Investment Banking Associate / Director

I was introduced to the firm through a mutual friend and through an email introduction we set up a phone interview.

I interviewed with the investment bank practice manager on the phone. The questions were very general "get to know you" questions and we did not venture into the technical aspects of finance or investment banking. We set a date for an in office interview three days after the phone interview.

The morning of the in office interview I was greeted at reception by the office admin who was expecting my arrival and I was politely seated in a conference room. I first met with the practice manager who I had already spoken to on the phone. We discussed some technical aspects of investment banking / finance and more time on "get to know you" questions and discussion. We also spent a good deal of time discussing how the firm finds clients and the importance of building the client pipeline and finding viable opportunities.

Following the meeting with practice manager we took a short break and he invited in the people who would be my colleagues. The interview evolved more to a discussion during which we talked about methods of identifying and recruiting clients, the importance of business development and the trajectory of the firm in the next year to five years.

At the conclusion of meeting the investment bank employees I was asked to interview with the firm's owner and general partner two days later. I was joined in the interview with the practice manager. I was asked very few questions during the interview. The practice manager was quizzed on how I would be used, what was the integration plan and how I would be integrated on active deals. This interview was very short, no more than 20 minutes.

The investment bank is relatively new and the interview reflected the new-ness of the firm to a degree. Management was looking for people who could do the technical investment banking work (modeling, writing CIM's, etc) but were more interested in finding people who could bring deals through the door.

The firm began as a brokerage and the culture reflects that. Due to the investment bank being new the office environment was a little stressed as employees worked to build a brand and sign up clients with a firm that did not have name recognition. Everyone in the office is very friendly and professional.