Intern szn

Have read a lot recent about expectations/experiences/complaints/etc about summer analysts with June right around the corner. As an incoming IB coverage intern at a BB, any tips on what my expectations should be? People seem chill on the phone but I couldn’t do an office visit so going in a little blind. Lmk any general thoughts⬇️⬇️

 

are SAs typically expected to work saturdays/sundays? I've heard typically not sat but sometimes sundays, but wanted to check

 

Yes depending on deal activity. Most of my weekends I didn’t work, some I put in a couple of hours on Sunday, and one or two weekends I put in 16+ hours on Saturday and 16+ hours on Sunday.

 
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Ok I was a SA last summer, got a return offer and I would say I was well liked at the bank so here is some advice (5 things you should keep in mind):

  1. Come to work with a positive attitude. It’s crazy how much of a difference you having a smile on your face can impact someone’s view of you. Also, do your best to make small talk with colleagues about topics outside of the scope of the job. People love talking about things outside of work especially when it takes up 12+ hrs of your day.
  1. Nobody expects you to be carrying a deal. Most tasks you’ll ge are easy and rudimentary so don’t over think it. Maybe you’ll mess around with a model but I doubt it. It’s suppose to be a learning opportunity and you will fail/screw up. Trust me I overlooked some “fine detail” things sometimes but as long as you don’t make the same mistakes over and over you’ll be just fine.
  1. Speak 30% of the time and listen 70% of them time. These numbers just came off the top of my head so it’s not a legit math thing. Just make sure you’re trying to listen to what goes on in calls with your team and clients. Write down words/phrases someone says that you don’t understand and then ask you analyst or associate what they mean after. It sounds stupid but you’ll be throw into deals and the business and a lot of these things will be new to you, so make sure you just listen up and do your best to retain as much info as possible. For example, last summer I was on a deal and clients were referring to a specific branch of their business with an acronym. I had no idea what it meant and some of the lingo they were using sounded wack. I wrote these notes down, batched my questions together and then asked my analyst. He was more than willing to walk me through these things.
  1. Network within the bank. If your firm sponsors free coffees, lunches, dinners with the interns THEN USE THEM! I can’t tell you how many times I set up coffee chats or lunches with analyst, associates etc to get to know them better. Now with this, there is a fine line between being nice/genuine and looking like your nose is up someone’s ass so it’s up to you to get the vibe of the bank/group your in. My bank had mandatory office days Tuesday - Thursday so about every one of those days I had a new coffee chat set up with someone I had met previously in passing, a person on my team, or even a person I had networked with at the firm and just wanted to take 20 min to chat and catch up.
  1. Ask the right questions. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT so read this. It’s one thing to ask someone how to do a certain task since your learning but to go above and beyond, you have to try and ask questions that reflects the MD/Client relationship. For example, say you are doing a comps analysis and you have a list of 10 companies that you think would be willing to buy your clients company. You then bring this list to your MD and he tells you to cut six of these names off the list immediately based off of information, he knows about the sector.  maybe ask your analyst and associate why he did this and what was the reasoning behind it instead of just removing the names and moving on. Whether you were trying to stay in investment banking, long-term, or just using this as a two-year stint as an analyst and move on, its questions like these that make those evaluating you (your colleagues) know that you’re genuinely curious about the work.

I’m not trying to come across as “Im so smart I’m the intern that got an offer so what I’m saying is the best advice you’re getting”. That’s certainly not the case. I bet when I start FT my ass is going to get handed to me with more work on my plate and the added stress that comes along with it. What I’m trying to say is I had an amazing SA experience, enjoyed it a lot, met some amazing people and learned a lot along the way.

 

Make sure you reply to emails the instant you get them, even if it's close ended, confirm receipt of said email.

Don't underestimate how much detail and anal bankers can be with decks.

Don’t make the same mistake twice.

Email chains, seniority is always first in the “to” section.

Don’t ask stupid Google-able questions

Don’t spin your wheels for 15 minutes

 

1. If your bank gives you a formatting guide, read it inside and out and actually use it. 

2. Be proactive and enthusiastic but not so intense or eager you're annoying to be around. Read social cues and match the energy of the person you are talking to. 

3. While some people carry more clout in the office than others, be mindful of getting coffee in office w everyone / not blowing anyone off. want as many people in your corner as possible when it comes to review time 

4. come into the office on time. yes it's a pain in the ass but just do it bc you know the other interns will and you do not want to stand out in that way

5. keep work off social media entirely. you don't know who will see, who it will get forwarded to in the office and who will take it the wrong way 

6. get teams on mobile so you can always look online

 

If you work with excel, make sure you are color coding and leaving comments for things that need to be looked at/sources. People are always going to be auditing your work. Please make it easy on them by not being lazy and skipping those steps. It’s always a pain in the ass when I’m trying to audit work and I have to try to figure out where numbers are coming from and why.

 

If you were good enough to earn an internship offer, you probably have a solid baseline competency of financial knowledge and technical skills. However, the other interns in your class probably do, too. As a result, the way to distinguish yourself as an intern – the way to be considered excellent as opposed to merely adequate – is in the parts of your performance that aren't directly related to your technical knowledge and ability. Here are some key points I recommend:

  • Being on time for work. I don't care how good your technical skills are – if you are habitually late, I promise you that your lateness will be the first thing people remember about you.
  • Carefully reviewing your own work before submitting up the chain. (Hint: check all footnotes!) Your analyst mentor is going to be evaluating you at the end of the summer; do you really want her to think you put together sloppy work?
  • Asking questions when you aren't sure about something. If you make assumptions about what someone wants from you, (a) you will probably be wrong, (b) the senior will be frustrated that you didn't give her what she expected, and (c) you'll end up spinning your wheels having to fix it. Ask when you're not sure and you'll do it right the first time.
  • Embracing "I don't know, but...." One thing I see from junior talent these days is that they are afraid to say "I don't know" because they think it looks poorly on them. It actually shows a tremendous sense of maturity to be willing to acknowledge the gaps in your personal knowledge. What I suggest is to expand on "I don't know" to demonstrate that you've at least thought about the question a little bit. So, for example, you could say "I don't know, but the answer can't be more than $X because..." or "I don't know, but the answer has to be somewhere between $Y and $Z because..." or even "I don't know – my gut tells me $W but I'll get back to you on that." 
 

Soft skills are 99% of the game. 

Be humble, hard working, professional, and, most of all, be willing to work 100 hour weeks if necessary. you wont have to, but simply showing that you are willing is all that matters. 

Maintain good hygiene, dress fairly well (dont overdress or underdress, try to be right in the middle of the office), and take pride in your work.

Make friends

 

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