Negotiating contract without a headhunter
Hiya,
Hope some experienced PE people can help with this question. I am currently interviewing with a mid-cap PE shop for a first-year associate position and I got the gig entirely through a senior MD in a different business area in my bank....i.e. I wasn't looking for a job, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and I have contacts and language skills that are in short supply.
So far interviews have been going very well, enough that baring some major event, I am fairly confident that I'll get the job.
The problem is that I do not know where or how to begin to negotiate pay and benefits and carry if applicable. For example, if they asked me for salary expectations I am not sure how to negotiate that and stay competitive without being under-paid. Should I just ask them to make an offer or something? I work at a BB right now and while this could be my dream job, I am not willing to take a paycut. How confident can I be that this PE shop would be able to match or exceed my current package?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks