Typically, the interview structure for junior to mid senior positions in IB involve Case Study round followed by technical round(s) of interview.
Candidates are often given a case study round in which they are expected to create a financial model along with a set of few company and/or industry slides as a part of the selection process.
The structure aims to test a candidate across key areas like
1) Raw Intellectual Horsepower
2) Personality
3) The amount of training that will be required to get the candidate become productive and start contributing (the lesser the better)
Besides this the interviewer would often try to assess the candidate's knowledge of
A) Finance/Accounting/Industry
1) Walk me through a typical Cash Flow Statement - If there are hiccups/struggles in answering this question, it will be difficult that you will be called for next rounds
2) Explain the linkages among different financial statements - A clever question aimed to uncover the granularity of understanding of financial statements. Expect a cascading question structure with one question leading to another to dig more details
3) I give you an opportunity to acquire 1 company of your choice from any industry and run it for the rest of your life - Very smartly the interviewer wants to understand your industry knowledge, ability to spot an opportunity, your understanding of growth drivers/business model and valuation approaches. Such open-ended questions give a good opportunity to candidates to showcase their understanding of value creation, risk exposure, and investment rationale
B) Financial Modelling
1) You may be asked to create a financial model of a company which the interviewer himself/his team has already worked on
2) Broken Financial Model - Another trick interviewers use is to ask a candidate to fix a broken financial model. It gives an idea of the depth of financial modeling knowledge and the attention to details
C) Communication/Presentation Skills
The IB/PE industry requires immersive conversations with many stakeholders, a lot of convincing/explanations for a deal to fall through
1) Run me through a book you recently read and your key takeaways - This question often gets put to candidates who mention "Reading" as a hobby. You are being tested on your abilities to explain a story, concept, or a narrative in detail
2) You may be given a pre-created information memorandum/management presentation and then asked to explain it to the interviewer. Successful candidates tap the interviewer expectations by understanding the motive/rationale behind a question
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