Should I Say Yes Or No To This Offer?

Hello everyone,

I have just finished a 6 month internship as a PE analyst in a company that called itself a private equity firm (small structure of 25 people).

In reality they are real estate brokers for reits who do transaction services, due diligence m&a etc. This information was already disappointing because I have always enjoyed deals with more complex companies (although I have never been confronted with them, this is my first xp in private equity).

Knowing that, I understood that the fixed salary of the employees was very low and that they were paid in bonus on deals.

Frustrated to be a "broker" even if I was working on m&a deals of reits, I proposed to my CEO after a meeting with a fund to make a joint-venture. He asked me why I thought it would be relevant etc. I explained that the brokerage business was fine but that signing JV deals was better to have a continuous income and not just rely on the sweat of his employees.

We had discussed this alone for 2 hours on a Friday night, and being literally the best in his company at financial analysis, mastering the tools, signing deals etc., he was listening.

After that discussion he hired a senior that we could name to manager the building of the JV etc he invested himself in short, I did the waterfall, valuation etc to find our LP.

Today my CEO made me an offer not to continue as an analyst trainee but as a "joint venture manager".

Negative points:

-The company is very young (they were 3 employees 2 years ago, now 25 and have a 200% growth)
-It is a brokerage/m&a/ts company for the moment
-The CEO because of his past has a real estate focus only
-The employees are all younger (under 32) than the CEO who is quite young (under 50)
-This makes everyone suck. It's good to shine and feel confident, because after 6 months my word is authority there but it's not very stimulating, they don't take top talents. There's also a quote that says if you're in an environment where you feel like you've mastered everything, then you have to change.
-The guy who is supposed to be overseeing my job as "manager" has anger issues and does drugs.
-The pressure of successfully running this JV operation on my young shoulders.

Positives:

-I can secure myself in a job where I would have managed to negotiate an excellent fixed salary for my very young age + bonuses.
-I already know everyone, I have made my place and people respect me, I have this aura of a guy who is asked if he doesn't know (even the manager or the CEO).
-My hours are excellent, I sometimes manage to work 40 hours a week (real estate).
-Considering the CEO's crazy ambitions, one could imagine that the company might grow and become a leader, so I would have my share of the cake.
-Going on my resume from analyst to manager at my very young age.

Those are pretty much the points that come to mind,
To conclude and for the TL DR

Today I have a thirst for entrepreneurship and I would like to develop in the free time that my last year of study will give me, an entrepreneurial activity, I do not want to bury myself in this company that slowly transits from broker to a little REPE.

I know that 70% of my tasks will remain related to brokerage.

In the end I have two choices:

A) Continue with them and make my parents proud by becoming a manager although knowing deep down that I just became a broker/TS in real estate (i.e. level 0) although I only talk about private equity in my resume. Receiving money during my last year, traveling to sign deals, being empowered, hanging out with funny but mediocre co employees.

B) Focus on my entrepreneurial activity during this last year, then do an internship opportunity at an old private equity firm that doesn't do real estate (knowing that it will be harder on the hours, the managers will be competent and may say my work sucks and I'll be paid less and back to being just an analyst).

What to value ? The pay and responsibilities and looking really prestigous or the prestige? In the long run what is the best option? I am a genius in the eyes of the "PE" company that does real estate brokerage but I know that my level is lambda or even lame in a PE company worthy of the name. Here I have access to the dataroom, I am invited to important discussions, I have a fancy desk, I don't want to become a little intern again that cannot talk strategy. I don't even touch Powerpoint anymore.

Thank you for your help,
I have to make my decision tomorrow.

4 Comments
 

What would you take? For me the bold and risky move was to follow my heart and go for entrepreneurship then classic PE firm at lower position instead of staying in the brokerage/ts "upcoming REPE" firm. 

I'm afraid I'll get stuck in real estate brokerage afterwards but on the other hand I'm afraid the company will grow enormously without me.

The dilemma is to continue in an industyr with smaller max comps (REPE) but at a higher status or go to the classic PE firm where the max comps are larger but have to start from scratch.

 
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