Have you ever wondered if you have the skills to become a CEO? Do you want to find out what it takes to search for and acquire a company? Are you curious to learn more about the nuances of closing a deal? If so, this internship is for you. Our MBA interns work alongside an assigned Entrepreneurs-In-Residence (EIR) and the NGP Investment Team on prospective and current investment opportunities. As your EIR’s go-to person, you will wear multiple hats and serve as an extension of your EIR.
You’ll receive training and get hands-on experience at every stage of the transaction life cycle (sourcing, indication of interest, intent to purchase, diligence, close). This is an incredible opportunity to get first-hand experience with the full Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition process. Throughout your internship, you’ll receive regular feedback from your EIR. As part of the internship, you will be given suggested readings and a required financial modeling online course that supplements and complements your work with your EIR. In addition to the NGP team, you’ll also be able to tap into our vast and notable network.
Commitment: Full-time (35 – 40 hours/week)
Dates: June 21st – September 3rd (10 weeks)
Location: Potentially remote or on-premise pending circumstances
Compensation/Course Credit: Unpaid
Role Responsibilities and Shadowing Opportunities
What you’ll do What you’ll take away
| Guided by your EIR, conduct extensive primary and secondary research to identify attractive industries based on investment criteria and develop detailed investment theses. | Gain insights into a wide range of industries, companies and business models—and discover which interest you. Learn what makes for effective theses and how to write them. |
| Your EIR will train you on how to identify companies for potential investment and conduct detailed diligence on prospective investments, including analysis of business models, competitors, vendors, and customers. | Understand what makes for a good potential investment and how to carry out due diligence. Practice real analysis of various stakeholders of a potential investment. |
| Financial modeling to value targets, including leveraged buyout analysis, comparable company and transaction analysis, and other valuation techniques. | Practice your valuation, financial modeling and other technical skills in a real-world setting. |
| Participate in deal pipeline meetings, screening calls with business owners and business brokers. | Gather lifelong best practices from Chicago’s best on how to run meetings, lead calls and how to communicate effectively. |
| As opportunities allow, your EIR will show you how to develop IOIs and LOIs and what pre-close due diligence entails. | Learn about the steps after a target investment is identified and see what post-close due diligence looks like up-close. |
| As opportunities allow, manage and coach undergraduate interns under the guidance of your EIR. | Develop and hone your managerial, mentoring and coaching skills of junior colleagues. |
| Receive suggested readings and complete a required online modeling course. | The readings and assignments supplement and complement your work with your EIR and designed to give you a complete picture of the search process. |
Benefits:
- Develop and hone skills that can be applied to the classroom and future employment opportunities.
- Learn how to source and evaluate prospects.
- Access to best practice documents.
- Mentoring from Chicago’s best and brightest.
- Lunch and Learns and other team building events to break up the work week.
- Collegial and collaborative culture (we pride ourselves on being nice people)
Desired Skills/Experience/Interests:
- Pursuing an MBA and interested in Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition.
- Investor mindset and the ability to articulate a good investment story.
- Ability to wear multiple hats, roll up your sleeves and get the job done.
- Strong quantitative skill set – including detailed knowledge of finance and accounting principles.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Entrepreneurial mindset – creativity and desire to independently initiate and contribute ideas.
- Honesty, Humility, Heart, Hunger and Hustle.
Firm Overview
NextGen Growth Partners (NGP) is a private equity fund that partners with experienced operators and entrepreneurs to offer business owners an operational succession plan alongside a financial exit.
One of our Entrepreneurs-in-Residence takes a full-time leadership role within each business we acquire and is committed to growing it for the long-term. This allows us to provide business owners a way to transition out of daily management responsibilities and know their legacy is going to be preserved and dispelling private equity stigmas.
If interested, please apply here.
