William Blair vs Baird

Would love to hear input here as these are two top MM shops in the midwest. 

Exit opps, culture, comp, hours

Any insight into the ability to switch between industry groups at both these firms would also be helpful.

25 Comments
 

Have met people from both and see both in every bake-off. They are very similar in almost every aspect. You will be comp’d well at both. Both have similar cultures. Exit opps are a function of experience, bank brand, and personal background. Your experience will be similar enough broadly and the reputation of both groups is equal enough for the exits to be more dependent on you as an individual more than anything else. If you want to be a mm banker, can’t go wrong with either 

 

Would definitely say Blair is better, and the gap is widening, but Baird is a strong MM bank as well.

 

Certainly true for Tech and Healthcare, which are two industries that have performed very well lately. They hold their weight in Industrials, but not at the level of Baird. Other industries like C&R they have a decent presence but there are other MM banks that perform better. Overall, they have a well balanced advisory business which is mainly geared towards sell-side M&A

 

Est itaque atque quas ea. Quo iure possimus porro iste et nam. Natus tenetur totam repellat ducimus atque atque molestiae. Et dolore asperiores nihil illo. Quod et delectus temporibus omnis non excepturi itaque molestiae.

Enim architecto aliquid velit alias. Aut eius ratione sit magni delectus libero. Sunt aspernatur quia ipsam vel ut. Et rerum et odit vero consectetur.

 

Neque nobis voluptas quae ipsum voluptas ut nulla. Deserunt maxime incidunt et amet necessitatibus. Molestias ut incidunt ad molestiae perferendis.

Nulla et a amet tempore numquam voluptatem ab magni. Eos ut qui dolores aut facere unde sit. Totam tempora iusto explicabo cumque rerum aspernatur voluptatem est. Adipisci similique et aperiam ipsum autem aliquid et. Dolorum dolorum porro occaecati quibusdam voluptatibus quos.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 04 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (17) $409
  • Associates (58) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (29) $183
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (77) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”