

Ask HN: Is there a place for an investment banker? - lix2333

I've been interested in the start-up scene for a while now, but I studied finance in college and went into investment banking.<p>My question is, do you think a traditional investment banker has much to add to a start up company? I think I would understand the finance and fundraising side of things better, but would that be enough value compared to someone who can program and just read a few books on capital raising?<p>I just feel like it might be impossible to join a start up with no programming or science knowledge. And it's mighty hard to learn how to program with these hours.
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gyardley
My advice for you is the same as my advice for anyone smart and ambitious
without terribly relevant experience.

Take an entry-level non-technical job at a startup that's grown large enough
to actually have entry-level non-technical positions. Customer support, inside
sales, community management, traffic acquisition, etc. You won't be in charge
of that function, you'll be reporting to someone and learning.

Work your ass off, learn everything about the business, contribute ideas, look
for opportunities for internal advancement and promotion. Startups, even
bigger ones, can be pretty chaotic. At the right startup, you can advance in
responsibility reasonably quickly if you're good.

Once you've gotten some startup experience under your belt, and hopefully a
promotion or two, you can job-hop to a better role or a smaller 'more
startuppy' team. After a few jobs and a few years, you'll be where you want to
be.

This is pretty much what I did eight years ago when I dropped out of a Ph.D.
program in Russian history. It takes time - you've got to pay your dues - but
it doesn't take as much time as starting over in a more traditional career.

I'm in NYC - if you are too and want to chat, feel free to send me an email.

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viandante
Hi,

I am in a similar position. Difference is that I have been hacking code for
over a year now. I feel comfortable around python, clojure, sql and, in
general, talking with people that know about this stuff.

In my experience, your main problem is going to be communication. I remember
at the beginning I could not follow discussions about state, scope, memory,
etc. Now I start to get it. It's important if you want to be part of this
community. I am not saying it's useful, but it's really important, it shows
commitment.

Also, you probably have a product idea? During implementation there are so
many details, you don't want to miss this. You want to be close to the product
as much as possible, or at least be able to grasp the basics.

So, my advise would be take a year and learn coding, web development,
databases, memory stuff (if you plan to play with lots of data), eventually
functional programming, etc. Take a full year, then ask the same question
again on HN stating that you know some programming.

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lix2333
Well, I do know some programming (did some C++ and JavaScript competitions in
high school), so I don't think it would be too hard to pick up again. But
getting to the point where I can contribute code to a team of people who
majored in programming in college would take years I imagine.

Also, you mention database and memory stuff. Can you give me more detail as to
what kind of database and memory you're talking about?

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viandante
I think it all depends what position you want to cover in the team. A junior
position should not be impossible to reach. You can get good in languages like
Python in a matter of weeks. It may take more for web development although.

Databases: as all web sites are dinamic, it is important to understand a bit
about databases.

Memory: people with more experience than me can have a say here. But I really
think you should think about this later and only in case you want to play with
lots data.

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kls
_And it's mighty hard to learn how to program with these hours_

Attacking the problem one bite at a time may be a better way to look at it.
You don't need to master programming to be valuable. But having an
understanding of what goes on in development at any level will make you more
valuable. Using your lunch break to do tutorials is a place to start. Learn a
language that is used heavily in your field. Start looking at portions of your
job that you can automate. Focus on writing solutions for those portions and
it will free up time. Some of those solutions may start to look like products
that could be marketed in your field. Even if they are not, you have still
learned the basics of development and freed more time on your schedule. Both
of which are worth the investment to learn.

~~~
lix2333
This is a really good idea. I've been looking into visual basic macros for
excel. Unfortunately, VB isn't exactly 'hip' or in favor anymore to anyone in
the tech field. But I guess it's as start.

~~~
kls
While not sexy there are some critical VB programs in existence and there are
some companies that will pay top dollar for VB programers, it is kind of like
COBOL now, it is not attracting new people, but the systems that are on it are
important. I have a buddy that commands the best rates he has ever seen, in
his career, maintaining VB apps. There is definitely a market for sunset
technologies, it is the other, not talked about high pay market.

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damoncali
There is little to no need for a finance guy at a typical startup. Early stage
funding has little to do with real finance, and the books are so simple that
they barely need to be done.

So either make stuff or sell stuff. That's about it, really.

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Egregore
Actually programmers often need to listen to somebody with real world
experience. Somebody who will direct the product toward real user needs.

You might have ideas of software needed in investment banking, or in other
fields, you might see what.

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ianpurton
Use your background and become an investor in startups ?

I'm assuming you have some spare funds unless you've been completely credit
crunched.

You'll have an understanding of risk and capital which could prove very
valuable for a startup.

