Phone Interview Questions

This question serves as an icebreaker between the interviewer and the candidate. It also helps get them to know you, assess your communication, and understand your educational and career background.

Sample answer:

“Hi XYZ, thank you for this interview opportunity. I am a highly motivated professional who has been working in Investment Banking for the past 4 years.

I completed my MBA from Wharton School, after which I began my career as an intern at Goldman Sachs, where I developed a strong foundation in market research and financial modeling skills.

Considering my growth and involvement, I was offered a full-time role, after which I was involved in several M&A deals. Outside of work, I enjoy working out at the gym and traveling worldwide.

I am excited to bring my skills and experience to this company and contribute to the firm's overall success.”

The question is to understand your motivation behind applying for a specific finance position that you are interviewing for.

Many positions, such as investment banking, venture capital, private equity, etc., are looked at by candidates as roles with the highest potential for income but fail to understand the day-to-day work associated with it.

Thus, the interviewer wants to understand what aspects of this particular role and industry as a whole appeal to you.

Sample answer:

“ I am intrigued about the Investment Banking role for several reasons. Firstly, I love the aspect of secrecy about what we do and the months of work that goes into it before it is announced to the world.

As a banker, everyday is different for you. Even if you talk to companies with the same business models, you will find differences in their target groups, go-to-market strategies, or even pricing points.

With IB comes the load of data, which is something I personally like. My mentor used to say that there’s a story behind every number, and if you look closely, that particular story could have a huge impact on what you are trying to pursue.

With [The organization that you are interviewing for] expertise in Fintech, I believe I will get the right set of tools to upgrade my skill set further as well as become one of the highly qualified individuals.”

This particular question is targeted to understand your self-awareness and ability to reflect on the different areas of improvement.

Try to answer everything that you know about yourself honestly and provide insights into how you handle challenges in your life and how you apply the lessons learned for self-development.”

Sample answer-

“One of my biggest strengths is strong analytical ability. I excel in conducting extensive research on a particular subject, breaking down complex data into simpler versions to make informed decisions. Along with that, I pride myself on having strong leadership and communication skills.

I was recently tasked to run a mandate for a Series B fundraiser along with an analyst. We ran the entire show, from the preparation of collaterals to getting the investors on board to finally getting the first term sheet.

Our MD was quite proud of our efforts, and we even went on to celebrate my first close as a lead.

While I strive to work really hard, in the process, I set up really high standards for myself as well as for the team, which negatively impacts the work.

I have started to establish boundaries and build an understanding that every person is totally different and they may have different ways of getting their work done.

I still consider myself pretty weak in the pitch decks part, well, only the design, which I have started working on by signing up for a couple of online courses and hands-on practice.”

Most finance roles will require you to work under strict deadlines where your ability to prioritize a particular work will come into play. The interviewer basically wants to understand how good you are with time management skills and your capability to work efficiently under pressure.

Sample answer:

“One thing that has been constantly thrown over to me in my career is a fast-paced environment. I was a complete opposite guy, but over the years, I have developed strategies that have helped me to handle tight deadlines and work priorities.

At the beginning of the week, I prepare my to-do list and note them down on sticky notes. If there’s a certain meeting to be scheduled, I make sure that it goes into the calendar immediately.

Another thing that helps me manage the deadlines is how well I prioritize the work. In this one instance, I was stuck on whether to work on the VP's deliverable or the clients, both of which had to be submitted the next day.

With feedback from both parties, I tried preparing the VP’s report immediately, which was needed for one of the stakeholder meetings.

The data was also sent out to the client with a couple of hours of delay and, of course, with a colleague's help, but both tasks were handed over on time.”

This question helps you understand the interviewer and how you stay up-to-date with the latest financial information and trends. The financial industry, in general, undergoes many changes daily and weekly, which ultimately impacts the economy as a whole.

A lot of information stays hidden, such as potential M&As, which can be uncovered through in-depth research and analysis to provide a further view of industry trends.

A proactive approach towards having an updated view of financial markets helps the interviewer to know that you are keeping the knowledge current and staying ahead of the market trends.

Sample answer:

“I spend almost two hours on my daily commute to the office. On the bus, I prefer to read a couple of articles and opinions from industry to understand what exactly is going on. I prefer reading opinions over articles as they give a great unbiased view of the sector.

Since I am an I-banker, after I come to the office, I prefer reading about some of the current fundraisers as well as M&A transactions. This helps me build a thesis on what sectors in particular, are VC looking to invest in and at what particular funding stage there is a lot of traction.

I do read other industry reports published by the Big 4 and the top 3 management consultancy firms in my spare time. This in-depth report helps me build my thesis and understand any specific sector in depth.

I don't know if you have heard of them, but I particularly enjoy reading ‘The Ken’. They do great journalism on diverse topics, mainly focusing on the ‘business’ niche.

Many financial topics are quite difficult to understand, and communicating these complex concepts to other individuals isn’t easy.

The interviewer wants to understand how well ‘you’ understand those concepts as well and may ask you to explain it ‘like you are explaining it to a five-year-old’. Don’t worry, though; even five-year-olds are human beings, and they do understand a significant chunk of what we speak.

Try to simplify the information for broader understanding and keep the lines crisp; do not try to divulge too much information in a single line. Rather, you can directly jump onto an example without any explanation and point it out.

Sample answer:

“ I would like to speak on the ‘Return on Investment’ concept. For example, let’s assume that you buy a house for $1M and eventually sell it for $2M after a period of five years.

The return on investment is basically the ratio of the selling and buying prices, after which you subtract one to get the number in percentage terms. Here, $2M divided by $1M gives you a $1M gain, meaning you made a 100% return on your investment.

We use the formula on a lot of different assets, helping us to make informed decisions about allocating our resources for building a strong portfolio.”

Having a good knowledge of your skills and experience is also extremely important while interviewing for specific roles. It helps the interviewer understand how good you are in specific areas and what areas you might need improvement.

After your alignment with the role is confirmed, the interviewer also tries to work on your areas of improvement so that they can help you build a good career. You should be really specific about your skills and experiences so that the interviewer understands how well you can contribute to the organization's success.

Sample answer:

“ First and foremost, my educational background in Finance ensures that I have a good grasp of important financial concepts. Later on, I did several internships, which equipped me with a solid understanding of financial analysis, budgeting, and forecasting.

I also did several Excel and financial modeling crash courses, which helped me excel in a few of my internships. I believe that financial modeling is a completely different beast, and the learning skills definitely need to be complemented by real-life experience.

Apart from this, I had an opportunity to lead a cross-functional team, wherein I led the project on the market research and financial modeling front for XYZ company.

Since I was a lead, I have also been looking for ways to identify cost-saving measures for the company, highlighting my proactiveness and ultimately contributing to a 15% increase in the company's operational efficiency.

Many financial roles include the crucial aspect of handling financial reporting and analysis.

With this question, the interviewer wants to ensure that you have a certain degree of understanding of financial reports and that, if required, you know what type of information to look for and how to interpret the financial data.

Sample answer:

“In my previous role at XYZ company, I prepared several different financial reports to support the company's strategic decision-making hierarchy.

Those reports included an income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, financial forecast and projections, financial ratios key metrics, etc.

My experience has equipped me with not only the preparation of these reports but also to provide key insights based on the numbers and pass them on to the strategic team for making informed decisions.”

If it’s your first, second, or even third conversation with a company, then be sure they will ask you about the company.

Interviewers have started to notice that candidates blindly apply for a company without doing a background check or even without reading the profile.

If they feel even a tiny bit of doubt about the candidate, they will straightaway ask you - “So far it has been great! Can you please let us know what you know about our company?”

A lot of candidates eventually just freeze, or some even say that they do not have adequate information. Don’t do that; they will just cross out your name from the list for the next round.

Sample answer:

“ I came to know about the XYZ company first from my dad. He spent his entire career in the financial sector, and XYZ was one of his company's clients.

He used to tell stories about how a single guy started it, went through a bad patch for several years but still continued the operations, and then returned the winner in the end when the company was acquired by a multinational entity.

Although the company was acquired, the management remained the same as the parent company loved the existing CEO along with the subordinate team.

This is about the company’s past. If we speak of the present, which is connected to the past again, I would say that they have preserved the culture of questioning and working together for the greater good.

Employees are motivated to pursue their personal goals and aren’t slaughtered for mistakes. I believe that every employee ‘is and should’ be responsible for their work.

However, if people point it out, it just shows that all they care about is getting work done and not employees welfare, which isn’t the case here.”

We personally believe this is the trickiest question of the lot. Since this is the first stage of the interview, try not to disclose the number of whatever happens.

They would say, “we have a budget”, “we need to get a number forward to the team to evaluate if you fit in our bill” etc. Don’t fall into this trap! If you tell the number, they will leverage it against you one way or the other.

For example, if you quote a higher number, they will immediately tell you that you do not fit into their budget, while if you quote a lower number, they will further give a lowball offer if you end up getting the job.

In this scenario, there is no right number as long as you don’t interview for multiple rounds(Yeah, you learn from interviews but waste their time. To make up for the time, they will definitely give a good offer to close the deal!)

Again, no HR is your friend and speaks in your best interest. They are hired by the company, and their loyalty will always lie to the company. In fact, here’s how you can handle this question next time.

Sample answer:

“ Let me first lay out all the reasons why I am a perfect fit for the reason - extensive experience in financial analysis and projections, been working in the front-end for the last 7+ years, and being an integral part of the business development team.

I was also a part of the overseas expansion team and played a pivotal role in strategic decision-making for the company.

I believe that I bring a lot to the table at each and every stage of the decision-making process. To answer your question, I still believe we are at quite an early stage of interaction and prefer to disclose it later on. By the way, what is a company offering to someone with my credentials?”

Most recruiters would give you an honest answer here, i.e., they would either quote a really good number for your credentials or give a legit range they can offer. If they start BS-ing, save yourself, Kings/Queens. The universe is huge, and you don’t wanna get stuck somewhere.

At least if you are gonna work as an employee(even if it means putting in late-nighters), make sure that you are paid for it.

Changing organizations is a part of everyone’s career. Some people prefer to stay with their entire life while some do not. Understanding the motivations behind changing organizations becomes extremely crucial for some interviewers.

It helps them to understand whether the decision was influenced by career growth, desire for a new challenge, or any other factor.

Whatever the reason may be, just ensure that you answer it truthfully and do not hide anything from the interviewer, even if it is associated with the monetary aspect.

Sample answer:

“ I spent almost 3 years at my previous organization, where I progressed in my career from Intern to Associate.

Over time, I was literally pushed into the ocean of challenges, which has shaped me into the person I am today and built a foundation for my future.

However, as all the good times eventually ended, I believe it was the right moment to take the next step in my career and look for new challenges. Although I haven't said this to my previous MD face to face, I will always be indebted to him for giving me an opportunity to work with him.

When nobody wanted me, he gave me the opportunity and groomed me to this capability. Today, I can boast my skills to almost any organization in the world.

We had this discussion before parting ways and have promised to keep meeting once in a while just to keep up with what’s happening in our personal lives.

Most organizations have long-term aspirations and want to hire candidates that align with those goals. By asking this question, the interviewer wants to understand your vision.

Try not to answer something like - “I plan on learning this to build my portfolio and eventually apply to my big 4 for that trajectory boost”.

Whatever you answer, try to align it with the organization's goals. Research a bit about the company. Do they have overseas clients? In this case, you can say that you intend to grow the overseas clients over the course of time.

If you show long-term aspirations, they will also invest equally in you through upskilling and appropriate exposure.

Sample answer:

“ I love being in the startup ecosystem and want to be associated with it throughout the tenure of my career. It was really difficult for me to break into this industry, and I know the struggle since I had to spend hundreds of hours just preparing for the role.

I finally got in through an accelerator who was kind enough to offer me the intern role, and since then, I haven’t looked back.

I believe I am, in fact, repaying their faith somehow, and that is how I have progressed to the position of associate in such a short time. I want to make mistakes but, eventually, also learn from them and become a better person tomorrow.

Working at a top VC firm like [company name] is a dream come true for almost everyone. Learning from the best and meeting the smartest entrepreneurs is what I want to do for the entirety of my career.

If you really ask me what I ‘really’ would like to do for myself - I do want to start my own VC firm.

Everyone makes mistakes, whether at work or in their personal life. The interviewer wants to understand whether you are able to reflect on your actions, learn from the mistakes, and eventually demonstrate toughness if you face a similar problem again.

The idea is not to know whether you make many mistakes but how well you acknowledge them and grow from them. Again, be really honest about the mistakes you make at work, but don’t share your personal problems!

Sample answer:

“ I was working on the financial projections for an early-stage startup. I completed the entire construct, i.e., preparing the income statement, balance sheet, cash flow, and depreciation schedule.

I just had to tally the balance sheet.

And that is where the problem started! I spent the next two days trying to find out why my assets wouldn’t match the liabilities. I looked at every cell, every number, and whether I had made mistakes in the input values but could not find it.

My MD said I could find it in 15-20 minutes, but I have been through this situation, and I found the mistake. So I believe you can do it too. Good luck!

I spent another night and found that the mistake had been in the reference to the numbers. I was building the balance sheet based on numerous sources when it had to be just one of each.

In one instance, I was pulling numbers from the monthly sheet, and in another, it was the quarterly sheet.

I fixed it up, and finally, after 3 days, I completed the model and sent it out for review to my MD.

Communication and persuasion remain the two top skills in any corporate role. You would always be assessed for how well you communicate and how well you persuade others to understand your point.

Remember, questioning your seniors isn’t a bad thing. They do have the experience, but they might not always be right. As time flies, a lot of things change. The industry, people’s perception, companies, products, etc. Your renewed perception can give a new life to your MD’s thought process.

In such a scenario, if you have an idea or point of view, be bold and present it to your people. Initially, they might not like it, ignore it, and completely disregard it. Stay firm in your opinion, and point out why it makes sense but in a calm manner.

Even if you end up wrong, we promise you - “You will be respected for putting out your opinion”.

Sample answer:

“ We had a heavy workload, and there was a critical piece of the analysis project that needed to be done. It was more of a sectoral landscaping part but still needed a significant amount of time dedicated to it.

I suggested to my MD that we might need to hire an intern to complete it if we were to draw insights from the landscaping exercise. Since we were already busy on deals, I believed an additional resource would fulfill the objective, and we might get newer clients based on landscaping.

The thing was - MD did not believe it was the right time to hire an intern. Hiring the intern would eventually mean that one of us would spend a significant amount of time with them, further blocking up the calendar.

However, I was quite persistent that if we needed to get the stuff done, we needed to hire the intern. Maybe we could take turns working with the intern, but this was a priority task that had to be done in the next month or so.

The good thing is we ended up hiring the intern, and you know what, he was actually able to convert it into a full-time offer.”

Strong teams for the integral component of successful organizations. Understanding the team dynamics and adapting to work accordingly is a highly valued skill.

The interviewer wants to understand how well you are able to adapt to the changing dynamics of a team and the key qualities that you believe contribute to effective teamwork.

Sample answer: 

“ I believe there are several qualities that ‘make’ a team successful. Some of them are-

1. Communication, which is obvious; the more you communicate with the team, the better the understanding you have with them. It also helps in the exchange of ideas, sharing of opinions, and even feedback to help everyone get on the same page.
2. Trust forms the foundation of a team. Without trust, it's just a group of people working together and fulfilling their individual responsibilities.
3. Another aspect that I believe makes a team successful is adaptability. A highly adaptable team has the perfect mix of young and experienced and, hence can navigate all the challenges and remain strong in the face of adversity.
4. Every individual has their own goal, but a successful team also shares a common goal. Whether it is to see the company receive additional projects or individual promotions, helping achieve common goals eventually boosts the chances of completing individual milestones.

Clients are the most challenging part of our jobs. Some are understanding, while others are difficult to handle. Even the most adept people struggle to fulfill the needs of their clients.

It isn’t always about the workload present, but sometimes it's just the client who’s ‘difficult’. Holidays don’t matter to them, and even after fulfilling all the deliverables, they would find ways to make your life miserable.

Still, in the end, they are a crucial part of your life, and you need to keep them happy since they indirectly pay your salaries. To the interviewer, your response should showcase your ability to handle clients, your problem-solving ability, and your commitment to customer satisfaction.

Sample answer:

“ In my previous role, I was working with the asset-backed securities division as a back-office consultant. The entire team was pretty decent except for the President of the division.

Our back office was based out of India, and not surprisingly, even the President was an Indian. We were always on time with our deliverables, and e-mails were sent out immediately to notify the team about the work progress, and the team did appreciate it.

The only problem in the entire operation was the President, who always believed that we did not utilize our complete time for work, and he often complained that the quality of work was degrading.

As a team lead, it should have been me who he should have communicated the problem with. However, he reached out to our MD directly and expressed his concern.

As a result, what should have been resolved internally had to follow a lengthy process since our team was questioned about our work ethic.

Eventually, our MD understood that we were not at fault. We scheduled a meeting where our MD took the lead, and I supported him throughout the whole incident. We promised better work quality, but even the President agreed that the initial point of contact should always be me.

We never had problems later on!”

Along with the financial knowledge and news, employers may also expect you to keep upskilling yourself over time.

Before, you just needed to have some financial knowledge as a fresher if you wanted to apply for such jobs.

Now, you are expected to have a good knowledge of Excel and some hands-on experience in Python and R language and any other data analytics tool such as Power BI or Tableau.

What efforts you are making to keep improving your skills can greatly affect the outcome of your interviews.

Sample answer:

“My previous job offered the entire team a lot of upskilling opportunities, which was the single primary reason why I decided to join there despite a few other offers.

I was regularly offered to attend workshops and networking events with peers and sign up for skill-specific certifications. The entire team met every month to discuss what we did regarding upskilling and whether it had any impact so far.

I also read industry-specific publications, journals, and reputable websites to stay updated on the latest research and case studies.

I believe that hands-on experience is the best upskilling opportunity, and proud to say that despite times when we did not have a project to work on, our leads always made sure that we were helping the other teams or working on something impactful.”

If there’s a skill that is highly valued in all the industries, then it is the leadership skills. A person who has the guts to lead and take the blame even if they fail is a trait that we may not find in many.

Then it doesn’t matter if you are the hardest-working or smartest person. It’s just an aura that you feel when you look at the person; you know that this person can make things ‘happen’.

I heard this somewhere; maybe it's a quote or a movie dialogue, but it goes something like this - “If a company has 100 employees, think that 90 of them do not care about the company. They will come in, work for a few hours, take the money home, and be happy with the family.

The next 7 are the first ‘true’ leaders who can make things happen. Even though they are just 7% of the company, they hold the capacity to make 90% of the things happen.

The final 3 are the backbones of a company that virtually exists to be the single most important cog in the entire puzzle”.

If you demonstrate the abilities of the top 10, no hiring agency in their right mind would let go of you.

Sample answer:

“ As with every team in every organization, we had a problem with meeting deadlines. Coupled with that, our team leader put in a 15-day notice and communicated that he was looking for new challenges.

Hiring on such short notice was going to be a pain for everyone, so I was asked to lead the team.

The next few days were difficult since I had to understand all the different modules our team was working on. I knew that if I had to earn their respect and trust, then it had to be through my experience and problem-solving skills.

We held weekly meetings to communicate our responsibilities and supported each other to meet the critical deadlines.

We even had discussions on some of the projects where the possibility of improving the process existed. This exercise also offered us critical insights that even the clients did not know of.

Our TATs in the project execution came down low from the previous deadlines. The higher-ups were happy with how the entire team was progressing with the deliverables.”

Another question that you should answer honestly. Anything could be your motivation - your wish to see your parents happy, money, travel, getting a beautiful wife, getting a Mbappe-esqe Saudi Football Club contract for your newborn, etc.

If you state your motivation honestly, and it shows through your aura, they will easily identify it. Most companies often have disturbing workloads and may expect you to work overtime without bonuses.

At such times, it is easy to get demotivated and think about quitting. They want to identify if you would fall in such a category since most companies have good ROI on people who stay for a long time.

Sample answer:

“ If there’s one thing that motivates me every single day to wake up from my bed, get that cold bath, and travel 12 miles one side, then it has to be for becoming a successful investment banker.

For months, I struggled to bag interviews, even at boutiques. I networked and met people, but no one would look at my profile. The bottom line was that I did not have a top degree.

I knew that if I had to break into IB, then I had to do something out of the box, which I actually did. So if there’s a day when I don’t feel like working, I just think about where I would have been if it wasn’t for my efforts.

My work is definitely challenging - it affects me mentally and physically. Bankers often complain that it's too much stress and affects their bodies negatively, but I have understood that if we maintain a strict regime, IB can be a really fun job.

Obviously, there are worse days, too, but that’s the case in every other profile. The grass always seems greener on the other side for every other person.”

Adapting to the ever-changing requirements of work is another skill that is valued highly by most organizations. Think about it this way - today, you are asked to prepare a financial model, and tomorrow, you are asked to write a code that makes those models automatically.

You should mention a situation where you acquired a new skill either on your own or from your teammates and successfully applied it in the project.

Sample answer:

“ In my previous role, I was working on this one task that was quite repetitive in nature. After deleting a few rows of data, we had to save the Excel file in the path, open it, and then make another copy as a PDF.

My manager said that it was something that could be automated and asked if I could write a few lines of macro that could fulfill the purpose.

Obviously, I had neither the experience nor the background to write the code. Prioritizing it, I spent the next two days studying how to write macros exactly. After a bit of digging into it, I found it quite interesting and was able to write basic copy/paste codes.

Now I had the direction; I just needed to implement it properly. Looked at some macro examples and built the entire structure for the one that I needed. It worked pretty well for its first run, but yes, I did need to make a couple of iterations later on to make it more robust and compatible.”

When hundreds of other people are applying for the same role, you must point out some of your strengths that many might not possess. Whether it is the experience or your leadership qualities, be vocal in what opportunities you present to the organization through you.

Sample answer:

“I believe that it is not about what sets me apart but what value I add to the organization. With my extensive research-oriented experience working across multiple deals, I can hit the ground running immediately.

I still have ample room to grow in terms of learning, considering age is on my side. Well, that’s the advantage of starting early and gaining valuable experience, while the degree is just a bonus.

I have worked individually as well as led teams on a few deals and projects, and in every one of them, we did not disappoint the clients.

With my experience and ability to make an instant impact, I believe I can play a huge role in helping XYZ organization's long-term goals.”

Just a simple question to know more about their organization. You can ask about the salary they are offering or any other roles that you can refer to for your friends.

Sample answer:

“ Thanks, Mr/Mrs XYZ, it was a pleasure talking to you. You know, during our conversation, I got really curious about what other location ABC Corp has its office in. I remember you mentioning that ABC Corp recently started its operation in a new location.”

Questions like this can help create a positive impact on the interviewer by showcasing your attentiveness.