Strong IB > Strong Corp Dev > Is PE possible?
Did only 1 year in BB IB (bad I know) and left and just took a corporate development job. The corp dev is for a $8bn startup and I have already closed around $4bn worth of deals in my first year, so I think my resume is decently strong. (closed $3bn in banking in my first year aswell). At current gig, comp is pretty good ($170k) and I work around ~35 hours a week with 0 weekend work, so I am not 100% set on leaving but want to think of my options down the line.
Is it plausible for me to go into PE? Anyone have insight on how to best position this and break in? I know obviously top funds and strong UMM will only strictly target 2 years IB > straight to PE pipeline. I am not targeting top funds at all. I have heard a lot of people who have done this path, even though I know it is difficult. What is my angle here, just work with headhunters / recruiters mass apply and just hope for 1 bite?
my guy I would NOT leave your current gig that sounds like a dream
Agree with above, you'd be silly to leave your current role. Grass is not always greener.
That said, I think you could be interesting to MM/LMM roles. No harm in putting out some feelers with HHs if you're really dying to do PE. Just need to have a really strong why (why PE after bolting from banking so quickly? why PE now coming from a solid, chill gig?)
Thank you - would love to hear your perspective? Why do you think I should stay in my role? Comp is good and hours are amazing, what else would you consider? The EV of the enterprise is really high as I mentioned too, will be $10bn by end of year. What other factors would you consider if I were you and you were thinking about staying here vs PE? Main thing holding me back from my current gig is the upside earnings potential in PE if I were to ever grind it to partner, VP, etc. Feel like my earnings here will be capped.
$170k and 35h/week with no weekend work is pretty unheard of. I would just balance your actual career desires (real reason to leave) with non-relevant factors (FOMO because your banking friends are posting about their new PE roles on LinkedIn). You can't believe how many of those people leave PE after 2 years... lifestyle issues are real there. "Partners in PE make a lot" is really not a good reason to leave a very highly paid role, very few people get to that level (especially if you burned out of banking)
I'd consider how much you like the industry, the people you work with, and your long-term goals.
Any insight into how you got the corp dev gig? In a similar boat.
Just got lucky with timing and found it on LinkedIn.
Have you thought about HBS/GSB? You have a solid profile experiencewise
I would second this line of thought. You have a strong profile to go MM/UMM PE from HBS/GSB (use MBA summer to intern at buy-side for a return or top BB/EB IB as well).
You both really think so? My BB is a bottom one, and my Corp Dev position is non-tech. I also attended a non-target, and GPA is weak-ish. (3.7 GPA). Maybe I need more confidence, but always thought this would be a reach. Might aswell try though.
Unless OP is diversity, it's basically unheard of to go PE from MBA without prior FT PE work experience. Even at MMs.
This sounds very similar to the head of M&A at my pre-MBA company. From my understanding, he went the PE Portco route. I guess he didn't have success pivoting to the investing side despite helping the company grow from a ~$200M valuation to a $5B+ exit within 10 years (did have equity so likely cleared at least $1M). Granted, he didn't have IB experience but purely FP&A before his stint at the company.
I feel you would need to attend a HSW MBA to have a chance to break into PE tbh and even then, I would work hard to get a pre-MBA internship in PE. As someone else stated on here, unless you're a URM / diversity - this may be tough to pull off especially in today's market.
Bro can we switch jobs?
Why?
Cause you got a dream gig for a lot of people feeling crushed by the IB / PE hours
$ per hour much better than most of us. Everyone else is working more than double your hours with less than double your pay.
(1) "What is my angle here, just work with headhunters / recruiters mass apply and just hope for 1 bite?"
Yes. I would be a little more sophisticated than that but that's the gist. You can't really discriminate, and you need to cast a wide net.
(2) Your background is certainly sufficient to get A PE job somewhere. You are at an $8b startup. Your best chances are to stay in whatever industry that is while looking at firms that don't do deals anywhere near that $8b level. The move from corp dev to PE can be done, but it almost always requires moving down market.
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