How to Network for Investment Banking: Weekly System (2025)
2026-01-20
Networking
Recruiting
• 1 min readA practical networking system: weekly volume targets, coffee chat scripts, follow-up cadence, and how to convert chats into referrals and interviews fast.
Weekly system that compounds
- 20 targeted notes per week (alumni + second-degree).
- 8 to 12 conversations per week.
- One work sample attached to every note.
Coffee chat script
"I built a short note on [coverage] drivers (attached). Could I get 15 minutes on how your team evaluates [specific risk]?"
Follow-up cadence
- Day 0: original note with a work sample.
- Day 5: one sentence of progress + a narrow question.
- Day 12: another improvement, then pause for a month.
Convert to referrals
After a good call, ask for two names in adjacent groups and send a short note mentioning the referral source.
Use Networking Email Templates and track everything in Applications that Stick.