Investment Committee Memos (IC Memos) are the backbone of VC decision-making. Yet they often fail to win conviction: they describe rather than build an argument, focus on risks rather than mitigants, or overemphasize one side of the case.
As a result, IC members struggle to make a sound decision — potentially leaving a fund returner on the table.
Even when they do, the IC memo doesn’t provide a decision-making trail that can help make follow-on or bridge commitments. Worse, LPs evaluating the firm’s decision-making processes walk away unimpressed.
In contrast, elite VC firms’ IC Memos are conviction engines that lay out the facts, explain why the firm can live with the identified risks, and offer a glimpse into the future: what needs to happen to generate outlier performance.
I’ve written IC Memos since 2008, analyzed hundreds of them over the years, and trained dozens of VCs worldwide in the craft of writing a convincing IC Memo.
This work has produced a major insight: the key to effective IC Memos is not on the page but in the mind. Building a conviction argument amid extreme uncertainty requires a promotion-focused orientation: lay out realistic growth scenarios, focus on what can go right, and provide a path to success.
Your Instructor
Aram is the Founder of The VC Factory and creator of Mindset-Based Investing, a framework helping LPs and GPs improve Venture Capital returns by focusing on how Investors and Founders think. He is also an active LP and IC Advisor with a select group of funds whose GPs are receptive to his approach.
Earlier in his career, Aram spent 20 years in LBOs, Growth Equity, and Venture Capital, completing more than 50 transactions across three continents. More info
Workshop Objective
Learn how to write IC memos that build conviction, document your reasoning, and stand up to LP scrutiny:
- You will learn how to turn the IC memo into a decision tool rather than a polished summary
- You will make your reasoning easier to challenge, revisit, and improve over time
- You will strengthen traceability for internal learning, follow-on decisions, and LP due diligence
Who It Is For
This session is designed for Fund I-II managers and for VPs and Principals at established firms who write investment memos.
Format
2-hour in-person session with 3 to 5 participants, to encourage dialogue. The session is primarily based on exchanges between the participants, led by the instructor, and based on the material he provides.
Content
- Clarify the role of the IC memo in the investment process and how it differs from a pitch recap
- Learn the core sections of a strong IC memo: opportunity, thesis, evaluation criteria, risks, mitigants, deal terms, and next steps
- Write with conviction while staying precise about uncertainty and open questions
- Focus on risks and mitigants, the section that most often determines whether a memo is truly decision-grade
- Learn how memo circulation and pre-meeting preparation improve the quality of IC discussions
Methodology
We analyze 15 IC memos from elite VC firms (Sequoia, Bessemer, Creandum, etc.), focusing on what each does best. We’ll also draw from participants’ experiences and peer-reviewed research in VC decision-making and cognitive psychology.
Takeaways
You will leave with a clear framework for writing sharper, more rigorous, and more useful IC memos. You will also have a practical structure that you can adapt to your own firm.
Deliverables
At the end of this session, you will receive our proprietary VC Investment Memo Template, a document designed to help you structure investment reasoning in a clear and decision-useful format.
How To Prepare
You can read this article on IC Memos (optional).