Guide to Surviving as an Analyst at a Bad Bank
Will note that AI was used here to make the post more annoyomous from my thoughts.
Am a second year who is leaving soon. The following 3 pieces of advice might save your experience if you end up at a bad bank, you'll know very early in your internship or FT stint if this applies to you.
1) Get on a live deal as fast as possible. Push hard to get staffed on anything with a live process early, even if it's smaller or non-M&A. You need a mandate on your resume to tell a coherent buyside story, waiting for the "right" deal is a luxury you don't have. If all you can get is a financing, that's fine. Know the LP and memos cold; PE interviewers can only test you on so much. It might suck for a bit but it's worth it for the experience and the bullet.
2) Play the face time game smartly. Many of the groups at banks like this claim there's no face time culture, never true in practice. Don't stay until 10 with no work, but leaving at 5 or 6 when seniors are around guarantees the next bad staffing. Be visible on genuinely busy days and stay in the office rather than WFH when hours are long, it builds implicit credit that gives you leeway when things slow down.
3) Lock down a buyside offer as early as possible. Every day without an offer you're falling further behind peers at EBs and top BBs closing real deals and building stronger stories, not grinding hundred-hour weeks on pitch decks with custom maps and graphics for deals that will never happen. On this, also be realistic. Be realistic about outcomes. A strong MM offer from a $1-3B fund from a non-EB/top-BB is still an excellent outcome relative to the average analyst exit. Off-cycle odds are structurally against you and in favor of those with better deal experience, as they simply get more reps. Know many analysts who hold out chasing a MF or top UMM who have ended up with nothing after a lot of interviews.
Congrats on UBS!
Not at UBS, but I am sure it applies at UBS.
Based on the most helpful WSO content, here’s a concise guide to surviving as an analyst at a less-than-ideal bank:
1. Prioritize Getting on a Live Deal
2. Master the Face Time Game
3. Secure a Buyside Offer Early
Key Takeaway:
Focus on building a strong resume with live deal experience, play the visibility game strategically, and aim for realistic buyside outcomes. These steps can help you navigate and survive even at a challenging bank.
Sources: BB Analyst Impacted By Layoffs - Looking for Insight, Advice I give to my incoming analysts, So Much Talk About Exits: What About Staying, Best Practices for Junior Bankers - Top 10 Things to Do, Everything I wish I knew in Banking
Genuine question: Is it common to finish by 5/6 PM? I can't tell if people exaggerate the hours on here, but it was my understanding that, at most places, you won't finish until 11 PM - 1 AM on weeknights. At what bank are people leaving at 5/6?
Not common, but there days where you are free at 6 to leave for home whether that be waiting on comments or just a chill day. There are also Days where you are basically just doing no real work in the morning but have a bunch of work suddenly pop up at 8 PM, which are among the worst. Have friends at top BB/EB's where both of these types of days exist as well.
You’re not in a difficult group if you’re leaving at 6
Even in bad banks, there are always a few hitters. I know this because I was one of those guys, a big producer at a weak firm.
I had no problem with this because I’m indifferent to brand and got paid a lot more than a top brand (eventually I moved somewhere else because management was so incompetent). What this means in practice is I had a ton of deal flow, the best mid levels who you actually want to learn from work d for me, and I could get my people paid very well and had enough power to keep them away from nonsense (the non producing MDs and weak product people were too scared).
Find that person and work for them. It has a disproportionate impact on your life relative to a GS.
This sounds exactly like my incompetent MD at UBS that left to another mid bank
UBS is a terrible brand AND you don’t get paid. Even the Marco guarantees are kind of dogshit
Not sure my group has any good performing MD's. We only do debt and equity deals. There is an extent of how bad they are, but have already managed to avoid the ones that don't do any deals of any kind. I am already signed to leave, but feels like I have learned nothing.
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