Summit Partners Interviews

You will have a mock cold-call to a growing company where you are expected to ask all the right questions to get that person's attention and info about his/her business. Also, they want to see if you have any interesting companies you'd like to invest into that are aligned with their business model. Other than that, you might get a brainteaser or two and a basic FCF calc question. They are definitely looking for a fit. Make sure you know as much about Summit as possible and their transactions (They love their McAffe story). Have a good explanation about why you belong there. Contact alums from your school who might work there. They will eat that up. Good luck! PM me if you got more Q's.

Don't know summit. But I was given similar scenario regarding mock phone call. The interviewer was nice, but he intentionally tried rejecting you in anyway they can in the mock to see how you respond to pressure.

Thanks very much guys. I will PM you with a couple of follow-up, but this is already very helpful.

i interviewed with a few cold calling shops and they had similar interviews.

what would you say to the CEO of company XYZ, and they kept asking for new reasons over and over again.

I half-thought they wanted to incorporate new styles of cold-calling/selling that he gleaned from interviewees.

The world has changed. And we must change with it.

First rounds on campus, after I brought up their sourcing model, the guy asked me outright if that would be something I would be looking to do. Given that cold-calling is the bane of my existence he could probably tell I gave a half-assed "yes". Given that you love that kind of stuff, showing passion about it and telling a good story related to getting business from a stranger or something would bode well for you.

Personally, I am disgusted with their business model and hear they are kind of shady in that they just siphon companies for information.

Then why would you interview with them? Makes no sense.

I interviewed with Summit a few years ago and I'm sure things have changed, but the number one thing they were looking for was ENTHUSIASM about the business model, not just acceptance of it. You need to have excellent, believable reasons why deal-sourcing is an attractive role for you and why you'd be good at it. Secondly, fit is important - they want type-A's in the truest sense of the term. Athletes with good grades have a huge advantage over someone who may be smarter or more articulate. This is because (shhh!) you don't need to be THAT smart to do what they do. They throw you into a pit with a bunch of other guys with razor-sharp elbows and they want you to cmopete with the guy next to you. They keep stats, and the winners get paid and the losers get a bad rep that is hard to recover from. At the end of the day, however, they all go on to to HBS or Stanford, so why not?

Feel free to PM for specifics.

Summit just let me know they are still getting a final tally of how many of their 3rd year associates are applying to bschool so interviews won't be until the end of March. From what I understand about their associate program you're right - it isn't rocket science - but then again how hard is it to build an LBO model? It takes a certain mixture of tenacity and balls to source cold deals - two very useful traits in life. I will PM you as the date gets closer. Thanks again!

Does anyone have any idea about comp or hours at Summit?

Base? Year end bonus? Deal sourcing bonuses?

Spinner, if you find out, I would leave to hear. If anyone cares to PM it to me, that would be greatly appreciated too.

Also, what are their success rates at placing into HBS/Stanford? Is it like TPG or Blackstone where 95% of their associates get in, or is it more along the lines of 25-50% like most smaller PE firms?

Thanks.

It's a good firm and PE is PE; so get it if you can. Bot don't do it if you don't like the business model. Some people aren't cut out for that type of work.

No word on comp? Anyone even have a range?

Are their associates getting paid closer to 60 base or 100 base?

Are deal sourcing bonuses generally six figures?

I'm not sure how accurate this website is, but they're claiming a base of $85k:

http://jobs-salary.com/associate-salary-at-summit-partners-lp-in-palo-a…

Does anyone know what the interview process consists of? What's the split between "fit" questions and financial analysis questions? Can anyone provide insight on whether or not they actually enjoy working at Summit - and whether they felt like they actually learned something and were able to participate in the deal process?

My interviews consisted of a ton of fit questions and actually a few quick calculations. No cold call mocks. I had 2 rounds and recieved an offer. I think the big thing is to demonstrate why they are different and the cold calling role is a good fit for you. If you are personable and can think quickly on your feet they will look very highly on that and be more likely then most PEs to overlook a not-so-pedigreed past.

Which Summit office did you receive an offer for - Boston or Palo Alto? Were you chosen by a Principal to work in their specific sector?

Did you end up taking the job? If so, how do you like it? If not, why did you turn it down?

It was for the Boston office, and as far as I know I wasn't selected by a specific Partner for their sector.

In the end I selected a different firm because I didn't think cold calling was what I wanted to do most of my day But that being said, I think it is a very very good skill set to have and will definitely help prepare you for a senior role at almost any shop. I was also rather unimpressed by the junior guys there, which made me question a few things. The senior guys are pretty top-notch however.

When do these guys begin recruiting for summer 2010 positions? When's is the best time to submit your resume to them? I know recruiting is being pushed back into the mid-late summer for a lot of places, so are these guys any different?

do they even recruit for undergrad?