Leave PE for Corp Dev VP role?
I have a scenario I've been going through that I'm curious to get WSO's opinion on. I'm a Senior Associate at a solid industry-focused MM shop, have been here for ~4 years, the fund is doing well, generally like the people, am on the partner track, led and closed a number of deals etc. With that being said, the fund has grown quickly, a few layers of VPs/Principals have been hired above me and I think my trajectory is slowing down a little bit. There's also the general growing pains at a smaller fund which lead to various hassles. Despite having some carry, given the size of the funds, I don't think there is life-changing money coming down the pipe in the next ~5 years, especially not enough to live well in a major city.
I was recently approached for a VP level role at a PE-backed company in the space I focus on. The business is looking to become more acquisitive and wants me(or someone) to build out the M&A practice, so effectively it's a VP of Corp Dev role. The company is significantly sized, over 1k employees and $250M plus in revenue. It's in a Tier 2 US city ( I'm currently in a Tier 1), but the comp will be the same if not higher than what I'm paid now, which effectively is more than doubling my current salary given the COL adjustment. I think the work-life will be better, it's in a geo that is closer to home for me, and I think that the role presents a pretty unique opportunity to really make a splash and prove myself out at a level that is a click or two higher than where I am now. If I did well, I think it could really open me up to recruiting from VP level if not higher roles in industry or be at the principal partner level at a fund.
With all that being said, I'm a little reluctant to leave PE. I have a good thing going at my firm, and despite the minor gripes, I worry a little bit about not being able to break back into PE. I also have no ties to the city I would need to move to, so I'd be leaving behind 5+ years worth of friends and relationships. Anyone have any thoughts/advice on going from PE to industry? Is this a big enough opportunity to make the jump?
interested in hearing what ppl think here
Personally wouldn't do corp dev if I were already on the buyside.
Edit: 2x? Nvm I'd def go
Everyone has a price
You need to think hard about where you see yourself in 10 years, at a PE firm as a partner or on the corporate side.
You should go after the path that you think you will enjoy more longer term.
I had a friend who was in the exact same situation as you. MM PE as a senior associate. He was doing pretty well, had a lot of deals under his belt and led many of the deals he worked on.
Then the PE form hired a VP above him who used to work at the firm and he was passed up for promotion because his seniors said it wouldn’t be fair given how old the current VP is and how long he has to work to get to that position.
My friend basically said f that and recruited for VP roles and quickly got an offer in a matter of 4 months. He is now working at a very large fund as a VP.
Grass is always greener though. Larger funds have more layers and you don’t get as much responsibility as you do in a smaller MM space.
Sparknotes: figure out where you see yourself longer term, then work backwards to get there.
If you're a senior associate with carry, your comp should be roughly $400-500K including carry dollars at work. A VP corp dev role paying that much is pretty out of the ordinary unless you're at a large tech company, so if that's really your comp, this is a no brainer.
Wrong. You clearly aren’t experienced enough to comment on VP title pay in Corp dev or normal companies.
400-500k is quite common with a VP title for a PE backed PortCo. A little bit of equity given exit strategy can also increase that pay significantly.
Lol, no it isn't. I'm baffled at the utterly clueless and inane posts I see from certified users sometimes.
Right, I've only seen countless censuses of PE backed companies and regularly receive benchmark research because like you said, I actually invest in "PE-backed" companies as a VP at a PE fund, I must be clueless. Please show me evidence of anyone in Corp Dev getting paid $500K cash that's not at a large company post-IPO.
Love how people want to add nothing to the thread other than to say someone else's wrong. Where your contribution if you actually work on the corporate side?
OP said it would be an effective doubling of salary post- COL adjustment.
So that would mean that 400-500k senior associate estimate that JustADude gave for PE would translate to somewhere near 650-750k+ for VP in Corp Dev. Add to that the fact that OP said the Corp Dev role would be in a company with about 1k Employees and 250m revenue and you're the idiots.
You think a company like that is paying a VP in a brand new business unit nearly a million dollars a year? .4% of revenue... to 1 employee? Yeah alright.
The post I called out said that 400-500 for a VP of Corp dev (generally, this title refers to the head of Corp dev on the corporate side) didn’t exist outside of tech companies, and that is what is incorrect. I did not say that the comp you mentioned was standard for PE backed companies, which will obviously have lower compensation than top-tier corporates. Places like BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, etc., generally pay their head or Corp dev 7 figures.
Ah ok fair points. Sorry for calling you an idiot.
You didn't read my post correctly.
This is what I was highlighting.
Acting like tech is the only highly paid industry for Corp dev is beyond stupid.
people get PAID when portcos are flipped.
Is it $1mm every year? Obviously not, but to act like 400k is unheard of is just flat out wrong for Corp dev.
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