How to Answer “Tell me about a time you persuaded someone or changed their mind.” in Investment Banking Interviews
“Tell me about a time you persuaded someone or changed their mind.” is a core prompt in investment banking interview prep because the day job is constant influence: aligning seniors, clients, and internal teams under time pressure.
A strong answer shows you can change someone’s view using evidence, empathy, and a clear recommendation—without sounding aggressive or political. The goal is to demonstrate persuasion that improves outcomes and protects relationships.
What Interviewers Look For in Persuasion in Investment Banking Interviews
In behavioral interviews for investment banking analyst roles, this question is less about being “convincing” and more about how you influence decisions when information is incomplete and stakeholders disagree.
Interviewers are typically testing whether you: (1) diagnose the real objection (risk, credibility, incentives, timing), (2) build a tight, data-backed narrative, and (3) adjust your approach to the audience—senior banker vs. peer vs. external stakeholder.
They’re also looking for judgement and maturity: you escalate appropriately, you don’t “win” at the expense of trust, and you can land on a decision quickly. That combination maps closely to persuasion in investment banking interviews and the realities of executing deals and delivering internal analysis.
Answer Framework for Behavioral Interview Questions (Persuasion)
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Step 1: Set the scene with the decision and the stakes (behavioral interview questions)
Open with one sentence on the decision that needed to be made and why it mattered (time, money, reputation, client relationship). Then name the key stakeholder you had to influence and their initial position.
Keep the setup specific and “banking-relevant” even if the story is from university or another job: a recommendation, a prioritisation call, a change in scope, or a risk mitigation choice. Avoid long backstory—your interviewer wants the decision context.
Finally, anchor the conflict in a rational tension (e.g., speed vs. accuracy, cost vs. quality, risk vs. upside). That makes your persuasion credible and sets you up to show structured thinking rather than personality-driven debate.
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Step 2: Diagnose the objection and choose your influence approach (investment banking interview strategies)
Explain how you identified why they disagreed. Common drivers: they didn’t trust the data, they had a different objective, they were worried about optics, or they were optimising for speed.
Then describe the approach you chose—ideally a mix of:
- Evidence: cleaner analysis, clearer assumptions, benchmark data, downside cases.
- Framing: linking your proposal to their goals (reduce rework, protect the client, avoid a senior escalation).
- De-risking: proposing a pilot, parallel path, or pre-wire to reduce perceived risk.
This is where you show you can persuade without force: you’re solving for the stakeholder’s concerns while still pushing towards a decision.
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Step 3: Execute with crisp communication and options, not a debate (how to prepare for IB interviews)
Walk through what you did in a way that sounds like an analyst: you synthesised information, created a short read-out, and made it easy for the other person to say yes.
A good pattern is: (a) align on the goal, (b) present 2–3 options with trade-offs, (c) recommend one with a clear rationale, (d) invite the stakeholder to stress-test assumptions.
Include one concrete communication detail to make it real—e.g., you sent a one-page summary, re-cut the analysis with a sensitivity table, or ran a quick pre-read before a meeting. The more you sound like you can support decision-making under time pressure, the more this lands in investment banking interviews.
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Step 4: Close with measurable outcome + what you learned (examples of persuasion in investment banking interviews)
End on outcomes in two layers:
- Decision outcome: what changed (they agreed, priorities shifted, scope adjusted, timeline changed).
- Impact: what improved (fewer errors, faster delivery, reduced risk, better stakeholder alignment).
Quantify if you can, but don’t force numbers. Credible “impact” can be operational: avoided rework, got sign-off same day, prevented an escalation, improved stakeholder trust.
Finish with a learning that shows maturity: for example, that persuasion is often about isolating the true constraint, or that giving a risk-controlled option can unlock agreement. That signals repeatability—critical for analyst roles.
Model Answer (Analyst): Persuasion Story You Can Deliver Clearly
In one project, I had to persuade a senior team member to change their view on how we should structure our analysis before a deadline. The stakes were that if we presented the wrong cut of the data, we’d waste time and potentially lose credibility with the group we were presenting to.
I was responsible for pulling the numbers, and my colleague wanted to lead with a single “best-case” estimate to keep the message simple. When I looked at the drivers, the range was wide and the outcome was highly sensitive to one assumption, so I was concerned a single point estimate would invite challenge and create rework.
Instead of arguing over style, I asked a few questions to understand the concern—he was worried that adding scenarios would confuse the audience and slow us down. I proposed a compromise: keep the headline simple, but include a tight downside/base/upside table on one slide with one sentence on the key sensitivity. I rebuilt the model outputs, documented the assumptions, and drafted the slide with a clear recommendation and a “what would change our view” note.
After reviewing it, he agreed the scenario framing reduced the risk of being questioned on the spot while still keeping the story clean. We used that structure in the presentation, got quick sign-off, and avoided a follow-up request to rerun the work. The main takeaway for me was that persuasion works best when you address the underlying risk someone is trying to manage, and you make the “yes” option easy to adopt.
- Opens with the decision + stakes so the story feels relevant to an IB analyst context.
- Shows diagnosis of the objection (simplicity/speed) before presenting a solution.
- Uses options and de-risking (headline + scenarios) rather than “winning” an argument.
- Ends with outcome + a repeatable principle, not just a one-off success.
Common Mistakes in Persuasion Stories
- Choosing a story where persuasion is really authority (e.g., “I told them to do it”); interviewers want influence without formal power.
- Over-indexing on charisma and under-indexing on evidence—no data, no assumptions, no trade-offs.
- Making the other person sound incompetent; in banking you need to disagree while preserving trust.
- Skipping the “why” behind the disagreement, so your actions feel random rather than intentional.
- No outcome or impact—if nothing changed, it’s not persuasion, it’s just a discussion.
- Telling a story that’s too personal or emotional; keep it professional and decision-focused.
Likely Follow-Ups and How to Handle Them
What if the person still didn’t change their mind?
I’d propose a risk-controlled next step (e.g., run a parallel check or a quick pilot) and, if the stakes are high, escalate with a neutral summary of options and trade-offs rather than pushing emotionally.
How do you persuade someone more senior than you in investment banking?
I keep it concise: align on their goal, present the key evidence and sensitivities, recommend one path, and give them an easy way to pressure-test assumptions without losing time.
How do you handle persuasion when you’re missing data?
I’m explicit about assumptions, show a range, and focus the decision on what’s directionally true—then define what data would change the conclusion.
How do you avoid sounding argumentative in behavioral interview questions like this?
I emphasise curiosity first (questions to understand the objection), then options and de-risking, and I credit the stakeholder’s concern as valid before recommending a path.
How to Prepare for IB Interviews: Practice Plan
- Write two versions of your story: a 90-second version (core decision, objection, action, outcome) and a 3-minute version (adds detail on analysis and communication).
- Pressure-test your story with this checklist: What changed? How did you know their mind changed? What evidence did you use? What trade-off did you manage?
- Practise delivering the first two sentences as a standalone snippet; it should make sense even if the interviewer interrupts.
- Record yourself and remove filler—analyst interviews reward crisp structure.
- Use AceTheRound to run timed drills on investment banking interview question examples and get feedback on clarity, assertiveness, and concision.
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