Embracing Ingenuity: Uncommon Wisdom #Insiders
“Work ethic isn’t something that you can turn on overnight, rather it is about the consistency and the effort taken to develop it over a sustained period of time.”
An interview with an incoming investment banking analyst:
RulerNetwork understands that securing a job at a reputable firm can be daunting. This is why we are back with another #Insiders, where we interview our consultant who has experience in investment banking at EY.
“There may be people with more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do”. These words resonated with a current investment banker, who relied on his strong work ethic, perseverance, grit and desire to put in the hard yards in order to succeed. Having also landed an offer at Google, and choosing to still work at an investment bank, here’s what he had to say!
1. How do you make the most out of University?
To be honest, it’s a function of two key aspects. The first is doing well in your academics. This comes with putting in the hard hours (studying smart) and taking your subjects seriously. The second is to throw yourself out there and participate in clubs and societies to enhance the extracurricular side of university life. Through this, you will be able to develop friendships and create strong networks that you can leverage on for the rest of your life. If you are able to combine the two, you will have an unforgettable University experience.
2. What tips do you have on studying? In terms of academics, what grades did you strive for?
Well, the first tip is a no brainer — study something that you enjoy. This will automatically keep you in check and enable you to organise your time effectively. Personally, I did not study over the weekend, but rather split my time over the week and remained committed when it was time to study. I believe that memorising will not take you places; rather it is important to actually be present in the moment, especially during lectures. Staying proactive and taking notes is a key tip I found extremely helpful in my university experience. I always aimed for an 80+ WAM (how academic grades are denoted in Australia). I set 3 goals every semester, one of which was to maintain an 80+ WAM. You can always do better than 80 and get close to a high distinction (HD) but aiming for a HD is quite unrealistic. 80 is a good buffer that is pretty achievable for most subjects, (well for most of my subjects at least) but at the end of the day, it all comes down to setting achievable goals and tailoring it to suit your own needs and wants.
3. Having received an offer from Google, what are your thoughts on business roles at large tech firms? From an unbiased perspective, would you accept a role at Google or as an investment banker?
Sometimes, I think that working at Google would be very surreal. It’s almost like a nirvana if you’re not a computer science whiz kid. Big tech firms seem like start-ups, they’re not. The cool thing is that there is so much activity going on at these firms, like creating new products and developing new prototypes. If given the opportunity, I would still go with investment banking over Google. My main rationale behind this is that when you get a job offer, you have to be grounded and ask yourself what you really want to do. In my opinion, the first two years at a tech firm would entail sales related tasks. However, I believe that investment banking will be more rewarding and I could probably go to Google two or three years later once I have stepped into the investment banking field. Optionality is everything.
4. What are the biggest obstacles you encountered when applying for jobs and how did you overcome them?
This has to be the online video interviews and aptitude tests. The thought of being on a webcam can be quite nerve wracking, but as you go through more interviews and the more you familiarise yourself with the circumstances, the easier the process becomes. Here, practice experience is critical. I remember that I bought a $15 subscription for preparation on aptitude tests and case interviews. Before these tests, I used to record myself over and over again and even used an Excel spreadsheet that generated random questions for me so that I was prepared for any scenario.
5. What personality trait was the key to your success?
I have to say that it’s my work ethic. I am not the smartest or most productive person, but I put in the hard yards and continuously strived to excel in everything that I did. I remember when I applied to EY (and 2nd and 3rd tier accounting firms) in my first year of applications, I was turned down by all of them. Of course, at that point in time it was very demoralising, but I pushed through, maintained a strong work ethic by constantly editing my resume and cover letter, and realised that week by week, month by month, it really compounded and paid off. Work ethic isn’t something that you can turn on overnight, rather it is about consistency and the effort to develop it over a sustained period of time. However, a major part of this has to be attributed to my role model, my older brother. He is 2 years older than me and we are very close and similar in many areas. He did remarkably well in HSC (99+ ATAR) and is now at Goldman Sachs. He was, and is always there to guide me and help me out in any situation and he genuinely offers such great advice. The way that he approaches every scenario is so diplomatic and I feel like that was a key element in what shaped me to be the person that I am today.
6. What are your thoughts on working at the Big Four? What was so great about working at EY?
Having interned at EY, I would highly recommend it. The people there are extremely lovely and I had so much fun overall. I’d say that the culture there is not ‘work hard, play hard’ but rather a relaxed environment with a bit of banter here and there. It genuinely radiated such good vibes and there was no pressure at all on the juniors. There was so much flexibility in the sense that if you don’t like a certain division, you can move on to another division after a few years. Special shoutout to the HR team though. They are by far the best people I’ve met, always so well organised, well planned and the internship programs were created and thought over extremely carefully. In EY specifically, the culture evoked a real sense of community within the team. Although, the team was 40–50 people, the camaraderie we shared was really wonderful. Through weekly catch ups (coffee, lunches, post work drinks), the juniors were very well supported as the managers were always willing to help throughout the experiential learning process. Also, despite some graduates not having an accounting/tactical background, the senior members of the firm were very understanding and guided us along the way.
7. What role did salary play in terms of your job prospects?
If I’m being honest, not a whole heap. At the end of the day, you want to be doing something that you really enjoy, only then you will be able to excel in it. I definitely resonate with that because I was determined to shine in my selected field, investment banking. Ultimately, you’ll get rewarded, (paid) based on your expertise, so I never really felt like salary was a substantial driver in my career.
8. How do you deal with repetition in the corporate world?
Although I don’t experience a whole lot of repetition at the moment, I actually don’t really mind repetition, based on past experience. I believe that as you execute the task more and more, you get better at it; therefore, are more effective at it. Repetition is actually more of a benefit than a cost to me. Overall, I am able to perform the task quicker and have more spare time to help out in other roles at the firm.
9. What are your top 3 job application tips?
Firstly, make sure your CV is one page. This is particularly important as it does not make sense for a university student to have a CV that exceeds one page. I had a two page CV at one point and did not land a winter internship a couple of years ago. Secondly, ensure to write a meaningful cover letter that is tailored to each firm. The ticket to securing an interview is to do your research and align your cover letter with the company’s value, beliefs and objectives. Lastly, this may sound slightly cliche, but apply for everything. This increases your probability of securing an internship. You’d rather have an internship at a small firm than no internship over the summer. I usually get really excited about an opportunity to work somewhere, even if it’s just an interview. I have heaps of energy for it and always show interest and a willingness to learn
10. What do you see yourself doing in 10 years time?
I would love to work in a similar environment as Bill Ackman. He is an activist investor, so I believe just like him, I would thrive in a setting of buying and turning underperforming firms around. It is somewhat similar to private equity, but more like fund management.
