如何準備對沖基金公司的面試?
????杰克?魏的回答,對沖基金負責人 ????我曾參加過許多家對沖基金公司的面試,所以,但愿我能夠給你提供一個面試者的視角;尼克從面試官的角度給出的回答是正確的。以下是我為面試所做的準備: ????知己:面試時常被問到的第一個問題是:“請描述一下你自己。”你為什么對買方業務感興趣?你有哪些經驗?你為什么想要跳槽?你希望獲得的薪酬是多少? ????我認為,求職者的興趣和經驗是最重要的。由于豐厚的報酬,大多數人,包括銀行業者在內,都希望進入這個行業,但令人意外的是,許多人對如何評估股票的價值一無所知。如果你對這個行業充滿熱情,就應該在閑暇時間給自己充充電。 ????知彼:最常被問到的第二個問題是:“你對我們了解多少?”(提問者通常以一種冰冷的語調提出這個問題)。基金旗下管理的資產有哪些?戰略?重點行業?他們的負責人分別是誰?他們的投資者群體又是誰?績效?文化?兩年前,是否有人因為讓他們的印度朋友搶在公司之前交易而被解雇? ????記住基金網站的內容。在《華爾街日報》網站 (WSJ.com)和谷歌(Google)上進行查詢。查找該基金在彭博社(Bloomberg)和研究公司Factset上的信息。尤其是要仔細研究他們的13F表格。我通常會查找出過去四到八個季度的數據,將它們輸入Excel,然后按照部門、規模和倉位變化,對每一支證券進行分析。 ????如果你對這份工作垂涎三尺,你就應該知道公共領域內可以找到的所有信息。曾對我進行面試的一位投資組合經理披露,他們賣出了倉位。我注意到,這并非公開信息。后來當他與我意見不一致,并且認為我的調查不夠仔細時,我有些迷茫。他考慮了一會兒,然后意識到事實并非如此,于是向我真誠地道歉。 ????準備股票介紹:我通常會準備得非常充分。我個人的原則是五支做多股票和五支做空股票。我采用了一個系統的流程,我會翻閱過去八個季度的SEC(美國證券交易委員會)文件以及電話會議記錄。閱讀同一時期每一位分析師的報告。為所有股票構建財務模型。在WSJ.com上進行搜索。如果有必要,了解投資者關系和賣方。它們關鍵的驅動力是什么?競爭對手是誰?優點是什么?缺點是什么?你的優勢是什么?此外,可以寫一篇論文。為所有觀點提供依據——他們喜歡數字。 ????正如尼克所說,不要選擇已經廣受媒體關注的股票。因為這會讓面試官認為你缺乏創意。如果能談論一些宏觀事件,也會對面試有所幫助。如果你擁有多年投資經驗,這肯定不是問題。 ????像了解自己最好的朋友一樣了解公司。要能在一分鐘之內介紹一支股票,包括上面提到的內容。你必須知道所有問題的答案,不論這個問題多么刁鉆。 ????準備一份“小抄”:在小抄的兩面,列出前三個談話要點。牢記這些要點。你的陳述應該毫無瑕疵,不能口吃,不能猶豫。根據我的經驗,10到20小時的練習便可以達到理想的效果。當然,如果你為前三條準備的答案不夠可靠,即便小抄也無法幫你搞定面試。 |
????Answer by Jack Wei, principle at a hedge fund ????I’ve interviewed with a number of hedge funds, so hopefully I can provide you a view from the interviewee’s perspective; Nick’s right on from an interviewer’s stance. This is roughly what went into my preparation: ????Know yourself: The first question I always got asked was, “Tell me about yourself.” Why are you interested in buy-side? What sort of experience do you have? Why do you want to relocate? What kind of compensation are you looking for? ????I think your interest and experience are of utmost importance. Most people, including bankers, want to get their feet in the industry because of the generous compensation, but are surprisingly clueless about how to value stocks. If you are passionate, you should probably brush up during leisure. ????Know the fund: The second most common question I get asked is, “What do you know about us?” (Often asked in a very cold tone). What’s their asset under management? Strategies? Sector focus? Who’s their head guy? Who’s their investor base? Performance? Culture? Did someone get sacked two years ago for having their friends in India front-run the firm? ????Memorize the content on their Website. Conduct queries on WSJ.com and Google. Pull that fund information on Bloomberg and Factset. More specifically, dig through their 13F filings. I’d typically pull up data from the past four to eight quarters, input them into Excel, and then analyze every security organized by sector, size and position change over time. ????If you’re drooling over the job, you should know everything within reach in the public domain. One portfolio manager who interviewed me disclosed they had sold out of a position. I noted it wasn’t public information. When he disagreed and thought I was careless in my research, I looked perplexed. He pondered for a minute, then realized it wasn’t and issued a kind apology. ????Prepare stock pitches: I typically over-prepare. My personal rule is five longs, five shorts. I employ a methodical process whereby I flip through the past eight quarters of SEC filings and conference call transcripts. Read every single analyst report in the same time period. Construct financial models for all the names. Conduct a search on WSJ.com. Reach out to investor relations and sell-side if you must. What are the key drivers? Competitors? What’s the upside? Downside? What’s your edge? By the way, have a thesis. Back everything up – they love numbers. ????As Nick pointed out, don’t pitch names that have received extensive media coverage. It signals a lack of creativity. It also helps if you can talk about macro events. If you’ve been investing for years, this should be no problem. ????Know the companies like you do your best friends. Be able to pitch a stock covering all of the above in one minute. There shouldn’t ever be a time when you don’t know the answer to any question, however obscure. ????Create a cheat sheet: Combine the key talking points from 1 to 3 onto a two-sided cheat sheet. Memorize it well. Your delivery should be flawless. No stuttering. No hesitation. From my experience, 10 to 20 hours should do the trick. Of course, the cheat sheet won’t help you seal the deal if your answers for 1to 3 aren’t already rock solid. |