Can you put deals on your resume where you weren't the lead analyst?
There were a couple of deals my smaller team did that are really attractive for interviews where I participated in conversations, calls, and some due diligence work but was certainly not the lead analyst. I am not even sure if I was credited for the deal on our weekly staffing list. Is is okay to still put it on my resume? I know a lot about the deals and can definitely speak to them well. It's also mostly confidential. Will it come up in references? Is this okay?
If you have transaction experience from the transaction, why wouldn’t you be able to list it? As long as you aren’t outright lying, I don’t see why it would be a problem.
The problem is that I provided ancillary support to the deal through IC participation, some analytics, taking meeting notes during meetings and didn’t actually draft the memo (although I helped with it). Like some other analyst did all the work and was credited as the analyst on the deal. There is evidence of my support through teams messages and emails but it’s just like, should I even bring it up? I’d obviously not lie but will definitely omit key information about my involvement in the deal.
Lie.
Overexagerate with what you're comfortable with. Also make sure your manager will verify what you did if there is a background check. I did this with previous managers, both of my last two roles were willing to let me stretch the truth to make myself look better which was nice.
I remember feeling like such a dumbass though because I shared my resume with a previous company during a job search (my manager isn't there anymore) and my contact shared with a senior person who definitely saw I overexaggerated my effort on a project we were both on lol. Awkward and never got any in-roads with that old company.
Interviewers care more about depth of experience and ability to speak to a company AND what you did on the deal than the flashiness of a name.
Fine to include it, but be prepared to be honest about your involvement and anticipate that any statements made (written or aloud) can be back-channeled through references.
As an interviewer, I personally can see right through somebody tossing out a glitzy name but backing it with weak deal experience. Your resume real estate is better spent on opportunities where you had real responsibility IMO.
If you worked on it, it's fair game.
Yes, you contributed to the deal so you can list it. Interviewers usually ask your role on the deal team so they will figure out how intensive the rep was as they dig in through the interview.
No, it will not come up in a reference check. Reference checks are more holistic, they will not ask someone to confirm every deal on your deal sheet.
Definitely put it on your resume, but I would not exaggerate your role. I have caught out way too many people just by pushing even a tiny bit on what they did and how they did it. That's an auto-ding if you can't tell me about what's literally on your resume... far better to underpromise and overdeliver with your resume.
If you have some $15B announced deal and are saying you were the lead analyst after only being on the desk for 7 months, people are going to be suspicious of that anyway. You did the normal amount of work for a first year, get the cred with the name on your resume and that's all.
Highlight your bigger contributions, even if not announced - and then put your announced deal as well with your actual work.
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