I work in a boutique investment firm and I feel undertrained, what shall I do?

Hey guys,

I just finished uni last year with a finance degree, and joined a boutique investment firm this year (I wouldn't call it PE because the firm does all kinds of deals, invest in public companies and even finance government projects).

It's a good company and have some really intelligent people, but there isn't much training going on, and I was expected to learn the ropes myself as quickly as possible (one reason they hired me in the first place was that the MD thought I was "self-inspired", whatever that means ;) The workload is moderate, generally 10 - 12 hour days and very few all-nighters.

I'm wondering what's the best way to train myself in such an environment?! Especially for those of you who have worked in this industry for a while, how did you train yourself up in those first few years?

Much appreciated!

3 Comments
 
ThaVanBurenBoyzBIWS + the Rosenbaum & Pearl book.

Other than that, depending on what city you're in there might be a training group swinging through for a week/weekend. You could always mention it to your boss to see if the firm would sponsor you/pay for it.

Cheers, saw the book by Rosenbaum & Pearl got mentioned quite a few times on this forum, should definitely get my hands on one of them.

What sort of training groups are you talking about? Self organised or courses similar to BIWS? The only such group that I'm aware of is CFA training group, which is potentially quite useless.

 

Eaque nisi est qui velit modi architecto. Ipsa et rerum rerum perspiciatis dignissimos voluptatem adipisci necessitatibus. Et doloribus sapiente quidem dolorem magni.

Beatae culpa provident illo molestiae. Quia ut consequatur dolorem vel sunt maxime quis dolor. Sunt esse cum in delectus velit libero. Cum nam aut ut excepturi odit accusantium.

Omnis tempore ab eius deserunt atque placeat. Voluptatem sed vel quia maxime et dignissimos mollitia maxime. Est occaecati veritatis quae et. Ut eum non dolorem quo eum autem. Ab ut beatae sunt perspiciatis nisi non cum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.6%
  • Blackstone Group 99.3%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.9%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.5%
  • Vista Equity Partners 98.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Private Equity

  • Blackstone Group 99.6%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 99.2%
  • The Riverside Company 98.9%
  • Ardian 98.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Private Equity

  • Bain Capital 99.6%
  • The Riverside Company 99.3%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 98.5%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.1%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (24) $547
  • Vice President (99) $363
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (105) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (235) $272
  • 1st Year Associate (412) $231
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (33) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (97) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (272) $124
  • Intern/Summer Associate (38) $81
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (356) $61
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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”