the business of venture capital. I saw Wharton’s program as a way to gain a competitive advantage over competing attorneys who do not understand the economic implications of venture capital financings.

I particularly enjoyed the session with Professor David Wessels on option pricing. I’ve consistently used Wessels’ book, Valuation as a resource when navigating corporate finance issues. So imagine my surprise when I walked into a class on startup valuations and the professor is the person whose work I’ve referenced numerous times over the years.

In Wessels’ session, we received a very robust, well-researched tool that covers the Black-Scholes model and option pricing. As soon as I returned to the office the following Monday, I put the tool to use. I’m now able to help clients understand the true economic value of their investments, whether by way of convertible debt, SAFE, or priced round.

I was very happy with the other participants. The cohort drew from just about every continent and spanned family offices, corporate VCs, institutional VCs, and angel investors. Getting insights and exchanging ideas with professionals in venture capital and corporate development, the public sector, as well as entrepreneurs, was invaluable.

My expanded network from the VC program has been extremely beneficial. Our cohort stays in constant communication through email, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp. We share deal flow; market intelligence; and recommendations on traversing issues with portfolio companies, brokers, LPs, and co-investors.

I absolutely recommend Wharton’s Venture Capital program for anyone trying to increase their knowledge of the fundamentals of venture capital. It was a phenomenal experience. I will continue to invest in my education and network through Wharton’s General Management Program."

Terrence Reeves Senior Attorney, Taft Stettinius & Hollister, Ann Arbor, Michigan