Sharing Insights - Your Questions Answered

Before applying, I think that it is important to understand the relentless nature of the learning curve. As an analyst, you must be prepared to constantly learn and adapt to new concepts or tasks, and consequently I think that attitude plays a significant role in your success. Having a strong desire to learn alongside resilience is crucial.

I also think that an understanding of the importance of soft skills is helpful. On the desk, effective communication is vital as you are required to be able to clearly articulate ideas and results to the team. Also, when faced with an issue, efficiently communicating the hurdle, the steps you have already taken, and a proposed route forward is essential for efficient problem-solving. Additionally, developing strong interpersonal skills is crucial to connecting with team members and potentially with clients - I think that the importance of this skill can often be overlooked.

A great analyst is someone who can demonstrate proactivity, a can do / learn attitude, team player and an excellent communicator (both verbal and written). One of the hardest things about the role is juggling numerous tasks and projects at the same time and still delivering the highest quality. The pace can be intense but equally very rewarding as the variety of work is huge.

As a junior, you will get lots of exposure to clients / seniors in your teams, so having great interpersonal and communication skills is something we look for in candidates in the recruitment process.

The most common mistake is someone reading from a script and coming across as too overly prepared. We want to see your natural self so try to be authentic as much as possible. Keep your energy and enthusiasm throughout using your tone of voice. This is really important! Practice how you are coming across in a mirror / camera.

We look for students from all degree disciplines and you do not need to have any prior work experience in a finance related field. We will provide all the technical training you will need. We place a high importance on interpersonal, communication and team working skills. As our business is purely to provide quality advice to clients, and in a small team environment, the ability to work well in a team, to communicate well and with impact are very important.

There are 5 questions set in the video interview. We want to see your personality and motivations and interests shine through. You should treat this like a face to face interview and an opportunity for you to demonstrate all the great achievements you have.

1. Proactivity - making a start on tasks instead of waiting to be told explicitly will mean you work more quickly and can learn faster
2. Enthusiasm - this will mean your colleagues enjoy working with you, and you will enjoy the work more yourself too!
3. Attention to detail - being able to pick up on small errors and ensure your work is of a top-quality standard is very important, as we want to send clients the most accurate and well-presented analysis possible.

I would encourage candidates to work on, and do not underestimate, the power of personality and interpersonal skills. It is ultimately what mostly differentiates one candidate from another, provided the technical basis are all covered to an extent. Try and steer the conversation so it becomes a chat and not an interview.

Showcasing a variety of work experiences and extracurricular activities is important. It would be helpful to see what skills you have developed through these experiences. Please ensure you keep to 1 page and check for spelling and grammatical errors!

This may sound like cliche, but Lazard's culture is very friendly and supportive. People actually take an interest in the juniors from my perspective and are happy to spend time teaching us so we learn as much as we can. There are times when things get tough, but you are not going to be left to your own devices as the team will support you through it. As you would expect in investment banking, certain aspects of the job description are more challenging than normal, but the culture at Lazard certainly makes it much more pleasant than it would be otherwise.

As an analyst, I am often asked to manage conflicting deadlines. Being a member of the Equity Capital Markets division - a product team - adds a further layer of complexity as in addition to our own projects, we also frequently collaborate with other teams that have their own conflicting priorities. This means that I constantly have to prioritise requests to ensure that all tasks are completed ahead of their respective deadlines. Effective time management and open, clear and proactive communication is crucial to ensuring that all parties are kept informed. This helps to foster the collaborative environment we have at Lazard.

The biggest advantage is the hands-on experience that you get from day one through having first hand interactions with clients and preparing materials that are used in the deal process.

The ultimate career progression that Lazard can provide in the potential graduate scheme is an added bonus.

I studied Natural Sciences, and whilst I have found a use for some of the scientific knowledge I gained at University, the transferrable skills gained during my degree have been far more helpful.

Communication (both oral and written), teamwork, time management, research and resilience are all obvious examples of skills developed at University that are also useful as an Analyst. Additionally, as we provide advice to clients with various levels of transaction proficiency, the ability to distil a large amount of information and present a complex idea in a simple manner is crucial, and an often overlooked component of the role.

Regarding career development, Lazard provide multiple internal workshops, training sessions and mentors that are able to teach additional skills or provide more holistic advice. They also place all analysts into Learning Circles, effectively small groups that meet regularly to discuss a wide range of professional development topics I have found these to be particularly helpful and I believe these are unique to Lazard. Of course, your team also provide extensive on the desk training and support across more specific, project orientated tasks.

You absolutely do not need to have done anything related to finance before applying but it is important to show your motivations as to why you are exploring Investment Banking as a career option.  We are just as interested to hear what extra-curricular activities you get involved in and what skillsyou have learnt from those that you think could be helpful for your role as an Analyst. We are looking for people who have great interpersonal skills, are passionate and motivated, pro-active and keen to take on new challenges.