Hi everyone - I know HIG has a bit of a scummy reputation but it seems like they've cleaned up their act in recent years. Anyone have thoughts on them going forward? Would a couple of years there be viewed as a black mark on your resume?
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HIG closes ~ 15 platform investments per year and ~ 20 add-ons. Returns are in top decile across PE. No distressed or turnarounds. Bottom feeders? Stigma?
found the HIG employee
edit: I said this jokingly but considering every single one of his comments for the last 4 years is about HIG I think it's safe to assume. So Shaino - the floor is yours, as a director at HIG, any truth to OP's worries?
I wasn't trying to hide brother.
Florida man has spoken!
Have been in high finance for 15 years and know plenty of people older/peers/younger than I that have gone through HIG. Can attest Shaino anyone who can make it through HIG is a G. They have IMO a great carry program, even at the entry associate level, which some of my peers are still clipping coups off of 10+ years out. Frankly I wish my PE program offered the same. Returns are top decile. You know who else are bottom-feeders? Apollo, Platinum, CD&R. If you don't know the the basic LBO math between entry and exit mult than you don't belong in PE to begin with. The better question to ask is how are they able to get these awesome entry mults in a mature and saturated industry that is PE....
Lmao at bottom feeder label dude. I work at one of the funds mentioned here at that connotation is almost exclusively used by senior bankers (in my exp) who will often falter on targeted or even broadly-marketed sell-side processes and get pissed when their shitty client doesn't demand an 8x+ ebitda multiple for a company / industry going to shit. When I was a first year it always puzzled me that bankers were confused as to why a shitty company or asset wasn't fetching a higher value with sponsors , especially value-oriented guys like Apo or Plat. But alas the sellside fees and incentives will always drive senior bankers to the point of irrationality until they discuss a deal that isn't theirs... then they have plenty of opinions as to why their MD colleague isn't able to fetch or eek out real value from his deal
I just joined HIG as an Associate and think their recruiting process is quite on point. Found the process quite meritocratic given the steps are fair for all - Round 1 Interview, Round 2 Modeling Test, etc. Unlike some other firms which will only interview candidates from three groups at three firms or have some candidates skip ahead of the process based on superficial data. I'm biased joining out of a non-NYC office and lesser known boutique bank. Yes, on HIG having used GoBuyside for a while and handling internally - I was fine with that given the point above on consistency (I did well on the GAT Test which I think got me a look). I know GoBuyside has a search practice that HIG will use for more senior level hires as well as needed given its much more expensive. On the broader points about culture, bottom-feeding and all that - your investing your time to learn a skill-set. HIG puts up the returns so I dont understand why anyone wouldnt want to see hows it is done earlier in their career. From there, you can always pivot to targeting a better lifestyle or whatever. I do think there is value in seeing how you can "grind or sweatshop" out an extra 2 to 3 points on your IRR. Something you may not get at a firm that is less transactional and more focused on leveraging Partner's networks to generate great deal flow - not sure how much value you accrue as an Associate here as you dont personally benefit anything skill wise.
Dude your life is short and your 20s are shorter. It’s sad hearing you try to justify knowingly being miserable for 2-3 years. Lot of things in life more important than a couple extra points of IRR.
Life is short seems like a pretty weak argument for not spending a couple years with your head down working hard. Assuming you're in the US average life expectancy is ~78 years, so we'll pretend the tutorial years don't count and you're left with 60. So it's not worth it to work extra hard for ~5% of that time (~8.5% if we're saying 2 banking + 3 PE) to ideally position yourself for the remainder? Some people are more career oriented and realize that if they're willing to invest more of their time earlier in their career, it will compound more meaningfully down the line. Investing a few brutal years of work in your 20s can be the scale tipper that makes you worth a million or two by the time you're in your early-mid 30s (saving & spending habits obv taken into account). You work in consulting so it's probably safe to say you value work/life balance more than say someone who targeted banking. There's nothing wrong with that, in fact I'm sure there are plenty of nights the banker wonders if it would've been smarter to go your route. But clearly you have separate goals for yourself vs someone who chose the IB -> PE path (same here, hence Corp Dev).