Interview with Steffan Bankier: Interning at BCG Digital Ventures

Steffan Bankier is an experienced entrepreneur and operator with a background in building consumer brands. He started on the brand side and moved into more performance marketing. He’s been the GM for different brands with a focus on food, beverage and supplements as well as cannabis.

Steffan has worked at small companies, started several businesses, and worked at large agencies and big CPG companies such as Kraft Heinz. 

Between 2018 and 2020, Steffan was a Venture Architect Internet at BCG Digital Ventures (BCGDV), a venture studio created by BCG (Boston Consulting Group). 

Jobs @ Venture Studios sees a lot of interest from venture studios and job seekers in junior roles (internships, first jobs, etc.) so we interviewed Steffan to learn more.

Question: Can you share more about BCGDV?

Steffan: BCGDV was a venture studio built out by BCG, which sounded like the perfect thing for an MBA who wasn’t sure of what he wanted to do.

I never thought I’d ever get my MBA-I loved building companies and felt like it would be a waste of time and money. But once I made the decision to go, I leaned into it and fully experienced the MBA journey. So naturally, I had to consider consulting.

When I learned about BCGDV, it seemed perfect-a venture studio where BCG partners with clients to launch new businesses and pitch them Shark Tank-style for investment. Best of both worlds-consulting and startup. As a Venture Architect, I worked with experts, designers, and developers, building solutions to address specific customer pain points. It was a very cool role.

A nice perk was minimal travel since clients usually came to us. My role was to keep the business aspects in mind and drive the project forward, acting like a quarterback coordinating with cross-functional teams to ensure we met client expectations.

I worked closely with the client embedded in our team, managing both them and my manager, usually a partner at the fund, along with the client management team.

Question: Why did you decide to work at BCG DV? 

The idea of working in a studio within a larger company reduced the risks associated with startups (and why people don’t start or join startups). It also allowed me to experience consulting and learn from intelligent, emotionally aware, and exciting people. I loved the idea of being able to build businesses at scale, which would only make me a stronger founder. But the highlight was definitely the people. 

Question: What were the biggest challenges and learnings?

One major challenge was aligning what they thought they wanted with what they actually needed. They wanted risk-seeking consultants, not risk-averse entrepreneurs. BCG had proven frameworks. BCGDV didn’t, but they wanted everything to fit into some kind of a template or a framework and always reverted back to the BCG way of doing things. And as most people who've built a business know, that's not the way businesses work. And in a lot of ways, if you deviated from that, it would kind of put them ill at ease and they weren't thrilled with it.

It's kind of like having your cake and eating it too. You can't have a safe consultant framework approach to a solution that is literally solving new challenges every time. There needs to be new ways of doing things. And it was a little surprising to me that they were so against that. 

Biggest learning: I didn't enjoy working in oil and gas or the B2B environment typical at BCGDV. I prefer consumer-focused work, where I can get into the head of a consumer and create something exciting. While BCGDV has value, I wanted to work somewhere more innovative, open to new ideas, and consumer-focused.

After interning at DV, you didn't continue with them or join another studio, you joined Kraft Heinz, why? 

I initially joined Kraft Heinz thinking it was going to be a Venture Studio. Let me backup a bit. When I was looking for work after BCG DV, I didn’t want to go back for several reasons, mainly because it was very consulting-focused and B2B-oriented. I went through the usual brutal MBA recruiting process.

Kraft Heinz had a really interesting proposal. They’re an innovative, fast-paced company, pay well because they’re backed by 3G, and have a culture more like private equity than a typical CPG, which I liked.

They were launching Springboard, their Venture Studio, and I thought it was the perfect job for me. A Venture Studio focused on food in a high-intensity environment was exactly what I was looking for.

I was ready to be a Kraft Heinz lifer if it meant that I could spend my time launching new businesses. I never planned to work in brand management and even joked with the recruiter when I signed, saying, "I don't want to be selling mac and cheese in six months." 

This was at the end of 2018, and I was set to start in May 2019. But between signing and starting, Kraft Heinz went through a massive turnaround, laid off their entire C-suite, including the CMO who championed the Venture Studio, and they ended up nixing it.

Despite this, the company treated me well. I worked on interesting teams like Primal Kitchen, a new brand they acquired. I worked on innovation and did some shopper marketing, which wasn’t what I hoped for. I spent two years there during COVID, living in Chicago, learning a lot, and getting exposed to various aspects of brand marketing.

But knowing what I know now, I wouldn't have joined Kraft Heinz to end up working in shopper marketing for Publix and H-E-B (two large grocery chains).

Q: What recommendation would you give people looking to work for a Venture Studio? Any tips on how to get recognized, especially for new grads, new interns?

Steffan: Honestly, it's about starting something. When I talked to Venture Studios, what set me apart was proving I could launch a business. It doesn't have to be a crazy or even a successful business—none of mine were massively successful. Showing you have the grit to get something off the ground, even if it's just a monetized blog or a small side hustle like a DTC toothbrush, is important.

To get recognized, be active on social networks, especially LinkedIn. Post your thoughts, engage with people, and go to events. These are tried and true methods, but they work. For new grads and interns, go out, attend events, and meet people.

When I started around 2010-2012, I worked at WeWork, and many successful CPG founders were also there. The founders of Magic Spoon, Wandering Bear, and 305 Fitness were all people I met at WeWork. So, co-working spaces or popular coffee shops can be great places to network. Shoutout to the Marlton hotel, which became my second home. I’m still being made fun of for how much time I spent there. 

One more thing: Venture Studios are tough. The best model I’ve seen was at Thesis, a supplements business that launched a similar second brand. This brand, Stasis, succeeded because it could learn from the first one. Thesis had already figured out messaging, website optimization, and ad strategies, and 80% of that transferred to the new brand, saving a lot of trial and error. And they had great in house talent like creative and media buying, as well as an established supply chain.

So a Venture Studio with businesses that share transferable skills has the best chance of succeeding. Studios focused on similar categories or consumers are more likely to succeed. But it's a tough model, and if anyone figures out the secret, I'd love to know.

Q: Would you consider joining a venture studio again? What would you need to see in order to be convinced? And would you consider a corporate venture studio given your experience with Kraft Heinz?

Not to sound like a masochist, but yes. While I can be very cynical, I consider myself to be a reluctant optimist and hold onto the idea that great studios exist. Same with corporate studios-Kraft Heinz was an edge case. I’m hopeful that big CPG will eventually crack the code, and when they do, I’ll be here waiting.

Thanks Steffan! Read how to prepare for an internship at a venture studio.