Wake Forest University

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client logo here

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Wake Forest University

The World of Financial Services

David R. Hanson ('05)September 2013

Do Not Distribute - For Wake Forest University Students Only

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Agenda (Approximate Times)

8:00 – 8:45pm What Is Finance? Dave Hanson

8:45 – 8:50pm What it takes Dr. Sherry Jarrell

9:00 – 9:45pm Panel Discussion Class of 2014

9:45 – 10:00pm Finance Club Club Leaders


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Who Are You And Why Are You Here?

Background

Path To Finance / Investment Banking

Current Role

Wake On Wall Street


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Wake On Wall Street (WOWS) WOWS was started in 2009 by WF alumni in finance roles

– Mission: To increase the awareness and brand value of Wake Forest’s students in the world of Finance / Business and beyond

– Over 3,000+ Wake alumni, parents, and friends

Goals:– Job Placement (undergraduates / MS / MSA / MBA / and alumni)– Networking– Education (Mentoring, Student Visits, Faculty Visits, Panels)

How to connect to WOWS:– http://www.wakeonwallst.com – Facebook.com/WakeOnWallStreet – LinkedIn.com/in/WakeOnWallStreet


Section 1

What Is Finance?


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What Is Finance? Finance is a very broad term related to:

– 1) How capital is acquired, and – 2) How capital is managed

Matching those who have capital with those who need capital

Generally, Finance encompasses the capital activities of:– Personal Finance (individuals)– Corporate Finance (businesses)– Public Finance (government entities)


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Areas of Finance

Accounting


Corporate Finance

Investment Banking

Investment Management

Audit Transaction Services

Coverage Research

Asset Management Alternative Investments

Wealth Management

FP&A Corporate Development

Sales & Trading

Brokerage Private Banking

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Accounting


Job Description Qualifications Technical Accounting

– Generally entry level positions as an audit background is not required

– Reading transaction documents – Structuring transactions based on

accounting rules so that the client gets desired accounting treatment

Due Diligence– Typically buy-side– M&A deal environment – Assess quality/sustainability of

financial metrics, identify significant financial items related to valuation, assist with purchase agreement negotiation issues

Travel is required

Internships in public acctg./finance or experience in business/finance

Coursework in accounting required Finance coursework encouraged

and may help differentiate you, but not required

Strong excel skills are important in due diligence

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Accounting


Hours Compensation & Review Technical Accounting

– Monday – Friday 9am – 7pm Due Diligence

– Hours & workdays unpredictable– Deal deadline may require 55-90 hrs.,

sometimes including weekends– When not staffed or when deal work

is slower (for example when waiting for information), work commitment is less (40 hours in a week)

Undergraduate hire (Associate)– Base salary mid $60K – Bonuses of 5-15% of base

Sr. Associate– MBAs / 2-3 years relevant experience – Base mid $80-90K– Bonuses of 5-15% of base

Annual review of qualitative performance and base / bonus– Good performance normally is

rewarded with marginal base salary increases every year

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Accounting


Career Progression Firms with WF Alumni Associate to Sr Associate 2yrs Sr Associate to Manager 3 years Firms will not promote someone to

a Manager without professional designation (CFA/CPA)

Many leave at Sr Associate / Manager to do due diligence at PE

Partners have 12-15 years at a firm

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Corporate Finance


Job Description Qualifications Applying efforts to a company in

order to manage the money for carrying out the business, enhance the dealings with external relationships (customers, suppliers, etc), project for its future finance and handle monetary activities

Opportunities for career progression can be in Treasury, Financial Planning and Analysis, Financial Reporting, Operations Accounting, etc.

Bachelors in Business, Accounting, Economics or Finance

MBA or CPA designation preferred at higher levels

Internships within industry are extremely beneficial

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Corporate Finance


Hours Compensation & Review Mon. – Fri. 8am – ~5:30-7:30pm Weekend and longer hours are

needed depending upon time of year and project load

Analyst– Base salary ~$30-70K depending

upon industry, firm, geographic location and your experience

Associate or Senior Analyst – $60-100K plus bonus potential (tied to

corporate performance) Annual review of performance and

base / bonus and semi-annual review of performance

Raises annual or semi-annual depending upon economic conditions and performance

Often performance is reviewed both personally and relevant to peers in similar role (ranking system

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Corporate Finance


Career Progression Firms with WF Alumni Start as Analyst, progress to Senior

Analyst or Associate, Manager Senior roles: Director, Vice

President, Senior Vice President, Controller, Treasurer, CFO

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Investment Banking

Investment banking is the process of assisting entities via:– Coverage

• Raising capital (equity, debt, hybrids, etc.)• M&A (acquiring, selling or splitting companies/pieces of companies)• Other advisory assignments (takeover defense, fairness opinions, etc.)

– Research• Analyze companies, securities (equities, fixed income, other), sectors• Publish recommendations

– Sales & Trading• Make markets in securities • Connect buyers and sellers of securities


Investment Banking Coverage Research Sales & Trading

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Investment Banking

Often referred to as / separated into:– Sell side: bankers who create and sell securities (e.g., IPOs) and – Buy side: people who invest in securities (insurance companies, hedge

funds, private equity funds, pension funds)



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Title Role Years

experience

Managing Director Most senior industry professional 10++

Director / Principal Intermediate officer position 7 – 15

Vice President First officer position in most firms 5 – 10

Associate MBAs; First permanent position 2 – 6

Analyst Undergraduate, 2-3 year program 0 – 3

Intern Undergraduate Juniors, Summer 0

Investment Banking: Titles and RolesM

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CEO

Head of Investment Banking

Group Head

MD MD MD MD

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VP VP VP VP VP VPVP VP VP VP VP VP

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Who Are The Investment Banks?

Bulge Bracket Full Service / Regional / Boutique


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Investment Banking (Coverage) - Structure

Industry Groups Product Groups

Consumer and Retail

Energy and Power

Financial Sponsors

Financial Institutions

Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals

Industrials

Media and Telecom

Real Estate

Technology, Media, and Telecom

Debt Capital Markets

Equity Capital Markets

Leveraged Finance

Mergers & Acquisitions

Restructuring

Securitization


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Investment Bankers (Coverage)

Originate Business Execute Business Generate ideas

– Strategic alternatives– Capital raising– Risk management

Solve problems Produce client pitches/materials

– Quantitative analysis– Qualitative analysis

Initiate/maintain contact w / Clients

Due diligence Documentation

– SEC merger and offering documents– Purchase and sale, Other agreements

Financial analysis (valuation, accounting impact)

Presentations for Board meetings– Financial analysis– Strategic rationale– Market receptivity/reaction

Internal committee materials Identify potential investors and

develop investor marketing materials

Negotiation/structuring Client management

Credit: ML GM&IB


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What Does An Analyst Do All Day?

Analyst responsibilities What you should expect Financial analysis Industry and company-

specific research Developing client

presentations (pitches) Valuation (financial modeling) Marketing materials,

management presentations and road show involvement

12 – 18 hour days (every day) Very high stress Multi-tasking Menial grunt work and

micromanagement Meetings and conference

calls throughout the day/night Sacrifice your personal life

(and health?) for this career 1-3 meals/day at work Canceling vacations and

missing holidays/birthdays when needs arise

Credit: Jeff Smith


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Investment Banking (Research)


Job Description Hours Entry level position is typically a

“Research Assistant” or “Research Associate” depending on the firm

Will work with a Senior Analyst to cover a specific industry sector

Typical responsibilities include– fundamental company analysis– proprietary research generation– report writing– interacting w institutional sales force

and investment management clients Sell-side research is the sell-side

complement to traditional investment management

Depends largely on Sr Analyst/firm Plan for minimum of ~60 hrs during

the week, 7AM – 7PM Some weekends Some late nights finishing reports

for morning distribution

Career Progression Typically join as Junior Associate

for 1-2 years Associate Analyst for another 1-2

years, with promotion to Senior Analyst based on availability and aptitude after ~4 years

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Investment Banking (Sales & Trading)


Job Description S&T is the participation in the execution flow of a transaction involving

equities, fixed income, currencies, or commodities Product knowledge, risk management and the ability to translate a plethora of

information quickly are core competencies– Pricing, market news, trading flows being executed on your firm‟s floor and “away”

from you in the market Entry level positions often in Operations or as Jr Analysts in “front-office”

– Direct desk placement or sales/trader support– Significant amount of time “shadowing” a senior salesman or trader, or in an

operational support role, for several years of development Thereafter granted responsibility of trading on behalf of the firm or managing

client relationships

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Hours Varies dependent on asset class

and job function 7am-6pm is common for Jr position Crucial: added hours out of office

digesting themes Many use out-of-office hours to

study markets, news, trends to predict implications for markets

Career Progression Added responsibilities come with

demonstrated performance, character, eagerness

Progression towards junior trading or junior sales role in 2 years

Not uncommon for individuals in mid-to-late 20s to be primary sales coverage / primary trader for firm

Buy-side of the business often lures top-tier traders away after solid performance records

S/T Analysts or Trainees will often pursue CFA charter to broaden skill set

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Investment Banking Compensation


Coverage S&T Base salary + varying bonus

structures Larger institutions will have a

bonus structure roughly 20%-40% of base

Smaller trading firms pay on production basis that is correlated with the firm’s overall performance

Research

Competitive base salary ~$70k Bonus ~50-125% base Annual review of qualitative

performance and base/bonus in Dec-Feb. timeframe

Annual base salary increases of ~15%. Bonus “bands” increase every year but actual performance bonus is based almost entirely on individual performance

Bonuses move with strength/weakness of markets

Depends on geography, typically modest base (i.e. lower than coverage / S&T)

Discretionary bonus 0-50% of base

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Investment Management Asset Management Alternative Investments

Investment Management is the management of capital for institutional investors– Distinct due to focus outside of ‘retail’ investors– Institutional investors generally include:

• Corporate pension plans (e.g., IBM)• Government pension plans (e.g., CalPERS)• Endowments (e.g., Wake Forest Endowment)• Foundations (e.g., Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation)• Sovereign Wealth Funds (e.g., ADIA)• Some ultra-high-net-worth clients (e.g., George Soros)

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Asset management and Alternative investments overlap– Asset management is often called ‘Traditional’, focusing on:

• Equities• Fixed income

– Whereas Alternatives focus on:• Private Equity• Hedge Funds• Real Estate• Other (Timber, etc.)

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Asset Management


Job Description Qualifications Entry level positions include Junior

Analyst positions in Operations, Research, Marketing, etc.

Operations could include trade reconciliation, security pricing and performance report generation

Research focuses on stock or bond fundamental analysis including company and industry research, financial statement analysis, modeling and valuation, management meetings and new idea screening and generation

Marketing entails client prospecting, database updating, client performance and asset allocation analysis

Relevant internships or experience in business / finance

Finance & accounting coursework helpful but not required

Passion for the markets Computer skills helpful

(Bloomberg, Factset, Capital IQ)

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Asset Management


Hours Monday – Friday 8am – 6pm Read WSJ before work Weekend reading on markets and

securities helpful What you put in, is what you'll get

out of it”

Career Progression Often start as in Junior Analyst role

in Operations, Marketing or Research

Goal is to teach fundamentals of investment management operations and business; some rotational & training programs at larger firms

Progression towards Senior Analyst after 2-4 years

CFA or MBA recommended at this point to reach Portfolio Manager

Associate Portfolio Managers jobs attainable at age 30-35

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Asset Management


Compensation Firms with WF Alumni Modest / average base salary as

Junior Analyst Bonus at roughly 20-50% of base Annual review of qualitative

performance and base / bonus Good performance normally

rewarded with marginal salary and bonus increases every 1-2 years

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Alternative Asset Management (HF & PE)


Job Description Firms with WF Alumni Almost always only post-two years

of investment banking / corporate finance experience / MBA– Why?

Buyside equivalent to sellside research – Focuses on stock or bond

fundamental analysis including company and industry research, financial statement analysis, modeling and valuation

– Management meetings and new idea screening and generation

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Wealth Management


Wealth Management Brokerage Private Banking

Wealth Management is the management of capital for individual investors– Often called ‘retail’ investors

Brokerage customers– Discount (e.g., E-Trade)– Full service (e.g., Merrill Lynch)

Private Banking customers– High net worth (HNW): $1mm+ investable assets– UHNW: definition varies ~$10mm+

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Wealth Management


Job Description Qualifications Teams: Analysts support bankers

– Responsible for bringing in new business, servicing current clients with customized financial strategies, explaining strategy and products to clients, and managing relationships

Analysts can also work on an Investment Solutions Teams working on market strategy, alternative investments, fixed income, and equity groups – Conduct research and analysis,

monitor macroeconomic developments, conceptualize how the model portfolios will implement the team's views, assist with product development and respond to inquiries from clients and professionals

Inquisitive, analytical and focused Demonstrate passion for private

banking, desire to be a team player Be able to use both qualitative and

quantitative tools to analyze complex financial situations

Excellent communication skills, as well as the initiative, energy and confidence to complete projects with limited supervision

Judgment & discretion in working with highly confidential information

For placement on a U.S.-based Latin American team, fluent language skills and cultural knowledge are essential

Minimum GPA of 3.2 is valued

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Wealth Management


Hours Compensation & Review Monday – Friday 7:30am – 8pm Morning calls daily at 8am

Average starting base salary - $70K Bonus at roughly 20-50% of base Ongoing performance reviews with

your manager Strong performance is normally

rewarded with marginal base salary and bonus increases every year

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Wealth Management


Career Progression Firms with WF Alumni 3 year Analyst program Thereafter, strong Analysts may be

promoted to Associate Many Analysts who complete the

program go on to Business School or pursue other positions

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Bringing It All Together: Example

Safeway (NYSE: SWY)Publicly Traded; $6bn Market Cap.


Accounting

Corporate Finance

Investment Banking


Audit Transaction Services

Coverage Research

Asset Management Alternative Investments

Wealth Management

FP&A Corporate Development

Sales & Trading

Brokerage Private Banking

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IB Equity Research analyst publishes a note on Safeway (SWY)– Safeway trading below peer valuation levels – Analyze management’s options and potential impact on stock

• Spin-off of Blackhawk would unlock $1bn of enterprise value trapped in SWY• Most tax efficient alternative

– Recommends asset managers buy SWY stock on future value creation

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Institutional investors buy SWY as it is undervalued vs. peers– Hedge funds / activist investors (e.g., Pershing Square) approach management,

frustrated with underperformance• Suggest pursuing strategic alternatives: sale of whole company to PE / spin of Blackhawk• Threaten a proxy fight or a boardroom battle if issues not addressed

– Asset Managers / passive investors (e.g., Sasco Capital) patiently wait for a catalyst


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IB Coverage banker (GS) meets with Safeway – Safeway trading below peer valuation levels – Bankers recommend SWY spin-off or sell Blackhawk to unlock value– Safeway engages GS to dual-track an IPO / sale process– Coverage bankers:

• IPO:– Prepare S-1 filings – Recommend valuation ($1.2bn) and price range ($20 to $22)

• Sale:– Contact potential buyers including strategics (e.g., Harris Teeter) and financials (e.g., KKR)– Coordinate due diligence by potential buyers– Gather bids from potential buyers

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Accounting Audit Transaction Services




SWY engages Deloitte team in San Francisco– Audit

• Perform audit• Prepare financial statements• Test internal controls

– Transaction Services• Read transaction documents• Analyze potential sale to minimize tax• Analyze potential IPO to minimize tax• Advise company on different avenues / structures • Assess quality/sustainability of financial metrics, identify significant financial items related to

valuation (e.g., drivers)• Assist with purchase agreement negotiation issues

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Corporate Finance FP&A Corporate Development




SWY internal CF team works with:– Various internal departments to forecast future revenue & financials – Coverage IB to prepare financial statements– Audit team to perform audit, prepare financial statements, test internal controls– Transaction Services to analyze potential structures– M&A lawyers to prepare transaction documents– Potential buyers to conduct due diligence

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KKR, Blackstone, Cerberus, other PE shops look at SWY– Buy the whole company then optimize (LBO / Take private)

• Cerberus roll-up strategy• New management team • Restructure and shield from public scrutiny by taking private• Ultimately, PE shops can’t bid enough for a take private to make sense

– Buy whole co and split into pieces to sell to other strategics• Sell certain regions to geographically-interested strategics (e.g., Harris Teeter)• Tax inefficient (Transaction Services)

– Buy Blackhawk only• Tax inefficient (Transaction Services)


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IB Coverage (now GS, BAC, C, DB ) advises SWY spin-off Blackhawk IB S&T gauge investor support for Blackhawk IPO:

– Brokerage / Private Bank clients– Asset managers, hedge funds, other investors

IB S&T executes IPO and distributes new shares – Recommends final pricing level ($23) and deal structure for syndicate– Prices IPO (HAWK on Nasdaq) 10 million shares at $23 each– Distributes shares to asset managers and other investors– Supports shares in aftermarket (shares must go up!)– Makes markets in shares for buyers/sellers

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Strategists at GS, BAC, C, DB analyze client needs for those seeking growth stocks in the financial and/or technology spaces– Prepare recommendations for clients to buy shares of HAWK in the IPO– Explain why the move towards prepaid cards will benefit HAWK over time– Clients agree and purchase shares for their accounts– Clients who purchase shares see +13% to $26.01 at the close

Wealth Management Brokerage Private Banking

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Everyone wins!



Accounting

Corporate Finance

Investment Banking


Paid fees for Audit and TS

Paid IB fee, IPO fee, S&T commissions

HFs and Asset managers make money on SWY shares

Wealth Management

SWY stock went up; management and shareholders happy

Brokerage and PB clients make money on HAWK shares

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Section 2

How Do I Get In?


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Do You Want a Career in Finance? Develop a world-class skill set

– Significant learning opportunities– Corporate finance fundamentals

Career trajectory– Significant impact early in your career– 2 – 3 years at 80 – 100 hours/week = 5+ years experience– Give yourself long-term career options

Compensation – Don’t do it for this – you’ll never last!– Entrepreneurial culture rewards hard work

Dynamic and exciting environment– Culture of teamwork and partnership with motivated, best-in-class team– Challenging, fast-paced


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Competitive Environment Getting in is tough – no matter where you’re trying to go

– Nature of the business– Compensation levels– Status/prestige– Using banking to get to a future career

Unless you really, sincerely want this – you will not get in


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The Situation The bad news:

Many firms recruit analysts exclusively from “Ivy League” schools/“core” schools– After all, almost none of them has an undergraduate finance/business

major– You’re fighting an uphill battle

The good news: Wake Forest cranks out top notch candidates– There are WF alums across Wall Street– Undergraduate finance program is the best in the United States– If you can get in the door for an interview, you have a good shot – You can do it and others have– Fantastic recent momentum (2010-Now)


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What Will You Need?

Wake Track Record Traits and Skills Relevant Experience

High GPA

Finance courseload

Accounting courseload

Finance Club

Extremely strong work ethic

Quantitative ability

Intellectual curiosity

Communication skills

High energy level

Can-do attitude

Adaptability

Sophomore internship Finance, accounting, retail

brokerage, audit are ok The closer to what you want

to do next year - the better

Junior internship


You will take these and weave together your story:– Why you really want to be in X field (e.g., IB)– Why your background and experience are relevant– Why you’re a perfect fit for THIS firm

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Internships Internships are now the preferred way to recruit undergraduates as

analysts / entry level roles– 8 week interview in both directions– You effectively function as a full-time analyst with identical roles and

responsibilities (slightly fewer privileges) – 80+% of those hired as full time analysts to start after senior year

interned at the firm the prior summer

Junior internship– Single biggest determining factor for getting into finance– As a result, junior internships have become more competitive– How do you get one?


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Internships (continued)

Sophomore internship (post-Soph. summer)– Has become a key differentiator among top-quality candidates– The more relevant to your future field, the better– Matt DeSalvo – Notre Dame Story– Very difficult to get a pure IB internship as a sophomore– Corporate finance/private equity/hedge fund/boutique investment bank– Can be 1 month – 3 months+

Another good alternative: Semester internship in Winston-Salem– The more relevant to your future field, the better– Pays better than work-study at the library– There are IBs, PE firms, valuation firms, corp. fin. roles throughout WS– Do your own research


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How Should You Prepare?

Courses Reading / Other Finance

FIN 203 (Applied Quant. For Fin.)FIN 231 (Principles of Fin.)FIN 232 (Intermediate Fin.)FIN 233 (CDAF)FIN 234 (Int’l FIN)FIN 237 (Fin. Mkts & Institutions)FIN 331 (Corp. Fin.)FIN 332 (Banking & I-Banking)FIN 335 (Fin. Derivatives)FIN 336 (Fixed Inc. & Fin. Engin.)

AccountingACC 111 (Intro to Fin. Acc.)ACC 211 (Fin. Acc. )ACC 212 (Fin. Acc. – The

Sequel)ACC 221 (Mgmt. Acc.)

BusinessBUS 201 (Quant 1)BUS 202 (Quant 2 – The Sequel)BUS 385 (Seminar)BUS 390 (Int’l Bus. Tour)

Training the street

Financial Times Wall Street Journal The Economist Forbes Fortune Vault Guide to IB Berkshire Hathaway

shareholders’ letters Oaktree Capital

memos PIMCO – Bill Gross

letters Never Eat Alone -

Ferrazzi


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Learning About The Business Read the newspapers (WSJ, FT, Economist, others)

– Be current on major events in business world and current market levels

Know what is going on in the markets– Stocks and stock markets– Bonds, bond markets, interest rates, yield curves– Federal Reserve and regulation– Industry-specific valuations, nuances

Learn as much as you can about the business / different functions

Understand the job– What is it? Why you want to do it?– Vault Guide (ask Career Services)– Mergers & Inquisitions mergersandinquisitions.com– IBankingFAQ ibankingfaq.com


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Learning About The Firm Research each firm you are talking to

– Know enough to have a general conversation about the firm– How is it organized? How is it managed?– News stories over the past few months– How has it performed (earnings, new business pipeline)?– League tables! (Bloomberg / company website)

Seek out and talk to former employees or summer analysts about their experiences at a firm

Boutique vs. Bulge Bracket vs. Regional vs. Niche Firm– Choose experience over brand– Lifestyle at boutiques may be better

Every summer program is different, know the specifics– Who knows better than the alums who are already there?


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Recruiting Calendar Pre-Internship recruiting (September and October)

– You need to get your name on “the list” in advance of actual recruiting– Reach out to alumni at various firms, schedule a time to speak by phone

or to meet in person; Group visits to New York and Charlotte– Tell them you are interested and ask them politely to refer your resume

to their internal recruiters

Internship recruiting– Drop resumes to employers in October/November– Follow-up with contacts– Interviews in ~January

Information sessions (some at Wake; more at UNC & Duke)

Full-time recruiting– If you don’t take an offer through the internship process– October/NovemberDo Not Distribute - For Wake Forest University Students Only

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Interviews Interviews usually consist of:

– 2-3 First-round interviews• Either by phone or in-person• More technical, but still looking for personality fit

– Superday interview• Consists of 8 – 10 sessions; 30 minute interviews• Analyst up to Managing Director; Introduction to Group Head• Can be on a Saturday or any given weekday• Still technical, but more looking for personality fit


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Interviews (continued)

Interviewers are looking for:– Extremely strong work ethic– Technical skills, valuation knowledge, mastery of key finance concepts– Relevant experience/prior internships– Genuine interest in investment banking – Preparation and specific desire to join this firm; Why DB? Why is it a

perfect fit for you / for them?– Personality fit with team (would you spend 18 hours a day with them?)– Clear understanding that you know what you’re getting into, and that

you are excited/committed to that for 2+ years


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Interviews (continued)

Contact Career Services to prepare for your interview – Do multiple practice interviews– You need to have your story and your message down cold! – Ask CS about InterviewStream (self-critique)

DeaconSource / Career Services website: – Vault Guide to Investment Banking and other industry guides (Middle

Market IB, Hedge Funds, PE, etc.)– Interview Guide 400 (Mergers & Inquisitions)


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Common Pitfalls Waiting until March to start looking for a summer internship

– Start in August/September; Work on this throughout the Fall and continue in the Spring

Not networking with enough people / broadly enough– People need to see your name 2-3 times before they start recognizing it – Contact a broad swatch of bulge bracket/boutique, NY/CLT, etc.

Assuming firms will come to campus to recruit– Don’t count on firms coming back every year– Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch? BofA and Wells Fargo?– Firms often already know who they want to talk to before they open the

application / resume submission


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Common Pitfalls (continued)

Not taking finance courses in hopes of having a higher GPA– This will fall apart after about 2 interview questions– The stronger your finance courseload and your grasp of ‘connecting the

dots’ - the more impressive you will be in an interview

Not contacting Wake alums at firms where you are applying– Resume submission “black hole”– HR doesn’t know Wake Forest – you need a “Sponsor”– Start with the most-recent WF grads

• Have gone through the recruiting / interview process recently• Know the process / key people internally

– Work up toward more senior alumni• Their time is probably more valuable• Gather insights from the more-junior alums


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How To Connect With Finance Alumni Talk to Market Readiness and Employment Team

– First Years, Sophomores, College Majors: OPCD– Juniors - School of Business Majors: Caleigh McElwee– Seniors - School of Business Majors: Mike Crespi– MA & MBA - assigned career coach– Use LinkedIn advance search (no ‘blind’ LinkedIn)– Wake Forest Connects group; Wake Forest Alumni group (forum posts)

Talk to your professors / faculty

Alumni groups– Wake On Wall Street, NYC, Charlotte, and other Alumni Clubs

Leverage any personal/family connections you may have

Be willing to jump on a plane to interview/network– Take a group of students to NYC / CLTDo Not Distribute - For Wake Forest University Students Only

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Emailing Alumni Unless you set up a time to speak by phone –don’t call alums!

– Very busy people; best to e-mail first (bankers love their BlackBerry)

LinkedIn? [email protected] or [email protected]

What to say in your email (research comes first!)– They want to help – but why should they respond to you?– Subject Line: Hello Mr. Smith – Wake Forest– Situation: “I am a sophomore finance major at Wake”– Referral: “Will Lloyd and Steve Hale suggested I reach out to you”– The more tailored to this individual, the better – Interest: “Very interested in Deutsche Bank and specifically about your

work in FIG investment banking” – “I’ve already had an internship at X”– Respect for their time: “I know you’re very busy – at your convenience, I

would love to speak by phone for 15 minutes to learn more about your path to Deutsche Bank and to hear your thoughts on the broader investment banking space”


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Emailing Alumni (continued)

In trying to connect, be politely persistent

What NOT to say in your email– “Networking” – especially in the subject line– “Attached please find my resume” – follow-up your call with this– “I really don’t know anything about investment banking / Deutsche Bank

/ FIG investment banking” – ARGH!– “I am Looking for a job in IB” – they probably know – be more subtle

When you do speak by phone:– They may have to reschedule multiple times– Conversation may be cut short– Listen, take notes, ask good questions– Have questions / topics / points laid out in advance


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Myth vs. Reality Hours

– Will I really work 25 hours a day, every day?

“Quant as hell”– If I can’t do advanced quantitative physics problems in my head, upside

down underwater, do I even stand a chance?– Don’t throw away your writing skills…

Investment banks only take Rhodes scholars from Ivys

Finance major– They only take FIN majors; my Roman Art History major is hopeless!


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Summary Finance can be an intense, life-absorbing career; not for everyone

Potential rewards attract some of the brightest and most competitive individuals from the strongest backgrounds, so getting in is extremely difficult

Worth doing - - if you really want this

Decide upfront – is Finance really for you?– Work/life balance, family vs. career, geography– Where do I want to be in 2 years? How can I get there & what do I need?

Life will go on even if you don’t land a finance job!– Many Wake students transition in laterally after 1-2 years or MBA


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Roadmap

Do your own research Decide: IB? S&T? EQR? PWM?

– Long-term goal? Lifestyle? Geography?

– Adjust Schedule / Classes to match Contact Career Services / Work on your CV Contact alumni (Only AFTER Career Services and your research)

– This will be ongoing and will take effort, focus & persistence Get a Sophomore Internship Go to NYC/CLT via Finance Club trips; Get on referral lists


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Make Sure You Ask Career Services For:

This Presentation – For Wake Forest Only!

Wake On Wall Street Overview

“Navigating the ‘Wall Street’ Job Market” (WOWS 101)

“How to get a job in investment banking” (Sept. 2011)

IB Interview Questions (Credit Ashley Larson) / Interview Guide 400 (Mergers & Inquisitions)

Vault Guide to Investment Banking (and other Vault Guides)


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Question And Answer


David R. Hanson | Managing PartnerHanson Wells Partners 37 Wall Street, Suite 21-BNew York, New York 10005

Documents

Wake Forest University