Future B-School Hire in Private Equity

No Prob! We are all bored at work!

Women Shaping Up Private Equity Firms
More Women Enter Private Equity Firms

https://www.riversidecompany.com/news/29 ... 0808_2.pdf

PEC Study Cites Employment Gains
Private equity involvement boosts employment figures and increases total sales, says the study, which was conducted using information from the Private Equity Council’s member firms.

https://www.mergersunleashed.com/news/18 ... MP=OTC-RSS

Nice to see some encouraging news. Thanks, Ninkorn!

I keep reading that if you don't have at least IB analyst experience, it's super duper heard to break into PE post-MBA.

I hear that too Soni. I think PE doesnt like to train newbies without any experience. After all, execution is the key and they have no use for anyone without some kind of specialization....

I have dinner tonight with my fiancee's former boss at Bain Capital. I will ask him questions, including this one. He is also bringing his former Bain Capital colleague who is currently a partner at NYC VC called Village Ventures. They invest in dot com companies as well so it fits my current plan of doing something in tech after MBA. I will see if I can do summer internship there so I don't have to rely on Yale SOM CDO for summer job.

Same here. I thought we have a shot if we did BB IB after B-School, but it sounds like the want IB analyst experience in addition to that.

I think that is the whole point. PE firms don't train. You are expected to contribute and know your stuff. I liken it to the Major Leagues vs. the Minor Leagues where IB Associates are the Minors and PE Senior Associates are the Majors. Both are tough to get into, but there are substantially less spots in the Majors (PE). The Minors will take kids that were great hitters, fielders, or kids with raw talent (career switchers) and try and work on their weaknesses in order to make them stars. They take the time to teach you (summer training). The Majors, of course, is no place for on-the-job training. They expect you to perform from day one or you're gone. Also, kids that went into the Minors straight out of high school (IB Analysts) have an advantage over the other kids that may have gone to college first (non IB Analysts). Also, the kids that went straight out of high school in the 1st or 2nd round are the true stars, i.e. Princeton or Harvard undergrads that went straight to Goldman.

At least that's how I see it...

Ninkorn, I expect a long writeup from you on dinner and everything you learn. Don't get tipsy on wine and forget stuff. We want every detail.

Okay, here's some news from Bain Capital executive:

1) Yes, it's true. PE firms are still cutting jobs. Especially PE firms affected by over-paying for their recent acquisitions (before the whole credit market blew up) and their inability to refinance some of those debts related to those acquisitions.....PE firms are mostly cutting people in investment and operational people. PE firms are hiring associates and senior associates annually in numbers that depend on various factors such as market conditions and anticipated global needs. They typically begin recruiting for associates in early fall with a start date beginning the following summer. However, minimum requirement for senior associate positions - at least three to four years of prior private equity, investment banking and/or consulting work experience.

2) They are picking up hiring in distressed debt investing, though..... MBA grads/JDs with experience in this field are in demand. (However, many hirings are still experienced professionals currently working, not in bschool) Many PE firms are beginning to see distressed debts as opportunity. If one has turnaround/debt restructuring experience, those professionals will have easier time to get into PE firms right now.

3) Selective Hiring - If new funds are raised, then PE firms are still hiring for those funds to supplement those projects. Cuts are mainly from existing funds/projects. Future hirings will be mainly depended upon new funds/projects and expertise related to those funds/projects.

4) PE firms are still able to raise funds, although overall fundraising is significantly lower compared to previous years.

5) Due to distressed companies in need of counseling and strategic direction, he expects to lose many top bschool students to Consulting firms. Consulting firms are actually looking at current bschool job market as an opportunity and increasing hiring plans especially for corporate finance and general management positions.

6) Boutique firms are still hiring. However, each firm will be hiring for as little as 3 positions to as many as 7 positions. (approximately) Therefore, expect the competition to be fierce.

Here's news from GS Senior VP I played racquetball with:

* According to original proforma hiring plan he looked at 4 months ago, GS alone reduced their overall MBA recruiting target numbers as high as 35% (approximately) for this recruiting season.

* Other major firms are either canceling on campus interview for certain schools, and invite fewer candidates to off-site recruiting events. However, he also commented that firms are either delaying recruiting until later (closer to summer), or rescinding offers already made to students. (usually Mutual Funds and other investment management positions..)

Investment Banks are adding staff in India and other Asia based offices. (mainly in Hong Kong)

How I Got A Summer Internship in PE

https://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/student/club/pevc/documents/071024_PEEK_How_I%20got_%20my_Internship_Panel.ppt#256,1,Slide%201