Trending Content
Career Resources
WSO Free Modeling Series - Now Open Through
April 30, 2024
9 Free Financial Modeling Lessons
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
+Bonus: Get 27 financial modeling templates in swipe file
+Bonus: Get 27 financial modeling templates in swipe file
It always used to confuse me how headhunters knew who the top tier analysts were before numbers came out. Anyways, to answer your question - headhunters will start calling top tier analysts (or analysts that have worked on big deals) around March. All the top tier funds start recruiting pretty heavily around late April/May (although it gets earlier every year). Most of the rest of the analysts start getting calls around May or June, but headhunters will meet with you if you are proactive about getting in front of them. Personally, I think there's a delicate balance on when the best time to start talking to headhunters is - you need to have announced a deal of some sort that you can talk about, but the earlier the better.
The analysts in the top recruited groups all got jobs by late May. Most of the analysts I knew that were outside of the top recruited groups got jobs in June or so. A few analysts lined up something as late as August, and a few were still looking or considering their options in the late fall. Bonus numbers come out between the last week in June to the first week in August, so I'd say the bulk of recruiting and meetings with headhunters starts well before then.
helpful. Thanks!
Do you usually get 'recruited' as a first year, or mostly only during your second year?
Do headhunters look into other departments (Research, Corp. Banking, etc.) for recruitment into IBD? Or would the analyst have to take the initiative to talk to a headhunter?
GameTheory,
Do you know how the process works for hedge fund recruiting? I've heard it's less structured, but don't really know much about the process.
Should have been more clear: headhunters will begin calling during your first year. You can interview for positions starting the following summer. May through October is generally considered "recruiting season," everything else is off-cycle.
MMonkey99, are you're asking if recruiters look at ER, or Corp. Banking for PE, I really don't know. My intuition is that there are more than enough qualified and willing candidates in IBD looking for PE jobs that there is really no need to look elsewhere. Someone else in another part of the bank may be able to answer this question.
sei99, the larger hedge funds will recruit alongside the PE funds in a more structured manner. Oftentimes, HF will recruit sooner in the year in an effort to get the "best" talent first. HF in general is less structured in their recruiting, however. They are more likely to recruit off-cycle and for immediate start dates. I think the reason for this is because while alot of PE firms require business school at some point (forcing a constant recruiting cycle that follows the school year), alot of HF do not, so it does not matter when they add people.
Officia et et qui labore aperiam non expedita voluptatem. Quaerat delectus aperiam optio illum dignissimos qui.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...