The essential starting point for anyone new to the venture capital industry.
Delivered by VC practitioners, this course equips delegates with best practice insights and the core knowledge, trends and skills needed to build a strong foundation for a successful VC career.
Over two days in-person, delegates gain a clear and practical understanding of the venture capital lifecycle. The programme provides a comprehensive walkthrough of each stage of a typical VC deal, offering real world context and actionable guidance to help participants confidently navigate the investment process from start to finish.
Audience
GP Firms: This course is designed for firms focused on venture capital.
Individuals: Ideal for professionals who are new to investment teams, typically with 0–2 years of experience in VC.
Note: For firms focused on mid-market, growth, or large buyout investments, please refer to our flagship Foundation course. For Limited Partner firms, please refer to our LP Foundation course.
Key topics include
- Overview of VC
- The essentials
- GP/LP structure
- Other structures such as VCT, CVC, publicly listed fund)
- VC returns
- Success stories
- VC modelling 101
- Including valuation methods, capitalisation table, return calculations and case studies
- Building an investment thesis
- Due diligence
- Structuring the transaction
- Term sheet
- Sourcing deals
- Best practice Panel discussion from experienced practitioners
What will delegates take away?
- A solid grounding in how venture capital works, including fund structures and the role of different stakeholders.
- A practical, end‑to‑end understanding of the VC deal cycle, from sourcing and diligence through to deal execution, portfolio management and exit considerations.
- Hands‑on insight into how investment decisions are made, supported by case studies and real-world examples shared by experienced practitioners.
- Improved confidence in analysing early‑stage opportunities, understanding market dynamics and navigating founder interactions.
- A network of VC professionals.
Foundation Alumni Community
All delegates that have completed or are enrolled in our Foundation courses (Flagship, VC, LP or Private Credit) are automatically a part of the Foundation Alumni Community.
Benefits to employers
- Faster ramp‑up of new joiners, reducing time spent explaining fundamentals internally.
- A consistent baseline of VC knowledge across the team, ensuring new professionals understand key processes, responsibilities and decision‑making frameworks.
- Enhanced contribution to deal work, as delegates return equipped with clearer expectations and practical tools to support pipeline work, diligence and portfolio engagement.
- Exposure to industry best practice, shared by senior VC practitioners actively deploying capital in the market.
FAQs about this course
What should I expect on the day?
Please arrive with plenty of time to register. Breakfast will be provided along with lunch and refreshments, with a drinks reception at the end of day 1. The course will kick off with introductions, followed by content from multiple speakers as per the agenda.
What’s the dress code?
Smart casual.
What should I bring with me?
You may wish to bring something to work on/ to take notes, such as a laptop or iPad (we will provide note pads and pens).
Will materials be shared with delegates?
Yes, all materials, including slides and case studies, will be shared with delegates.
Format
In-person, London
Course Director
The course is led by Eyal Mallinger, learn more about him below.
Eyal Malinger
Eyal Malinger is a Managing Partner at Resurge Growth. Prior to that, Eyal was a Partner and led the equity investment team at Beringea, a UK based VC Fund. Prior to joining Beringea, Eyal led corporate venturing at Countrywide PLC, was Vice President with Oaktree Capital’s European private equity fund and a consultant with McKinsey & Company. Eyal holds an MBA with high distinction from Harvard Business School.
Guest speakers
The course features guest speakers with a wealth of expertise and experience from across the private capital industry. Click a speaker below to learn more about them. Please note, guest speakers may vary depending on the course schedule.
Albert Mennen
Albert is a venture capital and M&A lawyer advising clients on a range of corporate transactions with a particular interest in early-stage equity financing. He enjoys advising companies, founders and investors through the full business and fundraising lifecycle, from incorporation through to successful exit. Albert's experience spans across many sectors, in particular technology and communications, retail and consumer, and renewable energy. Prior to joining Bird & Bird, he was seconded to a publicly-listed consumer brand and also held an in-house position as legal counsel at a venture capital and family investment office. Albert is ranked by the Legal 500 for venture capital and M&A.
Alex Cochand
Alex Cochand is a Director at SEI Ventures. He was previously a Partner at Q Ventures, heading the investment team. He managed the origination and investment process. He has worked in the venture space for over 9 years and in that time, he has completed over twenty-five transactions. He has a broad range of experience from corporate finance through to launching a CVC and working within tax efficient funds.
Arjun Jairaj
As an investor at noa, Arjun spends his time sourcing and underwriting new investment opportunities. He is particularly focused on opportunities in the energy transition, mobility, and smart building technologies. Arjun also serves as a board observer to some of our portfolio companies, lending a hand wherever and whenever needed.
Ben Simon
Ben is a Senior Associate in the Venture Capital Team at Bird & Bird in London. He has 10 years’ experience of advising high-growth technology companies and investors on venture capital, venture debt and M&A transactions, as well as complex corporate restructurings. Ben regularly delivers training on UK venture practice, covering topics such as founder and investor rights, share capital structuring and cross-border investment mechanics. He works with clients across all stages of growth, from early-stage start-ups and founder teams, to later-stage institutional investors.
Dan Bowyer
Dan Bowyer, founder turned angel now VC. Investing early in applied AI. Behind the scenes industrials such as manufacturing, supply, back office with a focus on technical founders. Dad of two, husband to one, passion for anything with an engine or circuit board.
Jay Wilson
Jay Wilson is a Partner at AlbionVC, where he leads investments in early-stage B2B software, with a focus on fintech and data infrastructure. His portfolio includes companies such as InFact and OpenTrade, reflecting a conviction-led approach to backing founders building the next generation of financial and data systems. Jay joined Albion from Bain & Company, where he advised private equity and sovereign wealth funds on acquisitions of European technology and financial services businesses. He holds an MBA from London Business School and previously spent eight years in financial services. Beyond investing, Jay drives Albion’s initiatives at the intersection of data, intelligence, and firm-wide innovation.
Malika Arshad
Malika Arshad is a Manager at Future Planet Capital working across Business Development, Investments and Data. She works on fundraising, investor engagement, portfolio value-add and various investment opportunities at the FPC. She has a keen interest in understanding how the venture capital ecosystem can benefit wider economies through the lens of development.
Prior to joining Future Planet Capital, Malika worked at Credit Suisse as an Investment Banking Analyst and previously completed internships in Equity Research and Leveraged Finance with Credit Suisse, and Asset Management at the Bank of Montreal.
She graduated from Kings’ College Londo and has also completed the VC Executive Program at University of California, Berkeley.
Manjari Chandran-Ramesh
Manjari joined Amadeus in 2021 as a Partner in the Early Stage Fund. Her investment focus is on AI, Robotics and Quantum Technologies. She is the Amadeus representative on several boards including Ravelin, NuQuantum, Seldon, and Tenzo.
Manjari started her career in academia as a researcher and college lecturer at Oxford University, later moving to technology transfer at the University where she was responsible for commercialising intellectual property. Manjari then worked at IP Group plc, managing technology investments from deal origination to exit.
She was responsible for the trade sale of TheySayLtd (emotional AI acquired by Aptean), secondary share sale exit in ConcirrusLtd (AI in InsureTech), and sourcing and working with the founding team to build Quantum Motion Ltd (Quantum Computing in Silicon). Manjari created and led IP Group’s Quantum Technologies investment strategy, setting up an initial £12m accelerator fund in partnership with Innovate UK.
Mark Rundall
Mark is a Partner in Bird & Bird's International Corporate Group in London. He specialises in Venture Capital and M&A, focusing on the financing, acquisition and disposal of high-growth organisations (often on a cross-border basis), and also general corporate advisory work. Bird & Bird's Venture Capital team is top-ranked in the Legal 500, which referred to him as "exceptional and hardworking" and "developing a strong reputation among technology clients". He is ranked in the 2026 edition of the Legal 500 as a Leading Partner in the UK market for Venture Capital, and also ranked as a "Recommended Lawyer" for both M&A and Fintech. He is also ranked in Chambers as a "notable practitioner" for Venture Capital.
Mark has a particular interest in Corporate Venture Capital and have acted on a number of financing transactions involving strategic partnerships (both directly and through innovation funds).
Peter Mitchell
Peter Mitchell is a Director at Future Planet, who leads on Data Science and Technology within the firm. With a keen eye for innovation, Peter has developed DataLace, a novel data system that analyzes over 500,000 data points to identify companies in the pipeline that are most likely to build profitable solutions to the world’s greatest challenges. He also serves on the Blue Ocean Mandate's investment committee and oversees relations with Future Planet’s key venture managers worldwide.
Tom Scowsill
Tom joined MMC in June 2022 from Bulb where he was Chief of Staff. Tom also spent three years at the venture builder Blenheim Chalcot, working with several market-leading fintechs. Tom started his career at PwC qualified as a chartered accountant and practised as a management consultant. Tom holds a first-class Economics degree from the University of Southampton. Outside of the office, you will probably find Tom on a Padel court.
Course testimonial
The VC Foundation course provided an outstanding opportunity to master the essential components of becoming an exceptional investor. I had the privilege of learning from seasoned professionals at top UK funds, gaining valuable insights on topics ranging from financial modelling to outreach strategy and term sheets. For me, it wasn’t just about understanding the ‘what’—it was about the ‘how’ that enabled me to leave the course with practical knowledge directly applicable to my day-to-day role as an Investment Analyst.
CPD accreditation
This course is CPD accredited by the CPD Certification Service for 13 hours. By attending this course, you will receive a digital certificate from Diplomasafe. This certificate allows you to share and save your new CPD accredited qualification on LinkedIn, adding instantly verifiable credentials and strengthening your professional profile.
