Job Description

Our Values

Rural America is a place of untapped potential. As an organization, we believe it takes a culture of collaboration \xe2\x80\x94 one built upon integrity, respect, and trust \xe2\x80\x94 to achieve equity and help rural people and places take on meaningful roles in the 21st-century tech economy.

About Us

Rural Innovation Strategies, Inc. (RISI) is a social impact nonprofit consulting firm with a multi-disciplinary team of strategists, advocates, and capacity builders.

Our capabilities reflect the depth and breadth of our commitment to serve rural America, and the local leaders there working to advance tech-enabled economic development. Our work provides critical support to secure funding, develop infrastructure, and implement the programs needed to unlock the potential of America\xe2\x80\x99s small towns and cities.

Rural America is home to 12% of the U.S. workforce, but just 5% of the tech workforce. In the age of innovation, this disparity has led to an unprecedented economic divide in our nation. We work with rural communities across the country as they build tech economies that support scalable entrepreneurship and tech job creation. From assessments and strategic planning to securing funding and launching accelerators, our team supports communities through the entirety of their tech-based economic development journey.

RISI and its collaborating organization, the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI), are headquartered in a historic general store building in the village of Hartland, Vermont, part of New England\xe2\x80\x99s Upper Valley and greater Dartmouth College region.

About the role

The CORI Innovation Fund is looking for an enterprising intern who wants to help positively impact rural America by assisting the fund\xe2\x80\x99s efforts to identify and support the best entrepreneurs in small towns across the country.

Impact Venture Fund Intern is responsible for a broad range of duties related to assisting the fund\xe2\x80\x99s effort to raise capital from investors as well as identifying and supporting the best entrepreneurs in small towns across the country. This position is an important contributor on a small, ambitious team in a driven organization working to create sustainable change in small towns to support the mission of the Center of Rural Innovation (CORI).

The CORI Innovation Fund invests in high-growth businesses located in qualified Opportunity Zones in the United States to enhance economic growth and job creation in small communities. The Fund will seek to find attractive technology-enabled operating businesses in rural geographies, which are under-served by traditional venture capital institutions.

Duties/Responsibilities:

• Investor sourcing: Finding and contacting potential investors for the fund;
• Deal screening: call prospects, evaluate opportunities;

• Documentation: summarize and record call notes;

Gather information from target companies and industry experts;

• Research potential competitors to the target company;
• Research and talk with industry players to evaluate the target company\xe2\x80\x99s technology including IPs;
• Assist in preparing internal investment memos;

• Perform other duties as assigned.

Required Skills/Attributes:

• Outstanding analytical skills, detail-oriented, proactive and self-motivated;
• Strong writing, editing, proofreading, and verbal communication skills;
• Ability to produce well designed professional PowerPoint presentations;
• Intermediate or better Excel knowledge.

Requirements

Education and Experience:

• MBA or seeking a MBA;
• 2+ years of relevant experiences in venture capital, finance, banking, consulting, corporate development or similar industries.

Physical Requirements:

Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.

Benefits

This position is not benefits eligible.

• The salary for this position is $20/hr
• Anticipated start June 2023

Must be authorized to work in the US - no sponsorship offered at this time

Rural Innovation Strategies Inc.