Financial Analyst Interview Experiences

Phone screen then panel interview 50 min. SQL questions and dashboard experience then culture fit.

Did a hireVue with like 7 questions with 30 second prep each and the timer really pressures you. Superday was four interviews in a row and by the third one it gets exhausting. One of the MDs wanted to know about recent treasury yield movements. Started at 8am went past noon couldnt have been more tired afterwards

Made an offer the same week. Single round with a managing director, about 45 minutes. Resume walkthrough and why real assets and infrastructure, why Brookfield over other alternatives managers. Very loose format. Short process for a firm this size imo.

Superday format, first two were behavioral and laid back but third one was supposed to be technical and had me pitch a long and a short and I completely froze on the short pitch. The Canadian economy and recent news also came up, would've been fine if I had just prepared a short pitch beforehand.

First screening with HR was basic background questions. Second with a manager covered what I know about life insurance products and financial reporting. Review recent insurance accounting changes if you're applying here.

Fast process for a pension fund, went through my resume, relevant coursework, interest in pension fund management. One question about how they differs from a typical asset manager and I had a solid answer for that.

STAR behavioral, time you took a risk led a team balanced multiple commitments. covered resume projects but no technical questoins was mostly conversational and background check took a while after.

Had a Hirevue with like 8 questions, a lot of stress, then three 30 minute interviews in a row so you need a bunch of different stories ready. They asked what I knew about CIBC in the news too so do your research beforehand.

Superday was three zooms in a row and the last one was all technical, DCF walkthrough and had me pitch a stock. First two were pretty chill though mostly why RBC why capital markets type stuff. And a lot of questions about Canadian current events

Prepped hard for Hirevue 7 behavioral questions and it paid off, superday was three interviews two behavioral about leadership and failure and one about equity market views. Pitched consumer staples stock and they pushed back hard on valuation but I defended it, took a PE offer.

Nothing for three weeks then rejection. Started with an HR screen, then interview with a manager asking about finance experience and why real estate.

Fairfax runs a co-op program for Waterloo students so the process felt specifically tailored. Applied through WaterlooWorks. Single interview with someone from Northbridge Financial, one of their subsidiaries. went through my resume and basic finance knowledge about the insurance holding model. Very friendly and relaxed.

Know your resume and follow Canadian financial news. Basic behavioral to start, then finance technicals and Excel modeling concepts, then a senior behavioral. Three rounds, about 21 days.

HR interview then some questions about basic financial statements, what they are used for and when to use them, communication from recruitment was bad.

Friendly interviewer but didn't land it. Mostly behavioral across two rounds, some working capital and interest rate questions.

Two interviews back to back, one behavioural with HR, the other more techincal with a financial analyst. Understand the process of insurnace and how accounting may differ for an insurance company vs. a typical retail store.

9 behavioural questions on a Hirevue and writing tests then round 2 was only 20 minutes with a manager who went into TFSAs RRSPs and why you'd pick one over the other

No case or modeling. Single interview about resume and sectors I follow. Got another offer I preferred so declined.

Took 35 days, they warned me upfront about the long process possibility. HR then virtual with my future manager. Standard behavioral imo

Asked about insolvency proceedings in Canada and working with ambiguous information. Very specific practice area, should have researched more beforehand

Pretty straightforward role. Round with two analysts, they asked about financial statement analysis, basic modeling concepts and why National Bank specifically.

The coffee chat was lowkey an assessment, heads up. One interview after that covering my background, global markets knowledge and some commodity price questions. About 2.5 weeks total.

Met the plant controller and someone from corporate finance. Cost accounting in manufacturing, standard costing and what causes variances. Mini case on raw material price fluctuations.

Built a basic DCF and presented via screen share. Good process, no offer though. HR call first then the modeling test.

The internship spanned across summer in dubai and was a great experience with a lot of freedom and responsibility. Got me doing real work from day 1.

Asked me basic questions like tell me about yourself, expand on what you did in this class etc. Got the offer a day later

Recruiter call then 30 min with a senior developer, basic technical and behavioral like why BMO and side projects.

Show your interest in process efficiency and experience with financial analysis and the interview should be a breeze.

Still didn't make round 3 somehow. hireVue then two zoom rounds, all behavioral, no hard technicals.

Second round they gave me the case the morning of and I had to present same day. I underestimated how much they expected on the valuation side and they pushed hard on cap rates and my assumptions. Didn't make it past that.

Most of the interview was in French was barely able to keep up. Phone screen first, then in person. All behavioral and fit.

Have a real answer for why u want to work in the pensions domain. HR behavioral then team interview with a mini PE case.

Aapplied in October heard back in February for a summer position. 30 min interview with two CRA employees, behavioral stuff about teamwork and dealing with difficult clients and strengths then they also had a written exercise at the end where you respond to a scenario..

Screening then one interview with a manager, very behavioral. Why BMO, tell me about a time you analyzed data under pressure, how do you stay current on markets. No modeling questions at all. Heard back in about a week saying they went with someone else. Wish they'd done something technical so I had a chance to show what I knew.

Culture seems really good, co-op students were visible and present during my visit. HR phone screen, then a team interview with good people who went through company values and past experience. Third round was more technical, basic accounting and investment concepts. Edmonton location is a bonus if you're from Alberta.

Casual format, single interview with a manager. Strengths and weaknesses and then a situational question about what I'd do if I noticed a colleague cutting corners. Basic knowledge of the insurance market and what they do. Winnipeg based also

General fit call first then second round with the finance team. Variance analysis, how I'd approach an FP&A problem and a brief case on sales trend interpretation. Very UBC heavy team.

Quick phone screen with behavioral stuff then a second call with three managers. Why Toyota, leadership examples, resume deep dive. Cambridge plant role. Offer came fast, about two weeks.

One interview, no pre recorded screens or assessments. Two senior people from the investment team, quite technical. Went into insurance underwriting fundamentals, portfolio evaluation methodology and had me go over how I think about risk and return in a value investing framework like they use at Fairfax. Very focused on whether you actually understand the Hamblin Watsa approach to capital allocation. If you haven't read their annual letters you'll struggle.

VidCruiter screen then casual team interview. Mostly fit and motivation, light technical. Got it later in the week.

Almost 2 months but they were upfront about the timeline. HR interview about career goals first, then panel with two managers, all STAR method. Wanted examples of analyzing financial data. Also had a short Excel modeling test.

very good experience but i haven’t heard back yet it was behavioural

1 HR round and one interview with the hiring manager mainly bahavioural focused

Knew some of their subsidiaries and holding company structure but not enough. Two rounds, second one really tested that knowledge.

Role is client facing so they cared about communication way more than modeling. Video interview then background check. Nothing but behavioral, motivation for financial services and handling difficult client situations.