LBS//Tell us about your responsibilities. Describe your day-to-day role, details of any clients you work with/for, the level/title of the person you report to, the size of budget for which you are directly responsible and the number of people in your team

As an Investment Banking Associate in the ABC Group at GLOBAL BANK I advise global private equity firms on transactions and assist with investment idea generation for their portfolios. The clients I work with are late stage investment firms and buyout firms, such as X, Y and Z. These clients are amongst the largest clients of the bank and our business with them generated approximately $XXMM in revenue last year, making our group the highest revenue-generating group in the bank.

I perform financial analyses to assist in due diligence for global transactions ranging from $XXMM to $XXBN, with fees ranging from ~$XXMM to $XXMM. My role is dynamic in nature and I must manage unpredictability of transaction timelines and ad hoc client requests, which consistently require fast turnarounds. I mainly interact with Principals and Partners at our private equity clients and frequently speak to portfolio company management whenever there is a live transaction. Speaking directly with company management is interesting for me as it allows me to understand the drivers of day-to-day choice within the company as well the thought process behind larger scale, strategic decisions.

In addition to frequent interactions with clients and company management, I work cross-functionally across portfolio management, credit, capital markets, and relationship managers to lead processes for deal approval and execution. Our deal teams are comprised of Managing Director, a Vice President, an Associate, and an Analyst from each of these internal groups, including my group. I report directly to the Head of U.S. ABC Coverage, who reports directly to our Head of North America Investment Banking and Markets. Moreover, I supervise five analysts on deals and client pitches; this has helped me refine my communication and conflict resolution skills and become an effective and trusted mentor and supervisor for junior colleagues. The development of my people management skills has also been beneficial when I present to clients, senior management, or at deal screenings.

When I first joined this group, I joined a team of XX people; in the last two years, the group has expanded to include XX people. This rapid growth has allowed me to actively undertake more responsibility in my current role over the last two years. In addition to being designated as a lead Associate on deals, I spearheaded our firm’s middle market direct lending initiative, which culminated in an increase in revenue of almost $XXM against a $XXMM budget.