Show how you would think on the desk
For this 2027 Lazard Financial Advisory Video Interview prompt, good research is necessary but incomplete. Your answer must connect evidence to a decision the team could make.
Use the full prompt
Notice the progression from discovery to application:
Imagine you are tasked with analyzing the current trends shaping M&A activity as an analyst at Lazard. How would you approach identifying and evaluating these trends, and how would you use your findings to provide valuable insights to the team?
Weak answers break at these points
- Beginning without a question. Define what change you are trying to explain.
- Treating every deal equally. Separate outliers from repeatable patterns.
- Quoting data without context. Compare periods and relevant market segments.
- Overstating certainty. Name the evidence that would disprove your initial view.
- Giving a generic conclusion. Tie the finding to client positioning, valuation, timing, or target screening.
Use hypothesis, test, implication
State a preliminary hypothesis, such as financing costs changing the mix of active buyers. Test it with deal counts, transaction values, funding markets, valuation data, and specific announced transactions. Break the evidence down by sector and buyer type before deciding whether the pattern is durable.
For example, a hypothetical candidate might discover that overall deal value rose because of two very large transactions while mid-market volume stayed weak. The useful conclusion is not that the market recovered. It is that client conversations should distinguish headline value from the opportunity set facing most companies.
Prepare beyond one market question
This prompt covers one analytical task in the Lazard process. OfferTutoring has the complete questions for the verified firm and Financial Advisory role, helping candidates prepare distinct evidence for market, behavioral, and motivation questions.
