M&A Analyst

Please note: I am still in the hiring process, but I have successfully navigated the first round and wanted to relay my experience thus far.

I applied online which required one to fill out 4 questions, 3 motivational and 1 "technical" (this was just a basic question on valuation). I then had to take online numerical and verbal reasoning tests and upon successful completion I was invited to their offices for the first round.

The first round lasts a couple of hours and one is required to complete a case study, retake the numeracy test and interview with HR.

Case study - You’re given a pack of information and asked to write a company profile within the time limit, using Word of PowerPoint. It's pretty straightforward, the key is to just focus on the information you've been asked for and ignore anything otiose. Also, remember to double check the figures and give yourself 5 minutes at the end to check for any grammatical errors!

Numeracy Test - Standard CEB/SHL, only 10 questions, if you did the online test yourself, this shouldn't be a problem.

HR Interview - Pretty standard competency interview, I was asked the following:

What do Lazard do?
What would you as a first year analyst?
What differentiates you from other candidates?
When have you handled a morally questionable situation?
What are the reasons for a merger?
How does one judge the success of a merger?

There were also some additional questions around the case study:

What additional information would you have liked in order to improve your profile?
Which information in the pack did you choose to ignore?
Give us a verbal summary of the company and its situation.