When is the best time to lateral as an associate?
Simple story, think many can relate.
I'm a first year associate at a top quartile MM PE firm and am getting solid experience (have closed several deals since starting, as much responsibility as I want to take on). The caveats are:
1) It is a 2-and-out program
2) It's a literal grind. Think 2ams 3-4 times a week on average, so largely unsustainable past the associate years
I've contemplated the MBA route, but as a typical non-minority candidate, my chances of getting into HBS/Stanford aren't great regardless of how solid my stats are. That said, I'm ~fairly~ confident I'm a high performer and do truly enjoy working in PE. I want to do this long term.
My thought is I should eventually lateral to a shop where I can build a career. When should I lateral? What advice does this forum have on my situation?
Thanks in advance.
Associate 1 in PE - LBOs, pure crickets, that's where I come in. Any of these useful?
More suggestions...
Hope that helps.
Just my 2 cents: I think things are more fluid in PE than in banking, but the general rule is to avoid stepping back when lateraling. If you're 1 year out from a senior associate promotion (this concept applies in accounting, consulting, and law as well..), generally better to look for opportunities *after the promotion. Sounds like you're still at the beginning of your associate stint -- the only flag to raise here is to avoid the "lily pad jumping" look. As long as you're not switching jobs every year, I don't think there's anything wrong jumping ship at this level (after a year).
Generally agree with this; however, if the senior associate promote is not available (which I would expect in a 2-and-out structure), I do not have a huge problem with lateralling. Would suggest priming the headhunters as these will naturally become available off-cycle and having a backup with high certainty (e.g., corp dev/finance at a portco) to pay the bills for a longer search and/or buy time to position for a potential MBA (e.g., by becoming super involved with an impactful extracurricular that could push you over the top at HBS or GSB while taking your hours down to a more manageable level and gaining "operational experience" with Gary the controller at some random bar). On the MBA front, W would probably be worth at least a look in terms of outcomes (2020 was ~7 to MFs and pretty much anyone with the profile who wanted it got a MM job).
Talking to my fellow H/S/W folks, everyone is pretty burned out and the grind does not go away. My wife and I had a kid this year, and I now regularly work until 2am to build in family time. And I restart travel this month. The grind you mentioned has definitely changed in nature, but it's still there. I love this business and can't imagine doing anything else, but I would caution you that the hours do not get better (unless you're a master of the universe, I guess).
Legitimate question - what makes you “love this business” if it requires you to work until 2 AM consistently when you now have a family? I feel like people who continue on to make partner in PE all collectively have that passion to some extent, but as an associate I truly cannot understand why that would be the case when most of the work itself is fairly mundane. If it wasn’t for the pay, I wouldn’t consider this job so trying to figure out if I can keep putting up with the grind for the sake of that or if I’ll just ultimately not be able to make it without more genuine interest
I actually enjoy this business, so I relate to the VP above. I'm trying to figure out how to manage working in PE while also having a decent life outside the ivory tower.
@VP in PE - LBOs: How can I get better at my job so it takes less time? I'm managing ~10-15 deals right now in various stages with closings/MPs/ICs left and right. Is it possible?
P.S. Also, I'm not miserable. The work itself is interesting enough that the grind ~at times~ feels worth it. It's the life outside of work that I know I'm missing out on that bothers me. I'm only in my 20s once. There has to be a way to win at both...? is the answer to move firms? Can I get really damn good at this?
VP from above now un-blinding myself with the benefit of Negronis I mentioned in a reply below. I guess a few things.
My suggestion would be to identify the aspects of the work that aren't mundane and try to take those on. Yeah, we can all slam some dipshit banker projections into our pre-IOI model, handwave an investment case, and get a letter out in 3ish hours. Shit sucks. But unfucking a portco that somehow multiplied its 8-figure EBITDA by -1 in a 12 month period? That is, improbably enough, a lot of fun. Or maybe you just like data analysis. Run with a utilization analysis at a dental portco and figure out why Dr. Fucknugget isn't nearly as productive now as she was when we did the deal 18 months ago (she picked up the night shift at Waffle House to avoid her batshit daughter and pushover husband... yes this is a thing that actually happened).
Point is, the work is only mundane if you aren't engaging with it, if you aren't asking why.
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