Up and coming REPE firm vs top REPE firm
So I'm currently an intern at a smaller REPE firm with AUM of around $250 million. With it being a smaller firm, I help the asset management team as well as help out with underwriting in acquisitions. This firm is also starting to get capital from institutional investors as well as getting noticed by bigger institutional investors and funds. I'm pretty sure I'll get an offer after the internship and I'm getting great experience atm. I'm just wondering if I should stay and pursue this opportunity here with some great growth potential or l should leverage what I've learned here to make my way into a top tier REPE firm?
I'd try and move to a bigger firm. Everyone's been saying we're at the peak of the cycle for like half a decade now, but if things turn quickly in the next three years, a small shop with $250M probably won't have the same amount of dry powder and access to capital that a shop with a couple billion under management will have. Just in general there's a lot more risk with a small shop. You can always move from Blackstone to an up-and-coming firm, but not vice-versa. You're too early in your career to be taking these risks.
Although I agree with @REPE God on his take in regards to market cycle and the effect of a firm's size on their ability to stay liquid and maintain deal flow, I have always taken the approach that when you are young to pursue the opportunities which give you the best potential for growth and learning.
When you are young, you have way more free time, independence and less outside career responsibilities so in even the extreme case where you lose your job or a company you are with fails, you have more ability to bounce back (since generally you only have to support yourself).
Firms and corporate leaders value skill set and ability, not size or reputation of your previous firms. If you think about it, the size and reputation of a firm are only valuable because they give outside parties a preliminary idea of how refined your skills are and how well you understand typical processes (underwriting, research, transactions, etc.). So take the opportunities which give you the best opportunity to expand your skill set with a long "runway" because those invaluable skills will always keep you employed and valuable.
Also it is worth considering what environment you prefer and suits your existing skill set and learning style. The benefits of small firms are they are typically more entrepreneurial with flexible roles (you typically take on tasks outside your skill set), greater growth opportunities, more face to face time with senior leadership and greater individual support/training. The downside is that they are typically unorganized, processes are not refined, pay can be inferior and there can be limited growth once you get close to the executive level.
All things to consider but sounds like you are already off to a great start!
Most important:
Get exposure to a range of asset classes / plaforms / deals, with varying degrees of complexity.
For big funds one tends to work on the same type of deal over and over again.
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