PE Consulting or Generalist Track - Bain SEA

Question

Hi, I have recently cleared the Bain online assessment and the HR screening as well and have received the invitation for the first round of interviews for one of the SEA offices.

I'm not sure if anyone else has experienced this, but the invitation email says that they would give me the opportunity to focus my career on the Bain PE consulting practice as opposed to being a Generalist but this is something I have to choose before beginning the interview process and I cannot change my choice once made.

I do know that choosing either one is a more personal choice depending on what my career aspirations are. I'm surprised to be receiving this message especially since during the HR screening, I was asked what I was interested in and I specifically said I wanted to pursue the generalist track.

Anyway,

1. Given the structure of the email that I received, would it be perceived as a thing against my candidature if I don't go for the PE consulting option?

2. I don't know if I should even be choosing PE since I don't have much clue of what it entails apart from it being the most intense of practices and I know a bit about the structure of work (DD, valuation etc). I'm not informed enough to say that I want to pursue PE as a career path post consulting. But can the experts here weigh in as to would it be a mistake to choose generalist over PE consulting? Or vice versa for that matter.

Those are the two main questions I have, thanks a lot for answering.

Answer 1

It would be easier to see if you can post the exact wording you received. My initial take is as follows

Bain probably has a high demand for PE analysts currently
Your profile tells them that you might be a good fit for that practice

If you choose to go for the generalist track it will be totally fine but it is likely that your odds of getting in are higher with PE if they think you are a good fit already

PE is a lot of due diligence work and typically this involves long hours and intense work days. However you also learn a lot as a result and are a highly valued candidate for PE firms and Hedge funds. At the end of the day the way to think about it is to do more research on Private Equity in general and see how appealing that path is to you. Post Bain those kind of roles will be the ones you will be most desirable for. One thing to note is that among all MBB, Bain has the best reputation for PE and also has its own PE fund (Bain Capital) which is highly successful.

Best,

Udayan

Answer 2

At the moment, Bain & Company has many requests from people who - without knowing anything about PE - want to join the PE practice (PEG).

You say that you have no clue about the PE practice. You prove this by saying that Bain may work on company valuations. It is not the case; Bain PEG is not working on valuations since it is not an investment bank or merchant bank, or M&A advisor.
Bain PEG does commercial DDs and some rare operational DDs.

As I notice that you don't know how PE consulting works, any interviewer will do it in 30 seconds.

So, my suggestion is to steer clear of PEG and apply as a generalist. Besides, if you don't know something, don't enroll in it (this, with some level of flexibility, applies to life in general).

Answer 3

Hi there,

I personally think the answer is in this statement you made:

“I don't have much clue of what it entails apart from it being the most intense of practices and I know a bit about the structure of work (DD, valuation etc). I'm not informed enough to say that I want to pursue PE as a career path post consulting”

Warren Buffet doesn't invest in things he doesn't understand. I don't think you should sign your career up for something you don't understand.

If your goal is to get wide exposure to help you figure out your career down the road, then you should go Generalist. Note that this does indeed probably lower your odds a bit, but, ultimately, if you're a strong candidate/caser it shouldn't matter.

Answer 4

Dear candidate,

since it is an option given and it does not sound like one of your core interests, I would tend towards advising that you apply to the generalist role instead. It will probably be easier to convey your interest throughout the interview and also it gives you the chance to try out different industries and try out working with different people and find your spike.

Best regards