Is PE that bad?
I work at a larger fund (MF/UMM) that many aspire to join, and I have friends in similar positions. With the exception of one, we all feel that life in private equity is much better compared to banking. Our pay is higher than it was at the same level in investment banking (EB/BB), the culture is better, and we generally work fewer hours — mostly a 9-to-5 when we're not on deals (though things can get intense during those times).
I haven't seen everything in PE, but I've closed two deals and completed several add-ons and financings. I'm curious why so many people seem to complain about this job. I understand that a lot of the process-driven work can be boring, and that the actual investing side is probably ~30% of the work. Am I missing something? Did I just get really lucky during recruiting? Are people just over hyping the intensity of this job?
How do you work 9-5 at MF/UMM? Would love to know what firm because this is great news if true.
Yes, I would say “9-5” is definitely not the norm. Personally, I think the job is interesting, and I also don’t find the WLB terrible - I’d work hard wherever I was. But I don’t like how competitive the promotions are - very zero sum. And the bar to be promoted is very, very high - so you have a lot of people managing optics vs. finding good investments.
Disclaimer: I’m in a major city but no longer NY, which might be a factor. My friends are both in my current city and NY and they agree with what I’m saying and we are all at a MF/UMM making 300-400k. Pretty much a 9-5 or 8-6 job. All of our offices are dead at 6 or after with little to no work when we get home. Obviously this changes when you’re on a deal sprint though.
Interesting. I’m at a non-NYC UMM but my friends at similar funds are all generally on a treadmill at work even when not on deals.
Sounds like you're in Boston working at one of Bain Cap / Berkshire / Advent - 3 funds that are well known for having the best WLB / Culture in large cap PE. Tradeoff is you have to be willing to live in Boston.
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