Example Achievement Log for a Investment Banking Analyst

This Investment Banking Analyst's log tracks a year of pitchbook builds, client management, and the constant push to own more complex deal work. You'll see the unglamorous middle ground between junior grunt work and the deals that close: model reviews, management feedback, and the rare project that actually shipped on time.

A year in the life of a Investment Banking Analyst's log

Jan - task: Built full 40-slide pitchbook for Westmere PE pitch from raw FCF model, learning Innes' formatting standards on the fly. Three full revisions before Wednesday close.
Feb - achievement: Spotted rounding error in Year 3 EBITDA bridge that would have overstated DCF value by $8M. Caught it during final QC before managing partner's sign-off.
Feb - feedback: Innes said in hallway: 'You're catching things I miss now. Stop waiting for me to tell you what to check.' First time he's asked me to own the model review.
Apr - task: Took over Staples comparables refresh on the morning the client called with updated guidance. Pulled new public comps, recalculated multiples, and had clean deck by lunch.
May - achievement: Rebuilt the FY25-27 revenue waterfall model for Healthscope after acquisition closed. Incorporated debt paydown schedule and covenant testing for the new financing structure.
Jun - task: Covered for Sarah in client meeting when she had to leave early. Walked Northrup's CFO through the sensitivity analysis on cost synergies, answered his pushback on WACC.
Jun - feedback: Sarah told me in the car: 'That was professional. You didn't hedge or defer. Do that again.' She asked me to run the next update meeting myself.
Aug - achievement: Compiled and QC'd all 12 full financial models for Horizon sale process. Seven buyers, two rounds of diligence. Caught inconsistencies in depreciation schedules across legacy acquistions.
Sep - task: Led working group on FY26 margin assumptions after production cost inflation hit earlier than forecast. Workshopped revised supply chain impacts with operations, pushed back to comps model.
Nov - achievement: Presented revised valuation to Westmere partners showing 28% IRR at new entry price versus 22% at original bid. Model supported renegotiation that closed the deal.
Dec - feedback: Managing partner mentioned in year-end review: 'You're thinking like a banker now, not a modeler. Building three-option scenarios instead of one forecast shows that.'

What makes a strong entry

What most people write: Caught a major error in the financial model before presentation.

What went in the log: Spotted rounding error in Year 3 EBITDA bridge that would have overstated DCF value by $8M. Caught it during final QC before managing partner's sign-off.

The dollar impact and the specific line item make this credible and quantifiable; 'managing partner's sign-off' shows it mattered to someone who could see the full stakes, not just that the mistake was fixed.

What most people write: Took on more responsibility for client interactions during the year.

What went in the log: Covered for Sarah in client meeting when she had to leave early. Walked Northrup's CFO through the sensitivity analysis on cost synergies, answered his pushback on WACC.

Naming the client, the specific analytical section discussed, and the type of objection fielded proves the Investment Banking Analyst actually did the work and handled real complexity, not just sat in a meeting.

How this becomes your review in November

Over the year I moved from building pitchbooks to owning the financial logic underneath them. Innes started asking me to do model review QC after I caught an $8M rounding error in the Healthscope DCF; Sarah had me run a client meeting solo when she had to step out, and I walked the CFO through cost synergy sensitivity without deferring. By November I was presenting multiple valuation scenarios to the managing partners on the Westmere deal, and my recommendation on the renegotiated entry price held up when the deal closed. The feedback I got wasn't about execution speed but about judgment: shifting from 'do what I tell you' to 'think about what the deal actually needs.'

Starting your own log

Don't try to reconstruct a year you have already had. Start from today, one line whenever something happens, and let it build. The Perform Review Achievement Log does this for you and can capture wins straight from Slack, and how to start an achievement log covers the wider playbook.

Example Logs for Related Roles

Ready to start your own? Start your Achievement Log free, see how the Perform Review Achievement Log works, or browse performance review phrases for Investment Banking Analyst.