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Private Equity Origination & Investor Relations Analyst

May River Capital, LLC
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Job Description: Analyst, Origination & Investor Relations

Firm: May River Capital

Location: Chicago, IL (In-Person Daily)

Status: Full-time, Exempt

Level: Analyst (0 - 2 years post-undergraduate experience)

About May River Capital

May River Capital (“MRC”) is a Chicago-based private equity firm focused on lower middle-market, Industrial Growth investments with $1.0 billion in assets under management.  MRC invests in companies within the following Industrial sub-sectors: Advanced Manufacturing, Engineered Products & Systems, Technical Industrial Services, and Specialty Industrial Distribution.  MRC partners with founder- and family-owned businesses, providing capital and operating support to help management teams accelerate growth.  The firm's small, collaborative team structure means every professional — including this role — works in direct, regular contact with MRC's senior leadership and portfolio company executives.

Website:  https://mayrivercapital.com/ 

Position Overview

MRC is seeking an Analyst to join its Origination & Investor Relations (“O&IR”) team.  This is a dual-mandate role: supporting all facets of new deal sourcing as well as fundraising.  The Origination-related responsibilities include deal evaluation, market mapping, and intermediary relationship coverage.  The Investor Relations-related responsibilities include the creation & maintenance of marketing materials, performance analysis, and drafting of investor communications.  The Analyst will also play an integral role managing and enhancing the firm’s CRM system, which is used across both Origination and IR activities.  This role is foundational to the firm's growth agenda — building and maintaining the systems, processes, research, and relationships that keep MRC's deal pipeline robust and its LPs 
well-served.  This is a high-visibility, high-ownership seat for someone early in their career who wants exposure across the full scope of front-end PE business development, buy-side investment analysis, and fundraising.

Key Responsibilities

Origination

  • Support new business opportunity processing, review, and initial evaluation (new platform investments and add-on acquisitions for existing portfolio companies); attend initial screening conversations with intermediaries and business owners
  • Market mapping and sector research to identify prospective acquisition targets and potential new investment theses 
  • Support relationships with intermediaries (investment banks, brokers, etc.), lender partners, and service providers
  • Support proactive thesis development and target outreach efforts with industry executives 
  • Conduct company, industry, and macro-level research to support deal screening, prioritization, and next steps
  • Draft investment committee (“IC”) materials, new business outreach documents, executive profiles, and various other marketing collateral
  • Maintain and enhance CRM data and reporting dashboards, across companies / deals, business owners, intermediaries, and lenders, ensuring the deal pipeline is current and reportable; ensure information is organized, reportable, and up-to-date with the assistance of AI
  • Track and report on pipeline activity, origination KPIs, and outreach conversion for firm-level reviews
  • Develop initial financial models for new business opportunities 
  • Support non-disclosure agreement (“NDA”) processing, review, and execution
  • Travel periodically for management meetings, conferences, and company visits; attend networking events to promote the May River brand
  • Coordinate scheduling, attend meetings, manage logistics, and support day-to-day administrative tasks

 

Investor Relations

  • Collaborate directly with senior IR professionals and firm CFO to support responses to ad hoc LP requests
  • Support preparation and routine updating of LP-facing communications and materials, including firm overview presentations, track record analyses, quarterly reports, and capital call / distribution notices
  • Responsible for the accuracy, completeness, and reporting capabilities of the existing and prospective investor database in CRM, which tracks investor interactions, commitments, contact information, and program preferences
  • Update and enhance quarterly historical track record performance analytics for internal use and LP reporting
  • Track and analyze fund performance benchmarks and comparative market / peer data to inform firm-level reviews
  • Support the creation of annual investor meeting presentation materials 
  • Support the coordination and final presentation creation for bi-annual Environmental, Social & Governance reporting
  • Full-scope involvement in an active fundraising process including preparation of offering materials (e.g., private placement memorandum (“PPM”), due diligence questionnaire (“DDQ”), and firm overview presentation), data room management, pipeline maintenance and reporting, and all related coordination

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree with a strong academic record — Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field preferred
  • 0 - 2 years of relevant experience — prior internship or full-time experience in investment banking, private equity, consulting, corporate development, or a similar analytical role will be viewed favorably
  • Advanced proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint; financial modeling aptitude will be viewed favorably
  • Excellent written communication skills and strong attention to detail
  • Willingness to travel as needed to support deal, portfolio, and LP-related activities
  • Excellent organizational skills and ability to manage multiple workstreams and competing deadlines in a small, entrepreneurial team environment
  • High integrity and discretion, given regular exposure to confidential deal and LP information
  • Self-starter mindset — comfortable operating without the infrastructure of a large-firm environment
  • Proficiency with AI-based research and productivity tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot)

What Success Looks Like (First 6 - 12 Months)

  • Fully proficient in MRC standard processes / best practices
  • Fully proficient in DealCloud (CRM) and LP reporting systems and workflows
  • Independently manages origination and LP research / analysis with minimal oversight
  • Recognized by the team as a reliable, detail-oriented partner who is eager to learn and assist with any task at hand

Compensation & Growth Path

Compensation is competitive with lower middle-market private equity Analyst positions and includes base salary plus a discretionary bonus.  High performers have a clear path to Senior Analyst / Associate based on demonstrated impact and readiness.