Senior Associate​/Investment Manager – DACH Mid-Market Private Equity

Position:
Senior Associate / Investment Manager – DACH Mid-Market Private Equity

Firm:
Premier Family-Backed Private Equity Sponsor

Overview:
Our client is a preeminent, highly capitalized private equity firm with a distinct family-office heritage, managing multi-billion-euro pools of capital dedicated to the European mid-market. With a formidable presence across the DACH region, the firm provides tailored "entrepreneurial capital" to mid-sized, founder-led, and family-owned enterprises.

Distinct from traditional institutional buyout funds, the platform leverages its flexible mandate and longer-term investment horizon to structure bespoke partnerships
-ranging from majority buyouts and complex succession solutions to minority growth equity and corporate carve-outs. The investment strategy is strictly thesis-driven, concentrating heavily on resilient, high-growth sectors including Software & Technology, Healthcare, Tech-Enabled B2B Services, and Advanced Industrials. Furthermore, the firm integrates a rigorous ESG and sustainability framework into the core of its value-creation philosophy, partnering with hidden champions and "Mittelstand" leaders to drive digital transformation and aggressive international buy-and-build consolidation.

To support the continued expansion of their Swiss operations and capital deployment across the DACH landscape, the firm is seeking to appoint a Senior Associate or Investment Manager to their Zurich office.

• Holistic Deal Execution: Drive complex mid-market transactions within the firm’s core verticals (Software, Healthcare, B2B Services, Industrials) from preliminary screening and deep-dive commercial assessment through to structuring, definitive documentation, and closing.
• Flexible Structuring: Architect sophisticated transaction structures that align with the specific needs of family-owned businesses, navigating both control buyouts and minority growth capital investments.
• Mittelstand Origination: Actively cultivate proprietary deal flow by building strong relationships with regional intermediaries, wealth managers, specialized M&A boutiques, and directly with founders across Switzerland and the broader DACH region.
• Rigorous Financial Underwriting: Construct highly detailed, dynamic LBO and growth equity models, execute comprehensive valuation analyses, and manage multidisciplinary due diligence work streams (commercial, financial, legal, tax, tech, and ESG).
• Portfolio Value Creation: Collaborate intricately with the dedicated operations team and portfolio C-suites to execute post-close 100-day plans, drive software/digital implementation, institutionalize reporting frameworks, and identify actionable bolt-on acquisitions.
• Investment Committee Presentations: Synthesize complex diligence findings, sector-specific tailwinds, and highly structured financial logic into compelling, institutional-grade investment memorandums.

• Experience: 3 to 6 years of rigorous, active investment experience derived exclusively from a recognized mid-market or large-cap Private Equity fund. A demonstrable, closed deal sheet acting as a principal investor on the buyside is strictly required.
• Sector & Market Acumen: A proven track record of executing principal investments within the DACH region, ideally with direct deal exposure to Software, Healthcare, or Tech-Enabled Services.
• Mittelstand DNA: An intrinsic understanding of the cultural and commercial dynamics of family-owned, mid-sized enterprises. The candidate must possess the unique gravitas required to navigate delicate succession transitions and build deep rapport with entrepreneurial founders.
• Technical Elite: Flawless financial modeling capabilities and an advanced corporate valuation toolkit, with the ability to independently run the technical mechanics of a live deal process.
• Temperament: Exceptionally polished and commercially mature, yet fundamentally pragmatic and low-ego. Capable of thriving in a partnership-driven culture that values long-term sustainable growth over short-term financial engineering.
• Languages: Absolute, native-level fluency in German (Swiss-German comprehension is highly advantageous) and complete professional fluency in English.
• Education: Outstanding academic credentials from a leading tier-one university in Finance, Economics, Business, or a related quantitative discipline.