Losing my grasp of technicals as a brand new A1
So I started about 3 months ago, knew my technicals cold when I interviewed and felt like I had a pretty solid understanding of the financial concepts needed for banking.
3 months in, most all of my work has been in PowerPoint or just mindlessly running comps and I feel like I’ve forgotten half the answers to them. Gained a lot of insight into the industry/how IB works/what clients are looking for, but my technical knowledge feels like it’s diminished as it hasn’t been used.
Anyone else experience this? I’m sure it will improve once I’m asked to work on models, but am just curious.
i heard from a few analysts that they only start working on models around 4-6 months into the job. will just take time i suppose, dont sweat it.
Being good / technically proficient at your job once you're in the seat is completely different than knowing how to nail technicals in an interview setting, particularly if you're in a coverage or product group that isn't modelling intensive. I'd be concerned if you've forgotten fundamental accounting concepts i.e. cash impact of an increase/decrease in asset/liabilities or key components of working capital, but most of what we do isn't that challenging. Spreading comps and precedents, developing industry/company overview slides, and even more analytical content i.e. accretion/dilution, AVPs, etc really don't require much thought. In addition, most large institutions have pre-built templates so all you have to do is plug in a ticker and maybe swap in a few numbers. Unless you're working at a boutique or dealing with incompetent clients, you're never building a model from scratch either - you'll mostly be making tweaks / stress-testing / reformatting a pre-built corporate model.
I haven't used a pen and paper in >4 years in IB (aside from sketching slides and taking notes), and would probably be a trainwreck for questions involving complex mental math. I don't disagree that banking has likely made me less sharp from an academic perspective vs. years ago, but you develop other skillsets on the job that are much more valuable in the professional world. Especially if you're a coverage banker where your KPI is client relationships / revenue to the firm rather than just execution.
Dicta est sit delectus et accusamus. Dolor consequuntur eum et ipsa tempore. Quia officiis voluptatem distinctio explicabo quia et. Commodi facere eos quis incidunt modi quos. Voluptatem laborum amet aliquid recusandae ullam dolores. Fugiat molestias omnis nemo magnam saepe est consequatur.
Mollitia eum veniam ea perspiciatis. Ut nihil aliquam rerum numquam est. Enim autem et autem ex.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...