Episode 14

full
Published on:

22nd May 2025

How to Crush Your First 90 Days in Business Development (Private Equity Edition)

If you’re getting started at a private equity firm in business development, this one's for you. Inspired by Dan’s viral LinkedIn post, you’ll get tried-and-true steps for crushing your first 90-days on the job: how to build your banker pipeline, optimize your time on the road and actually measure your success. Whether you’re the first sourcing hire at a fund or stepping into a seasoned team, this is your outline on how to hit the ground running and set yourself up for long-term success. 

Read Dan’s original LinkedIn post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/danielherr_8-steps-to-success-in-a-new-pe-sourcing-role-activity-7287804951840399361-Dz7W/

📍CHAPTERS: 

00:00 – Intro & Origin of the 90-Day Framework

03:30 – Who This Applies To

04:45 – Days 1–30: Be a Sponge

07:00 – Internal vs. External Messaging

08:45 – Read the IC Materials Like Treasure Maps

10:30 – Portfolio Company Primers

13:15 – Days 30–60: Start Building Relationships

16:45 – Prioritize Like an Investor

21:30 – Build the Prospect & Banker Database

23:00 – Days 60–90: Execute & Win Quick

24:45 – Hit the Road: Why In-Person Still Wins

29:00 – Metrics, Measurement & Accountability

35:00 – Top 2 North Star Metrics for New BD Hires

36:30 – Call to Action

📝 KEY TAKEAWAYS 

“Before you're out there pitching everybody about how magical our firm is, it's diving into the nitty gritty of who are we, why do we win, where do we win, where do we lose.”

“You go back through these old IC materials... there’s a lot of low hanging fruit that’s sitting in there for you to go tackle as a sourcing professional.”

“You’ve got hundreds, thousands, millions of different things you need to be doing... Our number one job is prioritization.”

“There’s still no proxy for that in person... The number of deals I’ve done because I got in front of someone. You just can’t replicate that over Zoom.”


🔗 CONNECT WITH THE HOSTS:

Dan Herr:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielherr/

Matt Rooney: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-rooney-coastalpartners/

Coastal Partners: https://www.coastalpartners.co/


#BusinessDevelopment #PrivateEquity #NewHires

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About the Podcast

Deal Sourcery
Engagement & The Art of M&A
Deal Sourcery is the must-listen podcast for Private Equity professionals aiming to master the art of deal origination. Hosted by Dan Herr - who’s closed over $1B in transactions in the last decade while building and leading world-class deal sourcing teams - and Matt Rooney, a top recruiter in PE business development, we dive into cutting-edge trends, proven tactics, data-driven sourcing strategies and the technology shaping the future of M&A. Each episode features in-depth discussions with exited founders, PE professions and investment bankers, delivering exclusive, actionable insights you won’t find anywhere else. Tune in to elevate your sourcing skills and optimize your firm’s capital deployment.

About your hosts

Daniel Herr

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Dan is the visionary Founder & CEO of Acqwired after more than a decade sourcing more than $1B in TEV in proprietary private equity deals across software, services and industrials highly engineered end markets like aerospace, medical and consumer electronics.

Matt Rooney

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Matt is the Founder of Coastal Partners, a specialized recruiting firm focused on placing deal-sourcing and investor relations professionals in mid-market private equity. With over a decade of experience, he has placed hundreds of professionals and advises firms on building BD teams.

He regularly shares insights on private equity business development, breaking down role dynamics and hiring strategies for firms and professionals navigating the space.