NextGen Growth Partners: CEO-in-Residence
The Position
Residencies & Placements. Join the firm full time, acquire a business with its committed capital, then lead it as its CEO.
Cycle: Rolling, small class.
Applications are open.
Window: Recruiting for the 2026 cohort.
At a Glance
- Location
- Chicago and Austin.
- Pay
- Equity only
- Compensation
- Committed capital, up to 25% of the equity by vesting, and the option to put up to 10% into your own search.
- What You Do
- A one-to-two-year search, joining the firm full time for it.
- Recruits On
- It weighs operating experience: time running something, rather than a degree.
- Who Can Apply
- A leadership track record counts more than any set resume, and the application asks for the two or three industries you intend to search, each with a visible link to your own career.
The Company
NextGen Growth Partners is reviewed in full in the directory, with its model, pricing, and the searcher case for and against it, and because it also backs searches, the same page carries its fit as a backer and how to approach it: read the NextGen Growth Partners review.
Interview Prep
These programs do not publish their interview scripts, so this is the shape a residencies & placements program hires on, what it is really weighing, and how to arrive ready.
The Typical Arc
- A rolling, relationship-driven introduction rather than a fixed cycle.
- A sourcing conversation: what you would buy, and how you would find it.
- A working session with the firm's small team.
- A match to a live acquisition or a committed-capital search.
What It Is Assessing
- Sourcing ability and a real point of view on where to hunt.
- Operator readiness for a specific kind of business.
- Whether you fit a small, hands-on team without a large structure around you.
How to Prepare
- Arrive with a sourcing thesis, not a blank slate. Buyer Profile Builder
- Show you can run a business, with evidence on one page. Buyer Profile Builder
- Understand the firm's committed-capital model before you talk terms. Investors
More on the Board
A salaried seat is a form of capital: the employed lane on Investors weighs these programs beside the funds, and the Path Economics Comparer prices it against searching on your own money.