Biggest Challenges Faced by an M&A Investment Banking Associate at Houlihan Lokey
David, a Houlihan Lokey M&A Investment Banking Associate, revealed that the biggest challenge is not the long hours—although they frequently exceeded 80 hours per week—but rather the constant "being constantly online" and the inability to disconnect, even on weekends, due to the unpredictable nature of the work and the need to be immediately responsive to client demands. This "being able to decide when you work," is a persistent issue for high performers in the industry.
Industry Realities, Workplace Challenges, Stress Management, Overcoming Challenges, Work-Life Balance
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
David Crosson
M&A Investment Banking Associate
Houlihan Lokey
Yale University
MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University
Economics
Finance (Banking, Fintech, Investing)
Finance
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Long working hours are common but not the biggest challenge; the constant availability and on-call nature of the job are more stressful.
2. The biggest challenge is not the number of hours worked, but the unpredictable nature of the work and the need to be available at all times.
3. High performers in investment banking face consistent pressure to be constantly available, even outside of regular working hours, due to the demands of the industry.
Transcript
What is your biggest challenge in your current role?
Some people mention that the biggest challenge in banking is the hours. You've probably heard horror stories of people who work a hundred hours a week. That's somewhat exaggerated, but not by much.
I was consistently working 60 hours a week, usually 80-plus hours. I can point to numerous weeks where I actually did work a hundred hours.
That, though, isn't that bad. The volume of hours isn't the problem. If I worked 40 hours a week, this job would still have had the same challenges and stress.
It's not the hours you work, it's being able to decide when you work. So, it could be a 40-hour week, but at 5:00 PM on a Friday, I would still have my work phone on me. There's a chance a pitch comes in, and I'd need to have a deck turned around for my boss for review by 9:00 AM the next morning.
That was something I had to learn and consistently grappled with: being constantly online and knowing there was work we could be doing. This is a challenge inherent to the industry that will consistently exist, so long as you're a high performer in banking.