Private equity as a career choice for Darden students has grown substantially in the past few years, as of course has the industry. To respond to the growing demand, Darden Career Consultant Edward Yu recently attended the Midwest PE Networking Chicago/Buyouts Conference. Here are Ed’s thoughts from the event, and a few other insights into his corporate visits in Chicago.
Summary of Inaugural Midwest PE Networking Chicago/ Buyouts Conference
On June 11, at the Fairmont Hotel in Chicago, Leveraged Buyout (LBO) professionals came to meet with both Limited Partners and debt providers to raise funds and finance deals. There were some notable speakers such as Paul Finnegan, CEO of the Midwest’s largest private equity firm, Madison Dearborn Partners. Speakers from some of the region’s most active Limited Partners and their advisors, including Adams Street Partners, Conversus Capital, Muller & Monroe Asset Management and RCP Advisors, gave insights to help delegates both raise next fund and improve their road show pitch. In the afternoon, there was a chance to meet the region’s top private equity firms in a structured networking session through the Buyouts Deal Flow Circuit.
Among various companies with which Ed Yu met, both Sterling Partners and Baird Private Equity were very open to receiving resumes from Darden in the future.
The following are some key lessons and suggestions regarding private equity employment. Many professionals pointed out that private equity recruiting is spotty, opportunistic and unstructured compared to investment banking recruiting. Typically PE firms don’t come on-Grounds to employ several students at a time. Therefore, the importance of networking is crucial for private equity hiring. Firms are not necessarily going to come to Darden to interview two to three students, but private equity firms expect students to come to them and network aggressively to learn and show keen interest in the industry.
The following experiences and advice are essential for people who want to go into the Private Equity industry:
-Generally, private equity firms typically hire former investment banking analysts with a few years of PE experience. Many private equity firms (about 75% of the conference attendees) said they don’t hire MBAs straight out of business school unless they have significant relevant experiences.
-Private Equity firms hire MBAs with a few years of management consulting and/ or a few years of private equity experience. Having worked at portfolio companies is important.
-If students have no PE/ banking experience, they need to gain transactions/ deal experiences and possess strong quantitative backgrounds to “get in the door”. It is critical that students should learn to evaluate investment ideas, make sensible predictions and be able to articulate pros and cons regarding business strategies. In the long run, operational experience is key, whether you are running a company as a senior executive or through a general management program. It is wise in the long run to be a general manager after business school because private equity firms will seek out those with strong operations experiences to help them run businesses in the future. As one panelist pointed out “Private Equity is all about operating companies”.
-Financial modeling, accounting and corporate finance knowledge and skills are important, but real transactional experiences will add a lot of value to someone’s resume.
-Networking is critical; persistency and consistent effort by job seekers are important. Personal connections are the key to success in networking.
-Have strong resumes for private equity positions highlighting the following skills and attributes: analytical, strong social and interpersonal skills, resourcefulness, proven track record, big-picture mentality, comfort with senior management, comfort with ambiguity, flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit and transactions and operations experience.
The panelists and speakers highlighted the following challenges in the market, but a representative from Merit Capital Partners said never give up hope if one is committed to private equity.
- 2008 Year to Date: Global M&A is down by 33% (by transaction volume); Global PE transactions are down by 72%.
- 2008 Year to Date: US M&A activity is down by 43% (by transaction volume); US PE transactions are down by 85%.
- 2008 Year to Date: Midwest Buyout is down by 83% (by transaction volume).
PE activity has been a key driver of the M&A market and investment banking fees. Although the PE slump is a global phenomenon, Asia/ Emerging markets are seeing more opportunities; the trend is that the PE market is becoming more global.
PE professionals from American Capital Strategies and Lincoln International said early stage growth, fast growth sector, small biotechnology buyouts and low capital expenditure industries are attractive investments. Also, cross-border deals are becoming important because PE firms are able to take advantage of currency differentials as well.
Various experts predict that the buyout market will slow down in the next 6 to 9 months. A few years ago, it took three to four months to raise capital; due to the current market situation, it is now taking 12 months to raise capital. Overall, many investors were optimistic that the cycle tends to work itself out in the long run.
Summary of Ed Yu’s Corporate Visits in Chicago, IL
Ed Yu also visited Robert Baird, an investment bank headquartered in Chicago, IL, BMO Capital Markets, a Canadian middle market investment bank, Morningstar, a research firm based in Chicago, GTCR Golder Rauner LLC, a private equity firm in Chicago and Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group. In addition to Barclays Capital and Credit Suisse, Robert Baird is new to Darden on-Grounds recruiting in the past few years. Robert Baird is excited to visit Darden and meet students in the upcoming academic year. Morningstar has posted an Equity Analyst position at Darden for students and recent graduates. Morningstar gives writing tests as part of its candidate selection process. In addition to strong analytical skills, students need to have good writing skills and be able to write in a folksy-style, “similar to what you would read on Berkshire Hathaway’s Annual Report from Warren Buffet”. A Vice-President in the Investment Banking Division from BMO Capital Markets who entered the industry in the last downturn offered some sage advice. “Students need to be targeted in their search for banking and be super aggressive. If one does not get a job with a bulge bracket firm, he should try to get any banking job. Also, former bankers should not be overconfident as firms will be very selective in who they are going to hire; fit is also important. In the end, have multiple touch points and interactions with bankers and network aggressively.”