Working at a PE vs. VC portco

There a few key things to keep in mind when picking your next company:

• Stage

• CEO

• Is the company a breakout company or toxic

One thing many people forget to think about is the ownership structure.  Whispered works with a lot of investors and talent teams at VC/PE firms and we’ve learned how different VC and PE can be

A definition of VC and PE

The two types of investors have blended together in recent years with flavors of PE including:

• Cost-cutting to leverage cash flows

• Growth PE - willing to take a dip in EBITDA for growth

A good distinction is whether the investor takes minority (VC) or control (PE) stakes in their portfolio companies.

Differences working at a VC vs. PE Portco

“Growth is always more valuable but can be elusive while efficiency/profitability is often the safer play at scale.”   Top PE Operating Partner

	VC	PE
Company profiles	More horizontal plays focused on giant TAM and unicorn potential	Often vertical plays with smaller TAM
Priority	Growth	EBITDA most of the time, especially towards the end of investment periods
Exit strategy	Unicorn or dead-end in career Seed to A ~30% A to B ~40%	Exit with every company (public, strategic or other PE)
GTM strategy	Rapid expansion, larger budgets	Efficient growth and more focused marketing
Culture	GSD	Structured, strategic

Find top VC and PE portcos for your next role

Whispered is built to help senior GTM executives find their next roles at investor-backed companies.  We collaborate closely with investors and talent teams to connect great talent.

If you want to find breakout companies, visit our company insights directory to filter by unique data points and… if you know insights on a company, contribute them (and get access to insights on other companies)