Calling All Lower-Middle to Bottom Bucket Analysts: Why were you Bottom Bucket and Where are you now?
Like all social media sites, this forum highlights and glorifies success stories of those that have done particularly well in their field. What I feel doesn't get enough recognition/attention are the people that aren't (initially) necessarily made out for investment banking. It can be a depressing thing knowing that your peers had the same opportunities and seemingly the same skill set but are performing much better.
Curious to learn about other people's struggles and low points and whether they eventually found the right approach/opportunity for themselves.
I was a top ranked SA and accepted a full time offer. First week into FT I was staffed on a deal that was way over my head and blew up. I was generally unhappy for the rest of my analyst stint. Moved on to a LMM PE role, corp dev and now at a tech PE shop where I am about to quit.
Quitting for a better role on the buyside? Mind sharing if the bad experience impacted your career/performance post banking too? How?
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moved to sales & trading.. crushing it - much better personlaity fit.
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The negative truth is that bad luck can quickly turn decent analysts into bad performers. Always look out for #1 (YOU). You do this by developing a fantastic, trusting relationship with the staffer. If you cannot see a situation getting better, talk to him and try to change it. Fast.
Your groups associate left and they replaced him with new MBA associate? Well now you are part of that negative transformation. He fucks you over a few times, you get sick of it and decide that a few thousand bucks isn't worth your quality of life being ruined. You are now a poor performing analyst.
Your MD is having personal problems and his attitude and track record is suffering? You are made to skip a vacation for some nonsense deck. You are rightfully pissed and your performance suffers. This is out of your control, but now you are a poor performing analyst.
Similarly, I'd been coasting in the first half of the year on easy deals with hands on associates. Around February, when impressions stick most, got put on a massive deal with a really perfections associate. I was in way over my head and screwed up consistently. Should've been putting the work in in my spare time before I got shredded with the staffing, sure. But I didn't know how much I didn't know. It was brutal. Review hurt but I couldn't argue. Still feel traumatized.
This gets to a larger conversation about the politics of bucketing. This sucks, but the truth is much of it is luck whether people acknowledge it or not. Here’s a few examples for why it is luck:
You get staffed on a deal after the model has been completed and spend the remainder of the deal simply facilitating diligence questions, scheduling presentations/ meetings, and creating adhoc slides. This work only has downside—there is no “knocking it out of the park” with scheduling it’s simply you did the job and everything went according to plan, or you screwed up. As a result, this analyst doing the best possible job will end up middle bucket.
Counter scenario, you get on a transaction and 3 months in, your entire deal team quits. As a result, you are now the most informed individual and the company complements your performance to the seniors telling them it wouldn’t have happened without you and you are really quite sharp. Additionally, you inform the rest of your deal team the reminder of the process about details they missed or previous conversations that occurred because you had a 3 month head start. By doing this, you save the asses of the associate and VP multiple times. You are now top bucket.
Other scenarios people mentioned: getting on projects with generally negative people, or people who don’t have much sway in rankings—this will make you mid or below. Getting on projects with rockstars/ people who are known in the bank for being important and them complementing you/ going to bat for you—you are top bucket.
People have mentioned this, but the key really is being upper mid. You aren’t known as the analyst who has no life and who is on numerous projects, but also everyone would recommend working with you. Additionally, I’d argue the best part of being and accepting upper mid is getting to the point where there are enough people at the bank who will vouch for your performance and attitude that if one random idiot tries to claim you suck or messed something up, everyone at the bank knows they are full of shit. As upper mid, I’ve just flat out told my staffer I won’t work with some people and it’s fine because I am upper mid and a ton of people want me on their deals/ know I’m an above average analyst.
The counter-scenario you laid out happened to me almost as exactly as you described it - except the deal was never restaffed.
The execution team was me (~3 months in, working from home) and a perfectionist VP from late marketing -> close. I knew the Company inside and out but was completely clueless on typical deal dynamics and terms throughout the entire process (for example, I have a distinct memory of frantically googling what a NWC target was and how it effects cash at close at 3AM). Due to WFH I was able to fake it till I made it.
I received a ton of praise when it closed but really was just tossed in the deep end and barely kept above water for 5 months without anyone ever realizing I how clueless I really was.
Cant emphasize enough how important being friends with your staffer is (being staffed on his deals also helps)
Jesus christ this is hard to read. This is how I feel right now. I'm only a few weeks into the job and I feel like I know nothing. WTF do I do? No one told me how to be a good analyst. I feel like I'm just going through the motions.
Yup luckily I was on the other end of this. Might be imposter syndrome, but I think I was a generally bad analyst (didn't really know how to model, felt like all my deals were more administrative work) but because of the high profile deals I did, good associates I worked with, luck of the draw successful bake-offs, good relationship with the staffer(s), I got top bucket both years.
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