IBD: Easy high paid exit ops

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Buyside investor relations is HIGHLY slept on

OP - as an ex-IB guy (now PE) in my early 30s who has been exactly in your shoes 6-8 years ago, I would firstly say don't panic! I also found my time as a new associate very tough - as an analyst (especially early on) you are expected to be somewhat "dumb"/inexperienced, so as you said you get a lot of hand-holding or at the very least direct instructions from those above you about what to do (update this PPT, upload these docs to the data room etc).

However as an associate people expect you to just automatically know and do things, even though you might not yet have the requisite experience. Myself I did a liberal arts degree and got into IB via a bit of a long-winded route which meant I didn't start as an analyst until well into my early 20s. After initially being thrilled at making it to associate, I immediately felt like I was drowning - from a) people expecting me to just know stuff, and here I think my undergrad background certainly didn't help as I found myself frequently googling terms on complex deals I'd never heard of before, and b) the sheer volume of work. I was not only trying to get up to speed on new concepts all the time on deals, but was having to juggle multiple deals at once - it honestly felt like every day you were drinking from a firehose. It sounds laughable now but even a simple request from my VP like "we need to rejig the capital structure in this model" would give me a cold sweat, as I knew I was just going to have to figure out the model and the background/context of the deal all by myself without any hand-holding. 

Suffice to say I had a really stressful first couple of years as an associate - whilst I got good reviews and received upper mid-bucket/top-bucket ratings, to say I had imposter syndrome would be a massive understatement - it felt like I was only managing to stay afloat through incredible sheer hard work (so very similar situation to yourself sounds like). Honestly I felt every day like my MD would just call me into his office and say "we've realized you're just faking it till you make it, why are we paying you a six-figure salary" and can me. Not based on any external feedback I was getting, but rather just the fact internally I felt like I was constantly drowning.

Here's the thing though - that doesn't last forever. In fact whilst the "drinking from a firehouse" experience is extremely stressful, it is also an incredible learning experience. Honestly I don't know when it started happening, but over time things just started to get much easier - yes a complex deal might be intense/stressful the first time, but once you've done it two or three times it starts to look much more cookie-cutter. Not just on the modelling side but dealing with lawyers/reviewing deal docs, interacting with/managing counterparties, even internally "managing up" to your VP/MD (as you learn quickly exactly how they like to see things/when they'll expect it).

I think a lightbulb moment for me was when I was chatting to some PE firm on a call that my VP let me run, they asked for background/context on a deal and without thinking I just went into a lengthy explanation of the process and various issues I'd expect, and was able to easily answer all their questions. It made me think "actually I do know more than I give myself credit for!" And today I look back at some of the things I used to stress over and they seem so easy - but that's only because I now have a decade plus of experience.

So what I'm saying is - if you truly want to quit IB then by all means go for it, but if you're looking for an exit based solely on imposter syndrome/an imagined fear of getting "found out" one day by your VP/MD, ask yourself if that's actually a realistic fear? Or is it just that you still have a lot to learn - i.e. the same as any new IB associate. Yes a lot of people might get up to speed quicker than you (maybe they have a finance background/degree or just "get things" more quickly) - but that doesn't mean you won't ever get up to speed! And tbh the only real way to learn this stuff is through experience. And that experience will come. Good luck OP in whatever you decide.

wow, so much bad advice here

tbh, lots of guys like you make it to MD, if they know how to navigate well internally.

are you personable?  do clients perceive you as hardworking, reliable, someone they want to do business with?  for every true advisory guru among IBD MDs, there are 10 relationship MDs who sought after for financing, and connecting the client to someone smarter within the bank.

so, calls to action:

• in your current group, get Analysts to do the work for you.  most Analysts believe they're smarter than/technically superior to Associates.  often, it's true.  but true or not, they're expected to do more grunt work.  Sales is at the top of the totem pole in IB, preparing materials (whether they require thought or not is irrelevant) is grunt work.  make your Analysts do your grunt work.
• if you're unable to do that, then find your way into an IB-adjacent group that isn't intellectually challenging (essentially, ECM or DCM).  regardless of what they tell you, they don't do any real modeling, nor do they have to be right about markets.  they just need to convince clients that the markets will fund an issuance.  lots of slides and stuff you already know how to do.  lots of forwarding to legal, risk, compliance, back to IBD, etc.
• if you aren't sales-y enough to do that, try moving into a middle office function at the bank, like risk, or capital management, or a purely relationship/process-driven front office group like corporate banking or loans etc.  they mainly work with templates, emails, asking the same questions of every deal, etc.  coming from IBD, you have an advantage.
• external: investor relations.  it may not be the best fit, as even though it is less technical than IBD or the buyside, you still need to be fluent in basic investing concepts.  but the WLB is better, pay is decent, etc.
• private banking: can be both internal and external.  
• don't recommend corporate development, it's just IBD with better WLB and lower pay, but the same thought process.
• another option is to go to business school.  you wouldn't be the first IBD analyst-to-associate promote to realize they don't like the industry and don't know what to do next, but also realizes their skillset may not be adequate for corporate jobs, and are too expensive to do most other jobs.  an MBA could help you find your next step.
• hopefully you've been saving your money instead of spending it away on nonsense, and gives you a cushion in case you decide to leave white collar work entirely and go open a mcdonalds franchise or something.