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PitchBook News - Portfolio companies' staffing dilemma

Plus: Cash flow timing scores, emerging opportunities for investors, private debt's popularity surge & more
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The Weekend Pitch
October 1, 2023
Presented by Masterclass
(Drew Sanders/PitchBook News)
Let's say you're a chief financial officer at a PE-backed company. It's a new gig, the product of a resume filled with years in upper-level management positions at various multi-billion-dollar public companies.

In your previous positions, you grew accustomed to abundant resources at your disposal, including a stable of savvy colleagues.

But in your new position, things are quite different. There aren't enough qualified people in critical roles, and the PE owner's hyperfocus on the bottom line is tempering additional hiring.

You find yourself at an impasse: You need to bring on more talent, but you're facing pressure from the PE firm to hold off on any additional spending as the asset class grapples with debt coming due in a high interest rate environment.

Your situation isn't uncommon. Last month, a survey from advisory firm BDO showed that almost half (47%) of portfolio company CFO respondents reported that their companies are understaffed in critical roles, and 49% of fund managers and operating partners reported similar understaffing.

This is the Weekend Pitch, and I'm Jessica Hamlin. You can reach me at jessica.hamlin@pitchbook.com or @jessicaAhamlin.
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Trivia
The generative AI train keeps rolling with no signs of slowing down. Earlier this week, ecommerce giant Amazon announced they were investing $4 billion in a startup developing an AI chatbot and large language model. Which startup was it?

A) OpenAI
B) Cohere
C) Anthropic
D) Hugging Face

Find your answer at the bottom of The Weekend Pitch!
 

A method to the madness

(LockieCurrie/Getty Images)
Does the pacing of a GP's capital calls and distributions for one fund tell LPs anything about their future funds?

The latest addition to our suite of cash flow modeling tools, our Cash Flow Timing Scores find that the fastest and slowest funds have high odds of being followed by another fast- or slow-calling fund.

And asset class plays a role as well: Funds-of-funds and real assets showed the strongest persistence in speed, with over half of funds in the fastest quartile resulting in another fast-calling fund.
 

Emerging opportunities roundup

PitchBook's industry and technology analysts have been busy mapping out emerging opportunities. Check out their latest reports:
 

Private debt surges in popularity

Private debt has vaulted to the second-most preferred strategy in private markets, behind private equity. The asset class continues to draw substantial investor interest, as higher interest rates and its floating-rate nature make private debt an appealing investment to hold.

What else does PitchBook data—including deal volume and fund performance—reveal about private debt? Check out our H1 2023 Global Private Debt Report to learn more.
 

Quote/Unquote
"Every time a market sells off, there's always good opportunities."

—Hans Swildens, CEO and founder of Industry Ventures, speaking to PitchBook News on the closure of two funds totaling $1.7 billion.
 

Recommended Reads
It's not just you. LinkedIn has gotten really weird. [Business Insider]

'Are you OK?' San Francisco residents say they most certainly are. [The New York Times]

Under India's pressure, Facebook let propaganda and hate speech thrive. [The Washington Post]
 

Stay tuned
Keep an eye out for these insights and research reports coming out this week:
  • Analyst Note: VC City Ecosystem Index
  • Q3 2023 Venture Monitor First Look
  • September 2023 Global Markets Snapshot release
  • Deep Dive: E-commerce Funding Trends

This edition of The Weekend Pitch was written by Jessica Hamlin, Madeline Shi, James Thorne and Samantha Steele. It was edited by Heather West and Laural Hobbes.

Were you forwarded The Weekend Pitch? Sign up at pitchbook.com/subscribe.
 
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