Experience Analyst

Locust Walk

Job Description: Experienced Analyst

Office: Boston, MA; must have U.S. Citizenship or Green Card

Overview

Locust Walk is a global investment bank that partners with founders, executives, and board members to drive strategic transactions and create newcos to finance innovation. Our 17-year history of success was forged through our Co-founder MentalityTM focused on innovators, our local on the ground presence in Boston, San Francisco, Tokyo, and Beijing, and our deep understanding of how science and data translate into actionable transactions and business strategy.

Why is this role potentially just right for you?

If you are looking to build your career with a fast-growing investment bank and newco creation shop with significant upside potential in position, responsibility, and compensation, we’re looking for you. Our Analysts have a strong passion for life sciences and all know this is the career they want long term; in fact, this role is “Partner Track” as we look to find the future leaders of the firm from within. You do not need an MBA to advance through the ranks. You will have the opportunity to work with multiple clients simultaneously on both the sell-side to global players and newco opportunities to create optionality for clients diversifying your experience and providing a highly dynamic environment. The hours are more manageable than an investment bank, the work more execution oriented than a consulting firm, and the atmosphere and work environment more fast paced than working inside a company.

A week in life for this role?

The focus for the Analyst is to play a key role in executing the Firm’s engagements. Our engagements range from executing strategic partnership deals, M&A transactions, and creating Asset-based newcos. Our Analysts assist in identifying target partners and making sure all outreach is coordinated, weekly client updates, and board update materials, producing deal marketing materials, financial valuation and comparable transactions analysis, and deal modeling in support of negations. Analysts will receive significant responsibility and ownership over their work, including multiple opportunities to present to both the firm and clients. Newcos involve creating management presentations, exploring use of proceeds, creating term sheets and valuation analysis for asset originators, drafting investment memos, and assisting with the financing process to launch the company. Business development activities are essential to furthering our growth. An Analyst will oversee the maintenance and updating of our proprietary databases used for our quarterly market conditions as well as preparing thought leadership and analytics.

Our senior deal team is dedicated to the professional growth of our Analysts. Each engagement provides a new learning opportunity, and we aim to vary the team members assigned to new clients so that everyone has the chance to work with different colleagues while still gaining exposure to different transactions.

Prior positions of responsibility and skills that would be good for this role?

Experience in life science consulting, investment banking, venture capital industry or internal biotech business/corporate development is a requirement. We are looking for someone who is currently working in a life science strategy consulting firm (new opportunity prioritization; partnering and M&A strategy; commercial due diligence) or healthcare group of an investment bank and is frustrated by either not seeing their consulting projects through to execution or find banking or equity research too high level and transactional without the ability to impact a company in more material ways. Handing a deliverable to the client and wishing them good luck is not satisfying nor is simply making decks / memos and handing execution to the capital markets or M&A teams. Additionally, if you are in a business development or corporate development role and miss or long for the intellectual stimulation of working in a fast-paced environment on multiple projects but also want to “do deals,” this job is for you.

Professional and Academic Prowess. All our team members have different strengths that contribute to the success of our firm. The background for an Analyst position would ideally illustrate the following attributes:

• Passion for life sciences: some relevant industry experience is preferred. We want to know this is where your passion lies and what to make your career
• Track record working on transactions in the life science space: working directly or in a supportive role on strategic transactions, M&A, and/or financings is helpful including if at a consulting firm
• Strong scientific academic track record: While we don’t care what school you attended, you must have at least an undergraduate science major if not more since our work is scientifically rigorous. We don’t just work on financial analysis.
• Interest in entrepreneurship and working with early-stage companies: We don’t typically work for pharma. Small publicly traded and venture backed companies are our typical clients as well as the newcos we create.
• The right amount of experience: 12 to 36 months’ experience in a life science consulting firm or similar capacity is ideal. We do not take applicants directly out of university but at the same time we want people on the fast track and figured out early this is what they want to do

Note: If you do not have prior biopharma consulting, investment banking, equity research, venture capital, corporate development, or business development experience, then unfortunately this job is not the right fit. An MBA from a top institution is a plus but not a requirement with the right work experience.

Required Skills to be Successful. While many people can succeed behind the scenes grinding away on work. We are looking for someone with those plus people skills.

• Basic understanding of financial modeling (don’t worry, we will teach you as well)
• Strong communication skills and comfort presenting in front of clients’ senior management, Board, and speaking directly with physicians and other key opinion leaders
• Excellent written and oral presentation skills
• A proven track record of working on a team managing up and prioritizing complex tasks across various workstreams
• Strong competitive spirit balanced by a proven ability to work as part of a team

Passion for life science transactions. At our core, we strive to help each of our clients achieve success through finding or creating a strategic partner via a pharma deal or newco. While we do not expect everyone applying to have a deal sheet, a strong interest and desire to “do deals” is important for this role where everything we do revolves around transactions.

What is our culture?

We look for entrepreneurial, growth-oriented individuals who are committed to the success of others. We have a high-performance culture that rewards creative solutions to daily challenges, as well as a strong work ethic while enjoying the ride. Locust Walk offers a mindful work-life balance within the context of an investment bank. We have a hybrid schedule with 3 days a week in-office and 2 days a week work-from-home. We believe this hybrid in-office culture is critical for our culture of mentorship and promotion from within. We are open and honest with each other and transparent in our dealings.

This person needs to live the Locust Walk values. We are looking for people who fit our culture. Culture is very important to us, and that fit is critical. A brief overview of our core values and who we are looking for is below:

Commitment to the Success of Our Clients

• Global team-based culture with individual accountability
• No team member is left behind: we are committed to succeeding together for the benefit of both our clients and the company

Open and Courageous Communication

• In the spirit of caring for each other’s success, we commit to being truthful and transparent in our communication and feedback, both to clients and inside the company, and we do so with empathy and success
• We commit to thoughtful and rigorous debate and feedback at all levels of the company
• The Locust Walk Leadership Team always strives to be as transparent as possible with the company

Growth Mindset

• We thrive on challenges and are life-long learners. We are not afraid of failure, yet see it as a springboard
• Honest bi-directional feedback is important for building trusted, productive relationships. All our reviews are 360.
• Feedback should be given as soon as possible after an event or situation occurs rather than waiting for the moment to pass

Entrepreneurial Spirit

• We are self-motivated to succeed and will do whatever it takes for our clients to succeed in an ethical manner
• We will always have a small firm ethos with an entrepreneurial mindset and minimized bureaucracy

Enjoy the Ride

• We care about and for our clients and each other
• We work hard and integrate fun into the core of what we do. We all have unique interests and find common ways of sharing that with each other
• Wins are celebrated
• It’s about the journey, not the destination