What to expect in the Lazard, Inc. interview process

Based on publicly available sources, Lazard, Inc. (NYSE: LAZ)—founded in 1848 and headquartered in New York City—is a financial advisory and asset management firm operating globally across roughly 19 to 44 countries. The firm employs around 2,364 to 3,416 people globally, with an asset management division of roughly 719 employees, and was actively showing 267 job postings.

Internal realities and workloads for investment banking staff vary by role, seniority, and location. For example, reported average hours reach 60 to 70 hours per week for summer interns in New York, Vice Presidents in New York equity capital markets, and 3rd+ year associates in Milan. Meanwhile, 2nd-year analysts in New York restructuring report even heavier workloads averaging 80 to 90 hours per week.

Regarding talent retention and industry trends, CEO Peter Orszag stated during a Q2 earnings call that Lazard will not follow competitor banks in adopting strict analyst retention policies. While firms like Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and JPMorgan have implemented mandatory outside-offer disclosures or termination threats for analysts accepting early private equity jobs, Lazard is taking a different path and declines to require such agreements, while welcoming a broader PE pullback from extreme early recruiting.