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Based on the most helpful WSO content, it seems that the hours can vary quite a bit depending on the role and the company. Some people have shared that they work around 60 hours a week, while others have mentioned working longer hours. It's not uncommon to have long days, with some starting their day early in the morning and not finishing until late at night.
As for whether everyone is working that hard, it seems to be a common theme in the industry. However, it's also been mentioned that if you enjoy what you're doing and are engaged in your work, the time can fly by.
As for whether the grass is greener elsewhere, that's a tough one. It really depends on what you're looking for in a job and what your personal priorities are. Some people thrive in this kind of environment, while others might prefer a more balanced lifestyle.
Remember, it's not about being fragile, it's about finding what works for you. It's important to find a balance that allows you to be productive at work, but also have time for relaxation and personal activities.
Sources: Work/Life Balance - Hours
Think that’s above the norm, hopefully it gets better soon
LMM in Tier 2 city. 9am-630pm during the week. Rarely any weekend work.
Live deals will increase weekly hours by ~3 hours per day, with about 1 full day on a weekend.
We typically do 2-3 platforms per year. Lean team of ~10 IPs.
We don’t do many consolidations, which helps tremendously. That’s a scary territory (lifestyle wise) for LMM given the junior IPs often act as outsourced corp dev for the portco.
this seems like a really ideal lifestyle - what's the pay if you don't mind disclosing? do you know anything about pay trajectory? currently recruiting and thinking maybe I should be more open to LMM if the work-life balance/pay/cost of living ratio checks out. Only other concern is small team size/not getting along with someone and being pigeonholed. Plus, I see some complaints around the types of deals/companies LMM firms invest in and don't know how much credence to give to those complaints.
Second this. LMM associate in Europe - typically work 9 - 6 on weekdays and almot never on the weekends
Comp for this kind of fund at the associate / SA level?
Second this. LMM, 11 IPs, 1-3 platforms per year. Weekdays are usually 9-6:30, but with high flexibility. Usually higher closing in on ICs. Almost never weekend work outside IC-sprints
I had similar in my associate years at a MM. I'm still there and my hours have gotten better.
What are your hours now? Can you speak to your current quality of life and how it compares to when you were an associate?
At an MM doing 9-7pm average with limited weekend work. We're pretty slow right now though, not chasing any new deals through YE most likely.
Could you PM me, currently in Private Credit and looking to make a switch.
At a MF, working 9am - 8pm weekdays, some work on Sundays and Saturdays have been mostly free.
That sounds great.
Not many live deals?
In tech
UMM/MF, 9-10P weekdays barring the occasional late nighter, and occasional weekend work. Slow deal market
can be volatile hourswise, some weeks can be consistently 9-midnight +, some weeks closer to 9-9. Would say Mon-Thurs my general average is 9-10/11 consistently, with Fridays closer to 6/7. Generally a few weekend email responses / a few hours of work on my own time. 700mm latest fund, with ~1.5bn total AUM.
I’ve been at ~90 hours a week since about June. TMT
Wow pretty crappy hours reading here. I think most weeks are 9-10 (M-TH) with Friday probably out by 7. Maybe a couple of hours of weekend work max. Of course, during deal times 9-10 easily becomes 9-1.
What size fund?
Latest fund is $15bn+ (MF)
Silly question but I always wondered if those hours counting office time only or office+home and about?
I just can’t fathom working above 40 hours all year inside the office unless it is my own business. I do 80 hours for less than 8 weeks a year during busy times. Rest is 40 or less.
9am-6pm, with drinks and dinners some nights, and no weekends except for exchanging emails (or occasionally I’ll travel on a Sunday if I want to be somewhere for Monday AM). ~$6bn aum. BD life, boys and girls.
Let me ask what everyone is thinking... comp?
475k. Discount to an execution role is worth it to me for the WLB and lack of stress.
What is BD?
biz dev / sourcing i'd assume
That sounds like an understaffed team or senior people who don’t get what’s actually needed to get a deal done. No one is expecting a 9-5 but that’s… something else
LMM lean deal team but usually 8:30 - 6:30 with minimal weekend work ramps up during live deals obvi. Maxes out around 70 hrs/wk
when you say lean deal team, how many people do you mean? what's a typical deal team size for LMM firms? thanks.
Less than 5 day-to-day. I'd say 5-10+ investors are more typical for LMM.
Am in a similar size group. Mind sharing what your comp is and tier city?
MM with hours: 8:30-6:30ish in tier 1 city with hours ramping for deals. Minimal weekend work unless on a deal, responding to emails, or reading CIMs. I’ve obviously gotten very lucky but the laid back culture is largely due to senior team members quickly killing deals we don’t view as attractive or don’t think we’d be well positioned. Firm is also lighter on decks which has been night and day from where I came from. We will put together a straightforward model and do data analysis but we aren’t spinning up pre-IOI memos and the materials we do put together are “to the point”. The CYA type of work in this industry pushed by old school shops is mind boggling to me and would greatly improve WLB if done away with. But some aspiring VP or Principal will always think that 5th case in the model will make this deal the home run.
mind PM'ing me name of the firm / similar firms? Looking for a culture exactly like this
would also appreciate being on pm’d the firm or similar forms if you’re willing.
can you pm the name of the firm too please, would really appreciate it.
Hey! Could you PM me, already in Private Credit and looking to make a switch.
~90hr+/week across associates & VPs. Notoriously sweaty MM
Found the Audax employee ;)
Thought maybe HIG
MM London
Was super chill in summer. 9am - 6pm. Currently, ramped up probably 9am to 8pm, but that is due to more deal flow.
Feel like it still averages out to 9am - 7.30pm over LTM period. Ramp-up for deals of course.
Board meeting week can be painful too.
Do you think this is common for London ? Seems great, would be interested in hearing some fund names that fall into that category
UMM known for “culture”:
Normal is probably 9-11 or 9-midnight, usually off by 7pm on Friday’s and some weekend work but not full days and usually at my discretion (no calls or guidelines about when I do the work). This is like 70-80 hours a week.
Deal sprints all bets are off, probably 9-3am M-F (maybe off earlier Friday but not always if we’re aiming to send something by end of week). At least one full weekend day if not both. 100+ hours with the worst at ~110-120.
Occasionally get a 40 hour week as well but rare (but better than banking where I had a total of 0 chill weeks).
Really depends on live deal cadence (will always suck at any shop no matter what), but more important IMO is the following, as the non- deal sprint weeks are what make or break you:
- does the firm run hard at any / all inbounds? If we get a CIM that’s remotely interesting we’ll do some work but won’t go crazy until we know we’re interested. Have friends that build a full model on every CIM and have other friends that don’t do any work on a random inbound they haven’t been tracking. This is super important to week to week hours since much more common then a true deal sprint
- how hands on is portfolio? Another huge one. Some people will spend hours a week on port co general work, some will do almost 0 - very firm dependent. My port co work is generally pretty light except if we’re doing M&A, which unfortunately is pretty common. This is why my general week to week is pretty bad hours, lots of weeks that would he 50-60 end up 80 due to supporting port cos. It can feel like a “second job” at times since it often doesn’t help much in preventing new deal staffing. Incredibly firm dependent as well
Fuck portco work
PREACH BROTHER OR SISTER 🙌
First-year Special Sits at a large AM (Wellington/PIMCO/Nuveen), 9a-8pm weekdays + 0-10 hours on the weekends so ~60 hrs a week. $170k all-in.
First year associate at US based MF, Mo-Thurs working 9am-10 or 11pm. Friday out a bit earlier (8-9pm, still late in my opinion). Weekend work varies, usually only related to live deals or intense portco work. For better or worse, not much difference between when on a live deal versus not, seems like sourcing and portco work fill the gap when the deal environment is quiet. That being said, rarely 100+ weeks, and I can almost always get a solid ~7 hours of sleep.
You source at the associate level? Is this buyout or growth?
Its 50/50 buyout growth. Depends on the team a bit, but yes doing quite a bit of sourcing
Because of programs run by GE firms where people only smile and dial, sourcing has gotten such a bad connotation, but it’s something literally everyone even in PE will have to learn at some point. I’m in a traditional buyout shop and we are encouraged to research sub sectors and connect with executives when not working on portco or new deal stuff but there are no quotas or mandates to do so. We are in the deals business after all and every partner would rather find a “proprietary” deal instead of getting bid to the moon in a HW auction.
NYC. 9:00am/9:30-4:00pm minimum 8:30-5:30 if i want to slack off the next day a bit. Fridays just try to finish up before 4.
Comp?
Could you PM me the firm name?
If you’re gonna post anonymous, can you pls just name the shop instead of saying “Tier 1 MM” or “UMM known for good culture”? I don’t think you’ll be able to be identified with the comments here
These comments have been super helpful otherwise
MM and even UMM shops are pretty small when counting just the Associates. Once you know the fund, it’s pretty simple to go through someone’s post to figure out who they are. The lack of transparency for most is more to hide your identify from others at your own fund vs outsiders. If I worked with you, I could read your comment and likely make out who you are.
Uhhh not with the anonymized names?
1st year average roughly 9am-8pm, only worked four times till after midnight and on three weekends (only one day each). Fridays till 5-6pm. 135-140k all-in in Europe. Private Credit is Paradise.
Lol 9a-8 at 130k is certainly not paradise
As Analyst 1 with the local cost of living - absolutely ;) essentially BB IB money with 5-6h less per workday and no weekends.
LMM second tier city. 9-7 in office, generally on until 10/11 at home.
a Wii what is this 2009
Shut up Wii sports will always remain undefeated
.
MM in LATAM. 9 am - 8 pm, little no work on weekends.
Think it's way too variable month to month. Last month, was averaging ~9:30 - ~1:00 AM on a live deal (+ ~8-10 hours of work each day on weekends). Deal died a while back, now wrapping up at ~6-7 PM most days.
That said - if everyone around you is always doing 9 - 1 AM irregardless of deal flow, you can most certainly do better.
Direct PE team at a SWF - roughly 9-6pm, then log back in for ~2-3 hours back at home, and on average maybe 3-6 hours of work a weekend, but varies with dealflow obviously, Call it around 45-55 hours if it's chill and 65-70+ if really busy
Damn I thought my 90 hours regardless of live deals was pretty average… some of you guys have got it made
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