Culture/Fit vs. Deal Flow vs. Interest in Choosing Group

Question

Hey guys,

I'm interning at a BB bank this summer and was wondering what I should prioritize in choosing a group. I can get along well with anyone, from the people I've spoken to, I think I'd marginally enjoy being around the analysts in some groups more than others. I usually hear that culture is the most important thing about choosing a group, but what if I like the people in a group that isn't as "prestigious" or has high deal flow?

NuclearPenguins · Accepted Answer

Really depends on your goals - do you have a hard on for going to a MF after? Then you should probably pick deal flow / rep.

Personally, I view deal flow as a check the box type of thing - as long as it's solid, I'm going culture first every time, closely followed by which industry group interests me the most. Really would think of those 2 in tandem, so even if FIG is the culture I like the best I'm probably going to join literally any other industry group over that assuming the culture gap isn't that wide.

ASEANalyst · Answer

Depends on what are you goals are in the next 5-10 years.

If you wanted to learn as much as possible i would suggest prioritize :
1. Deal Flow
2. Diversity of industry (if you are a generalist)
2a. Which Industry that interest you most
3. Fit/Group Culture

But most people would pick the culture first because banking is miserable enough by itself so they don't want to burn themselves out for the first 5 years of their career.

See what are your priorities and goals are then decide which path would serve those goals best moving forward.

Pan European Monkey · Answer

I think they somewhat go together- better groups tend to work more so I’d make sure that I fit in because otherwise you’ll burn out quite fast. 
I think the best approach is to consider which industries you would hate rather than the one you love - ie I knew I’d hate doing O&G but didn’t mind FIG/HC although I knew nothing about the two of these but seemed complex. at the end of the day it’s banking and most of the tasks you’ll do will be fairly similar.

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Culture/Fit vs. Deal Flow vs. Interest in Choosing Group

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Culture/Fit vs. Deal Flow vs. Interest in Choosing Group

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