Global MM IB Seeking Experienced M&A Junior Banker

I am posting this here first because this forum helped immensely when I made the switch from Accenture to M&A IB nearly 20 years ago.  This posting will hit the job boards on Monday 2/16 if needed, but is here first since I believe the most dedicated are likely here now, as I was then.  

Experienced Hire – Middle Market M&A Analyst / Junior Associate 

Global Investment Bank | Greater Chattanooga, TN 

This is not a lifestyle role. 

This is a career-defining apprenticeship. 

A global investment bank is seeking an experienced hire M&A Analyst / Junior Associate to work directly with a Managing Director who left NYC HQ and is now based in the greater Chattanooga, TN area. The role is focused on middle-market M&A, primarily across IT Staffing, IT Services, Digital Marketing, and Tech-Enabled Services. 

This is a high-intensity seat with direct MD exposure, real responsibility, and a steep learning curve from day one. 

The Work 

  • End-to-end M&A execution: financial modeling, CIMs, management presentations
  • Buyer outreach, diligence coordination, and process management
  • Live sell-side and buy-side mandates
  • Regular interaction with founders, private equity firms, and senior transaction professionals 

There are no layers to hide behind. You will be expected to produce. 

The Profile 
We strongly prefer experienced hires, but we hire primarily for attitude. 

This role is best suited for someone who: 

  • Is highly coachable and thrives on direct, candid feedback
  • Has experience working high volume hour weeks during live deals
  • Is fully committed—this role will become your primary focus
  • Views investment banking as a vocation, not a job 

This role is not well suited for candidates seeking work-life balance. 
It is well suited for those seeking accelerated learning and long-term career compounding.  

The Managing Director 
You will work one-on-one with a Managing Director who: 

  • Began his career at Accenture
  • Transitioned into middle-market M&A investment banking
  • Was trained under a demanding, apprenticeship-style model 

He is explicitly looking for “himself 2.0”—someone with an insatiable work ethic, intellectual curiosity, and the humility to be trained hard. 

Extreme output is the price of admission—and staying. 

The MD currently has exceptionally strong deal flow and is seeking to hire immediately. This is not a speculative role; you will be staffed on live transactions as soon as you start. 

Compensation & Structure 

  • Base compensation + discretionary bonus
  • 1099 engagement to start, with the expectation of long-term alignment for the right candidate 

Location 

Greater Chattanooga, TN 
(Relocation or strong local presence preferred) 

How to Stand Out When Applying 

To be considered, applicants must submit all three of the following: 

  1. Resume outlining relevant transaction, investment banking, consulting, or deal-related experience
  2. Work samples (e.g., redacted financial models, CIM excerpts, pitch materials, or written deal analyses reflecting your actual contribution.  Bonus points for Deal Sheet.)
  3. Professional references who can speak directly to your work ethic, reliability, and performance under pressure 

Additionally, include: 

  • A 5–7 sentence note explaining why this specific role and structure appeals to you
  • Your comfort with heavy hour sustained weeks
  • What you expect to gain from a direct MD apprenticeship 

As part of your application, also respond to the following: 

“If the last Managing Director or senior professional you worked for were asked to describe you candidly—strengths, weaknesses, work ethic, and reliability under pressure—what would they say?” 

Be specific. Generic answers will be discounted. 

Due to active deal flow, this role is being filled on an accelerated timeline. Candidates who can start quickly will be prioritized. 

Incomplete applications will not be reviewed and will not receive follow-up. 

Contact: realHarvardBanker AT gmail

26 Comments
 

“Himself 2.0” you sound like the most insufferable person to work for OAT 😂😂

 
Funniest

I know this is a stretch but would you consider a current IB Associate 2 applicant for this role? I know I already did my analyst years and got my A2A promotion but it would be worth restarting as an Analyst 1, or maybe even as a Summer Analyst, for this once in a lifetime opportunity.


My current MD is a nice guy I guess but his scope and life experience is limited. He’s a classic U.S. Marine Corp -> Harvard Business School -> Goldman Sachs -> $80bn in closed large-cap M&A -> beautiful wife and two kids he loves -> takes 3 exotic vacations a year while pulling in millions type of guy.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that he, for lack of a better word, is a complete chode. He hasn’t taught me anything about remaining coachable during high volume hour weeks as a Long-Term Career Compounding Vocational Investment Banking Apprentice 1. How could he?

This might be my last chance I ever have to participate in a prestige-ious career-defining apprenticeship with an ex-Accenture MM tech-enabled IT-Staffing M&A specialist MD in greater Chattanooga TN where I receive not only a salary, but also a discretionary bonus. 

This is why my parents sacrificed everything to immigrate to this country. I was born for this, sir. You will no doubt find countless applicants, but you will find only one me.

If you’re willing to consider a candidate like me, I’m willing to give up the last five years of my life to start over from nothing. I’ll submit my application expeditiously. It would be my honor and privilege.

Thank you,

Yourself 2.0

 

Can you outline how bad of a drinking problem I will have to develop to embody "himself 2.0"?

 

Hi, I would like to show my interest in the role with the below pitch which is the DEAL OF A LIFETIME for Chattanooga-based M&A
 

🚨🚨🚨KEY INVESTMENT HIGHLIGHTS🚨🚨🚨

  1. Merge the Lookout Mountain Incline Railway in Chattanooga with the Duquesne Incline in Pittsburgh  → InclineCo.
  2. Only pure-play publicly traded vertical transportation platform in America.
  3. Core synergy: both go up at an angle (rare, defensible IP).
  4. Cost synergies in cables, grease, bells, and 19th-century engineering talent.
  5. Fire half the funicular engineers and offshore to a center of excellence located in Pune, India (operating leverage unlocked).
  6. Revenue synergies from bundled tourism passes and foliage-season surge pricing.
  7. Zero tech risk — gravity has never missed guidance.
  8. Inflation hedge: steel, stairs, and vibes.
  9. Day-1 accretive to vibes; EBITDA accretive once it stops raining.
  10. Exit via IPO ($INCL) or infra fund that already owns every bridge.

Model available upon request (single upward-sloping line).


 

 

If I really saw investment banking as a vocation, why would I do LMM - MM IB in Chattanooga for a single MD team?

 

Analyst 2 in IB-M&A

If I really saw investment banking as a vocation, why would I do LMM - MM IB in Chattanooga for a single MD team?

If we’re gonna deal in hypotheticals, I can think of several reasons:

  1. You’re ambitious
  2. You’re not an idiot
  3. You have a winning attitude that you’re willing to use to execute deals end to end and stay productive 
 

This is just.. sad lol. You want folks to send you redacted financial models and CIMs? What a waste of time for them and you. You're seriously going to go through redacted models? I work with MDs that don't even have the time to open models, how do you have time to be so high performing and go through a bunch of useless models / CIMs? Suggest being respectful of people's time (especially if you're looking for someone in banking) and just asking for resumes as a first screen. Also.. get over yourself. 

 

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