Exit to Corporate Development

Does anyone have insight on director-level opportunities in corporate development? I have 5.5 years of IB + PE experience (did typical IB path, then PE associate stint, back to IB as an associate). I'm a year away from making VP, but also am coming across some corporate development opportunities at small portcos - primarily executing and some sourcing for M&A. I understand the differences between corporate development / IB / PE at more of the junior levels, but is "Director of Corporate Development" a decent exit post-IB? Assuming the company sells in 1-3 years or so, would it place me well to be a VP of Corp Dev at a company, or is the "Director" position sort of a ceiling? Also, the title is there, but the trade-off is lower comp compared to banking. I'm thinking a fair-level would be $250k all-in cash + some equity upside, but curious to hear others' thoughts.