William Blair Investment Banker / M&A Analyst Interview Questions
& Process
Real candidates share what happened, how many rounds they had,
and how the experience turned out.
Based on 88 interview experiences · FREE TO READ
Candidate interview experiences
First-hand accounts from people who interviewed at William Blair.
William Blair
Investment Banking Analyst
Entry Average Positive experience No offer 1 round
Interview process
Recruiter call Phone screen
Interview formats
Behavioral
Had a 30-minute interview that was set up by email. I thought it would be half behavioral and half technical, but it turned out to be all behavioral. They asked the usual questions like TMAY, why William Blair, why Investment Banking, and why [industry group]. They also asked other basic behavioral questions about leading a group and such.
Confirmed questions2 questions
- Can you share an instance where you had to manage multiple deadlines to complete a task and describe your approach?
- When is a time that you managed multiple deadlines in order to get something done and how did you deal with it?
William Blair
Investment Banking Analyst
Intern Difficult Positive experience Accept offer 4 rounds
Interview process
Take home Technical screen Recruiter call Group Background check Offer
Interview formats
Technical Behavioral Group Case
It started with a take-home test, then a 2-hour powerpoint test followed by an interview. Then there was an assessment center (AC) which included behavioural, technical, group discussion, HR, and MD/Director interviews. The technical interview involved a paper LBO and a commercial awareness component, with the LBO's difficulty depending on your speed.
Confirmed questions3 questions
- Complete the paper LBO
- Tell us about an industry you follow and why you like it
- Share something interesting about yourself not listed on your CV
William Blair
Investment Banking Analyst
Entry Easy Negative experience No offer 3 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Phone screen Technical screen Onsite Offer
Interview formats
Technical Behavioral
The interview process was well put together, but the interview questions ranged a lot in difficulty. Some friends got asked easy accounting and valuation questions, while I had to really dig into four recent deals, specifically two in tech, one in healthcare, and one LBO. It would have been better if the interviews were in person, since everything was on Zoom. The interviewers also seemed pretty distracted and not very engaged.
Confirmed questions4 questions
- Can you tell me about a recent tech transaction you followed?
- Could you walk me through a paper LBO?
- What are some fundamental accounting and valuation questions?
William Blair Investment Banker / M&A Analyst Interview Questions
Quoted word for word from William Blair interview reports.
“What's the impact of $10 in depreciation on the three main financial statements?”
Read reports →“Could you explain how a $10 increase in depreciation impacts the financial statements?”
Read reports →“What impact would purchasing $10 of inventory with cash have on the three financial statements?”
Read reports →“In the Free Cash Flow equation, do you add or subtract the change in working capital?”
Read reports →“Given two identical companies, if one has a higher CapEx, which would be valued more and why?”
Read report →“Given two buckets with 50 white and 50 black balls respectively, what's the best way to rearrange them to maximize the chance of picking a black ball?”
Read report →“Walk me through how $10 in depreciation impacts each of the three financial statements.”
Read report →“Given 100 balls (50 black, 50 white) and 2 buckets, how would you arrange them to get the best chance of picking a black ball when selecting one ball at random from one of the buckets?”
Read report →“Of the three, which financial statement do you consider the most crucial?”
Read report →Formats, difficulty and experience
Across all 88 William Blair interview reports.