Big 4 Deals/TAS—>South Asian PE—>Kellogg MBA/PE LAB—>MM PE post MBA, is this possible?
I’ve seen this girl make the transition to mega fund PE after 2 years at Big 4 deals. Can I do the same except that I’ll be recruiting from an MBA?
My experience at big 4 is great and solid, worked on a lot of deals especially with PE firms.
To clarify, do you already have SE Asian PE experience (with prior experience being in Big 4) and you’re asking if those would collectively allow you to move into MM PE after M7’s MBA? Or are you asking if big 4 is doable provided you get into SE Asia PE, AND do MBA? And are you asking MM PE in US or in Asia? (Context is needed)
Assuming you’ve already worked in a respectable PE shop prior to MBA, it certainly helps. It’s much much MUCH harder to get into PE without pre-MBA PE experience. There are plenty of bankers that have more “relevant” exp vs Big 4, and even before that a lot of pre-mba PE folks looking to go back. Also, if you’re not American, it’s even harder because you’re more likely limited to larger firms or organizations that have the admin bandwidth to deal with visas for international hires vs the smaller shops (unless you were already working in US for some time leading up to an MBA). Meaning, smaller firms that may be willing to look outside of the typical profile (either because they have enough of the typical, can’t attract the same cache, or just want to take a chance on people they think are smart and hungry) may not be accessible to non-locals.
If you’re from Asia and looking to return to Asia for PE, that’s a possibility, provided you have the right language requirements. Depending where, it’s competitive there too, and the hiring is less of a regular occurrence and more ad-hoc/as needed (it’s been awhile since I was there, but that’s how it was from talking to recruiters). I think some large places have summer associates like Baring PE Asia (BPEA). Also I think big 4 experience is more respected / less overlooked outside of North America. A few friends have noted this in London, and have seen a number of ex-Big 4 profiles at various PE shops in UK.
Also... the girl coming from big 4 to mega fund... is it in US? In SE Asia? Maybe in China? Is she well connected? (Context also needed).
..........
No I was asking for clarification on where you are now because "Big 4 Deals/TAS—>South Asian PE—>Kellogg MBA/PE LAB—>MM PE Post MBA" was the title of your post... which led me to believe you either (1) are already at SE Asian PE and previously did Big 4 OR (2) you are considering doing SE Asian PE before an MBA... and frankly it's still not super clear. It sounds like it's #1.
Like I said before, having pre-MBA PE experience and then trying to get into post-MBA PE is easier than not having any PE exp at all. And if you don't have it and you've just got pre-MBA Big 4 exp, you're not only disadvantaged vs. the primary candidates (ones with pre-MBA exp), but also pre-MBA BB IB analysts/associates, whose experience would likely be seen as more relevant or 'more prestigious', along with the MBB folks (that may have also had very good PE deal exp) as well. And then I talked about how there's an extra layer of difficulty if you're not American because smaller firms (which maybe you could go after), probably also have less admin bandwidth/capability to hire internationals (I mentioned it because you said 'SE Asia' and it's possible you're an international... or an American with Asian ties). Not often you have people go to SE Asia (I guess besides Singapore) without some connection...
SE Asian PE experience would be valued based on firm and deals. If you were with a bigger name, then it will be seen more favorably.
As for the person you know (maybe take her profile off of WSO to afford her some privacy), maybe she networked/hustled hard or knew someone. She joined as an analyst and got promoted, as opposed to joining as an associate. It's uncommon though - Big 4 to MF PE is very very tough.
That’s right, it was most likely nepotism or she just sold her soul to the devil. Because I’ve seen big 4 rockstars with better schools on their resumes who were unable to do that and had to transition to IB first.
Alright I’ll remove the comment. I just did because you asked. Even the details alone would give away her identity though because searching someone based on keywords on LinkedIn has become super easy.
No, I said I’m still at big 4 but I have a great offer from this firm that is small accordingly to US standards. And it’s not Southeast or SE Asia, it’s South Asia (think India/Pakistan/Sri Lanka)
Listen... it could be nepotism, it could be luck, certainly these things happen in this line of business. Or, it could just be she hustled hard and networked and made it happen and you’re hating. But until you know for sure, it can be one, any or absolutely none of those things. And whatever it is, it has absolutely nothing to do with you. Yes, typically it requires going to IB to build the credibilty / check the box first. But this is an unusual case. So good for her, and just focus on yourself.
I had skimmed and thought it’s was SE Asia not South Asia. But same logic applies. If it’s a bigger firm with bigger deals It will be seen more favorably. If it’s a smaller firm, having the PE experience is helpful, but it will still be tough to get post-MBA PE. (And as I said before, greater level of difficulty for non-locals for smaller MM PE firms).
Not hating. I think I even said it that I was just kidding about that selling soul part.
Nepotism however shouldn’t be confused with networking. Its unethical and I think illegal too.
Secondly, wouldn’t it be seen as a downgrade if I can’t get US PE from an MBA after all that SA PE experience and instead settle for IB? Like SA PE—>BB IBD US, wouldn’t that not look so good on the resume?
I would say depends on the quality of the SE Asian PE shop. If it's one where the people (leadership team) have stellar backgrounds, and you do some notable deals, then you have better odds at post-MBA PE. But if it's an unknown PE name, then going to BB IB wouldn't be seen as a downgrade.
Thing is, Asia in general is still seen as a bit of a wild west from a Western world's perspective. Deals are more growth oriented in nature than traditional PE. There are some perceptions that the same level of best practices and rigor is not practiced. And in some cases - particularly the developing/emerging countries - it's true. So in turn, analysts/associates may not (in some cases, but not always) get the best technical training that is similar to North America/Eur. But bigger PEs where the talent is made up of people who likely spent their formative years in US/Eur maybe HK/SG IB and PE before moving to Asia, would presumably bring 'best practices' with them.
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