Hello - In the spirit of my previous post, I've provided the below information. Note that the tips are geared toward IBD analysts recruiting for the buyside and are meant to be industry and firm agnostic.

#7 - Be honest with yourself Try to figure out what you want before you talk to headhunters. This is what reaching out to friends / alumni is for. Figure out what their jobs are like, what they like and dislike about their jobs. Is PE for you? Do you really want to do VC? Do you even like finance? (I’ve met more than a few analysts who can’t wait to leave the industry) Ask yourself those tough questions. Talk to people that you trust who have your best interests at heart. Don’t be brainwashed into recruiting for the buyside simply because that is what everyone else is doing. What do you want out of life? What are the important things in life? What do you truly enjoy doing? What are you passionate about? What are your long term goals? Is the buyside the optimal way to get there?

#6 - Know your industry. Know your deals. Not just the details, but also the bigger picture. A good way to talk about your deals is:
a. Start with what the company does
b. Provide general context for the deal
c. Explain why the deal happened
d. Explain your role during the process, what you did & learned
i. This is where you bring up your modeling prowess
e. Discuss your thoughts
i. Was this a good deal? From each stakeholder’s perspective.
ii. Would you personally invest? Why or why not? If not now, when? Equity? Debt?
iii. If you were one of the key decision makers, anything you would’ve done differently?
iv. What are the implications of deal? What does it mean for the broader industry?
v. Etc….
f. Note: even if you are in a product group with limited exposure to deals, and you do very little modeling / thinking about the bigger picture, it should not preclude you from learning about the business and practicing the talking points above. You can build models of your own using public info, ask industry group analysts for the precedent materials, research reports, talking points, etc. There is really no excuse to not UNDERSTAND the deals you worked on.

#5 - Master the “short-form” model - This one is pretty obvious, but practice building lbo models from scratch. Macabus has some decent ones, but I find them to be needlessly complicated. Most of the balance sheet items are unnecessary. No need for OID, asset step ups, NOLs, etc. The best way is to ask for precedent models from the older analysts (you can ask them questions too). Try to recreate them from scratch, the simpler the better. Practice until you can build a short form lbo model in your sleep. If you can build an LBO, you can build most other types of models for non PE roles, etc. It’s good to know the complicated stuff, but in a modeling test, you want to keep things quick and simple.

#4 - A great way to practice general qualitative analytical skills is:
a. Choose any random conglomerate with numerous business lines (I.E Disney, J&J, GE - the less familiar you are with the business the better the exercise)
b. Download their latest 10-k
c. Read through the business description section / MD&A
d. Use Porter’s 5 Forces or another framework of your choosing to think about each of the discrete business segments
e. Is this a good business? What are the drivers? Who are the suppliers? Who are the competitors? What is the outlook? Is this a high or low margin business? Is it cyclical? Is it capital intensive? Can it be levered up? Are there sustainable competitive advantages? Would you personally invest in this segment, etc?
f. Jot down thoughts, organize thoughts, and practice talking points.

#3 - Help each other out - You are competing against hundreds of kids out there. Even if you and your friends / colleagues are interviewing at some of the same shops, the benefit of collaborating and sharing interview tips far outweighs the potential cost of giving your friends a competitive advantage. Be a team player, it will help out in the long run.

#2 - Keep in touch with alumni - In addition to getting advice from the analysts in your group and your friends who have gone through the process, the next most helpful thing is to reach out to alumni at buyside shops you are interested in, or any buyside shop for that matter, for informational interviews. This is very much similar to IBD recruiting. Keep things targeted. The fact that you have already made it to IBD means that chances are – the alumnus knows someone that knows you. This is what LinkedIn is for, you can see who your mutual connections are and ask a friend to make the introduction for you. Depending on the school you went to and the city you are in, finance can be a very small world.

#1 - Your reputation matters – A LOT. Headhunters will actively solicit opinions from the older analysts / associates in your group. They may even reach out to people that you have worked with during previous internships. They will dig through your LinkedIn, contact any mutual acquaintances to get multiple perspectives on what kind of person you are. I’ve been on both sides of this. Back when I was recruiting, they would say “We’ve heard this and this about you”. Now, they reach out and directly ask: “Who are the top analysts in your group? What do you think of so and so?” Buyside firms themselves sometimes do similar things, albeit to a lesser degree.

Please feel free to add / comment as appropriate.