
Michael Neal
5.0
(11)
Centerview Tech | Prep Founder & Author | The West Coast Authority
6,765 min coached
58 followers
Supercoach
Studied at Chicago Booth
Worked at Centerview Partners
Successful clients at
Available Wednesday at 1:00 AM UTC
Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.
Michael's Coaching Offerings
Custom hourly · $250/hr
Get help with AI Automation, AI Deck Building, and .
Michael also coaches for AI for Product Development, AI Strategy & Transformation, AI for Data & Analytics, AI for Finance, and AI Automation & Agents. View all.
Michael’s free events
Live interactive sessions you can join for free.

MBA Investment Banking: Is It Worth It?
May 27 at 12:00 AM UTC
73 people going

MBA Investment Banking: The Full Process
Jun 3 at 12:00 AM UTC
32 people going

MBA Investment Banking: What to Do Before School Starts
Jun 10 at 12:00 AM UTC
27 people going
Michael’s Investment Banking Qualifications
Experience level: Associate
Michael has helped clients get into these companies:
The candidates who don't get offers typically aren't underprepared — they're overprepared on the wrong things. The pattern I see over and over: candidates who memorized 500 technicals but have a generic "Why Banking." Who can nail the DCF walkthrough but can't actually talk about a deal or a trend with any conviction. Technical accuracy doesn't create separation. Delivery does. I've guided hundreds of candidates to offers at Centerview, Goldman, Qatalyst, and more — through one-on-one coaching and the prep platform I built from scratch. What separated them was understanding that getting the answer right is only 10% of the interview. ——— BEHAVIORALS The hardest part is knowing when your story isn't working. Every candidate has a "Why IB" answer. Very few are memorable. We rebuild your TMAY, your "Why's," and your scenarios from the ground up. I'll interview you, figure out what actually makes you different, and build a narrative around it. The goal: a story that is genuinely yours and impossible to mistake for anyone else's. ——— TECHNICALS Most candidates who fail actually knew the material. They just couldn't deliver it under pressure. I wrote the open-access textbook on IB technicals. I'll identify your blind spots, teach you to structure answers like a senior banker, and show you how to play defense when you're unsure. We turn a "pass" into a "top bucket." ——— MARKET This is where preparation becomes differentiation. Bankers are looking for colleagues, not students — and they can tell the difference between someone who follows markets and someone who's cramming for an interview. Most candidates treat market knowledge like a homework assignment. Bankers can tell. They're looking for the start of a real point of view. We'll carve out your sector niche so you speak with the conviction of someone who's been covering the space for years. This is the section that gets you the callback.
Michael can help with:
AI Automation
AI Deck Building
AI Financial Modeling
AI Fundamentals
Behavioral Interview Prep
Cover Letters
Due Diligence
Financial Analysis
Financial Modeling
Freelancing
General Exploration
Investment Banking Strategy
LinkedIn Review
Mergers & Acquisitions
Networking Strategy
Promotion Strategy
Resume Review
Salary Negotiation
Skill Building
Technical Interview Prep
Valuation
Michael also coaches for AI for Product Development, AI Strategy & Transformation, AI for Data & Analytics, AI for Finance, and AI Automation & Agents. View all.
About Michael
I’ve built my career around making messy, high-stakes goals more structured. Across finance recruiting, startups, technology work on Olympic Games, and building my own company, the through-line has always been the same: figure out what actually matters, understand the real bar, and turn that into a plan people can execute. That’s what I bring to coaching. I’m good at helping people organize their thinking, spot blind spots, pressure-test assumptions, and separate signal from noise. A lot of people come in motivated and capable, but scattered — they’re working hard, just not always on the right things. My job is to help you get clear. Depending on what you’re working on, that might mean sharpening your interview strategy, thinking through a career move, scoping a product or business idea, or figuring out how to use AI more effectively. I’ll meet you where you are, help you focus on what matters, and give you a practical path forward.
Why do I coach?
I coach because smart, ambitious people often don’t need more information — they need clearer judgment. There’s endless advice out there, but most of it is generic. The hard part is knowing what applies to your situation, what to ignore, and what to do next. That’s where I’m helpful. I listen carefully, find the real issue, and help you turn a vague or overwhelming goal into something much more concrete. My goal is for you to leave with more clarity, more confidence, and a better sense of how to move.
Work Experience

Summer Associate
Centerview Partners
June 2025 - August 2025
Technology Group

Consultant
Deloitte
November 2020 - September 2024
Cloud Strategy / Tech coverage

Operations engineer
KATERRA
May 2019 - August 2019

Head Teaching Assistant
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
August 2018 - August 2020
Education

Chicago Booth
MBA & MS CS
2024 - 2026
Activities and societies: Investment Banking Group — Technical Lead; Quantum @ Booth — Founder

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
BS + MS, Civil Engineering
2016 - 2020
11 Reviews
Overall Rating
5.0
Knowledge
5.0
Value
5.0
Responsiveness
5.0
Supportiveness
5.0
Michael has helped clients get into these companies:


