I've asked versions of this before and have gotten conflicting answers that vary highly by industry, company size, etc. So, let's try two scenarios:
1) You leave a mid-tier BB after your analyst program, and move into corporate development at a large-cap, publicly traded tech or media company.
2) You leave the same bank at VP-level, and make the exit to the aforementioned large-cap tech/media company
What is your career path in each of these scenarios? Are you destined to only be a corp dev guy for the rest of your career? Is there a path to operational responsibility? Curious as to what you all have seen, specifically in the context of bankers moving into corp dev at large public companies.
The difference between VP and senior associate isn't that big i.e. there's no premium for staying another year or two (aside from resume self satisfaction).
For example let's say you go to Google Corp Dev: AFAIK they don't hire straight analysts so you'll have to be an associate 1 and you'll join as an IC4 at Google. Depending on performance each promo could take between a year and a half and lots of years. A VP1 would join as a senior level 5. In order to reach the higher corporate levels you need CD experience. Google is not hiring IB Directors as CD Directors (level 8).
What level is C-level and do they have Head of Corp Dev and Strat reporting into CFO or some other function? Would one need to stay until IB MD to be hired as a Head of Corp Dev or VP level?
I don't think you understood my main point - "in order to reach the higher corporate levels (as a CD exec) you need actual CD experience". Google (or similar companies) don't care about IB MDs. A Corporate VP at Google is a level 10. A Head of Corp Dev would be a VP not C-level. You don't get there by being hired but by growing inside a corporate. The skillset at CD level 7 differs quite a bit from the junior IB VP level - Imagine how much it differs at the most senior level. What does a MD bring to the table?
Exceptions are PE PortCos - they are more amenable to bankers coming in as Head of CorpDev but again it's a different skillset than big public TechCo.
To the original poster: CorpDev usually doesn't move to operational responsibility. You could try to do Strategic Finance or BizOps but you'd have to put effort into learning the actual work and have a strong rationale. Having said that, if you are a Google (or Amazon whatever) CorpDev it would be easier to make those switches if you move downstream (to a mid-size startup etc).
To say "Google don't care about IB MDs" is a bit misleading. IB MDs that cover certain clients get poached all the time for high positions at these corporations.
No IBD MD or MBB MDP(or insert comparable role here outside of global head of xx type people) is coming in at a L10 at google, or even L9. Different caliber of person and experience required. L8 at G is already essentially the same comp (>1M) as a median MD/MDP, and a L10 is making multiples of that
I disagree. Too many contrary examples. There aren’t that many roles so few data points and internal promotion undoubtedly more common however. Google for example hired their CFO from Morgan Stanley, incidentally. She was a top banker who became MS’s CFO.
Perhaps my comment "don't care" was a bit too extreme but given the context of the discussion, I meant it only for the Corp Dev function. Tech companies do care about bankers at all levels for the Finance and BizOps functions. CorpDev is a different beast for senior bankers and one that doesn't translate as well beyond level 5/6.
There’s a history of top tech firms hiring heads of corporate development (Senior Vice President level, reporting to either CEO or CFO) from investment banks. For example, IBM’s recent hire this year was a MD from Lazard.
if you join after an analyst level, which obviously is more common, you can move into a business group that you have developed relationship with. Fairly common.
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