Mid-Level Investor Relation Roles in Private Equity firms

Mid-Level IR professionals at PE firms are becoming more and more desirable as firms look to build out their IR functions.

But what would a mid-level IR professional look like? What responsibilities would a mid-level IR professional have?

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A mid-level IR professional can look very different firm to firm. We have seen this professional be the sole member of the IR function for their team. We have also seen them report to a more senior level IR person, in addition to them “leading” the IR function with some junior resources supporting them.

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Most of their main responsibilities will be similar to junior level, in that there will be a mix of project management, client services and fundraising/coverage. Project management will include among other things, managing the CRM, updating client lists, preparing pitch decks and marketing materials, helping with fund reporting, supporting the operations team with portfolio valuations. Client services would include LP communication and offering comprehensive information, answering inquiries, and organizing investor meetings and events. This also will include being the middle man between the LPs and GPs.

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The main point here is keeping the relationships strong and helping to keep the LPs happy.

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A major difference between mid-level and junior level IR professionals is the fundraising aspect of the role. As the IR professional becomes more experienced, they generally would handle more of the face to face interactions with established and prospective clients. This could include pitching and selling the firm's investment strategy, demonstrating an ability to find and close deals, as well as providing the conviction of profitable returns. To effectively pitch and sell to prospective investors, the mid-level professional has to be extremely knowledgeable about not only the investment strategy, but the performance of the portfolio companies and related metrics, an ability to translate to a LP what that means to their bottom line. This takes to time to perfect, and the mid-level is normally where this type of experience would occur.

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Titles for these roles usually range from Senior Associate to VP to Principal or Director of “Investor Relations”, but depending on what they specialize in could be “Capital Formation”, “Investor or Client Services” as well as “Marketing and Communications”.  The larger funds with more built out IR functions will have mid-level professionals focused on one main IR group where as the smaller funds with less of an established IR function might have their mid-level professional working on many different aspects of IR.

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The background of these professionals have more of a predictable path in that most have at least some direct IR experience or at least some exposure to the IR function. However, their are some mid-level IR professionals that have come directly from operations, banking or investing roles.

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We are always eager to connect with candidates currently in IR roles and any PE firms contemplating expanding their team to focus on IR. Don't hesitate to reach out to!