| Topic Name: |
Private Equity |
| Message Name: |
my thoughts |
| Date Posted: |
01/28/2006 |
| In Reply To: |
I would like to spend a few years in consulting after my MBA, and then move into PE. I would appreciate any insight people have into Bain's PE practice... specifically how it compares to McKinsey's PE/CF practices. I have final round interviews with both firms for a summer associate position, and would like to understand which one better suits the above career path. Or if they are about the same, which one does more interesting PE/Corp fin work.
thanks a lot!
dave
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| Message: |
I don't know much about McK's practice, other than that it's relatively new. Bain was consulting on private equity deals in the early 1980s before Bain Capital was spun-off in 1984. Private equity was always a natural fit given the firm's culture of focusing on driving financial results, making companies more valuable, etc. Bain doesn't suffer from the academic, theoretical, and arms-length orientations of other consulting firms.
It's commonly said around Bain that private equity Partners are among the toughest clients possible. They're smart, they're very rich, they're in a very tough industry, and they don't give away money or equity to consultants unless the consultants deliver real value and implement it.
Now the firm has the #1 market share in private equity consulting and advises on 60% of deals over $1B. If you read about a deal in the Wall St. Journal, odds are good that a Bain team is involved.
The private equity work breaks down into pre-deal (diligence, screening, etc.) and post-deal (fixing the portfolio company). The post-deal work often means that Bain consultants have the opportunity to work for smaller clients than they would at other firms. If you ever plan to start your own firm or work for anyone other than a big, bureaucratic F500, getting experience with smaller firms can be quite valuable.
You need to consider your office carefully if you want to do a lot of PE work. Offices that are closer to the financial centers (e.g. London, Paris, New York) tend to do more PE work. This is a good question to ask recruiters.
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