Commercial Banker turned private equity business development professional?

This may be the most overlooked area of qualified candidates for BD roles.

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As always, the right profile really depends on the firm’s investment strategy.

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Are they mostly focused on getting the most out of their top intermediary relationships? Are they looking to supplement that deal flow with direct outreach to companies or through alternate channels / centers of influence?

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If the case is more of the latter than the former (or even a combination of both), commercial bankers can be a great place to look for BD talent.

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Most Common Backgrounds for PE BD

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Before we get into why - here’s a bit more context on the general profiles for PE BD professionals.

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• When you think of the backgrounds of those in PE BD, the first profile that comes to mind are likely investment bankers and investment professionals. Let’s call them ‘deal professionals’.

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• In this category, we’re talking about investment bankers, corporate development professionals, PE investment professionals - particularly those who have spent some of their time sourcing and ultimately turned to the BD function. These are the most common profiles among the existing 870 or so BD professionals in the PE industry today.

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• There is also a big contingent of former sales folks from BD related software / platform companies like Axial, Intralinks, Sutton Place, or expert networks like GLG. These profiles have proven to be tremendously successful for a lot of firms.

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• We’ve also seen candidates from wealth management be fairly successful in making the transition, particularly at junior levels, where they are supporting more experienced BD professionals.

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• Finally, the contingent of BD professionals that we’re talking about in this post, are the former commercial or corporate bankers; which are often great candidates for BD positions - and there are a lot of them out there!

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Why Commercial Bankers work for PE BD

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Many banks have relationship managers that work closely with privately owned businesses with the intention of providing a range of banking solutions. They are often responsible for both new business development and underwriting of transactions; a combination that can make them excellent filters of potential opportunities for a PE firm. On the business development side, they are frequently utilizing non-bank professional networks as well as direct outreach to companies to attain new business.

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Their intrinsic understanding of client dynamics, deal structures, and their new business development responsibilities positions them exceptionally well for BD roles in PE.

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There are plenty of examples of successful BD hires coming from commercial banking to point to. If you're a firm thinking about this profile for your next BD hire, get in touch!