No Name Boutique IB to PE Experience?

I recently finished my first year at a no name boutique IB and have started to look into moving into PE. My current shop focuses on lower MM M&A in consumer goods and is in a major southeastern city (Atlanta, Charlotte, etc.).

I was wondering if anyone here has successfully transitioned from a similar background (no-name boutique) to PE and if so if you could possibly share your experience / advice from going through the process. Thanks!

 
Best Response

I Just managed to pull that off and I can tell you that it will be tough but absolutely doable. Here is the skinny on myself and how I did it:

  • Undergrad with a semi-related major at a business school in Europe. Very well known back home, practically unknown in the US
  • Did my Master's in California at a non-target (it's normal in Europe do do a Master's directly after your Bachelor's and I wanted the international experience on my resume, while I planned to go back home - I stayed in the US in the end)
  • Took an internship at a PE search fund post graduation to get some related work experience
  • Networked my way into a boutique tech M&A shop. Well regarded in the lower MM tech niche, unknown outside of it.
  • During that time, I got a lot of traction with headhunters as they thought I had an interesting background. Never made it past the initial phone screen - "nobody ever got fired for hiring IBM". Very frustrating.
  • Through a personal recommendation of a very well connected friend I scored an initial interview at a tier 1 upper MM tech buyout shop (think Francisco Partners, etc.). Made it through all the rounds and received an offer (obviously, I had to take a discount due to my background, but the foot in the door is what counts).

In a nutshell, you probably will encounter some roadblocks when you go down the "normal" route but it's still possible by networking like a maniac and some luck - and if you really want it and you are willing to earn less at the beginning compared to your typical co-worker (Ivy League with honors and 2 years at a BB) or if you are willing to work for a tiny shop (not saying that's something bad)! Furthermore, be sure to polish up on your technicals, as they most likely will put even more emphasis on that given your background once you made it past the first round.

 

Hmm I see thanks for sharing your experience! If you dont mind me asking, what was your networking strategy (cold calling, networking events, conversation with your MD's, etc.)? Do you have any tips? Also, aside from the offer you accepted, were there any other prospects where you were able to make it past the initial screen?

For me, a lot of the firms I'm targeting are actually small shops since due to personal circumstances moving outside the city I currently work in isn't really feasible at the moment.

 

Sure! My networking strategy was heavily based on my personal network (friends and friends of friends). I guess my advantage is that the tech industry in the Bay Area is very tight-knit and once you know a few people, it's relatively easy to get introductions. Another strategy that was quite successful for me was using LinkedIn and targeted emailing - that's how I got all my other interviews (which resulted in another offer from a growth equity shop/VC that I declined to join the buyout fund). Here is the strategy I used for that:

  • Compile a list of the firms you are interested in and rank them
  • Set up a yield of targeted emails per day you want to shoot out
  • Research the people working at those firms and try to find ANYTHING you might have in common with one of them and use that as a starting point for your email. As an example from my outreach: one of the employees played rugby in college and so I opened with that and asked for his position and mentioned that I also used to play rugby during undergrad. He was from a tier 1 VC firm, took a call with me, offered to meet for coffee after that and gave me some extremely valuable guidance.
  • Don't ask for a job. Ask for an informal interview and that you'd like to steal 15 minutes of their time to ask them some questions about how they got to where they are.
  • If you do well on that call and they like you and are recruiting, they might offer you to forward your resume. Out of the roughly 20 calls I had, 5 asked for my resume and 3 more asked to meet me for a coffee
  • Take it from there and land that job :) good luck!!
 

Expedita fugiat excepturi ut totam. Facilis minima excepturi earum ut nam omnis. Eveniet ut aliquam totam. Velit necessitatibus et vitae. Qui pariatur et deserunt ducimus.

Et et facilis dolores repellat ut quo qui. Iste aut dignissimos natus. Sint ex est vero ipsam ex quam itaque.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.4%
  • Ardian 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Bain Capital 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • Warburg Pincus 97.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (21) $586
  • Vice President (92) $362
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (89) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (204) $268
  • 1st Year Associate (386) $229
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (28) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (83) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (246) $122
  • Intern/Summer Associate (32) $82
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (313) $59
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”