Over the past 2.5 years I’ve been exclusively focused on helping PE firms hire business development professionals (aka deal sourcing).

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I’ve interacted with more than half of the 900 or so individuals in the role.

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The main takeaway? There's no one-size-fits-all approach to sourcing in PE. Yes, you’ll hear “proprietary outreach,” “banker coverage,” “thesis-driven,” “long-tail,” and so on, but each firm pulls those levers differently.

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Another take away: The word is out on PE BD. I’ve probably spent just as much time speaking with people who are outside of the role looking to break in as I have with folks already in the seat. It's very clear that more people than ever are curious about PE BD and what it entails.

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The common questions:

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What does the day-to-day actually look like? What does the career path look like? Where do people come from before they land these roles? What does comp look like? What qualities are firms really looking for? And what should you expect in a BD interview?

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Given how often these conversations come up and how few resources exist, I’ve pulled together a list.

Articles, posts, podcasts, and videos that answer the questions above. It’s the link I send whenever someone asks, “Where can I learn more about PE BD?”‍

PE BD Resources (2025)

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• Primer on PE BD - My attempt at answering the most common questions that arise for folks looking to break into PE BD.

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• Quarterly BD Reports - Our reports detail all of the hiring activity in PE BD. They also offer a lay of the land on how many BD professionals are out there, how many firms have BD, etc.

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• DSP Podcast Episodes on Compensation - This episode talks through Coastal Partner’s compensation survey and should serve as a good primer for what to expect in PE BD compensation.

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• First 90 Day Plan - Dan Herr’s detailed breakdown of how he’d approach the first 90 days in a new BD role.

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• PE BD - Key Areas To Succeed in the Role - Jonathan Babcock and 51 Vets excellent primer on the components of BD in PE and how to succeed.

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• The Evolution of Business Development with Jay Jester - BluWave’s Karma School of Business has Jay Jester on talking about how the role has changed since he got into it 25+ years ago.

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• Best But Never Final Podcast - This is a great listen every time, but the two episodes about sourcing are particularly relevant for folks looking to learn more. (Thesis Development and Deal Sourcing, Crafting Investment Focus and Mastering Deal Sourcing)

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• Sutton Place Strategies - SPS consistently releases reports on sourcing and M&A trends.

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• WSO: BusDev in Private Equity - Is It Worth It? - This thread started with a question in 2012 - but people have added to it over the years. Good range of perspectives.

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• Dyana Baurley’s Linkedin Content - Dyana generously shares thoughtful insights on BD best practices right on her LinkedIn page. Her post, “So You Want to Break Into PE BD,” ranks as the first result on Google when you search “private equity business development”. And for good reason.

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• Joe Burkhart’s Blog - From what I can tell, Joe hasn’t posted on here since 2019, but the posts are still very relevant to the role today.

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