Vault Guide to Private Equity and Hedge Fund

Customizedfor:zhengrong([e-mail])THEMEDIA’SWATCHINGVAULT!HERE’SASAMPLINGOFOURCOVERAGE.“Forthosehopingtoclimbtheladderofsuccess,[Vault’s]insightsarepriceless.”–Moneymagazine“Thebestplaceonthewebtoprepareforajobsearch.”–Fortune“[Vaultguides]makeforexcellentstartingpointsforjobhuntersandshouldbepurchasedbyacademiclibrariesfortheircareersections[and]universitycareercenters.”–LibraryJournal“Thegranddaddyofworkersites.”–USNewsandWorldReport“Akillerapp.”–TheNewYorkTimesOneofForbes’33“FavoriteSites”–Forbes“Togettheunvarnishedscoop,checkoutVault.”–SmartMoneyMagazine“Vaulthasawealthofinformationaboutmajoremployersandjob-searchingstrategiesaswellascommentsfromworkersabouttheirexperiencesatspecificcompanies.”–TheWashingtonPost“Akeyreferenceforthosewhowanttoknowwhatittakestogethiredbyalawfirmandwhattoexpectoncetheygetthere.”–NewYorkLawJournal“Vault[provides]theskinnyonworkingconditionsatallkindsofcompaniesfromcurrentandformeremployees.”–USATodayCustomizedfor:zhengrong([e-mail])VAULTGUIDETOPRIVATEEQUITYANDHEDGEFUNDINTERVIEWSALICEDOOANDTHESTAFFATVAULTCustomizedfor:zhengrong([e-mail])Copyright©2009byVault.com,Inc.Allrightsreserved.Allinformationinthisbookissubjecttochangewithoutnotice.Vaultmakesnoclaimsastotheaccuracyandreliabilityoftheinformationcontainedwithinanddisclaimsallwarranties.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,foranypurpose,withouttheexpresswrittenpermissionofVault.com,Inc.Vault,theVaultlogo,and“TheMostTrustedNameinCareerInformationTM”aretrademarksofVault.com,Inc.Forinformationaboutpermissiontoreproduceselectionsfromthisbook,contactVault.com,Inc.,75VarickStreet,8thFloor,NewYork,NY10013,[phone].LibraryofCongressCIPDataisavailable.ISBN13:978-1-58131-696-4ISBN10:1-58131-696-8Customizedfor:zhengrong([e-mail])AcknowledgmentsAliceDoo’sacknowledgments:Theauthorwouldliketothankherfamily,friends,andcolleaguesforalltheirsupportandhelp.First,thankstoVaulteditor,MattThorntonfortakingarandomchance.MomandDad,thankyouforalifetimeofencouragement.Thisbookwouldnotbeenpossiblewithoutmyfriendswhoareinfinitelysmarternotably,HughAu,HollyBui,BrianandJamesCastiglioni,EricDeNatale,AngelineHsu,JaganPisharath,RomanSmurkler,BoTang,AndrewYeh(left!),andAndrewYim.Thankstoallthefirmswhointerviewedmeandsaidno,becausehowelsecouldIhavegainedthecredentialstowritethisbook?SpecialthankstoLeo,Susan,Jessica,Grishma,Helis,KevinandAnnieattheCarlyleGroupforfinallygivingmeajob.Vault’sacknowledgments:WeareextremelygratefultoVault’sentirestaffforalltheirhelpintheeditorial,productionandmarketingprocesses.Vaultalsowouldliketoacknowledgethesupportofourinvestors,clients,employees,familyandfriends.Thankyou!vCustomizedfor:zhengrong([e-mail])TableofContentsINTRODUCTION1PreparationisKey...............................................1BREAKINGINTOTHEINDUSTRY3The“Right”Background...........................................3MeettheHeadhunters............................................4WHATTOEXPECT7OverviewoftheInterview..........................................7WhyYouatXYZFirm.............................................9BehavioralQuestions............................................10WORK/DEALEXPERIENCE15SwitchPerspectives.............................................15SampleQuestions..............................................16ACCOUNTING23SolidFoundation...............................................23SampleQuestions..............................................24FINANCE31SampleQuestions..............................................31BRAINTEASERS41StandardizedAcumen............................................41SampleQuestions..............................................42viiCustomizedfor:zhengrong([e-mail])CONSULTING47CaseQuestions................................................47SampleQuestions..............................................50CAPITALMARKETS(HEDGEFUNDSONLY)55HedgeFunds..................................................55InvestmentStrategies............................................56InvestmentCriteria..............................................68KeepSharp...................................................70SampleQuestions..............................................71MoreSampleQuestions..........................................77LEVERAGEDBUYOUTS(PRIVATEEQUITYONLY)79PrivateEquity’sGoldenEgg.......................................79TheBeginning.................................................79GreedisGood:ModernPrivateEquity................................80TheSummerof2007............................................81HowPrivateEquityWorks.........................................83TheExitStrategy:ReturnonInvestment..............................89GeneratingReturn..............................................90LBOInvestmentCriteria..........................................92AdvantagesandConsiderations.....................................94PaperLBO....................................................94Samp