Taking the plunge.. from New Zealand
Hi everyone,
Long time lurker here and have learnt a tremendous amount from everyone, but would really appreciate some personal advice with what direction I should head in. Thanks heaps in advance.
Background: Have been in tech consulting a couple of years, enjoying it, and looking to make the smartest move from here. I have an undergrad in SWE and finance, and am trying to decide whether I make the switch and try my hand at finance.
Interests: Unfortunately, I have a genuine interest in both tech and finance, and so going with what I enjoy leaves me in the same spot.
Options: My primary question is whether it is worth the risk to shoot for a role in PE. The plan would be to try land a role in IB, or Big 4 corporate finance and then into IB, and then PE. My main concern is whether it’s worth dedicating 4-5 years to try get in, when the odds look pretty strongly against me. GPA is strong and I think I’d have a shot but I’m most conscious of the fact that I’ve taken a non-traditional background, would be coming up to 30 years old by the time I interview for PE and would be competing against 23 year old guys who did a quick finance degree and went straight into IB. Combined with the fact that there’s only a handful of PE analyst jobs in NZ, I imagine it would be pretty impossible, unless I went overseas, which I could do however I would like to have my long-term career in NZ.
If PE didn’t work out I could transition into corp dev/ corp fin/ public fin, but I might not find it as interesting and might shift into corp strat or shift back into tech. Would be hard to do anything heavily technical for the tech so would probably shoot for product management.
Alternatively, I could stay in tech which would mean doing some more tech consulting, potentially going for something technical in data science/ai/ robotics, product management and/or trying to start my own thing. I expect staying in tech for these next few years would put me in a much better position for tech entrepreneurship and management compared to trying out finance and then switching back. Although, having a finance background can still quite helpful when you become more senior in any corporate role.
Summary: Staying in tech would be safe and give me a lot of options, with some reasonable earning potential. Trying to land a PE gig would take a lot of investment, which would be epic if I can pull it off, but might be a bit of a waste if I can’t (which is the more likely situation). So, is trying for PE worth it, or are the chances just too slim?
If you made it to here, cheers for reading, would love some input, and hope you’re all doing well during these globally difficult times.
First, I can't really help you in regards to anything NZ specific. I'm woefully ignorant of the finance environment there. My advice would be ignore the age at which you'll be breaking in. In so many years you will still be the same age, regardless. Time stops for no one. The question is, will you be doing what you truly love to do, or have you compromised a bit more than you would have liked to. How interested, truly, are you in the finance side of the tech industry vs actual execution. Of course there are a myriad of positions that would likely fulfill you, you have to ask yourself the honest question of what would make you MOST happy. If the answer is tech PE then go for it. Doing a few years in IB would be a great way to make doubly sure you enjoy the deal execution part of the job and if you hate it you can always go back. If you are visualizing your future and being in upper management at a software company is just as exciting as a partner in PE then I'm not sure the switch would be worth it for you. Did you have any finance related internships while you were in school?
Case in point, a long time close friend and confidant is a director of R&D at a mid-sized early stage software company. We often talk about each others day to day, novel trends we see, etc. Once he asked me if I thought he could do what I do. After a few glasses of scotch and several hours later we came to the conclusion that yes, he could very likely do what I do and have been just as good at it as me. However, he would not enjoy it as much as he does his current role. Then looking at me and my background (compsci nerd in highschool), we came to the same conclusion for me. Could I have done it and excelled at it? Yes, but for me I have found the career that suits me best.
Hopefully my bored COVID quarantine drivel has been helpful. Happy to answer any questions you may have as ~90% of my time is spent on software.
I honestly don't see taking a finance detour as something that would be beneficial for you. For your own knowledge and some anecdotal benefit for capital raise situations and the like yes, but beyond that I don't think it will help much. Pushing forward as quickly as you can on the management side would also potentially open up doors for the possibility of becoming an operating partner or executive in residence for a fund.
Another thing to think about is that while most of PE loves to beat the drum about how they fix broken companies, help with strategy, etc., a very large part of this job is simply financial engineering. That's why you see so many bankers and the like going into PE. I'll probably get crucified by some other PE VP that thinks he can code, but it's the honest truth. Being a good investor and making directional bets on management, macro factors, etc. is not the same as strategy and execution at the level needed to be a good exec. Period. They are different skill sets. I love being an investor. I would get bored and hate spending 6 years working with the same company every day.
All this, taken into account with what it sounds like you want to do and some of the geographic specific limitations others have mentioned, make me think it's not the right move for you.