FIG PE Recruiting Timeline
I’ve seen a few forums on here talking about FIG PE shops and such but not really a ton about the recruiting process. I saw one that said a lot of FIG PE is done off cycle due to how technical fig is. If that is true, will that change this year since on cycle has been set back so much? Further can anyone share their experiences in regards to any differences in fig recruiting and preparation? Also I’ve seen that there isn’t as much of a barrier for FIG analysts to get to MFs from non top tier BBs, is that true?
Bump
In response to your last question, yes I think that is true in my exp just given how much more scarce the skillset is
I think the recruiting really depends on firm. I know Apollo has hired a lot of FIG people off cycle in the past.
Do you have any other insights on the Apollo FIG group (culture, recruiting etc.)? I know it’s a bit off topic but any insight you can give would be great
Culture: https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/is-apollo-that-bad
They recruit with a few firms. I saw SG recruiting for the FIG team recently
Apollo FIG is to Apollo, as Apollo is to the rest of PE.
Culture, lifestyle, people-wise it’s the worst of the worst. Flip side is that it’s a huge value creation lever for the firm, and is probably more important than any other team at Apollo. The team is also next level smart, similar to FIG teams at other top MFs.
Do you have any insight to the recruiting process (MFs in general not just Apollo) and if it’s any different than other groups at MFs? Are the case studies more technical/are the interviews more focused on FIG technicals? Don’t want to spend hours learning general LBOs if there’s something else I should be focusing on. If there are differences, any recommendations as to where to find good prep materials?
Bump. Are interviews FIG-specific, and how many 1st years do they hire for FIG during on-cycle?
Not 100% sure for every MF. But for most, they recruit out of a single pool and as you move past 1st/2nd/case rounds they start to direct you towards industry teams based on where you expressed interest.
At the Associate level the cases are usually one size fits all. You have to realize that they are literally working through 150 candidates in the span of a few days. So no one is making one-off case studies that then need to be proctored/graded by a different set of people.
The modeling case for associate recruiting is just a general screening mechanism to make sure you have the accounting/modeling mastery to crank through it under a tight and stressed timeline.
And frankly speaking, most PE folks don’t have a ton of respect for bankers. So they almost always assume they’ll have to retrain you to some degree anyway, especially in the FIG vertical.
At more senior levels, if they make you do a case at all, they’ll likely give you a specific fig asset because they’ll want to talk through it with you and will pick an asset they have already done work on so they can assess how sharply you’ve zeroed in on the right things and that you’re thinking about it properly.
Have you guys ever seen associates (FIG obviously) go to FIG focused funds? Assuming not Apollo, but how about others?
I believe I’ve seen a few Stonepoint bios with former associates but I may be wrong
Yes, it happens a lot more frequently. I mean Imran Siddiqui who architected Athene at Apollo was a VP in FIG at GS, spent a few years at Oak Hill before joining Apollo. There’s a guy at JC Flowers that joined from VP in banking and is now an MD. I think FIG has room for a lot less traditional paths and is generally more meritocratic but that’s just my experience
There’s some guys at Reverence that also came in at mid-levels.
The Apollo guy is not best analog, he came in years ago.
You’ll probably have better luck at non-MF. Hiring at MF is very dogmatic and institutionalized. People are not incentivized to step outside of the tried and tested.
At FIG-focused specialty PE you’ll probably have more luck. You need to find a place that’s good, but doesn’t have their pick of the litter. So they’re solving for FIG training, smart, we can actually hire them.
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