Is there downside to title inflation?
I'm an acquisitions associate at an entrepreneurial REPE and I'm getting promoted (woohoo!). The title my company proposed for me is "Managing Director of Acquisitions". Neither my role nor my responsibilities will change. I'll still be under my current boss and still the superior to just 1 analyst. Only my title (and some pay) is changing. This is obviously a huge jump in title, especially considering I'm only 27.
It's awesome I get to say that I'm an MD and blast it on my Linkedin etc. However, I feel like I could be hurting myself longterm by inflating my title this much. For one, I'm not exactly doing MD-level work. I wear a lot of hats and am client-facing, but I also very much still play an analyst role on a 3 person team. Also, if I get promoted again, what title am I gonna get? Senior Executive Managing Director? Junior CIO perhaps? More likely, I'll be at this title level for several years even if I do get "promotions" and increasing responsibilities... More like growing into my title... (which might not be a bad thing?). Finally, I wonder what a hiring manager would think if the person saw that I went from Associate to Managing Director.
Kind of just throwing my thoughts out there to see if there are any opinions. I guess I'm curious to know if I should counter their proposed title with something like "Vice President" or should I just take the MD title they're proposing me? Good problem to have, I know hahaha.
Can only speak to my own experience here, not even in real estate. Commodities in my case.
As a young person who has/had an inflated title, I hated introducing myself that way to randoms at industry functions. I feel like I'm flexing on some random grey hair by saying "I'm actually a Senior Manager" of XYZ.
You'll probably find yourself saying "I work in acquisitions" a lot.
Also, if a better lateral job opportunity comes up, it may have a worse title. You might jump from being a "managing director" to "senior associate," and have to explain that move to people (even if it's a better job, de facto).
The job title will probably be a nice perk on your resume and Linkedin, but a lot of people will probably take that with a grain of salt due to your age / actual responsibilities. Not something that will truly hurt you, though.
Thanks for your perspective. Great point about a step down in title if moving shops. I could technically grow into my role but I think having traditional steps up in title holds more weight overall. I think I'm going to talk to my boss and ask for a VP title instead.
I'd stick to VP. MD title at 27 is kinda funny. VP gets it done in terms of "weight" needed to get folks to listen.
Agreed, I think that's the move!
Some of my LPs have extreme title inflation. I always chuckle when a VP or Director or whatever will need some basic concept explained to them or when they have trouble even leading a call, much less a transaction.
I would ask for Director or VP instead (whatever is more junior in the market/area you're in as the seniority of each can vary depending on whether you're in REPE, dev, etc.). There's no way you're going to retain the MD title if you jump ship any time soon and then its tough to explain.
Titles are malleable. I wouldn’t sweat it. People interviewing you will be able to ascertain your relative title to their structure by glancing over the resume.
Agreed with this. I think a lot of you guys are overthinking it.
Yeah I am for sure but it does have some effect on my interactions/career. Do you think there's any benefit to the MD title at my age/level of experience? I know this market is tough and people at the "executive" level (which my title implies) aren't seeing much action... am I better off staying more junior given my true experience/skillset is more at the VP level?
I have a deflated title and I feel like it makes leaving hard
That one's annoying. It literally costs your current company nothing to make you feel better about yourself, but they either refuse to or don't think about it. So many people can't do the bare minimum.
Yeah, but HR are idiots. This wont get by an HR screener
Hopefully a dude who is at the VP level with a MD title isn't trying to get through an HR screener though - hopefully they're talking to executives and higher ups directly and if they have to apply, it's just obligatory
It's not a huge deal, people understand. A lot of people that have this situation just put "Acquisitions" or "Investments" or whatever as their LinkedIn title so they don't have the confusing look of going from MD to Associate.
It's also fair play to put a parentheses on resumes if you're worried people will have sticker shock when they see "Managing Director" on your resume and assume you're too senior. Just something casual, like having YOE next to your title just to give a arguably more appropriate proxy of what your tenure should be coming in.
Example:
PGIM Investment Management
Managing Director - Acquisitions (5 Years of Experience)
Buddy you can put whatever title you want on your resume. If you’re an MD, but think it may hold you back when applying for a certain job, just change your title on your resume to “director” before sending the app in for said job.
Have they talked about hiring more people under you?
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