Am I doing Coffee Chats wrong?

Hello everyone, I have been having a lot of phone calls with Bankers to no avail. I am usually unable to give them the "Tell me about yourself" spiel and demonstrate my interest in the Industry/IB. I thought I would share what I talk about during these calls and gain some feedback.

  • I start by asking them how they're doing/ how they are finding the quarantine to have some small talk.
  • After that, I express my intentions with the call by saying "I wanted to know what kind of deals your group commonly works on (eg. Do you see a lot of M&A or Capital raising)"
  • I ask related questions and about how their group is being affected by Covid-19. If I feel like we have covered enough about the Industry, I pivot saying "Thanks for that, I think I have a good understanding of your group's deals can you talk to me about your experience at the bank in terms of its culture." Up till this point would probably end up being ~15 out a 30-minute conversation.
  • I then follow up with more about their experience and their favourite part of the job etc.
  • Towards the last 5 minutes I ask how I can position myself better for recruitment (How much importance is given to your fit vs. technical knowledge, what skills/aptitudes are good to demonstrate in interviews).
  • As I say goodbye, and thank them for their time, I ask if they can connect me to a colleague whose experiences I could learn from. They say they will have to think about it and will let me know or they just give me a name to reach out to.

The conversations don't get personal, and I don't get the chance to show them my interest through which they can feel confident in connecting me to someone else. I would appreciate any advice on how I can make these conversations more personal and give myself a chance to express my passion. Thanks in advance!

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