This review is primarily directed towards anyone interested in the "Accounting Manager" roles which are constantly posted for the LA office. When a recruiter contacted me about one of these open positions, I was very interested. It seemed like a great opportunity to work at a premier private equity shop in a manager role. But I would like to give you insight into what you're potentially getting yourself into:
The reason these roles are constantly open is not because of business growth or internal promotion, but because the turnover in the accounting department, particularly distressed debt, is extremely high. While I was there nearly half the team left or was actively seeking different opportunities. Generally speaking, people don't leave jobs when they feel valued, feel challenged, have good relationships with their managers, have career opportunities, etc. The turnover being so high should give you insight into the environment.The grunt work is done in India by people working LA hours. They work night shift so they too have high turnover. You will be "managing" people 8,500 miles away. And I use the term "manager" very loosely. The reality is the real managers are the VPs, who sit in their offices all day barking orders and whining through emails. You will have 3 or 4 of them above you who are all very demanding. They don't communicate well between each other so no one knows how busy you are at any given moment. They are primarily interested in keeping the front office happy, with no interest in their subordinates happiness, career development, or overall well-being. They will very happily and very publicly throw you under a bus in order to protect their hides. It's a very disrespectful environment where everyone appears to be looking out for themselves only. You will be buried under paper as the technology is very old-school and arcaic. The way the work is organized is also chaotic - dozens of people are posting journal entries and booking transactions with little communication. It can only be described as a circus. If you are desperate for work and you get an offer, I suggest accepting the offer, doing your time (1 or 2 years), and getting out...life is too short to work at a place like this.