Corp strategy to MM PE?
Hi all - have not seen many recent threads on this topic but curious if this move could be possible. Have 1.5 years IB experience before moving to a F500 strategy role for the past year. I was not initially interested in PE during my time in IB but miss part of the transaction work and think PE could be a great way to blend my IB technical and deal experience for deal diligence with the more operations&strategy experience in my current role for the value creation and portfolio management aspect. I know the whole on cycle and structured PE process that happens in banking, but would MM PE shops (~1bn fund size, would be interested more in career track not 2-year out programs) be open to my background? I know some shops are more operationally focused and open to consultants - would focusing on those be a better route even though I wasn't in consulting but did similar work? Would headhunters still be helpful for off-cycle opportunities or more individual networking and reaching out? Appreciate any advice or experiences from those breaking in from a non-traditional path.
I would think so but probably need to hone in on hands on operational funds and maybe even an emerging manager - think on fund I or II where talent is harder to come by compared to more established name brand firms.
Thank you - do you have any advice on ways to look for these types of firms? I assumed smaller funds that hire consultants would be more open and I've sometimes seen linkedin job postings for smaller sized funds either from directly the fund itself or from a recruiter.
Work at a ~$500M fund (fund II) that is an operationally focused distressed / turnaround buyer. Agree with the above poster. Operationally focused funds and / or emerging managers are probably the firms to focus on. Will likely view your experience as a plus as teams will be leaner and roles are less defined / siloed so having someone with both transaction and operational experience that can add value on both fronts is helpful. My team has hired numerous people with that type of background, and would look at it as a plus during the interview process. As you go up market with more established names (with traditional strategies), generally things will trend towards firms that recruit traditional backgrounds for traditional associate programs IMO.
Definitely reach out to all the main recruiters and get on their radar.
Thank you, this is very helpful. When you mention more established names, what size would that typically be? Understand I should target smaller funds but a bit worried about going for a Fund I, etc. that has no track record to gauge potential longer term trajectory in terms of performance or fundraising capability. It seems like 500m-1bn in fund 2 or 3 could be a good middle ground. Also please correct me if I'm not thinking about this the right way.
I also presumed recruiters would only focus on straightforward easy placements for themselves (i.e., 2 year IB -> PE) but if the main ones (Opus, Amity,etc.) would still be helpful then I'll definitely reach out.
Another route I have thought about a bit is whether to try to go back to IB at some point first (experienced analyst lateral) and gain another 2-3 years experience first. Would still be non-traditional as I'd become an IB associate at this point but presumably more options would be open. Not sure if this is practical or even feasible.
Mind sharing your employer's peer group. I'm interested in operationally focused distressed firms.Thanks!
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