Koru is a venture studio created by Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan to drive innovation among their portfolio companies. By combining existing assets and industry expertise with talent, tech, and a proven startup methodology, Koru allows its portfolio companies to push the boundaries of what’s possible, and ultimately add value for OTPP pensioners overall. Founded in 2019 in Toronto, Koru is a team of experienced business operators, designers, engineers, operators, and marketers with expertise in business building and innovation. For more information, visit hellokoru.com and check out this video for a peek inside Koru.

About you

If you are passionate about scaling businesses, launching innovative products, and crafting strategies to acquire and engage customers, this internship is for you. At Koru, you'll thrive if you have an entrepreneurial spirit, a growth mindset, and a scrappy, results-driven approach to problem-solving.

About the internship

You will have a unique opportunity to be exposed to a wide array of industries and be a vital voice pertaining to the Koru portfolio. You will have the opportunity to collaborate with cross-functional teams, gain firsthand experience in crafting strategies for early-stage startups, and jump into the world of early-stage investing exploring first-hand how to think like both an investor and a builder.

Your responsibilities include:

Work on a cross-functional venture team with close support and mentorship from either a Director of Business Operations or Director of Go-to-Market;
Play a critical role in the discovery, design, assessment, due diligence, and execution of an early-stage venture opportunity for the Koru portfolio;
Work collaboratively with other teams at Koru on HQ initiatives and other ventures, as needed;
Prepare and present recommendations to internal committees, such as the Venture Board and Management;
Supporting ongoing initiatives across other ventures as needed;
Conduct design and market research, competitive and opportunity analyses, user research to refine value propositions, and business modelling to develop investment recommendations for early-stage ventures.

GTM/Growth internship only:

Developing go-to-market strategies, including customer acquisition plans, messaging, and positioning;
Designing and implementing experiments to validate growth hypotheses and measure customer engagement;
Assisting in building growth models, forecasting, and setting performance metrics.

Skills & Experience

For Business Operations:

Entering your final year of an undergraduate or postgraduate degree program in business, finance, economics, strategy, or a related field
Work experience, including internships or co-ops, in business planning, strategy development, or an operational role within a fast-paced start-up environment and/or consulting firm
Experience building business models from scratch and assessing the viability and feasibility of business cases

For GTM / Growth:

Entering your final year of a postgraduate degree program in marketing, business, strategy, or a related field
Work experience, including internships or co-ops, in marketing, strategy, or a growth-focused role in a startup or high-growth environment
Knowledge of marketing channels, customer acquisition, and digital growth strategies

For both internships, you will have:

A strong analytical mindset with experience leveraging data to inform decisions
A demonstrated ability to influence decisions through persuasive storytelling and data-driven insights
A proven track record in building strong partnerships with cross-functional teams
A scrappy, entrepreneurial mindset with a passion for experimentation and learning
Confidence when navigating ambiguity.

Our Interview Process

February

Step 1: First-round interview with one of the Internship Leads (30 minutes)
Step 2: Take-home activity to develop a 1-page investment case (for Business Operations candidates) or growth strategy (for GTM candidates) for a venture idea (~3-4 hours prep)
Step 3: Second-round interview to present your strategy to a panel (60 minutes)

March

Step 4: Final round interview with Koru’s partners (30 minutes)
Step 5: Offer

Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

Diversity of perspectives and experience is at the core of how we approach disruption and innovation. We believe in fostering an environment where team members of all backgrounds can feel comfortable bringing their whole selves to work every day. We aim to ensure all of our employees work in an environment that makes them feel valued, heard and supported while they strive towards career pursuits and their personal and professional growth.

We are committed to providing accommodations for all candidates that require them and in all aspects of the recruitment, selection, and/or assessment process. If you are selected to participate in any part of the selection and/or assessment process, please inform us of any accommodation(s) that you may require.

Apply now

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Land Acknowledgement

Koru’s offices are located in downtown Toronto. We humbly acknowledge that Koru HQ is located on land that is the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the New Credit, Chippewa (Anishnaabeg), Haudenosaunee, and Wendat. This territory is covered by the ‘Toronto Purchase: Treaty 13’ which was the surrender of the lands from the Mississaugas of the Credit to the British Crown initially in 1787. Koru staff and/or board members are made up of settlers, immigrants, descendants of immigrants, refugees, descendants of refugees or a combination thereof. Our roots lie in continents across the world and we are grateful for the opportunity to share this land where we work and live.