Finding corporate venture capital can be like truffle hunting: Without an experienced nose (or a pig to lead you to it), you may never uncover the treasure. There are some avenues you can try, though:

-- If you have a good relationship with an independent venture-capital firm, ask your contact there about potential corporate partners. Conventional VCs are often the ones who bring corporates into a deal. So they are likely to know who is out there and what they're investing in.

-- Contact the National Venture Capital Assn. in Virginia by phone, 703 524-2549, or look at its Web site, www.nvca.org, which lists some corporations among its members. The NVCA is currently working on a more comprehensive listing of corporate venture-capital sources.

-- The industry bible is Pratt's Guide to Venture Capital, published by Thomson Financial Securities Data Publishing in New York. It's best used as a source for independent firms. It lists a few corporate funds that are separate units (not parts of divisions), but that's by no means an exhaustive roster. The book costs $385, the CD is $895, and buying the two together costs $1,050.

-- If you don't find leads for suitable partners, you can cold-call companies, starting with those that might be future customers. First, check out a corporation's Web site to see if it has any special unit for partnerships or new-business development. If not, call headquarters and ask for the business development, strategic planning, or mergers and acquisitions departments. If you still get no joy, call the chief financial officer. Try after 6 p.m. -- and he or she may pick up the phone.

By Margaret Popper in New York
margaret_popper@businessweek.com

To: FINANCE