VP / Director IB level Resume Bullets
Senior VPs / Directors, how do you adjust your resume bullets for your seniority? With over 10 years of experience it’s hard to fit everything on one page especially with pre-MBA experience. Curious how others do it and what has gained traction when looking for other IB roles, PE/funds, or industry.
Do you:
1. Have selected transaction experience and list the deal and what you did (e.g. Advised Apple acquisition of Beats: Led end to end process, including outreach, management meetings etc)? This seems like a junior way to do it but also weird if not saying what you did on the deal. There’s only so much “impact” because the announcements are all modeled projections.
2. Just list the deals without saying what you did (Advised Microsoft on acquisition of LinkedIn for $x)
3. Some combination of the above and then a 2nd or 3rd page deal sheet that just lists every single deal you’ve ever been on that announced?
Out of the market for a while but need to polish off the resume. Appreciate any insight from this community. Thanks!
Based on the most helpful WSO content, here’s how senior VPs and Directors in Investment Banking can structure their resumes effectively:
Selected Transaction Experience with Impact:
"Advised Apple on the acquisition of Beats ($3B): Led end-to-end process, including outreach, management meetings, and negotiation of key terms."
Combination Approach with Deal Sheet:
Focus on Leadership and Results:
"Oversaw a team of 10 in executing $10B+ in M&A transactions, driving client engagement and ensuring seamless execution."
Tailor for the Role:
Formatting Tips:
For more detailed guidance, you can explore the WSO Investment Banking Resume Template and related resources.
Sources: 16 Tips to Improve Your Investment Banking Resume, 16 Tips to Improve Your Investment Banking Resume, Investment Banking Resume Template - Official WSO CV Example, Cover Letter + Resume Advice
Went through this exact situation recently and went with an approach similar to Option 2 for the resume (was able to make it all on one page) with only recent quality transactions listed - ones I could clearly talk to if prompted, where I led execution/coverage, etc. I then had a separate deal sheet (your Option 3) that listed out the entirety of my transactions starting with my junior years highlighting more detail, but less of “I led this”, more so “advised through dual track process resulting in X.” I found most firms either specifically asked for a deal sheet or were appreciative when sending it across.
I found it less necessary to list out details such “led end to end process” given if you’ve made it in the industry this long, your competency is somewhat expected.
For reference, I used this approach when speaking with banks and alternative asset managers.
Very helpful. Hard to find information.
For the first page, how did you go about highlighting origination / coverage given it is often less tangible unless you directly won a pitch. Would you suggest saying covered xyz subverticals and list example company names with the hope of demonstrating relationships you’d bring over?
For the deal sheet, did you including only announced deals, all mandated deals, or everything including meaty business development? Would you suggest to organize this chronologically or by subvertical (then chronologically by year within that) to demonstrate breadth and depth of coverage?
Lastly, given I haven’t seen postings for roles above VP level, how did you approach identifying roles? Emailing group heads to start a conversation is one (direct) way and I find the recruiting circle is smaller. For alternative asset manager roles, did you customize your resume further? I suppose more emphasis on analysis than process?..
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