Private Equity Associate - Pittsburgh

About the Job:

Blacklock Financial is partnered with a leading Pittsburgh-based private equity firm seeking to add a Private Equity Associate to its investment team. The firm invests across a broad range of industries with a particular focus on industrials, manufacturing, and business services , and is looking for a generalist investor with strong analytical skills and a passion for middle-market investing.

Responsibilities:

The Associate will support senior investment professionals across all stages of the deal lifecycle—from sourcing and evaluation through due diligence, execution, and ongoing portfolio management.

Specific responsibilities will include:

• Screen, evaluate, and analyse middle-market investment opportunities across industrials and adjacent sectors, developing independent views on market attractiveness, competitive positioning, and value creation potential.
• Lead financial modelling responsibilities , including detailed valuation work, operating model development, returns analysis, and scenario/sensitivity assessments to identify key value drivers and risks.
• Support the due diligence process , coordinating with commercial, operational, financial, and legal advisors to assess target company fundamentals and validate investment theses.
• Prepare internal investment materials , including memos, models, and presentations, and contribute to presenting recommendations to the Investment Committee.
• Work closely with portfolio companies , supporting operational improvement initiatives, tracking financial and KPI performance, and contributing to strategic planning and value-creation efforts.
• Conduct thematic and sector research across industrials, manufacturing technologies, supply chain/logistics, and other relevant markets to identify emerging trends and new investment themes.
• Represent the firm at industry events and conferences , helping strengthen relationships with management teams, advisors, and the regional investment community.
• Maintain internal deal tracking and market databases , ensuring accuracy and relevance of market intelligence and pipeline information.
• Perform other responsibilities associated with executing the firm’s generalist private equity investment strategy.

Qualifications

Ideal candidates will have 1–5 years of experience in investment banking, private equity, consulting, or a related analytical discipline. Candidates should demonstrate strong technical capabilities and an interest in industrials and middle-market private equity investing.

Additional qualifications include:

• Proven analytical and financial modelling skills, including comfort with valuation, capital structure, and transaction analysis.
• Demonstrated transaction or project experience, ideally within industrials, manufacturing, business services, or other relevant sectors.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to produce high-quality investment materials and articulate insights clearly.
• Entrepreneurial, self-starting mindset with the ability to work collaboratively in a lean, high-performance team environment.
• Strong sense of ownership and accountability, with enthusiasm for supporting value creation across portfolio companies.