Private Equity Chief Dealmakers
Overview
Introduction
Chief dealmakers source, develop, negotiate, and close new private equity investments. Their responsibility is to obtain the target company at the best possible terms and, once acquired, work with portfolio company executives to implement an exit strategy as quickly as possible to return value to investors. Chief dealmakers are also known as managing directors, managing partners, and operating partners.
Quick Facts
Median Salary
Employment Prospects
Minimum Education Level
Experience
Skills
Personality Traits
Earnings
Salaries for private equity executives rank among the highest in any industry. Managing partners earned base salaries of $200,000 to more than $2.5 million in 2023, according to the 2024 North American Private Equity Investment Professional Compensation Survey from Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. Annual earnings for the very top chief dealmakers can range in the hundreds of million...
Work Environment
As the “big kahunas” at PE funds, chief dealmakers enjoy opulent corner offices, the use of cutting-edge technology and office equipment, and the support of dedicated administrative staff.
Many private equity and venture capital professionals work long hours (sometimes more than 70 hours a week). While a good number of the workers logging this many hours are in lower-level positions such...
Outlook
Private equity funds are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 10.2 percent from 2021 to 2027—reaching $7.6 trillion in value by December 2027, according to the alternative investment research firm Preqin. These statistics suggest that there should continue to be good opportunities for dealmakers—although it is exceptionally difficult to break into the field and advanced posi...
