The Analyst Journey Documented

The Analyst Journey is an interesting one, to say the least. Your experience will depend a lot upon your boss, your actions, your aspirations, your co-workers, and your office dynamic.

This guide was created to show you our journey and document the different stages we experienced as an Analyst.

There were a lot of ups, and downs, and things we wish we knew. Take a scroll through our experience.  

We wanted to give you a behind the scenes look into how the first 12 months as an Analyst might play out, at least how it did for us…

Month 1: Welcome to the Game

Congratulations! You successfully entered the arena so many covet. You are about to start your journey in business.

This month is for getting incorporated into the business world, the professional world, and to start learning your role and what is going to be expected of you.

Try to read and watch as many training videos as you can. It's also a good idea to ask other analysts, friends, bosses or people you have good a relationship with what they think would be best to do in the first month.

The nice thing about when you start is everyone knows you’re the new person, and you’re given time to adjust. This is a great time to try and befriend as many Analysts or Associates as you can. Find what you have in common with others and start to build relationships. These relationships can be crucial down the road when you're in a bind, need help, or a question answered.

Be dedicated to learning and getting your feet wet, it’s part of the process and the beginning of your journey.

Our best advice is to get yourself acclimated to the new work and lifestyle you find yourself in. Add in a few new relationships, and you’ll be right where you want to be after Month 1.

Month 2: Keep Learning and Get Moving

Month 1 is over, and now you're starting to understand what's going on, and what's going to be expected of you.

You have a general understanding of what your company does, what’s going to be required of you, and what you're going to have to learn. Now it’s time to start connecting the dots, and understanding how the company operates, and what role you're going to play in it.

As an Analyst, you’ll probably be crunching the numbers or inputting the data. It’s very important to the company's operations that the numbers, presentations, memorandums.

Your superiors are going to be presenting and representing that information, and the numbers need to be accurate, and in great shape in order to win the business.

Try to observe other Analysts and read any industry or company training given to you. Start taking notes of what you're doing, and what you're noticing.

You're going to want to be prepared when they try to take the training wheels off, and if you have a resource you can always look back at, it will be incredibly useful.

If someone has been guiding you or holding your hand, try to perform the tasks and actions on your own. You don't have to be a fully functioning Analyst just yet.

Continue what you're doing but try to push yourself a little along the way.

Month 3

Hopefully you’re making progress and starting to come along as an Analyst. Keep in mind you’re still a beginner and these a steep learning curb, especially as an Analyst.

Understanding how the company operates, the way transactions or deals progress, and the numbers behind everything is a great place to be in Month 3.

The goal of this month is to keep trying to learn as much as you can, and to try and do as much as you can correctly.

It’s a great idea to keep asking questions about topics or problems you’re unsure about. '

That’s the best way to learn. Feedback and asking for your work to be checked can teach you what you need to learn, and where you can learn from your mistakes. They are the best place to learn from.

And it’s most important to be correct and produce a high-quality level of work.

Our Advice: Take it slow, you’re still in the beginning of the process, and it’s going to take time, but keep going, you’ll breakthrough.

Months 4-6

By now, you've been at the company for a few months, have an idea of what is going on, and are starting to gain the confidence to become a fully functioning Analyst.

Now it’s time to get as many repetitions as you can get. The best way to learn and understand finance is through practice and reps.

The same goes for anything and everything else. This will be great for learning and getting your job functions down pat, not to mention great deal experience as well.

The more reps you get, the more deals you see, and the more you perform the job functions you're asked to do, the better you will get at doing them.

And the faster you'll be able to perform the Analyst tasks independently, starting to build your reputation to rise through the ranks.

At the end of the day, the more you do something, the better you get at it.

It's all about repetitions and practice, the more reps you get, the faster you learn, the faster you gain valuable skills and gain confidence in your ability as an Analyst.

We can’t emphasize this enough, once you know what to do and how to do everything, get as many reps as you can. It’s the best way to learn and improve.

Our Tip: In Months 4-6, get as many reps as you can, they will be a major part of your foundation.  

Months 6-8

By now, hopefully you have a good idea of what’s going on, and how to do the job functions required of you. There are still going to be questions to ask and things you don’t know, but the goal is to know the basic stuff and be able to do it on your own.

It’s also time to start showcasing the skills and knowledge you’ve learned and executing on a daily basis.

Every deal or task is going to be different, with different terms or conditions, but the formula and processes will hopefully be similar to what you have experienced so far.

Months 6 to 8 are all about starting to build your track record, your credibility, and your relationships with colleagues on a professional level.

Put in the work now, because the dividends will pay off in the future by building great habits, and an awesome base of information.

Our Tip: Take advantage of Months 6-8 by showing what you've learned so far, and by producing a high quality of work that you're here to stay. Dive deeper into the nitty gritty, and really understand the fundamentals so you can produce a high quality of work to show you are here to stay.

Months 8-12

First and foremost, the objective is to produce the highest quality and best work product you can. That takes priority and importance of being an independent Analyst. But the way to become an independent Analyst is by trying to figure out the answer to your questions on your own.

Months 8 to 12 is your time to run with the opportunities you've been given as an Analyst. It’s time to try to be a stand-alone, independent Analyst. You have seen almost a year of deals, have performed the job responsibilities well (if you're still there), now it’s time to keep it going.

If you can't find the information or don't know it, ask your boss or the people around you. Connecting the dots is a big part of it. If you can start to analyze and understand the conceptual side of the deals you're working on, then you're in good shape.

The next step is to apply that understanding and analysis to your work on a day to day basis.

This means including some of your analyses in E-Mails or in conversations with your superiors to help them digest the information quicker.

As an Analyst for almost a year now, you will have some real experience and understanding of what’s going on.

Our Tip: The best way to do become a great Analyst is by producing reliable and credible work product. Most Analysts think just working late or on weekends is the key, but it's not. Keep an eye on your relationships with your superiors and produce a high quality of work. The rest will fall into place.

Months 12+

If you’re here, you've done something right. So, from us at The Analyst Handbook, we'd like to say nice job! You've got a year of great experience under your belt.

Keep doing what you're doing! (our version of a pat on the back)

Now it’s time to add and expand to what you do on a day to day basis. Keep performing the tasks required of you as an Analyst but find a way to take the next step.

To expand your role in months 12+, you want to start picking up more responsibilities, especially those the Associates ahead of you are performing.

The best way to be promoted to an Associate is to become one.

The more you take the lead and create a high-quality work product; the more people will start to take notice.

You’ll start to gain recognition for producing an Associates level workload, which is key to getting that Associate promotion.

Not only will you look good, but the Associate on your team will look good too, for teaching you and fostering your development.

Our Tip: In months 12+, maintain a high-quality of work as an Analyst, but try to expand your role and perform the tasks of an Associate, it will get you that Associate promotion.  

Conclusion

The Analyst Journey is toughest in months 1-12.

Once you get through those months, the hard part is over. You've built your foundation.

You've learned and experienced the role of an Analyst. You've become an independent Analyst.

The next step is the Associate promotion.

It's going to require another level of grind, some won't do.

Will you?