The posting
ABOUT THE COMPANY
Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropy Rwanda (AGGPR) has embarked on a journey to develop responsible entrepreneurs across the African continent in the service of the common good.
Our Vision is an empowered, prosperous, productively engaged African citizenry thriving in ethical societies with dignity and hope.
Our Mission is to attack poverty by investing in, nurturing, and empowering responsible entrepreneurs and leaders who benefit society by helping to accelerate meaningful employment creation, while embodying the values and behaviors of ethical leadership.
Our Values are long-term commitment, spirit of humility and significance, excellence, responsible stewardship, and diversity and inclusion.
Jasiri, one of AGGPR’s main programs, invests in, nurtures, and empowers entrepreneurs who benefit society and attack poverty through the creation of high-impact new businesses, creating new markets on the African continent.
Jasiri Talent Investor is a one-year program for high-potential individuals who display exceptional entrepreneurial potential to form part of a community of high-impact, responsible entrepreneurs growing businesses from scratch. Participants are funded and guided through a process of team formation, idea generation, business validation, and market entry. The program introduces Jasiri Fellows to equally ambitious co-founders and supports them on an individual, team, and business level through seasoned Facilitators and Coaches.
Jasiri Growth Accelerator invests in early-stage, high-potential startups that may still be too risky for commercial funders to invest in. Early-stage ventures with potential for high growth and demonstrated product-market fit are provided with funding to support their growth and assisted with investor readiness.
Wavumbuzi – a Jasiri pipeline building program – is a free annual six-week online entrepreneurship challenge focused on developing the entrepreneurial mindset of secondary/high school learners throughout the country. The challenge is designed to equip students with competencies to be the next generation of global leaders, change-makers, and innovative thinkers.
ABOUT THE ROLE
We are seeking a seasoned Investment Specialist to support Jasiri Growth Accelerator (JGA) ventures follow-on capital raise. The specialist provides hands-on support for ventures' capital raise, from funding strategy and deal structuring to investor introductions and negotiations, backed by rigorous valuation work and sound fundraising risk management. The ideal candidate brings deep investor networks, proven deal-making experience, a track record of running valuation work, and the ability to turn valuation and fundraising insights into clear recommendations for the Venture Investment Lead, the Executive Committee, and the Investment Committee. Working closely with the JGA program team, the specialist ensures that follow-on fundraising support is well aligned with program objectives.
Duration: This is a 6-month, part-time consulting engagement with the possibility of extension based on performance and results.
WHAT YOU WILL DO
1. Funding Strategy & Deal Structuring:
- Work with ventures to develop tailored follow-on funding strategies aligned with their growth objectives, and track progress against agreed fundraising targets.
- Advise ventures on capital structure, valuation, instruments (SAFEs, convertible notes and equity), dilution, deal terms and negotiation strategies, and support them through term sheet review and closing.
2. Follow-on Capital Raise, Investor Engagement & Deal Flow:
- Leverage existing investor relationships and networks to create follow-on funding opportunities for JGA ventures, across angel investors, family offices, venture capital funds, DFIs and strategic investors.
- Act as a bridge between ventures and investors, using deep networks to facilitate introductions, support negotiations and drive engagements through to closed deals.
- Review investor materials produced through accelerator partners' investment readiness work and flag any gaps before investor outreach.
- Run investor engagement, including curated deal rooms, investor showcases and targeted one-to-one introductions, to build qualified deal flow for JGA ventures.
- Gather feedback from investor conversations and share it with ventures to help them refine their approach.
- Keep a record of investor engagement (introductions made, pitches facilitated, and term sheets secured) to demonstrate progress and inform future efforts.
- Advise and support negotiations on behalf of Jasiri and its ventures, but may not commit either party, make investment decisions, or act as a representative without prior written authority.
3. Fundraising Risk Assessment & Mitigation:
- Assess risks to follow-on raises, such as runway, valuation expectations, investor fit, governance and legal readiness, and provide inputs to the portfolio risk register owned by the Venture Investment Lead.
- Design and implement mitigation strategies for identified risks.
4. Valuation & Fundraising Progress Tracking:
- Track the fundraising progress, runway, and financial health of ventures preparing for or undertaking a follow-on raise and share insights with the JGA Venture Investment Lead.
- Flag ventures at risk of missing fundraising targets, analyse root causes, and recommend targeted support.
- Contribute fundraising and valuation data to the portfolio dashboards maintained by the Venture Investment Lead and M&E.
- Lead annual portfolio valuations, selecting and documenting appropriate methodologies, and report valuation movements and their drivers.
- Provide valuation guidance to ventures ahead of and during fundraising, helping them set realistic expectations and defend their valuation with investors.
5. Collaboration with JGA Programme Team:
- Collaborate with the JGA team to ensure investment support is aligned with programme objectives.
- Provide regular updates and insights on fundraising progress to the JGA team.
6. Committee Reporting and Presentations:
- Prepare and present updates to the Executive Committee and Investment Committee on investment performance, follow-on fundraising progress, valuations, key risks, and opportunities.
Deliverables
- Funding strategy and deal structuring note for ventures pursuing follow-on capital, covering capital structure, instruments, valuation guidance and negotiation approach.
- Investor engagement plan and monthly execution report, including introductions made, pitches facilitated, term sheets secured, and investor feedback shared with ventures.
- Follow-on fundraising pipeline and progress tracker updated monthly.
- Portfolio valuations conducted and reported in a valuation analysis report, with methodology, key assumptions, and valuation movements.
- Fundraising risk inputs to the portfolio risk register with material risks escalated to the Venture Investment Lead.
- Preparation of materials for Investment Committee meetings on the selection of ventures for investment and follow-on raises, including investment memos, risk assessments and recommendations for investment decisions.
- Final report summarizing outcomes, lessons learned, and recommendations
Key Performance Indicators
- Progress will be reviewed monthly. Measurable indicators include:
- qualified introductions
- investor meetings
- term sheets
- capital mobilised
- ventures supported
- reporting timeliness
- stakeholder satisfaction.
WHAT YOU HAVE
- An undergraduate degree in accounting or finance is required.
- Alternatively, a relevant postgraduate qualification in investment, accounting, finance, or a related field will be considered.
- 5+ years of investment, venture capital, or private equity experience, with a demonstrated track record of closing Seed to Series A deals and supporting startups through follow-on capital raises, evidenced by completed deals and advisory engagements.
- Strong, verifiable investor network across angel investors, family offices, venture capital funds, DFIs, and strategic investors, with documented evidence of active investor engagement, such as introductions made, pitches facilitated, or term sheets secured.
- Demonstrated experience conducting valuations of early-stage and early-revenue companies with the ability to defend valuation approaches.
- Solid understanding of startup financing instruments, term sheets, cap tables, and investor rights.
- Strong financial analysis and modelling skills, with the ability to assess business models, growth strategies, and financial health.
- Practical experience with investment due diligence, investment committee materials, and post-investment support for portfolio companies.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present investment cases clearly to internal and external stakeholders.
COLLABORATION LINES
- With JGA: Strategic link to the JGA program team to ensure alignment and measurable impact on venture growth.
- With M&E: Co-designs indicators for Investor readiness, feeds venture-level data into portfolio dashboards.
- With Ecosystems and Partnerships Manager: Create a platform for peer learning to strengthen alumni ties and create a support ecosystem around funding readiness.
