PE hiring remains flat

Under half (44 percent) of US-based private equity firms plan to scout the job market for new hires during the next 12 months, according to a survey by professional services firm BDO seen by PE Manager ahead of a wider release.

The same percentage of GPs said they planned on hiring in 2013, according to last year’s BDO survey of senior private equity executives.

The survey was a strong indicator of hiring trends in 2013. Slightly less than half of respondents (46 percent) indicated that they had increased headcount over the last year, compared to the 44 percent of respondents who claimed they would be hiring over the next year in last year’s survey.

Broken down by firm size, 64 percent of GPs managing between $250 million and $500 million in assets plan to add staff in the next 12 months. Only 14 percent of firms managing between $500 million and $1 billion in assets plan on hiring in 2014. 

Roughly half of firms managing under $250 million or over $1 billion plan to increase employee count over the course of the calendar year.

Similar research conducted by professional services firm EY in collaboration with PEI found that private equity CFOs intend to hire fewer professionals this year than last. 

In areas where GPs expect to hire next year, CFOs are generally searching for skilled workers in fund accounting (26 percent), investor relations (24 percent), compliance and risk management (17 percent) and portfolio analytics (17 percent).