Was corporate development worth it for you?

For people who made the move from IB to corporate development, was it worth it? Also did you choose a startup or an established firm, and why? Also what % of your comp is equity based? Also what type of work do you do, is it entirely looking at potential acquisitions and assessing synergy potential/modeling, or are you wearing “multiple hats” and doing many different tasks, such as more general business development? This is an option I’m considering.

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It's been worth it for me so far (granted, I've only been here for 1 year so my views may change. I'm at a established company - I would have considered startups, but the majority of those opportunities at the time were looking for more senior type hires. In terms of type of work, we do a lot, including VC investments, M&A, joint commercial partnerships, licensing agreements, etc etc. 

 

Working in the VC team inside an established company sounds like a great deal in terms of having a relatively safe job but also getting amazing experience for eventually launching your own fund.

I would like to know more about these kinds of structures. I know of companies that are very active with their VC investments but I’ve always wanted to know if analysts/associates in these roles get something equivalent to carry in the fund, or is it all base+bonus given it is not actually a VC?

 
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