Head of Operations
About the roLe
AI in Science Fellowship Program
In partnership with the Advanced Research and Innovation Agency (ARIA), Pillar VC will launch a fellowship program placing 30 top AI researchers in leading UK science labs over the next three years. Fellows will spend 12 months embedded in labs focusing on neuroscience, robotics, climate science, and more. Each fellow will receive a competitive stipend, access to state-of-the-art computing resources, and the opportunity to work on some of the most pressing scientific challenges of our time. Through the program, Pillar VC will deepen its UK presence, investing in ecosystem development, events, programming, and post-fellowship support to nurture these projects into successful ventures.
We’re looking for a Head of Operations to manage the day-to-day operations of the Pillar VC Fellowship program, build our community strategy, and execute fellowship marketing and promotion. Candidates must have a strong UK network. Must be based in the UK or willing to relocate before December 31st, 2024.
Qualifications
- 4+ year of working experience
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Strong project management and organizational skills
- Experience working at a venture capital firm or incubator is a significant plus; Platform experience preferred
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment
- Strong understanding of AI/ML applications, particularly in biotech and deep tech field
- Familiarity with the UK startup and academic ecosystem is strongly preferred
- Based in the UK or willingly to relocate
- This role reports to the Pillar US platform team.
Key responsibilities
- In collaboration with the Executive Director and Pillar VC team members, design and execute the program’s community strategy, events and other ecosystem-building activities
- Oversee end-to-end program logistics, from fellow onboarding to project completion
- Develop and manage program budgets, ensuring optimal resource allocation and compliance with grant requirements
- Design and execute engaging program events, workshops, and networking activities
Work closely with the Pillar VC platform team to align brand standards, best practices, and founder support. - Support the Executive Director in building a network of mentors and advisors to support the fellows.
apply
We encourage underrepresented candidates to apply.
This role is based in London, UK.
Who We Are
Pillar VC is a seed-stage venture capital firm based in Boston co-founded by 41 leading CEOs, including the founders of DraftKings, Iora Health, Ginkgo Bioworks and Constant Contact. We’re the first-capital-in for scientists and engineers building in deep tech and bio. We make big bets on big ideas at inception.
Over half of our investments emerge out of universities. We work with founders months to years in advance of commercialization, collaborating with PhD students, postdocs and faculty. Our team helps by validating customer demand for a founder’s research, recruiting key team members, developing business plans, navigating licensing agreements, and building syndicates with strong co-investors. We’ve made over 50 investments in academic spinouts, including Algorand, Asimov, PathAI, Neural Magic, and Verve Motion.
Our investments span enterprise/infrastructure, vertical SaaS, fintech, crypto, manufacturing, logistics, robotics, healthtech, SynBio, genomics, longevity and precision medicine, among other categories. We’re proud investors in companies including Jellyfish, Abridge, Higharc, Hometap, Kula Bio, and VideaHealth.
We started Pillar VC with the belief that there has to be a better way for founders and investors to align. We began with a simple hypothesis — that if we treat founders the way we would want to be treated, good things will happen. That if we align every incentive, every action and decision to realize mutual benefit, we will engender trust, and from that, achieve profound results. It’s that simple.