Moving to PE

I’m currently moving from an Indian MM investment bank to an Indian MM PE fund and am serving my notice period.

Background:

* ~2 years of experience in Indian MM Investment Banking (Industrials Team)
* One of my closed transactions was a Precision Engineering PE deal that was among the marquee transactions in the segment
* Good exposure to transaction execution, financial modelling, valuation, investor processes and deal materials

The PE fund (USD 700 Mn AUM) is fairly sector-agnostic and looks at traditional sectors including Healthcare, Industrials, Financial Services and Consumer, with a particular interest in Advanced Manufacturing, Aerospace, Defence and Precision Engineering.

The fund makes growth equity investments taking significant minority stakes rather than buyouts which is true for US PE funds

I have around 6–8 weeks before I join and want to use the time properly.

My objective is to hit the ground running rather than spend the first few months relearning things I could have prepared beforehand.

For people who have made the IB → PE transition, what would you focus on during the notice period?

Particularly interested in:

* Technical skills I should sharpen — LBOs, returns analysis, modelling, debt, valuation, accounting, etc.
* How to develop better investment judgement rather than just transaction execution skills
* How to approach underwriting a business from an investor’s perspective
* PE transactions/deals that are worth studying in detail
* Sector knowledge I should build across Industrials, Healthcare, Financial Services and Consumer
* Resources/books/investment memos/annual reports that are genuinely useful
* Specific preparation for Advanced Manufacturing, A&D and Precision Engineering
* What I should aim to understand before Day 1
* Common mistakes people make when transitioning from IB to PE

If you had 6–8 weeks before joining an MM PE fund, how would you spend those weeks?