PJT Camberview--Exits and Reputation
Does anyone know what PJT Camberview's rep is? What is the work like and where do people typically exit to? Salary estimates?
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FYI - I heavily networked and interviewed at the Firm but didn't join them full time:
Camberview Partners was initially started by Abe Friedman, former global head of corporate governance at BlackRock, prior to being acquired by PJT Partners
The Firm has a strong reputation in the shareholder activism / hostile M&A advisory space
Work is more qualitative than standard IB gigs, and largely revolve around creating presentations that include analysis of board members, compensation, advice regarding contested situations, etc
Not sure what the exits are, but many people go in wanting to eventually lateral to M&A/IB - assuming comp is decent but lower than traditional IB
couldn’t care less about learning about this group but SB’ing bc we need to see more of this kind of value-add answer to these type of q’s. Good on you
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Better off doing IBD at a MM than starting here if you want to do traditional M&A or PE/credit
Not a good choice if you want to develop skills for the buyside. No modeling, financial analysis, etc. The answer above is pretty spot on - you'll be doing a lot of qualitative analysis on a company's board, exec comp, and ESG practices.
Pay is a lot lower than M&A - probably the only good thing about working at PJT camberview is that you get the PJT name on your resume, and maybe you would have the chance to switch over to the banking side. Other than that, don't join unless you see a future in corporate governance (boring)
Dont know where you get this misinformation from. Camberview pays in line with the rest with PJT (as of 2022).
They really don’t pay that well. Base salary is roughly in-line across groups (but not completely), and bonus is well below other groups. A first year analyst in Camberview can expect ~130K all-in, and a first year associate can expect ~210k, compared to ~175K and ~350K (respectively) for the rest of the bank.
I have a very close friend who works there, so this is factual. In fact, I would be interested to hear where you are getting your info from, because any camberview junior you talk to is extremely unhappy with their pay. Take a look at LinkedIn, and you’ll see that many are lateraling to different spots.
I get no benefit from taking the time to write this on an online forum - I’m just trying to promote transparency so that any prospect who gets lured by the PJT name is aware.
Can’t really say anything about pay, but I disagree with the lack of skills point. I think another user posted about it, but the strategic IR group within Camberview is very strong. You do a lot of work that’s directly transferable to the buyside. You’re not building LBOs, but you regularly run quarterly models, SOTP analyses and comps - things that public equity investors do all the time. You’re also working on a team made up of ex-investors, so it’s a great opportunity to develop strong connections and the basic skills necessary for the buyside.
Can you confirm of STIR associates leaving for buyside roles?
Yup I heard similar base for both analyst and associate. But the bonus number is flat-out inaccurate. If according to your numbers, base is 105, then bonus is 30K? Not what I heard at all.
90% of CV is not based in NY. You know that 5/6 partners is based in SF right?
Agree that theres little exit ops, but a quick chat with anyone in the SF office you would realize that most ppl dont mind staying. I dont know anything about the NY office but I would imagine its the same. We are probably arguing semantics here though because i am arguing for proportions of A2A.
Happy to answer any more questions you might have so ppl recruiting don't get confused over our debate. I also have no incentive to protect the group :)
Yes, bonus really is that low! The top second year analyst got around 40k, and the first years got a stub of 10k.
The camberview approach is to look at total comp, so after street-wide base bumps, they cut the bonuses to keep total comp the same as prior years.
In terms of headcount; yes a majority of partners are based there, but those are legacy people. You look at the general CV employee base and a VAST majority are in the NY office.
I’m surprised you’re hearing positive things from those associates, because I have not heard a single positive thing from the NY juniors. Long hours, uninteresting work, and mediocre pay is the sentiment in NY, but I know there’s generally a cultural difference between the two geographies, especially in terms of hours worked.
If any prospect out there is reading this and isn’t sure what is accurate, I encourage you to reach out to ex-CV folks on LinkedIn and get a feel for their experience. Otherwise, you’re welcome to spend a year there and learn first-hand come bonus time :)
This is so interesting because i doubt my two friends are snorting some heavy copium. Thats not what I heard for bonus because they told me that 1) it was shared based on the entire PJT class, and 2) it doesnt get categorized into "top" vs "bottom" bucket. I feel like this could be easily fact checked by anyone at PJT so if anyone works there please join in so we know who is correct. Also not a 90/10 headcount split, more like 70/30 split.
Second the uninteresting work if you have no interest in ESG/governance/IR issues. But it almost seems like its two different universes lmao. They mentioned that hours are typically from 50-70 which is not what I would consider long hours at all.
Agreed with above. Please message ppl who left, and not ppl who stayed. This is the best example of how you should also chat with a grain of salt when talking to ppl currently at the firm.
How accurate do you think your information is so others can judge for themselves. My info is from the two associates that went through analyst -> associate. HBU because I saw that you first commented in 2020? Again, this is just for curiosity so appreciate you joining this convo.
I would say my information is very accurate. My friend in NY is one of my closest, and I’m loosely acquainted with other folks in the NY office.
I haven’t seen you provide any bonus numbers from your sources, which makes it tough for any prospect to get a complete picture if you don’t provide the data.
Worked at PJT CV -- can comment on a few items. Quick note before I begin: CV is our internal moniker, so anyone on this forum using 'CV' has either worked on our team, worked with our team (assuming they're in Strategic Advisory), or has close friends on the team. Therefore, what those folks say on the forum can be treated more seriously and likely are more trustworthy as sources.
1. Comp - AN1 base is in line with all analysts' base across the bank. However, total comp is not.
2. Between SF vs. NY, the distribution of employees is definitely not 90% NY and 10% SF. Like another poster commented, SF is where our leadership team sits and also where CV was originally founded. However, NYO has been growing these past couple of years. If I had to guess, the split skews toward NYO (~70%) because most ANA and ASO are NY-based.
3. At junior level, laterals have occurred but there aren't that many. Most ANA stay on and get promoted to ASO. Analyst program is a 2-year stint.
4. Hours -- are long and not 65 hours a week. We work long hours -- think ~80.
5. Regarding our work -- you'll work on a range of topics, including activism, ESG, compensation etc., but, as others have mentioned, this is NOT an investment banking job. We are not bankers -- however, we are arguably the best at what we do and you can tell by looking at our leadership and middle management team. Look on LinkedIn and see what they've done and where they come from. We're very good at selling ourselves on the PJT Platform and pitching with SA folks. Additionally, we've engaged many, many well-known activist funds and have had an incredible track record. So, to sum up, we're the best at what we do, but know the job before you take it.
Any q's feel free to PM.
Amazing stuff, can you comment on what total comp is and if it's actually 135 or closer to what i heard, which was closer to the strategic advisory team.
Is the 80 hours that you experienced in both NY and SF, or which location did you do your analysts years in?
Thanks for commenting!
1. Regarding comp, it is closer to 135 for ANA and not at all as high Advisory's ANAs. However, do note that I do not have the most updated information since there were base pay increases across the firm.
2. 80 hours is the standard for both coasts (SFO/NYO); do also note our west coast analysts have to wake up quite early to attend ET calls (7-8am wake ups) for 10-11ET calls
Thanks for chiming in, it’ll be helpful for folks to see information from a real insider.
I would encourage you to respond to questions on this thread and not on PM, for sake of transparency. Obv what most people will be interested in is comp and exit ops, so you should definitely provide as much insight there as you can.
Great idea -- happy to answer further q's on this forum instead of PM/inbox.
If there is interest in hearing further discussion about comp/exit opps, please drop me a line here. Won't have further color on comp for '21 or '22, but happy to discuss other concerns.
Why is comp so mediocre? Evercore pays its Activism & Raid Defense (or whatever the fuck Bill Anderson has decided to rebrand it this week) guys a ton, or at least used to a few years back.
Because the group is run by ninnymuggins who want to keep all the money for themselves and not pay junior talent. Hence you see a ton of turnover at the junior level now (but not in the good way where they regularly go to buyside). The CV employee above might argue there hasn’t been that much turnover, but there have been over 20 leavers in the last year (across levels). For a group that’s as small as CV, that’s a huge number. They are bleeding talent because they don’t pay well.
Your comment is blatantly false and misleading to prospective candidates. See above for more info regarding my qualifications/credibility to speak on this matter. Two points to call out:
1. Comp is lower because of the way we structure fees, NOT because of leadership "who want to keep all the money for themselves." CV does not take a % of transaction value like SA folks; in fact, we charge a flat, annual base fee for most clients (assuming they're retainer) and oftentimes build in a 'success fee' if working on some sort of campaign. This type of arrangement results in significantly lower revenue for our BU compared to the bankers. Lower revenue directly translates to lower potential bonus pool for both seniors and juniors.
2. Turnover -- there has not been '20 leavers in the last year (across levels).' Attrition is NOT that high and folks tend to stay on from A2A. In the last 3 years, there are only a few folks who lateraled or left in my memory.
No info on EVR's activism group, but what I can say is that quite a few folks from their team actually jumped ship to ours at PJTCV. This should speak volumes to the strength of the PJT platform and the CV franchise.
Jumped or pushed? If fees (due to structure, as you’ve pointed out below) are so much less lucrative than Street, let alone EVR (/ their product-inventing lead), what was the impetus for a switch?
They've left EVR to join a sinking ship. Looking at LinkedIn, one mid-level person who joined CV from EVR soon left to a BB. Not a great look.
Wow, is comp that low? Would you take this group or a cov. group at a MM?
MM all day.
Shit exits into PE or HF. FWIW, know some that managed to get into top activist firms and head of IR. You could also move into strategic finance but probably not corp dev
Also might worth noting that the structure of the group is retainer vs. deals (maybe if it was for something specific like activism)
Source: Friend at Camberview
Activism usually takes down both types of fees:
1) Retainers / “stock watch” — proactive defense (say, 200k a quarter)
2) Project-based — reactive defense when a client actually gets hit
#1 is the lifeblood, but #2 is where you get PAID. If PJTCV skews towards #1, it may put a ceiling on comp.
The one exception to all of the comments here is what they call their “Strategic IR” group within camberview. Very smart group of guys that used to be on the buyside/sell side and now basically advise companies on how to get their stock price up. Pretty cool role from what I heard during interview process - a lot more modeling, super interesting deals (basically advise around a lot of catalyst-driven situations), lot higher pay and actual exit ops. If you are looking at camberview, you should try to get placed in this vertical.
Can anyone confirm if this is real for the STIR group - are there real exits to the buyside from there?
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Analyst at Camberview said that people are jumping ship in big numbers - mostly analysts/associates - because pay is low relative to classic IB/other banks, plus long hours and culture. They are trying to hire but offers aren't accepted because comp / reviews from past employees / poor exit opps (this can be vetted - best case scenario seems to be MBA). Many analysts trying to make the jump to classic banking if not MBA after a few years
This thread aged well…lol. Camberview is a sinking ship, save yourself and stay tf away
What happened that makes you say this now? Recently SDd there
Well u can see what Anonymous posted above - it’s spot on. Lot of people r leaving and group is scrambling. Juniors are replaceable but it takes time to hire and train. Serious business risk from talent drain. Seems like turnover mostly driven by people leaving for better gigs that pay more.
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