The rise of an emerging VC community in Minnesota?

In venture capital, the analysts, associates, and principals working through deal flow, building relationships with founders, and doing diligence may not be the public face of their firms, but they’re essential to how the industry operates. Recent industry surveys show there are approximately 5,500 junior investment professionals nationwide (around 1,500 analysts, 2,500 associates, and 1,500 principals) working at U.S. venture capital firms. These ‘emerging VCs’ are the ones up late sourcing deals, conducting reference calls, and spending hours on due diligence. 

Nationally, this cohort is reshaping how firms discover opportunities, support portfolio companies, and evolve their investment strategies, despite representing less than half of all investment professionals in the industry.

Minnesota’s venture ecosystem is one of the most active and collaborative junior VC communities in the Midwest. Through MN:EVC (Minnesota Emerging Venture Capitalists), a grassroots network has formed that’s keeping young investment talent engaged locally while building the next generation of Midwest venture leaders. 

The birth of MN:EVC

The idea for MN:EVC emerged from a familiar startup problem: identifying an unmet need. While it seemed that Minnesota’s established venture community had more regular touchpoints and established networks, junior investors found themselves operating in silos. Associates at the different firms in the state might work on similar deals or face identical challenges, but had few structured opportunities to connect with peers. 

In fall 2023, Emily Kist of Nelnet Ventures and Grant Gibson of Great North Ventures connected at an event and discovered they shared similar interests in building a community of emerging investors. Both were among the only junior people at their firms and craved connection with peers. They decided to host a happy hour event and invite every junior investor they knew in the Twin Cities area who worked at a venture firm, accelerator, family office, or community support organization. Their first event drew in over 20 people, and MN:EVC was born. 

The founding premise was simple: create a peer-led community focused on professional development, deal collaboration, and genuine relationship building outside the traditional hierarchy of partner-level networks. As Emily reflects, “I selfishly wanted more friends in the VC community locally here in Minnesota and thought this was a great way to do that. Over time, I realized everyone else wanted that too – and that’s why we’ve been able to be so successful.” 

What MN:EVC does

MN:EVC operates on the principle that the best professional communities blend social connection with skill development. I joined Emily and Grant on the leadership team in November 2024 as the events coordinator. After catching up with Emily several times and sharing how much I enjoyed planning events and hosting friends, she asked me if I would be interested in leading that aspect for the community. I was honored and immediately agreed. It’s been incredibly rewarding to plan events and think creatively about bringing this group together. 

Regular programming for the group includes coworking days where members can discuss deals alongside peers, monthly social events for informal networking and friendship building, and structured lunch-and-learns featuring relevant topics like AI productivity tips. The group has bonded through escape room challenges, competed in friendly pickleball tournaments, held formal dinners to discuss Minnesota’s ecosystem future, and even escaped the cities for a cabin weekend up north this summer. 

Earlier this year, the leadership team formalized the group by registering it as a 501(c)(3) and secured sponsorship from Fredrikson & Byron P.A. to accelerate our mission. The collaboration with Fredrikson has been fantastic and we even hosted an event and panel at their office this summer. 

One of the first official events I organized was a bowling night last December where everyone wore holiday sweaters. Watching this group of analytical, deal-focused investors get competitive over strikes and spares perfectly captured that we genuinely enjoy each other’s company outside of work.

Impact on the ecosystem 

MN:EVC functions as critical infrastructure for Minnesota’s venture ecosystem, serving as both a talent retention mechanism and a deal flow accelerator. By creating strong peer relationships among junior investors, the group helps keep promising investment professionals engaged in Minnesota rather than losing them to coastal venture hubs. 

The practical impact is measurable. Members regularly share deal flow, collaborate on due diligence processes, and co-invest in opportunities. The group has fostered best practice sharing around everything from founder outreach to market analysis, helping individual members build confidence in their sourcing and evaluation skills. 

We support each other’s initiatives too. When Grant started ‘Rise and Raise’, a series gathering founders and investors for monthly coffee conversations, he discovered the power of having a built-in network. “Having MN:EVC has created this incredible flywheel effect for me,” he explains. “When I’m planning an event, I know I can count on these genuine friendships to show up and engage. That confidence makes me want to host more events and take bigger swings on programming, because I know there’s a community that will support it.” It’s the difference between hoping for friendly faces and knowing actual friends will be there, a distinction that matters enormously in a relationship-driven industry.

Beyond professional development, MN:EVC has generated tangible business outcomes: successful co-investments, accelerated career development, and lasting professional relationships that strengthen the entire ecosystem. 

Profiles in the community 

The strength of MN:EVC lies in the diversity and dedication of its members, who represent over 17 different firms. Each brings unique perspectives shaped by their educational backgrounds, career paths, and investment focus areas. Here are a few snapshots of our community: 

Ellie Pigott – Associate, Traction Capital

As an Associate at Traction Capital, Ellie manages the firm’s deal flow pipeline while spearheading marketing and communications efforts that connect founders with investors. Her three-year journey at Traction began as a Marketing Intern while studying Entrepreneurship at the University of St. Thomas, where she demonstrated the kind of initiative that led to her promotion to Analyst role after graduation, and eventually to her current role. Ellie has become a cornerstone of Twin Cities events, bridging gaps between entrepreneurs, investors, and the broader community with genuine enthusiasm for ecosystem building. 

Ellie’s favorite MN:EVC activity: Ice skating

Emmet Byron – Principal, Groove Capital

At Groove Capital, Minnesota’s first check fund, Emmet has built his career from the ground up over nearly five years. Starting as an Operations Intern and rising through the ranks to Principal, he exemplifies the kind of internal growth that strong venture firms cultivate. His Middlebury College (and later at the University of Minnesota) education, provided the analytical foundation he applies to identifying and supporting the state’s most promising early-stage ventures. Emmet’s deep institutional knowledge of Minnesota’s startup landscape makes him a valuable connector and advisor within the ecosystem. 

Emmet’s favorite MN:EVC activity: Cabin weekend or escape room

Taylor Sieverling – Analyst, Allianz Life Ventures 

Taylor brings a unique combination of corporate investing experience and startup operating knowledge to her role at Allianz Life Ventures, where she evaluates insurtech, wealthtech, digital health and enterprise technology investments. Her career path reflects the diverse routes into venture capital: starting with hands-on startup experience at a fintech company during college, then transitioning to investment operations at Allianz Investment Management as an intern before moving to the venture side. This founder-operator perspective, combined with her UCLA Biology background and leadership experience in student government, gives her a distinctive analytical lens for assessing startups, understanding of the challenges entrepreneurs face in scaling their ventures, and skills to navigate the dynamics of partnership relationships. Through Allianz Life Ventures’ active partnerships with local accelerators, events, and community organizations, Taylor plays a key role in strengthening the firm’s deep integration within Minnesota’s startup ecosystem. 

Taylor’s favorite MN:EVC activity: Co-working day at Life Time Work

Looking ahead 

We have ambitious plans for expanding the group’s impact. Priorities include developing more structured programming around skill development, strengthening mentorship connections with senior investors, and building deeper ties with emerging VC communities across the Midwest and the country. 

The connections we’re building extend beyond Minnesota’s borders. In my own experience connecting with junior investors across the Midwest (including co-hosting events in Chicago with the emerging investor community there), I’ve seen that the desire for genuine peer connection exists everywhere, especially in markets outside the traditional coastal venture hubs. This model of grassroots, peer-led ecosystem building resonates with emerging investors everywhere, and as MN:EVC continues to grow, we’re excited to help other emerging markets develop their own versions while learning from their innovations in return.

The broader implication extends beyond any single organization: the junior investors active in Minnesota and MN:EVC today will likely become the partners, fund managers, and ecosystem builders of tomorrow. By investing in this community now, Minnesota is cultivating the leadership pipeline that will define its venture ecosystem for the next decade.

Building Minnesota’s venture future 

MN:EVC represents something uniquely Minnesotan: a grassroots, collaborative, peer-led initiative that prioritizes collective success over individual advancement. Because our state and ecosystem is smaller, our superpower is being extremely connected and engaged in the community. 

This community matters because ecosystems aren’t built by individual firms or star investors alone. They’re built by the daily interactions, shared knowledge, and mutual support of entire communities working toward common goals. MN:EVC has created exactly this type of foundational infrastructure. 

For LPs evaluating Minnesota-based funds, founders building companies in the region, and senior investors looking to strengthen the local ecosystem, engaging with and supporting the emerging VC community represents a high-leverage opportunity. These junior investors are already shaping deal flow, founder relationships, and investment outcomes across the state. 

The next time you encounter a thoughtful due diligence process, a well-sourced deal, or exceptional founder support from a Minnesota VC firm, there’s a good chance an MN:EVC member played a crucial role behind the scenes. The future of Minnesota venture capital is being built one peer connection at a time.

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Elise Riniker is an Associate at Mairs and Power Venture Capital in St. Paul, a firm which focuses its investments on businesses in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management, and has previously worked at Techstars and Bread & Butter Ventures.