Venture Capital Job – Associate / Senior Associate – Zinc Innovation Partners

Brief Summary

Contract type: PermanentCommitment: Full-timeRemuneration: £35,000-45,000 dependent on experienceLocation: London/Hybrid (minimum 3 days per week in our Euston Office)

About Zinc Innovation Partners

Zinc Innovation Partners exists to accelerate pathways from science to impact. Working with external partners, we run talent programmes, mission‑led venture‑building activities, experimental approaches to impact funds, and other strategic partnerships. Over the last nine years, we have helped hundreds of scientists and innovators build and develop their ideas.

About the Role

This is a role at the operational centre of Zinc’s Innovation Partnerships, and a fast route into the innovation ecosystem for someone ambitious early in their career. You’ll help us run the programmes, events, and partnerships with our customers through which science becomes impact; and, over time, take on a growing hand in shaping them.

The core of the job is operational and programme delivery. You’ll run the accelerators, workshops, fellowship sessions, and partner events that are the engine of what we do, manage the relationships and correspondence that keep them moving.

From that foundation, the role opens steadily outward into strategy. Through research and synthesis, knowledge management, and programmatic design, you’ll move from delivering programmes to helping design them, and gain exposure across the breadth of Zinc’s work: running accelerators, talent programmes, venture building and venture studios, and putting capital to work for impact.

We see this as a role you grow with. As a small and expanding team with a deliberately diverse portfolio, we want someone who will broaden quickly and then deepen in the areas they’re most drawn to.

In the role, you’ll be working on…

1. Events & CommunityEvents organisation and managementStakeholder and partner relationship managementManaging inbound inquiries and correspondence
2. Research & Knowledge ManagementDesk research, literature reviews, and synthesisMaintaining internal databases and document systemsTracking and reporting on project progress/metrics
3. Strategy & Special ProjectsSupporting grant applications or fundraising processesContributing to strategic planning cyclesAd hoc analytical or writing projects
4. Marketing & ContentManaging social media presence or newsletterDrafting external‑facing copy (website, reports, decks)
5. Tech & ToolsManaging internal toolingBuilding lightweight automations or dashboards

You don’t need to be an expert on all of the above, but you do need to be a detail‑oriented quick learner who is good at working to tight deadlines, taking on responsibility and owning tasks.

Who we are looking for

1. Familiarity and enthusiasm for early‑stage innovation: You have exposure to commercialisation programmes / venture‑building processes, whether through work, study, or your own projects. An advanced degree in STEM is a plus. You are excited by science and its potential for social or economic impact, and want to work somewhere where that mission is central to everything.
2. Comfortable with ambiguity: You can plan and execute projects in a fast‑paced, agile environment, working to tight and often‑changing timelines without losing sight of quality or detail.
3. Team player: You work with both colleagues and external partners in a proactive, constructive, and collegiate way.
4. Effective organiser with a bias to action: You are organised, hands‑on, and motivated to contribute beyond your core responsibilities, using initiative to make decisions and move things forward.
5. Technically capable: You are comfortable picking up new tools quickly, whether that’s a project management platform, a CRM, or a basic automation.
6. Low ego, high ownership: You take your work seriously without taking yourself too seriously, and are willing to roll up your sleeves on whatever the team needs, big or small.

Why Apply

1. Work at the sharp end of turning science into impact, innovations and companies. An exciting part of what we do is helping scientists and founders make innovations a reality. You’ll be close to that from the start, supporting the teams and programmes where research translates.
2. Build a network across the innovation ecosystem. You’ll work with a wide variety of people: scientists, founders, investors, funders, and partners across academia, industry, and government. The relationships you build here will stay with you well beyond this role.
3. Shape your role as you grow. There’s deliberate room to expand. As you find your strengths, you’ll have real agency over what you take on, and the freedom to specialise in the areas you care about most.
4. Learn directly from experienced operators. You’ll be mentored by senior people at Zinc who have built programmes, ventures, and funds, in a team small enough that you see how decisions actually get made.
5. An experimental, intellectually serious place to work. We try things, stay honest about what works, and take ideas seriously. It’s a stimulating environment to think and build in.

Apply

We are reviewing applications on a rolling basis and encourage early expressions of interest. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and are committed to building a diverse team.

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