Director of Origination
Director of Origination
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Job Description
Position Title: Director of Origination Private Markets & Special Situations
Location: Remote / Hybrid
Reports To: Managing Partner / Head of Investments
Compensation: Market-driven deferred salary performance-linked incentives and equity participation
Search Mandate: Yorktown Search Partners is conducting a confidential executive search on behalf of a private client operating in the alternative investments and private markets space.
Role Overview
Yorktown Search Partners has been retained to identify a Director of Origination for a confidential client-an entrepreneurial investment and advisory platform focused on off-market opportunities across aviation infrastructure energy and special situations. The firm blends a merchant banking approach with operational insight and patient capital to unlock value in sectors overlooked by traditional private equity.
This is a partner-track leadership opportunity for a commercial investor with a proven ability to identify and initiate compelling investment theses. The successful candidate will drive proprietary deal flow build long-term sourcing networks and shape the firms investment pipeline with high-conviction opportunities that reflect deep market understanding and sector foresight.
Compensation includes a market-driven deferred salary performance incentives and meaningful equity ownership aligning directly with long-term platform value creation.
Key Responsibilities
Deal Origination & Relationship Building
- Proactively source proprietary off-market transactions across sectors such as aviation services logistics energy services infrastructure and industrial carve-outs
- Develop and maintain deep networks of operators intermediaries family offices and restructuring professionals
- Create sector-specific sourcing maps and identify high-conviction investment angles based on market dislocations succession dynamics or strategic repositioning
Diligence & Investment Preparation
- Lead early-stage due diligence including strategic analysis financial modeling and initial risk assessment
- Collaborate with deal teams on investment memos and internal IC presentations
- Structure transactions at the pre-LOI and term sheet stage working closely with legal and capital markets colleagues
Market Intelligence & Thematic Research
- Maintain thematic watchlists investment screens and proprietary sector datasets
- Track private markets trends distressed signals and regulatory shifts affecting investment timing
- Publish internal perspectives and pipeline guidance to influence platform direction and syndication strategy
Execution Support & Syndication Coordination
- Support transaction execution through collaboration with diligence legal and operational teams
- Interface with co-investors family offices and syndicate partners to align capital and execution strategy
- Contribute to platform brand building through insights investment narratives and sector leadership
Ideal Candidate Profile
- 7-12 years of experience in investment banking private equity special situations or infrastructure investing
- Demonstrated track record of sourcing and closing proprietary deals in complex or capital-intensive sectors
- Commercial mindset and ability to uncover and develop underfollowed opportunities from scratch
- Strong financial and strategic instincts with a comfort level in ambiguous and early-stage environments
- Global awareness and familiarity with North American and emerging market private capital dynamics
- Self-starter with a founders mentality and a long-term approach to building investment value
Ideal First Hire
The Director of Origination is expected to begin building a sourcing and intelligence team starting with a Senior Analyst Special Situations. This hire should be a high-output research-driven junior with prior investment banking or buyside experience and strong hustle.
Compensation & Alignment
This is a principal-level leadership role with long-term value alignment at its core. The role is structured around a market-driven deferred salary equity participation and performance-based incentives tied to origination success and firm-level growth. The compensation model rewards early traction strategic insight and long-term deal execution.
Employment Type
Full Time
