Investment bankers are notorious for working extremely long hours. It is not uncommon for investment banking analysts to work +100 hours per week. While there is no “typical” day of an investment banker you can be expected to do financial modeling, putting together pitchbooks, working through deal memorandum and everything else that goes into a typical deal.
Analysts typically wake up around 9am and stroll into the office around 10am, this is one profession where you don’t have a morning deadline. You’ll get to your desk and see a fresh round of edits from either a marketing pitch or live deal work. The higher-ups typically get into the office much earlier and review the work you left at 2am from the night before.
Analysts typically don’t get super busy until after lunch, your managing directors are notoriously unorganized professionals and usually don’t lay out the “to-do” list until they leave the office around 6pm.
Your night will be spent further building out pitch-books, working on deal models, or working through various transaction alternatives (i.e., we need to show management that this deal is more accretive adding debt vs. cash).
You will receive final edits/comments from higher-ups once they finish up dinner at home – your night will then be spent doing an excess amount of work that has to be completed before your Managing Director gets into the office at 7am.
When I was a banker I spent about 50% of my time in Excel and 50% in PowerPoint – every model you build has to be presented nicely in a PowerPoint presentation. While interviewers won’t typically ask you about PowerPoint skills they will expect you to know how to work a financial model.
The roles and responsibilities of an Analyst vary by department, but might include:
- Analyzing detailed corporate and financial information
- Creating statistical exhibits that analyze comparative financial performance
- Building models to illustrate projected financial results and value to companies
- Developing marketing memoranda
- Participating in the execution of financings and M&A transactions
- Delivering sections of research presentations
- Acting as the liaison for the team and other parts of the firm
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