From Public Equities to Private Equities
tldr: Does a background in Business Operations help me break into Growth Equity?
Hi monkeys, I could use some advice about breaking into private equity. I have five years of work experience, two in equity research, two on the buy-side and about one year trying to build my own startup. On the buy-side I helped on some minority investments in private companies such as Anduril, Discord and OpenAI. However, I don't have experience with buyouts nor much on the operational side.
I've taken some months to figure out what I want to do long-term and have come to the realization that the hands-off approach in public equities is not that appealing to me. Private equity, growth equity in specific, seems super exciting to me but I've had a difficult time breaking in. I'm not getting a lot of traction on applications, and even networking has been difficult.
I'm in the process of interviewing for a couple of companies at the moment that I am hoping to use as stepping stones to bridge my skillset into private equity. One seems like a pretty good fit and would be as a strategic finance manager, and the other is a role as a business operations manager at a software startup. The problem is for the business operations manager role I have to accept/decline by the end of the week and I am still pretty early in the process with my other roles. My question is, is business operations, combined with my investing background, a worthwhile career step that moves me closer to growth equity?
Based on the most helpful WSO content, your background in equity research, buy-side investing, and exposure to minority investments in private companies already provides a solid foundation for transitioning into Growth Equity. However, the lack of buyout and operational experience could be a hurdle, as Growth Equity often values a mix of financial acumen and operational insight.
Here’s how the Business Operations Manager role could help:
Operational Experience: Growth Equity firms often look for candidates who understand how businesses operate day-to-day. This role could give you hands-on exposure to scaling a business, managing operations, and solving real-world challenges—skills that are highly transferable to Growth Equity.
Strategic Insight: Working in business operations at a software startup could provide you with industry-specific knowledge and strategic problem-solving experience, which are valuable when evaluating and supporting portfolio companies in Growth Equity.
Networking Opportunities: Being in a startup environment might also help you build connections with founders, investors, and other professionals in the ecosystem, which could open doors to Growth Equity roles.
That said, if the Strategic Finance Manager role you’re interviewing for is more aligned with financial modeling, deal structuring, or other technical aspects of private equity, it might be a better stepping stone. Growth Equity roles often require strong technical skills, and a finance-focused role could help you bridge that gap more directly.
Key Considerations:
If you’re still early in the process with the Strategic Finance Manager role, consider reaching out to the hiring team to expedite the process or communicate your timeline constraints. This could help you make a more informed decision before committing to the Business Operations Manager role.
Sources: Breakdown of Post-IB Exit Opportunities, Breakdown of Post-IB Exit Opportunities, Why Growth Equity vs Buyout?, Q&A: Analyst --> Associate at a VC / Growth Equity Firm, Difference between late stage VC and growth equity
Not to burst your bubble but once you leave the institutional side of financial services, it’s extraordinarily hard to “break back in” without getting a MBA or resigning to accepting a role at the exact level you left. No Strat fin / biz ops role makes you more attractive to PE/GE, in fact the more senior you get, the more the only thing that matters as an investor is the quality of your transaction track record.
Highly recommend knocking out the GMAT and getting a MBA at T7 to reset your prospects through student recruitment if you *must* get back into PE. No other realistic path
No - hope this helps
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