IB Analyst Disaster.

Haven't seen this post in a while, and I'm interested in hearing everyones stories. Below I've included my own story, which happened at a large boutique firm on the east coast. It's lengthy but hopefully a worthwhile read.

To begin, I'm in the office it's around mid-afternoon on a Friday and one of our Managing Directors (an MD I rarely work with) leans over my cubical and says "Come talk to me before you leave work," he walks away without another word.

Naturally I start trying to piece together what I did wrong and why it requires a discussion. I start looking through old emails... trying to see if I forgot a deliverable on a project. I find no pending communication.

Side Note: *The aforementioned MD is notorious for his lack of communication and organization. He's one of those guys where the cliche, "you couldn't manage your way out of a paper bag" takes on a whole new level of seriousness.
*
It's now late evening, so I stop by the MD's office to see what he wanted to discuss (he's watching youtube videos). We start by catching up on current business. Everything seems fine so far, and he says "I've spoken with the other Directors and they mentioned you've been doing really well around the office. You and I don't really get the opportunity to work together on many projects, so I thought it would be good for you to attend a panel discussion I'm leading tomorrow morning at 7am, the address is (blank). I'll meet you at the (Large East Coast restaurant chain across the street) and we can grab coffee before, sound good?" I confirm, and he dives headlong into his "work."

Saturday Morning:

I wake up, get into my car by 5am, and drive to the panel discussion making it there by 6:45am. When I call my Director to tell him I've made it to the panel discussion, he pierces the phone, "YOU"RE AT THE PANEL ALREADY!!!??? You were supposed to pick me up at my home (located 2 hours away)??" He hangs up the phone...

Confused, I find the auditorium where the panel discussion is being held. The maintenance staff is setting up the chairs and microphones... I find out that I'm 2 hours early to the panel discussion. My MD allotted the time into my commute to pick him up, but had failed to mention that I needed to pick him up.

Fifteen Minutes pass:

My phone rings, it's my MD's wife... she's distraught and hurries through her introduction, attacking the phone with haste, "There was a confusion with (said MD's) driver this morning, it's a long story. You need to call him and give him directions to the big meeting. HE JUST STORMED OUT OF OUR HOUSE AND HAS NO IDEA WHERE HE'S GOING! MY KID HAS A PLAY THAT I NEED TO DROP HIM OFF AT, AND I CANT DEAL WITH THIS!!"

I reassure that I'll get her husband proper directions, and she jumps off the phone.

I call my MD and begin giving him directions to the panel discussion from his home. I also swallow my pride and follow up with an apology for not picking him up this morning because it wasn't made clear he needed a ride. He says nothing (I hear high revving engine noises over the line)... My MD hangs up the phone.

30 minutes have passed:

Senior bankers from all different industries are slowly starting to dribble into the auditorium (about 20 - 25 so far).

My phone rings again, it's my MD's wife. Unable to brace myself for impact, she rattles, "MY HUSBAND IS LOST, AND CANNOT FIND THE BIG MEETING!!! YOU NEED TO FIGURE THIS OUT!!! (Starting to sob) I CANT DEAL WITH THIS. My KID IS LATE TO HIS PLAY AND I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO..." Then without warning, she violently pierces the silence, "GET HIM THE GOD DAMN DIRECTIONS!!!" and hangs up the phone.

I call my MD right away, and reiterate the directions to the panel discussion with slow......methodical...... and..... deliberate clarity for each turn. Afterwards making sure that he confirms the directions were received and understood. Around this time, I also begin calculating his transit time. With rush hour traffic there is no way he's is going to make the panel discussion on time. I start to sweat.

An hour and a half has passed:

I wait nervously by my phone. The auditorium is starting to fill up, there are around 80-90 senior bankers chattering and networking.

10 minutes before the Discussion Panel

My phone rings... It's my Managing Director, "I'm not going to make the panel on time... I'm still an hour away from the auditorium. Did you talk to the panel organizer to see if he could change the time for me?"

I respond, "I was only able to postpone the panel for 15 minutes."

(...My MD pauses to think....)

He chuckles, "I guess you'll have to lead the discussion for me. This will be your punishment for not picking me up!"

I. SHIT. BRICKS. (I'm a first year analyst and have NO idea how the fuck to lead a panel discussion).

My MD starts giving me instructions, "The topic is how PE firms handle distressed portfolio companies. Make sure when you get up there, you don't introduce yourself as an Analyst. Say you're a Senior Associate with the firm. Here are a couple of the questions I wrote down... I'll get there as soon as I can. Don't worry these things are easy! Just keep the panel members talking."

Panel Discussion:

When the time came, I walked onto the stage in front of around 100-120 people. Looking clearly 20 years younger than everyone else in the room I received some interesting stares. I made a brief introduction as a senior Associate, and facilitated discussion from the panel members for around 45 minutes. My heart beating out of my chest the entire time.

My MD showed up a half hour late to the panel, and caught the last 15 minutes of my discussion. We shared a laugh when I got off the stage, but he still won't admit fault for the incident. I never brought up the calls I had with his wife.

All well that ends well (I guess).

Mod Note (Andy): Post with one of the most views of the year.

 

Or one of those really inefficient ones. *watches Youtube videos at work *forgot to mention that OP was to pick him up *cannot follow basic map directions easily *married a neurotic woman

GoldenCinderblock: "I keep spending all my money on exotic fish so my armor sucks. Is it possible to romance multiple females? I got with the blue chick so far but I am also interested in the electronic chick and the face mask chick."
 
Keyser Söze 123:
I. SHIT. BRICKS.

/dying

I would read a full thread of everyone's greatest brick-shitting moments. I can immediately think of a half-dozen times early on in some high-pressure spots when I was pretty sure I was going to throw up.

"Son, life is hard. But it's harder if you're stupid." - my dad
 

Who doesn't?

GoldenCinderblock: "I keep spending all my money on exotic fish so my armor sucks. Is it possible to romance multiple females? I got with the blue chick so far but I am also interested in the electronic chick and the face mask chick."
 

I'm 100% certain I would have had a heart attack on the spot back when I was an analyst.

Kudos to you for stepping up. Even if the story was made up, good shit here.

Life's is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
 

He reminds me of my old boss from my old tech company.

+1 SB'd. This was gold. I know the feeling when you have to do a presentation in front of people who think of you as a baby compared to them.

 
Keyser Söze 123:
(...My MD pauses to think....)
Surprised you didn't hear the [dial-up sound](

) here ...

Keyser Söze 123:
I never brought up the calls I had with his wife.
You should; tell him what a 'melodic voice' his wife has.
I am permanently behind on PMs, it's not personal.
 

I'm glad this story has a happy ending. I was sort of expecting the MD to be a real asshole and blame you for it (because frankly, that kind of thing - even if something is entirely their fault - is not uncommon). But he seems like a good guy that takes things in stride, and the person that freaked out the most was his wife.

I once got chewed out because an MD though I typed a lowercase "L" instead of a capital I (the font makes it difficult to see the difference). I didn't make a mistake, and when I proved I didn't - no apology, no nothing.

 
<span itemprop=name>Kanon</span>:

I once got chewed out because an MD though I typed a lowercase "L" instead of a capital I (the font makes it difficult to see the difference). I didn't make a mistake, and when I proved I didn't - no apology, no nothing.

Haha, rookie mistake. You don't prove you did anything wrong to your MD in banking. You just suck it up and accept it. Egoistic bastards.
GoldenCinderblock: "I keep spending all my money on exotic fish so my armor sucks. Is it possible to romance multiple females? I got with the blue chick so far but I am also interested in the electronic chick and the face mask chick."
 

Fun story. Had a boss just like this. We called him Kramer because his head was always spinning.

Regardless of who's fault it is, always say something like: okay, I'll see you there, or something.

I do this when I need some sort of approval the next day and just say see ya tomorrow. If he's out, he'll say something.

Great story. This industry is litterally a minefield of shit like that.

My boss once got incredibly lost taking a group head to a team dinner. We all waited at the restaurant for an hour while the GH texted the other bankers saying "get me out of this fucking car."

That's a CLM for sure.

 

Most MDs still live in the 1920s. I'm surprised they don't wear fedoras and build models on paper..

GoldenCinderblock: "I keep spending all my money on exotic fish so my armor sucks. Is it possible to romance multiple females? I got with the blue chick so far but I am also interested in the electronic chick and the face mask chick."
 

Great history! But it was your fault. You have mentioned yourself that he asked you to meet him at Large East Coast restaurant chain for breakfast. He also said: lets grab a coffee BEFORE the conference. But you went right to the conference instead. Details sometimes make the whole difference

 

That's a good one, sounds like you handled it pretty well. I guess in hindsight you could've thought to ask if he needed transportation to the panel, but he did say he'd meet you for coffee and probably took the chance to throw you under the bus when he realized he needed a ride. Literally nothing you could've done to avoid the situation.

Ace all your PE interview questions with the WSO Private Equity Prep Pack: http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/guide/private-equity-interview-prep-questions
 

Great story haha. Sure a lot of commenters have bashed on the MD (rightfully), but when you're pulling 7 figures, eh the downsides he has are probably acceptable. Not great for you obv, but sounds like you dealt with it really well. Cheers!

 

That's because IBD budgets and bonuses are in a bind right now

GoldenCinderblock: "I keep spending all my money on exotic fish so my armor sucks. Is it possible to romance multiple females? I got with the blue chick so far but I am also interested in the electronic chick and the face mask chick."
 

You filled in and you didn't choke, I would say this was a victory. He could have had an accident on the way, being prepared to step in is a good skill to keep!

"All men are alike in their dreams, and all men are alike in the promises they make. The difference is what they do."— Jean Baptiste Moliere
 

IB keeps its rep because no one will admit they slaved away their undergrad earning perfect grades to simply slave away at an IB as a glorified assistant. Therefore IBD analysts make it sound "baller" with how much money they make and how they are closing deals while making it rain. In reality, they are powerpoint b!tchboys (aka the deck) who make pretty presentations to the sellers of businesses. Modeling is part of the job, but not a huge part. Despite what you learn in the CFA, valuation does not equal price. Some of you were bashing me for my comp valuation I was attempting awhile ago and how I should use free cash flows. Look, we are looking to buy a company at the lowest price possible and justify it by comps in the market, not do a DCF valuation and pay what the company is hypothetically worth 10 years from now.

IB is like spring break. Has any of you ever went for one? Every year tons of horny frat boys go South to places like Cancun, South Padre and Miami to party and hook up every night with ease like MTV made it out to be. I am here to tell you that it was all a ruse. When I went on spring break, it was easily 10 to 15 guys per girl, and most girls kept close to their crew since they know what our agenda was. The truth was far from what MTV made it out to be. However, no guy was going to admit they blew $2,000 on a spring break that was shittier than the run of the mill weekend in their college town; so they lie and say it was crazier than a GGW gang bang. There you have it folks. The cat is out of the bag.

 

This girl at my bank was urgently staffed on my team on lets say a Thursday. I was a summer analyst and my associates had both taken their holidays on an especially busy period. The poor girl must’ve forgotten to flag a small vacation (long w/e + protected) to our VP, she was virtually gone for 4 days, barely responsive on whatsapp. My seniors were so pissed off she was removed from the team and is probably never going to be staffed under this MD + shitty review (he’s the nicest guy ever).

 

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Sequi molestiae commodi quia debitis vel. Consequatur accusantium consequatur ut illo blanditiis. Provident quam mollitia voluptatibus.

Andy
 

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