Hello all, I am one of WSO's new mentors/resume reviewers so thought I'd do a Q&A to kick things off. Brief background: VP at a BB in London with 9yrs experience in M&A/coverage (PUI, Natural Resources, Transport, Industrials) Resource director/staffer for my group Masters in Economics from a top 3 global university Previously ran a university admissions consultancy business on the side helping prep candidates for university applications My path to IB was relatively traditional with Spring Week to Summer Internship to Full Time where I’ve been for 9 years so hopefully I can give good

Good question. The below is a mix of tips that helped me and traits I see in successful analysts in my team. Attitude above all else. People want to work with people they like. Be proactive, keen and enthusiastic. Maintain a good attitude even if it’s late at night or a stressful situation Think ahead – the biggest mind-set shift I made as an analyst was to start thinking about the wider context of each piece of work. What is the purpose of this analysis, what are the client’s strategic objectives, how does this deal achieve them etc.

In a full buyside model you will end up needing all 3 statements. Full IS and CF in particular for credit metrics and key outputs. Full BS to check model integrity, certain items for the calculate of credit metrics and associated adjustments, and to calculate closing mechanics (eg Locked Box). Nothing particular. Just spend time looking through the model, tracing back and forth etc. A few things spring to mind Trend analysis, anything look out of place in terms of financial/operational metrics and their profile (EBITDA, revenue, gearing, credit ratios etc). E.g.

BAML and Citi are both a small step below JPM/MS/GS in London, but they both have certain very strong groups. BAML in Europe is an odd one, with the resources and balance sheet they shouldn't lag so far behind JPM. They had a number of senior departures over the last 3-4yrs and performed quite poorly in M&A, but seem to be turning a corner in the last year.

Ranking season Don’t be shy about vocalising your achievements, without being boastful. Don’t assume good work is automatically and universally recognised Don’t sweat the process too much as an analyst, the difference in absolute bonus between a top and middle performer is much less than you’d think. Its only when you get to associate level that the difference becomes meaningful Be good at what you do. Obvious I know but worth repeating Make yourself indispensable to a senior associate or VP/D, be their go-to analyst.

Q&A: Senior VP in BB M&A (London)

Hello all,

I am one of WSO's new mentors/resume reviewers so thought I'd do a Q&A to kick things off.

Brief background:

VP at a BB in London with 9yrs experience in M&A/coverage (PUI, Natural Resources, Transport, Industrials)
Resource director/staffer for my group
Masters in Economics from a top 3 global university
Previously ran a university admissions consultancy business on the side helping prep candidates for university applications

My path to IB was relatively traditional with Spring Week to Summer Internship to Full Time where I’ve been for 9 years so hopefully I can give good perspectives on how to rise through the ranks and survive the grind. I've also been the resource director/staffer of my group for a number of years and involved in intern/full time recruiting so I can tackle any questions on applications, what makes a good analyst/associate, how to position yourself for ranking season etc.

Happy to answer questions on any topics you may have.

WSO MENTOR

Want to work with me? Check out my profile here.

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Intern Monkey57

IB

3y

Thanks for doing this! What advice would you give a new Analyst who wants to be successful but also wants to avoid burnout or some of the other more negative aspects of the job? Also, what made you stay in banking for the long haul?

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Authored by: Certified Investment Banking Professional - 1st Year AnalystCertified Investment Banking Pro

EmpireMaker

IB

3y

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Good question. The below is a mix of tips that helped me and traits I see in successful analysts in my team.

Attitude above all else. People want to work with people they like. Be proactive, keen and enthusiastic. Maintain a good attitude even if it’s late at night or a stressful situation
Think ahead – the biggest mind-set shift I made as an analyst was to start thinking about the wider context of each piece of work. What is the purpose of this analysis, what are the client’s strategic objectives, how does this deal achieve them etc. This also extends to being able to explain your work to others, particularly when it comes to modelling - why does EBITDA move in this way, why is the ICR breached in year 3 etc.
Ability to learn – show an aptitude to learn and pick things up. Most seniors have no problem giving you their time to train you but we want to see that our time is not wasted and you are moving up the learning curve
Always check your work – this gets preached so much but it’s amazing how many analysts don’t follow it and let down a great piece of work with sloppy errors
Work neat and clean – be organised, setup good shortcuts/hotkeys, label files properly, save things down in the right place, format your excel well etc. A few extra minutes a day save hours in the long-run
Understand it’s just business and not personal – it’s inevitable you’ll work with difficult characters in IB, being able to take it on the chin goes a long way
Treat people well – again one that’s preached often, but not followed. Treat the cleaners/presentations team/printers/assistants well. Aside from being the right thing to do these people can save you in a pinch
Practical – get a good screen and keyboard/mouse setup for home so you don’t need to always go into the office on weekends

On avoiding burnout I’d say:

Understand it’s a marathon not a sprint. I went flying out the blocks as an analyst and it was only a few years in that I realised it wasn’t sustainable and adopted more work life balance
Being a good performer helps, if you are trusted as someone who can deliver your seniors will be much more flexible in terms of deadlines – I appreciate that it can take time to build up this sort of political capital
Don’t sacrifice exercise; doing something is better than nothing even if it’s only Friday/Weekends or going for a walk around the City during the working day
Take advantage of your disposable income to make life easier (healthy eating, laundry services, cleaner for your apartment etc), its money well spent. Apps make it easier than ever particularly in London/NY

Re staying in the long haul, I landed in a really good group early on with a great learning experience, good comp and a couple of good Rabbis so my threshold for leaving was quite high. Over time this meant I had quite a bit of leeway to choose what I worked on and lots of upward exposure so my experience has been very positive. I also saw a number of peers who left for PE having an experience not so different to IB with in some cases worse comp. Thirdly I suppose a small part of it is the paradox of choice when there are lots of opportunities out there (PE, tech, start-ups, corporates etc).