Most Important Skills for an Associate at Aurora Capital Partners
Aurora Capital Partner's Brandon highlights the evolution of necessary skills throughout a private equity career, emphasizing "analytical skill and organizational skills" as crucial for associates, while the importance of "relationships and market understanding" increases at higher levels like partner. This progression showcases how skill sets shift from deep analytical work to broader relationship management as career advancement occurs.
Analytical Skills, Organizational Skills, Investor Mindset, Deal Process Management, Relationship Building
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Brandon Priest
Associate
Aurora Capital Partners
UC Santa Barbara
UCLA Anderson School of Management, MBA
Biology & Related Sciences
Finance (Banking, Fintech, Investing)
Finance
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans, Worked 20+ Hours in School, Greek Life Member
Video Highlights
1. Analytical skills and organizational skills are crucial at the associate level for tasks such as deal analysis and management.
2. Developing an investor mindset is key throughout your career progression, starting with identifying potential shortcomings in opportunities and progressing to understanding market dynamics and key players.
3. Relationship building becomes increasingly important at higher levels (VP, Principal, Partner), allowing for deal processes and market understanding to enhance success.
Transcript
What skills are most important for a job like yours?
That's a great question. I think there are a lot of skill sets that can succeed in this type of role, and it changes as you go up the ladder.
At the associate level, analytical and organizational skills are most important. You need to be able to do the analysis and be organized to get things done.
An overarching theme is thinking like an investor. You're developing that investor mindset to look at an opportunity and understand its shortcomings and how to validate any concerns.
At the VP level, you need to be able to run a deal process. Organization becomes even more important, and that investor mindset becomes more critical.
At the principal and partner level, it's more about relationships and general market understanding. You need to be plugged into what's happening in different industries, who the important players and executives are, and who the important bankers are.
If you have the relationship skills, it evolves at each stage. A great VP doesn't necessarily need to be good with people, but a great partner really does. Honestly, a great partner doesn't need to be good at analysis, but a great associate does. So it kind of grows on itself.