Investment banks have a lot in common with communist dictatorships.

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Well, not a lot. Very little, in fact. But they do have one important thing in common: their love over the top and wildly exaggerated titles. How many secretaries did the Soviet Union need? Around a million. How many Vice Presidents does Goldman Sachs need? Around 10,000.

Of course, a Goldman Sachs Vice President does not have the ear of CEO David Solomon. And neither does his boss. Maybe his boss’ boss does – but even then, definitely not regularly.

Why so many VPs (and directors and managing directors)? It’s a long story – there are a number of reasons that are hard to pin down. For one, investment banking is a very transient industry for most individuals. People come and go quite quickly, and part of a bank’s incentivization scheme is (slightly exaggerated) seniority.

A banker who is VP-tier (this can also mean an executive director in Goldman itself) is the bottom rung of the real hierarchy at a bank. At Morgan Stanley, for example, VPs are the lowest tier of its “officer” ranks, which also include directors and managing directors.

At VP level, bankers also begin to meet clients more regularly, and their opinions slowly start to matter. And because clients prefer talking to people that have at a bare minimum the semblance of seniority and authority, banks give VPs a title worthy of some respect.

Either way, VPs are nowhere near the top of any bank’s pyramid. Below them are analysts and associates; above them are a variety of titles such as senior vice president, director, executive director, and the highest “regular” title in the banking world – the highly coveted “Managing Director” (MD) title.

Above MD, there are occasionally partners (which are functionally the same), most famously at Goldman, as well as various department and regional heads with very specific functions.

What does everyone do? As ever, it’s complicated.

Analysts

What is an investment banking analyst?

Analysts are the most junior people in an investment bank. They fulfill a variety of functions depending on which department of a bank they are in.

In the investment banking division (IBD, which involves M&A and capital markets), analysts have a number of responsibilities. They research companies involved in a deal and build financial models to value them. They then put together pitchbooks – PowerPoint presentations for their bosses (the MDs) to present to their clients.

"Junior bankers are experts on financial modelling," said Alexandra Michel, a former Goldman banker turned academic. They are also experts in Excel, VBA, and in PowerPoint, to build the presentations that banks use to communicate their ideas to clients. "The more junior you are in M&A, the more time you will spend working on Excel models and PowerPoint Presentations," another ex-Goldman analyst said.

A current analyst at a European bank said that analysts usually just do whatever it is they’re told to do. "The analyst is the person who does all the administration work necessary in the deal process. As the most junior person, you might work on research, you might create the materials for the pitch-book which presents banks’ ideas to clients, and you might work on the financial models - but what you do will be quite basic."

Former JPMorgan associate Maninder Sachdeva said that, when he was an analyst, in the course of a single day he worked on "maybe 10 different Excel files and maybe four or five different presentations" for clients. Analysts are notorious for getting "pls fix" (please fix) requests - after putting the presentations together, they’ll often be asked to make corrections by the bankers above them in the hierarchy. These requests can come through at all hours, day or night. They are expected to answer them promptly.

Some analysts complain that their work is very boring and repetitive. “As an analyst, you spend 75% of your time on PowerPoint, making presentations,” one said.

During a dearth of deals, as occurred in 2023, analysts spend a lot of time on these ‘pitches,’ but not much actual time working on the process (‘executing’) the deals that result. Even in busy times, though, analysts are more focused on pitching than execution.

How long do you spend as an analyst?

Traditionally, three years. There’s been a recent trend towards shorter analyst stints – expect two years at most banks now.

How much do investment banking analysts earn?

Quite a lot, all things considered. In London, for instance, recruitment consultancy Pretraga Partners says that analysts can earn anywhere between £55k ($74k) and £90k ($121k) in salary, with bonuses up to £60k ($81k), for a total compensation of between £90k ($121k) and £136k ($182k).

Pay in New York is pretty similar. Bands are between $110k and $135k in pure salary depending on bank and seniority, according to Litquidity. Bonuses were also more generous, up to $90k. Total compensation therefore reached around $225k at the highest end.

How many hours do you work as an investment banking analyst?

Quite a lot. Former Morgan Stanley analyst Florian Koelliker studied junior bankers for his 2021 dissertation and found that analysts typically worked between 80 and 90 hours a week. One analyst told Koelliker that leaving at 2am was "ok" and that leaving at 4am was "late."

If that seems like a lot, it is - and it even used to be worse. A scandalous presentation was leaked during the pandemic by some disgruntled Goldman Sachs juniors who complained about working 100-hour weeks. Things are better now, for what it’s worth – JPMorgan, a similarly tough task master, capped junior hours a few years ago to 80 a week “in most cases.”

Why so many hours? Because an analyst’s job is to fix things. A presentation or model sent to a senior banker is expected to be fixed – beginning immediately, no matter what the time of day is. That can mean in the morning at 9am, or in the morning at 3am.

"In the day it’s quite hard to focus on one task at a time, because you’ll have all these inbounds of random requests and tasks, so you never really get to focus on long project work," Mani said. "But in the evenings, when most of your clients and seniors are no longer at their desks, it’s kind of nice to be able to work on things at your own speed and own time."

Associates

What is an investment banking associate?

An associate is a step above an analyst. Not a very big one – an associate has either just graduated from a bank’s analyst program after a few years of service or has joined the bank directly as an MBA graduate.

Associates don’t do anything that much more important than an analyst does, other than managing them. "As an associate, you’re still working on the PowerPoint slides," an M&A analyst told us. "You also work more on the [financial] models."

An associate’s role is partly to "guide the analyst in preparing the presentation and doing the research," the analyst said. The analyst does the work and the associate checks it." The associate is still an important part of the process. If you have a 50-page presentation, the analyst will usually do 30-40 pages, and the associate will check them and do the rest."

Associates are still expected to do analyst-type work, one former associate said, although she says that "analysts are technically the producers of all the work and the associates are the checkers of it."

How long do you spend as an associate?

Again, around three years, if you don’t quit or get culled for poor performance – which does happen.

How much do investment banking associates earn?

More than analysts do. A survey by Litquidity last year found that salaries for associates in the USA could range anywhere from $175k to $225k and bonuses from $99k to $275k depending on seniority and employer. That puts total compensation somewhere from $274k to $500k.

London salaries are a bit lower, ranging from £100k ($134k) to £150k ($202k), and come with bonuses up to £125k ($168k). The range of compensation in London is approximately £174k ($234) to £251k ($337k).

How many hours do you work as an investment banking associate?

Associates still work a lot, although a bit less than analysts.

That perception changed significantly, however, with the death of Leo Lukenas. Lukenas was a 35-year-old MBA graduate and special forces veteran who worked at Bank of America, as part of the Financial Institutions Group (FIG).

The FIG team of an investment bank is known to work particularly long hours, and Lukenas, an associate, is alleged to have worked 120 hours a week before his death, which Bank of America denied. Lukenas was later announced to have died of natural causes by the New York Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

One analyst told us that “you’ll often see the associates going home at 11pm instead of midnight. But that kind of depends upon the person and how good the analyst is. If you’re a lazy associate with a good analyst, you can leave early. If you’re an ambitious associate with a bad analyst, you’ll still be working at 2am."

Vice Presidents (VPs)

What is an investment banking vice president (VP)?

Being a VP is the point at which your career in banking starts to get a bit more interesting. At this point, you’ll get to meet clients as someone more than just an overpaid briefcase transporter. Your opinion will matter.

You’ll also have more responsibility over the analysts and associates below you that are utilizing all the relevant components of the Microsoft Office suite. "Being a VP requires more ‘ownership’ in the team - and well-established client relationships," one associate at an international bank said.

"VPs lead the layout of the presentations," a Goldman banker explained to us. "They’re responsible for making sure the pitch documents are put together and they will also have an active daily role in executing any deals that go ahead."

A VP’s domain is the day-to-day processes of a deal. "The VPs guide the analysts and associates," the M&A analyst said. “They’re the ones saying which materials need to be created. However, they’re also the ones who speak on the calls to the clients. They help keep the clients up to date with how things are progressing."

How long do you spend as a Vice President (VP)?

In theory three years, but it’s complicated.

The ranks above VP are difficult to get into. There’s competition for fewer spaces. Some people reach VP and stay there indefinitely, never quite being as good as each incoming cohort of bankers who can peg them to limited and coveted director and managing director roles.

How much do investment banking vice presidents (VPs) earn?

According to figures from Litquidity, VP salaries are tighter bound than their subordinates’ – between $250k and $275k. Bonuses, however, make the difference, with senior VPs at top boutique banks earning an additional $500k in bonuses, compared to junior VPs at middle market banks earning just $180k on average.

In London, total compensation ranges between £232k ($312k) and £370k ($497k), with higher weightings towards salaries rather than bonuses.

How many hours do you work as an investment banking vice president (VP)?

Koelliker’s research found that VPs work between 60 and 80 hours each week. "The associate is running the process for the VP, so the VP gets to leave earlier," the analyst said. This doesn’t mean they leave early, however. "Our VP goes home around 10pm," he added.

Directors and Managing Directors (MDs)

What is an investment banking director or managing director (MD)?

Your job as a director or MD (especially as an MD) is to bring in business.

There’s a lot of travelling. It’s not as glamorous as you think, especially with perks being stripped from MDs at many banks. "As a director, you’ll speak a lot with the clients," one analyst said. "Your role is to act as the interface between the client and the rest of the team."

MDs are at the top of the investment banking totem pole. "They talk to the clients, meet the clients, bring in the revenues and build the business for the bank," the analyst said. "They’re the connectors, the relationship builders, they’re out there, finding out what’s going on with their clients in their industry."

If you do well and bring in business, you’ll be referred to as a rainmaker.

How long will I be a director/managing director (MD)?

Forever? Never? It’s complicated.

Not every bank has a director title, but if yours does, you’ll hypothetically be one for two years before you join the ranks of the MDs. In reality, for the same reasons as the VPs, you may very well never make MD. Anecdotally, being a director is also the riskiest position to have in a bank: you cost a lot of money and haven’t got a client book to balance it out. Consider it the MD waiting room.

If you’re an MD, you’ll stay there until you get kicked out or choose to retire. There’s a lot of pressure to justify your high pay package, and if you’re not performing you’ll be hard to justify for the bank’s bottom line. If you succeed – congratulations, you’re wealthier than God. If not, sorry.

How much money do investment banking directors/managing directors (MDs) make?

This number varies wildly and is much more intimately tied to the revenue you bring to the bank than in lower ranks. Recent research from us found that $400k was around the standard salary for an investment banking MD. That’s in spite of us declaring that “$500k was the new $400k” a few years ago.

The bulk of your pay as a revenue-generator will be from your bonus. This figure can easily reach millions of pounds/dollars/euros if you’re good at your job.

We found in our 2024/2025 compensation report that investment banking directors earned average salaries of $267k and average bonuses of $280k for total compensation of $547k.

How many hours do you work as an investment banking director/managing director (MD)?

Thankfully, directors work a little less than VPs, Koelliker found. He noted that directors work between 45 and 70 hours a week and have much more control over their time.

Finally, a glimpse of work-life balance, right? Just wait until you reach MD.

MDs are both constantly – and never really – working. "Sometimes we don’t see the MDs in the office much," said one analyst. "Their jobs are a bit more freestyle and flexible. They might be out of the office for a week, meeting clients. They might have lunch with a client, and then a coffee, and then a meal with another client. They might go and meet a COO who’s also a personal friend."

A bank is happy to let its MDs take time to build client relationships – Goldman Sachs estimated a few years ago, for instance, that it takes seven years for a client relationship to generate fees for the firm.

Although banks are hierarchical, they can also be fairly egalitarian. If you perform well, you can progress through the hierarchy (at least to VP level) fairly quickly. In IBD, Michel said, most people actually do get promoted up to the next level. This makes banks less competitive places than people expect. Power differentials are minimized, and everyone (according to Michel) works for a common purpose. Unfortunately, she also concludes that this can lead to overwork and burnout.

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