How to Spend the Next Year in IB to Prepare for PE
Hello all - for those of us who have accepted PE offers for summer 2018, what would you recommend us do in our next year in banking to help prepare for the job? My understanding is to: 1) take every opportunity to think like an investor, 2) step up and try to take on more and more responsibility (since, to my understanding, PE associates are given significant responsibility), 3) sharpen modeling skills. It would be helpful if anyone could elaborate on these or provide some additional advice. Any and all help is much appreciated.
Start looking at firms, what type do you want to work at. Do you want to specialize or be a generalist. Who are the HH for that firm, what's the recruiting cycle like? Do you have alumni at the firm that you should contact before hand? Look into WSO PE guide.
Lol he already accepted the offer.
Russia hacked my account
Long lunches, hitting the gym and leaving early. Try to come in after 10am as well.
Not joking. You might be able to learn on your own about 1% of what the firm will teach you in your first 6 months once you start at the new PE firm. The analysis, actual responsibilities and "investor mentality" is usually very firm specific, and the modeling skills that you think you need will be developed over time. You will be spinning your wheels trying anything crazy as the vast majority of models you end up building are not much more complex than the quick and dirty models you build - ts more about defending assumptions in this case anyway and you really only build more detailed models once you actually decide a deal could be interesting and get into diligence.
I would try to enjoy your second year as much as possible - you will improve with technical skills no matter what - its like a senior year of college. Relax.
"Investor mentality"
God, it's so true. I'll share one:
Me: [pitches outstanding opportunity at IC meeting] MD: ...good, good. But what's our edge? Why are we preferentially positioned to grow this firm? Me, to self: IT CHURNS OUT CASH AND IT'S OUTSIDE OF A PROCESS, WE DON'T NEED A GODDAMN EDGE Me, to team: Our relationships with [x, y, and z] are perfect for [clearly undifferentiated growth initiative] MD: Ah yes, yes. That is a strength of ours. (pats self on back) Me: [goes blind from overly aggressive eye-rolling]
If the bank you work at is a service provider to the PE shop you are joining, it's not a bad idea to develop new or maintain existing relationships with the bankers.
You won't be expected to source deals (unless you are joining a sourcing model...) in most PE shops so getting a piece of "insider knowledge" from a VP you know really well is value-add to your PE shop and it can make the difference on whether you are being kicked out after 2 years or promoted to Sr. Associate, all else equal.
Work HARD on the projects you are staffed. Take your staffer out to lunch 1 on 1 to thank him/her for supporting you but make it "known" to your staffer that you are not going to grind through a bull shit pitchbook just for the sake of pitching for a non-deal generating MD, obviously in a PC way. Or if you have a cool staffer like I did, we took him out to Circle (he likes asian chicks) and got him super stoned afterwards he promised he would never staff me and the other guy on BS projects. I did a favor for him a few times but he kept his word.
its all about politics man
Lift so that you can hook up with hotter chicks in the downtime that you'll have when you're in PE.