Wall St. Buzzword Tournament - And The Winner Is....

Inspired by the post Which Office Buzzwords Do You Hate the Most?, I thought it would be fun to hold a Tournament to try and see which Buzzwords we really hate most on Wall Street. The committee has thought long and hard about these seeds and I apologize to those buzzwords that were snubbed (although I think the Sweet 16 we have here are pretty solid).

After every week, winners of each buzzword match-up will be announced as well as the new match-ups. This will work just like March Madness. In order to vote for the Buzzwords you hate the most and make sure they make it to the next round, follow the instructions below the Week 1 Matchups:

"Annoying Phrase" Region:

Match-Up 1
1. At the End of the Day
2. Circling the wagons

Match-Up 2
3. On a go-forward basis
4. Take ownership

"Kill Me Now" Region:

Match-Up 3
5. He has some extra bandwidth
6. Take a stab

Match-Up 4
7. What is your capacity?
8. Let's Crank

"Ultimate Cliche" Region:

Match-Up 5
9. Apples to Apples
10. Let's not reinvent the wheel

Match-Up 6
11. Let's take a 25,000 foot view
12. Low hanging fruit

"That Makes No Sense" Region

Match-Up 7
13. It is What It Is
14. Deja Vu All Over Again

Match-Up 8
15. Pari Passu
16. Net Net

HOW TO VOTE:

Each round will close on Sunday at Midnight EST. So the first round will close October 4 and the Elite 8 will be announced October 5th. The second round will close on October 11th and the Final 4 will be announced the 12th. The semi-finals will close October 18th, with the final matchup announced on October 19th. Final voting will close October 25th at midnight and the Most Hated Buzzword on Wall Street will be announced October 26th. In order to vote in each round, all you have to do is post a comment in this thread with the matchup # and then the seed you hate more before midnight Sunday of that given week. You can copy and paste the example below to make it fast / easy.

Matchup 1: #1
Matchup 2: #3
Matchup 3: #5
Matchup 4: #8
Matchup 5: #9
Matchup 6: #11
Matchup 7: #13
Macthup 8: #16

Feel free to make a bracket / pool in the office. Only 1 vote per registered user.

Thanks,
Patrick

74 Comments
 

Match-Up 1 1. At the End of the Day

Match-Up 2 4. Take ownership

Match-Up 3 5. He has some extra bandwidth

  1. What is your capacity?

Match-Up 5 10. Let's not reinvent the wheel

Match-Up 6 12. Low hanging fruit

Match-Up 7 13. It is What It Is

Match-Up 8

  1. Net Net
 

Matchup 1: #2 Matchup 2: #3 Matchup 3: #5 Matchup 4: #7 Matchup 5: #10 Matchup 6: #12 Matchup 7: #14 Macthup 8: #16

 

Matchup 1: #1 Matchup 2: #3 Matchup 3: #6 Matchup 4: #7 Matchup 5: #10 Matchup 6: #11 Matchup 7: #13 Macthup 8: #15

 

Round 1 closes tonight at Midnight - make sure you get your votes in before then. Winners of the Round1 matchups will be announced shortly after 12am EST.

Thanks, Patrick

GMAT Tutors: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/one-on-one-gmat-prep WSO Resume Review: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/wso-resume-review Invite Friends: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/invite WSO Guides: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/wsoguides

 

Matchup 1: #1 Matchup 2: #4 Matchup 3: #5 Matchup 4: #7 Matchup 5: #10 Matchup 6: #11 Matchup 7: #13

Macthup 8: #15

Cheer up, Bateman. What's the matter? No shiatsu this morning?

Cheer up, Bateman. What's the matter? No shiatsu this morning?
 
1 3 6 8 10 11 13 (my pick to win it all) 16

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.
 

Patrick bump everything back a week so we can get a fair length of time for each round.

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.
 
Best Response

Sorry Trade4Size, the rules are the rules and your submission was 17 minutes late. Round 1 is complete and we had some buzzer beaters and some blow-outs.

Without further ado, here are the matchups for Week 2, don't forget to Vote now (each word / phrase will keep it's original #) by picking 1 buzzword from each Matchup and just listing that number in the comments below. Voting ends next Sunday at midnight again:

"Annoying Phrase" Match-up:

  1. At the End of the Day
  2. Take ownership

"Kill Me Now" Match-up:

  1. He has some extra bandwidth
  2. What is your capacity?

"Ultimate Cliche" Match-up:

  1. Let's not reinvent the wheel
  2. Let's take a 25,000 foot view

"That Makes No Sense" Match-up:

  1. It is What It Is
  2. Net Net

Some interesting match-ups this week including a battle from the 2 most dominant buzzword from Round 1 out of the "That Makes No Sense" Region.

Thanks to all of those that participated in Round 1. Make sure you let your friends and other WSO monkeys know which buzzwords you have in your bracket so they can get their vote in to help you win the office pool. Round 2 voting is now open!

Thanks, Patrick

GMAT Tutors: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/one-on-one-gmat-prep WSO Resume Review: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/wso-resume-review Invite Friends: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/invite WSO Guides: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/wsoguides

 
MezzKetMatchup 1: #2 Matchup 2: #3 Matchup 3: #5 Matchup 4: #7 Matchup 5: #9 Matchup 6: #11 Matchup 7: #14 Macthup 8: #16

Clearly Mezzcat hasn't had his coffee yet.

GMAT Tutors: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/one-on-one-gmat-prep WSO Resume Review: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/wso-resume-review Invite Friends: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/invite WSO Guides: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/wsoguides

 

17 minutes late? you are worse than the post office.

1 7 10 13

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.
 

We are down to our Final Four! Here are the matchups for Week 3, don't forget to Vote now (each word / phrase will keep it's original #) by picking 1 buzzword from each Matchup and just listing that number in the comments below. Voting ends next Sunday at midnight again:

  1. At the End of the Day (Out of the "Annoying Phrase" Region) VS.
  2. What is your capacity? (Out of the "Kill Me Now" Region)

  3. Let's not reinvent the wheel (Out of the "Ultimate Cliche" Region) VS.

  4. It is What It Is (Out of the "That Makes No Sense" Region)

Thanks to all of those that participated in Round 2. Make sure you let your friends and other WSO monkeys know which buzzwords you have in your bracket so they can get their vote in to help you win the office pool. Next Sunday we will announce the FINALS!

 

Yesterday went to an Information Career day with GS and even the Co-head of IB have said the two Wall Street buzzword that will "echoe in eternity":

  • At the end of the Day
  • It is what it is
 
1 13 (my horse is looking pretty good!)

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.

"Oh the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion" - Frank Slaughtery 25th Hour.
 
1 13
Jack: They’re all former investment bankers who were laid off from that economic crisis that Nancy Pelosi caused. They have zero real world skills, but God they work hard. -30 Rock
 

We are down to our Finals Match-up! Here is the final match up to crown the Most Hated Buzzword on Wall Street. Don't forget to Vote now by picking Voting ends next Sunday at midnight again:

7. What is your capacity? (Out of the "Kill Me Now" Region)

VS.

13. It is What It Is (Out of the "That Makes No Sense" Region)

Thanks to all of those that participated in Round 3. Make sure you let your friends and other WSO monkeys know which buzzwords you have in your bracket so they can get their vote in to help you win the office pool. Next Sunday we will announce the winner/loser!

 
13
Jack: They’re all former investment bankers who were laid off from that economic crisis that Nancy Pelosi caused. They have zero real world skills, but God they work hard. -30 Rock
 

Omnis autem impedit autem saepe inventore. Cum et provident culpa laudantium non. Aspernatur nostrum sed id.

Ut voluptatem suscipit ut corporis aut sed. Quaerat expedita tempore ullam maiores quis. Ipsum sit at rerum nostrum maiores temporibus sit.

Quia assumenda eos quisquam ea quaerat quia. Voluptatibus nostrum sint et. Est similique aut in maxime veniam magni omnis. Vero sed cumque doloribus.

 

Eum autem totam est et dolorum quod voluptatem. Facilis autem vel est quo atque quo non. Quae sed nobis ipsa maxime. Aut aut voluptatum dicta soluta consequatur omnis nostrum. Et consequatur magni voluptate aliquam. Asperiores et dolorem aspernatur fugit eius nulla.

Ullam omnis et dolore. Perferendis veniam velit modi et quidem aliquid. Doloribus adipisci est doloremque quibusdam. In accusamus voluptas tempora ad nihil et explicabo. Id ex voluptatibus distinctio reprehenderit et.

 

Expedita nisi perferendis sit nostrum sed illum. Corporis beatae quia qui repellat animi et. Delectus sit blanditiis rerum alias. Quasi voluptas qui impedit quos dolores consequuntur.

Maxime ut et dolorum nisi ut dignissimos. Rerum possimus inventore dicta dolor ad quaerat est. Odit voluptatem voluptatem repellat aspernatur. Voluptatibus est dignissimos similique veniam.

Suscipit hic et impedit fugiat qui similique. Dolor accusamus sit nam mollitia aut aperiam et.

Dignissimos magni vitae animi quas est velit. Asperiores placeat rerum autem et eveniet enim voluptate. Eius nam voluptates deserunt impedit quam at maxime. Dicta aut minus harum in id itaque.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (66) $101
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

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...”