Investment Banking Interns - Learn to Abuse the Office Printer. Here Are 5 Tips to Make Sure You Land The Return Offer This Summer.
Choose Your Adventure:
- Land return offer & coast SR year. Use hefty signing bonus to buy endless rounds of cheap college wells for you and your buddies
- Fall behind & be the guy sitting alone in the corner at the party - studying technicals to prep for re-recruitment
I secured a return offer from an elite boutique in NY last summer.
The advice the director our IB org. (spent 30 years in banking) gave me before starting made sure I got started on the right foot.
Here are 5 tips he shared to help me secure the bag
#1 - PROBLEM & SOLUTION
Never just inform the banker of the problem you are running into. All about taking things off their plate.
Offer 2-3 ways that you could help fix it and ask if you can get started on any of those ways.
You'll be viewed as a problem solver & someone who finds ways to get things done - not a complainer.
#2 - FIND YOUR “OLDER BROTHER”
Get close with ONE analyst / associate. Someone you resonate with based on interests / background
Build trust & comfortability - they'll give you areas to improve BEFORE mid- & end-of-summer reviews
I would swing by my "older brother's" desk > 2x / day to shoot the crap and grabbed coffee x2 / wk
#3 - BUILD HABITS FOR EASY THINGS
Make the basics second nature:
- Print & redline deliverables before sending, Carry pen & paper at all times, Ask for timing/prioritization every assignment, Open all files & re-read emails, Updating teams hourly on progress to keep in loop
#4 - BE KNOWN AS AN EARLY RISER
If you are known as the guy who gets to the office 20min before everyone - nobody will question you if there is ever a train delay / you sleep in / whatever.
I'd always swing by desks to do "check-ins" with my deal teams right away to make it known I was there
#5 - KEEP HEAD ABOVE WATER
The high-pressure environment is a night & day switch-up from college.
Daily facetimes to family/friends, going for a walk everyday to clear mind & exercising on the weekend are all easy ways.
Bump - good post
Could you elaborate on point #4 what you mean by check-ins?
For sure.
No need to overthink it, I’d usually just say g’morning and make some small talk about NHL game night before / something else going on in the world first.
Once that died down would just bring up whatever we are working on together and ask about what he expects to be next steps for that and game plan a bit
I’m a FT analyst and use these points to build a good rep and be good at the job.
Can you stop with these posts? They're annoying. You're a nobody, we all know these posts serve as a platform for you to brag.
Everyone is a nobody; he's trying to give some good advice. Don't think a company can't replace you in a heartbeat, the other analysts and associates will be pissed about the workload, but they won't care in the long run. I've seen MD's and Principles let go in a heartbeat. Think of all the CEOs who get let go and paid to leave. That person was a nobody who was paid to leave, and then more money was paid to bring someone in new to replace them.
Honestly, I'd like to see the professionalism from an intern; dealing with these target interns, I can't haze anymore.
Actually, not bad. A lot of this used to be more common years ago, but remains quite useful.
A couple of points:
• Big Brother - I've seen this prove quite useful, in that you establish rapport, and a connection, and the person ends up being in a position to give input or advocate for you.
I know of a junior who did something helpful for a senior, and it developed into a close mentoring scenario, that others started referring to the senior as almost like his godfather. He looked out for that junior, protected him, and defended him.
That senior went to the top, and he made sure that junior kept getting promoted as well; and when he retired, that junior was viewed as his successor. It can pay off to be on good terms with someone in a position to be like a big brother.
• Early/Check-in - I saw this a lot years ago, and was suggested by a very senior person.
Those on the fast-track, would make sure to be there a bit early, just long enough to be seen getting coffee and to appear already settled in (not rushing in with everyone else). A few minutes early, gave the impression as if he was already there for a while.
A good example of this... I remember one guy would come in early, and he would get coffee, and be seen already comfortable/settled in, while everyone else was rushing in. It gave the impression that he was working already for a while.
Then, returning to his desk with coffee, he would take a long route around the office, and "check-in" with people he knew around the office -- it could be just random small talk, greeting them, but the point was that he was seen by everyone. When it was time for promotion, bonus, or key deals, it was almost automatic of him being in mind.
I noticed that several guys did this, and they usually ended up on a fast-track.
I remember one guy who made it to top leadership, and he still did that in the morning, walking around. I asked him about it, and he answered, "visibility" that you want to be seen, and noticed by everyone -- including to check-in with colleagues or juniors, to ask how they were doing, and to make sure everyone felt noticed, and like he remembered them. The more they felt remembered, the more they remembered him, and thought highly of him.
The key is to be seen, and to check-in with others, in a way that gives you visibility, and that makes you appear in a positive light.
Good post.
I am tempted to start writing up details like this, as I think some of it could be helpful (I don't know about other posts by OP, but this wasn't bad). It reminds me of what I remember, but that haven't seen as much since the 90s.
The early check-in is easy except when in a live deal. Having to sacrifice more sleep to be in the office early when you had consecutive late nights is impossible
Agreed, more of when it's convenient or possible; as the pace around each group or office environment might not make it a consistent reality.
Also, isn't really about getting there much earlier, it's about giving the appearance of getting there earlier.
If everyone tends to rush in around the same time, getting there 5-10 minutes before them, and to look already settled in, this will give the appearance, of you being early.
Remember, an appearance can be sufficient, to make it appear like it's reality.
If you get there 1 min before, grab a coffee cup, or sit at your desk, and say "good morning" to someone who walked in seconds behind you; then you just created the appearance of being there early -- and being seen as being early.
I hope that helps.
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