How do people narrow down PE funds they want to recruit for?
the general advice I’ve heard is that before meeting with a HH I should know the fund size, strategy, industry focus and location I want to be in.
• With so many funds out there, how do people successfully screen for the funds they want?
• Would you ever have a different story for HH that have clients that you want?
• What are good industries to look out for in PE right now?
• If the funds I am targeting have a tech focus and my coverage group is industrials, how do I prepare for tech interviews? or should I stick with industrials groups to boost my chances?
This would be really helpful to hear!
1) Unless you're passionate about a specific strategy (growth, buyout, VC, etc) or sector (tech, consumer, energy, etc), a lot of people target the largest funds that they realistically feel they will get interviews with. This can be just saying I want to be at a MF / UMM fund or thinking through past exits from the group and targeting similar shops. Most people I've seen don't have a specific strategy around it to be honest.
2) I wouldn't advise this, as the HHs are in touch with each other, and a large number of them have worked at different firms. In particular Amity, SG and Ratio are very incestuous so to speak. It would also involve you preparing different strategies for interviews and probably make the entire experience more hectic than it already is.
3) Not sure if this was a COVID related question or a broader question for today's day and age.
4) In my view this depends a bit on the group you're currently with, though industrials is fairly generalist, so it wouldn't be as big of an issue. If you're from an average industrials group, it's unlikely a HH would put you in front of the best tech focused funds (best in this context broadly refers to AUM / fund size). So by targeting a sector you don't work with, unless you're from one of the top groups which places well everywhere, you'll probably have to take a step down in quality vs. if you recruited for industrials or generalist roles. This is a broad statement and I'm sure there are exceptions.