The Macro View: Capital Deployment Shapes Talent Demand
Hiring on the buy side has historically mirrored capital cycles. When fundraising and deployment surge, recruitment for deal teams follows closely behind. However, in 2025, global private markets are navigating a more restrained investment environment. Despite record amounts of dry powder, estimated at over US$2.6 trillion globally and around US$260 billion in Asia-Pacific as of mid-2024, according to
Bain & Company, the reality is that much of this capital remains idle. Deployment has lagged sharply behind fund-raising momentum, with managers holding cash longer amid uncertainty over interest rates, inflation, and valuation resets. In effect, while capital availability appears abundant on paper, the pace of actual investment tells a far more restrained story.
According to
Spire Search Partners’ Private Equity Talent Market Update (Q2 2025), global PE deal value fell by nearly 40% year-over-year, with Asia-Pacific experiencing a particularly sharp slowdown in late-stage buyouts. Yet, the report notes a noticeable pivot toward private credit, infrastructure, and value creation roles, signaling that hiring is shifting in line with where capital is still flowing.
Large-cap funds that raised record vehicles in 2021–2023 are now selectively deploying both capital and talent. These firms are concentrating their hiring in markets where valuation discipline, corporate reform, and long-term demographic growth align to create a sustainable investment thesis.
Notably, Japan, India, and Australia stand out as focal points of buy-side hiring:
• Japan: Structural corporate reforms, governance transparency, and shareholder activism have unlocked opportunities in carve-outs and succession deals Global funds are expanding their footprint in Japan, hiring investment directors with deep local expertise and operating partners skilled in post-acquisition transformation.
• India: Private equity and private credit players are expanding their teams to capture opportunities in manufacturing, digital infrastructure, and supply chain diversification. Many funds are hiring professionals with hybrid backgrounds, finance plus technology or operations, to lead due diligence and post-investment strategy.
• Australia: The region’s stable macro environment, supported by its pension system and resource-backed economy, continues to attract infrastructure and sustainability-focused capital. This, in turn, is driving demand for project finance specialists, ESG analysts, and renewable energy portfolio managers.
A prime example of this regional focus is EQT’s 2025 hiring initiative in Japan, where the firm is expanding its infrastructure and private capital arms. According to Reuters (May 2025), EQT sees an uptick in mid-market deal flow and is actively hiring local professionals to identify and manage opportunities across industrial decarbonization, digital connectivity, and logistics. This move reflects a broader industry pattern: global firms localizing their teams to be closer to deal origination and operational execution.
Ultimately, capital deployment is dictating where the next wave of buy-side hiring occurs. In 2025, that means more strategic, region-specific, and operationally oriented talent acquisition, as firms prioritize sustainable growth over rapid expansion.
Hotspots: Where Hiring Is Actually Happening
Asia-Pacific: Japan, India, and Australia Lead
The Asia-Pacific region continues to attract buy-side hiring activity due to its combination of reform-driven opportunities, demographic advantages, and sectoral diversity.
Japan has emerged as one of the most attractive PE destinations in 2025. Corporate governance reforms and shareholder activism are prompting large Japanese conglomerates to divest non-core assets, creating a surge in carve-out and succession deals. According to
Preqin’s Asia-Pacific Private Capital Report (2025), Japan saw a 25% increase in mid-market PE activity compared to 2024, despite global deal softness. As a result, PE firms like KKR, Bain Capital, and Hillhouse are expanding local investment and operating teams. Hiring priorities include investment professionals with restructuring and turnaround expertise, as well as digital transformation officers to modernize portfolio companies.
India remains a growth magnet and one of the few global markets where both private equity and private credit are expanding. According to
EY India’s Private Capital Confidence Survey (2025), 72% of funds expect to increase headcount this year, with particular demand for credit underwriters, deal originators, and technology-focused investors. India’s startup ecosystem is also recovering post-valuation correction, leading to renewed venture capital hiring in AI, SaaS, and renewable tech sectors. Firms like Blackstone, Temasek, and ChrysCapital are actively recruiting for growth capital and infrastructure roles.
Australia and New Zealand are increasingly recognized as safe havens for long-term investors. The energy transition and renewable infrastructure boom have spurred new recruitment in project finance, ESG reporting, and portfolio operations. According to Infrastructure Partnerships Australia (IPA), over A$100 billion in green infrastructure projects are expected through 2028, creating sustained demand for investment professionals with sustainability and project structuring experience. Large pension funds such as AustralianSuper and IFM Investors are also scaling internal teams for direct investment capabilities.
Shifting Priorities: From Dealmakers to Builders
The traditional profile of a buy-side hire, an Excel-savvy associate focused on valuation and M&A execution, is evolving rapidly. As deal volumes taper and exit timelines lengthen, firms are seeking “builders,” not just “buyers.” The emphasis has shifted from sourcing deals to strengthening portfolio operations and unlocking long-term value.
Operational Value Creation
Private equity firms are increasingly prioritizing professionals who can generate alpha through operational excellence rather than financial structuring alone. According to
Heidrick & Struggles’ 2024 North American Private Equity Operating Professional Compensation Survey, PE firms are expanding their operating teams even as deal activity slows, reflecting a deeper focus on value creation during extended hold periods. The report notes that 21% of operating professionals had previously served as operating executives, up sharply from 7% in 2022, underscoring how firms are hiring seasoned leaders with real operating experience.
These roles, such as operators-in-residence, portfolio acceleration directors, and chief transformation officers, are increasingly vital to improving margins, accelerating growth, and digitalizing portfolio businesses. Firms like Carlyle, KKR, and TPG have long recognized the strategic value of internal operating groups to support post-deal integration, digital enablement, and cost transformation initiatives. As Bain & Company’s Global Private Equity Report 2025 underscores, with multiple expansion and financial engineering now contributing less to returns, operational improvements and margin growth are emerging as the primary drivers of value creation. Bain highlights that top-performing firms are those that systematically embed operational value-creation frameworks, emphasizing revenue expansion, cost efficiency, and digital transformation as enduring levers of performance.
Technology and Data
Digital transformation continues to be one of the most powerful levers for value creation in private markets. Private equity firms are building cross-functional digital teams – recruiting AI specialists, automation engineers, and data strategists – to modernize operations and unlock portfolio value. This reflects a strategic pivot toward data-driven value creation – where predictive analytics, workflow automation, and digital customer engagement directly influence returns.
Digital transformation continues to be one of the most powerful levers for value creation in private markets. Private equity firms are building cross-functional digital teams – recruiting AI specialists, automation engineers, and data strategists – to modernize operations and unlock portfolio value. This reflects a strategic pivot toward data-driven value creation – where predictive analytics, workflow automation, and digital customer engagement directly influence returns.
According to
McKinsey & Company’s report, “The Top Trends in Tech”, technologies such as artificial intelligence, next-generation software development, and cloud computing are rapidly transforming how organizations create and capture value. McKinsey highlights that leading private equity portfolio companies are now embedding digital and analytics capabilities at the core of their business models to improve speed, scalability, and decision-making.
For buy-side investors, this shift is translating into new hiring priorities. PE firms are building data and digital excellence teams that support multiple portfolio companies, using analytics to identify operational inefficiencies, forecast performance, and enhance due diligence precision. Many are also establishing centralized “digital value creation” hubs to deploy cross-portfolio technology initiatives more efficiently.
Emerging technologies are further reshaping talent demand:
• AI and machine learning are being used to automate financial modeling, enhance predictive forecasting, and uncover new commercial insights.
• Robotic process automation (RPA) is improving efficiency in portfolio reporting and finance operations.
• Cloud, cybersecurity, and data infrastructure skills are in high demand as firms seek scalability and resilience across global holdings.
Beyond the fund level, portfolio companies themselves are driving a surge in technology-oriented leadership hiring. Many PE-backed firms are appointing Chief Digital Officers (CDOs) and Chief Data Officers (CDOs) to accelerate modernization efforts. This convergence of finance and technology is creating a new talent profile, leaders fluent in both investment strategy and digital execution, blurring the lines between traditional private equity and the innovation-driven venture ecosystem.
Culture and Leadership Shift
Finally, the shift from dealmaking to building requires a fundamentally different leadership DNA. The most sought-after executives today are those who combine strategic vision, operational depth, and resilience under uncertainty.
As Russell Reynolds Associates highlights in its 2024 report, private equity firms are rethinking leadership as a core driver of portfolio performance rather than a support function. The report emphasizes that leadership agility, adaptability, and alignment with the investment thesis are now among the most critical factors determining whether a portfolio company can deliver sustainable returns. It also notes that firms are increasingly investing in strategic talent management, identifying, developing, and retaining high-impact leaders early in the investment lifecycle to accelerate value creation.
This marks a cultural evolution across the buy side: performance is no longer defined solely by deal execution, but by a firm’s ability to build enduring, high-performing organizations post-acquisition. The most successful funds are those embedding leadership and organizational excellence into their investment playbooks, treating talent not as an afterthought, but as a strategic asset fundamental to long-term value creation.
Caution Zones: Why Hiring Remains Measured
Despite selective hotspots, buy-side firms remain measured in their hiring strategies. Despite regional hiring surges, three main constraints are slowing broader expansion:
• Valuation Disconnects: Sellers remain anchored to the elevated pricing benchmarks of 2021, while buyers are prioritizing profitability and capital discipline. This valuation gap continues to slow deal closures and, by extension, new hiring across private equity and private credit.
• Talent Scarcity: Particularly across Asia-Pacific, firms are struggling to find professionals who combine financial acumen, operational capability, and digital fluency. The shortage of hybrid talent is constraining growth, as PE and asset managers seek leaders capable of bridging deal execution and portfolio transformation.
• Cost Discipline: With fundraising cycles lengthening and deployment slowing, firms are under pressure to maintain leaner operating structures. Many are deferring large-scale hiring and instead relying on interim, project-based, or shared service talent models to preserve flexibility.
Outlook: What Comes Next
The next 12 months will likely see steady, selective hiring growth, concentrated in firms with committed dry powder and multi-asset mandates. As exit markets improve and macro conditions stabilize, hiring will gradually expand beyond operational roles to traditional deal teams.
The long-term winners will be those firms that view talent as a strategic asset, not a line item. In a world where capital is abundant but leadership agility is scarce, the buy side’s ability to attract, develop, and retain hybrid talent, financially sharp, operationally seasoned, and tech-aware, will define its next growth chapter.
