Vault’s Verdict

DC Advisory is ideally looking for intellectually curious, technically sound, positive, hardworking, self-motivated, personable, adaptable candidates. For students, the firm runs a valuable internship program, offering interns a lot of hands-on live deal experience, exposure to senior bankers, and a clear look at what full-time positions are like. Meanwhile, for its full-time bankers, DC Advisory offers numerous growth and development opportunities, including significant senior banker exposure, live deal experience, the ability to work on cross-border transactions, and excellent on-the-job training.

Although hours can be long and unpredictable, the firm embraces work/life balance. DC Advisory is very team-oriented, and senior bankers are understanding of outside commitments, making strong efforts to appropriately manage juniors’ workloads and protect against weekend work. As for compensation, salaries are said to be in line with the Street average, while bonuses are a little lower than average. Insiders also say that the firm’s 401(k) and wellness initiatives could be improved. As for diversity, the firm has been focusing on hiring women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and military veterans, and it promotes a respectful and inclusive workspace. With respect to business outlook, DC Advisory’s near future looks bright. Despite a slow M&A market, the firm’s business has been growing, and it’s made several, key senior-level hires in recent years.

EMPLOYEE REVIEWS

Hiring Process

“Looking for adaptable candidates with positive attitudes. Cultural fit is also important. And we take internal referrals, especially from senior members, very seriously.”

“We are looking for technically sound candidates with a positive attitude who are looking to contribute to the firm for the long term.”

“Looking for someone who is hardworking, dedicated, easy to get along with, and takes initiative to do more.”

“DC wants candidate who are willing to work hard, leave their egos at the door, and be intellectually curious to learn the business.”

Interview Questions

“Walk me through a DCF. Then follow-ups like: How do you calculate WACC? Terminal vs growth method. What is free cash flow?”

“Tell me about yourself Why [insert specific city recruiting at]? Why do you want to join DC Advisory? How much do you know about the M&A process? Can you describe a typical sell side vs buy side timeline?”

“Some technicals but mainly situational-based, personality-driven questions.”

“Resume walk through. Talk about experience at other firms/internships.”

Intern Experience

“My internship experience was an incredible learning experience. Everyone at the firm was very nice and welcoming. I felt like I really got real hands-on experience on deals as well.”

“Total responsibility and immersion to live deal processes with the opportunity to learn directly from senior bankers and clients’ executives.”

“My favorite parts of the internship were the firm’s culture and the fact that I was put on real, live deal work rather than just ‘intern projects.’”

“Best parts of my internship as a summer associate include real transaction experience, access to senior bankers, open communication regarding hiring process, and the great people on deal teams. Additionally, it's clear DC Advisory treats their interns as true employees, enabling both the firm and the individual to best conclude motivational fit.”

Career Development

“A lot of support from the firm and opportunities for growth, including opportunities to partner with international offices and learn by working on projects in various industries. A lot of senior exposure and collaboration keeps it interesting.”

“DC Advisory is truly international, with 24 offices on three continents. The firm offers international transfers and internships and is very flexible in allowing people to consider internal career development opportunities. Management is keenly interested in growing the firm, hiring the best graduates, and offering them a broad variety of career paths.”

“Positives: International firm with many cross-border opportunities, and great quality of junior and senior bankers. Negatives: not enough cooperation with bankers across sectors and geographies, resulting in some missed opportunities for growth.”

“Ample opportunity for junior bankers to get live deal experiences. Generalist program gives you exposure to lots of different sectors. And great on-the-job training. However, there’s no formal mentorship program, no buyside recruiting support, no MBA pipeline, and it sometimes feels unclear how well you are doing.”

Quality of Life

“Senior bankers make best efforts to manage capacity appropriately and protect weekends. It is totally okay to be offline for 90 minutes to go to the gym (within reason!). Fridays are remote work.”

“Best culture bank I’ve worked at. People are smart and hardworking but embrace a work/life balance. Entrepreneurial culture. Very team-oriented. Senior bankers involved in every aspect.”

“Protected Saturdays are taken seriously, but work is very unpredictable and it can be very hard to make plans due to work.”

“Best: Understanding/reasonable culture of bankers who grant flexibility Worst: Still an M&A firm with demanding and occasionally unpredictable hours.”

Salary and Benefits

“Salaries are on par with Street average, but bonuses are low.”

“Salary and bonus are in line with Street expectations; 401(k) can be improved.”

“Poor bonus, no 401(k) match, but decent benefits overall.”

“Salary is decent for the number of hours, but it is still below market in terms of IB salary. I would like to see the firm implement some strategy around a retirement benefit.”

Wellness Efforts

“Culture that allows for exercise/encourages taking breaks to go to the gym. Remote work on Fridays allows for some flexibility. Solid health benefits allow for access to many services.”

“There is a lot of talk around wellness and promoting well-being, but no formalized programs that I have seen.”

“The firm does not provide anything extra for exercise programs, nutrition, etc.”

Diversity and ESG Initiatives

“There has been a focus on hiring women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and military veterans.”

“The firm hires classes of diverse and talented individuals and promotes a respectful and inclusive workspace.”

“No senior women in the US that I know of other than one VP. There’s a lot of talk about diversity but not a lot of actual follow-up.”

“We have many programs that aim to be more environmentally friendly and are strong committed to UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

Business Outlook

“Global footprint and addition of new industry coverage bankers as well as private capital markets and GP strategic advisory services will be a force multiplier in the next 12 months.”

“Exciting growth potential but we need more deal flow.”

“We have been growing. However, a lot of the MD hires over the last several years have already left. Employee morale feels low recently, but that could very well be a function of the slow M&A market.”

“Strong firm business outlook with transparent communication—this provides added buy in from bankers across groups and excitement/momentum.”