Investment banking networking, run like a deal pipeline
Keep your public-source research, coffee-chat notes, and follow-ups in one place instead of a scattered spreadsheet. IB Atlas is a student-built public beta that helps you organize the process and prepare your own questions for each conversation.
Access is free during the public beta, with no card required. Fair-use limits apply to higher-cost AI features.
- A pipeline of target banks and contacts, from reached out to chatted
- Follow-up reminders tied to each contact
- Public-source research links and your own notes in one place
- Import your existing tracker from Excel or PDF
A workspace for your networking process
Organize public research, coffee chats, and follow-ups without treating a contact list as privileged access.
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The pipeline: banks, contacts, and stages
Add the banks you're targeting and every contact underneath them, MDs, associates, alumni ties. Move each contact through stages, reached out, replied, chatted, following up, so you always know where a relationship actually stands instead of trying to remember it. Set a follow-up reminder on any contact and Atlas surfaces it before the relationship goes cold.
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Coffee chats: scheduling and calendar export
Schedule a coffee chat straight from a contact's page. Add it to your calendar in one click, or export an ICS file that works with whatever calendar app you actually use, so a chat never quietly gets missed between classes.
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Sheet view, and importing what you already have
Prefer a spreadsheet? Sheet view is the same pipeline as an editable table you can scan the way you'd scan Excel. Already tracking contacts somewhere else? Import an existing tracker straight from an Excel file or a PDF, and Atlas maps it into your pipeline instead of making you start over.
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Public-source research, kept organized
Save the public profiles, firm pages, and notes you find while researching. IB Atlas does not provide private contact information or promise that a public profile is current, so confirm details before you reach out.
A practical networking workflow
Use this as a framework for your preparation, then write and speak in your own voice.
This workflow draws on Penn Career Services guidance for investment banking networking and informational interviews, plus Harvard's guidance on preparing, keeping notes, and following up.
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Choose a reason to reach out
Start with one person whose role, firm, school, or path gives you a real question to ask. Confirm their role from a public source before you write.
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Write a short, specific ask
Introduce yourself, explain why you chose them, and ask for a brief informational conversation. Ask to learn about their experience rather than asking for a job or referral.
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Prepare questions you can defend
Research the firm and group first. Bring open questions about their path, work, or perspective that you could not answer from the firm's website alone.
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Record the next step
After the conversation, save what you learned, send a brief thank-you that refers to the discussion, and record any follow-up you actually agreed on.
Build questions around what you want to learn
A coffee chat is an informational conversation. Pick a few angles that fit the person, listen closely, and ask a follow-up when you want to understand the reasoning behind an answer.
Their path
What helped them decide on the firm or group, and what did they learn after joining?
The work
What kinds of decisions, responsibilities, or team dynamics shape their day-to-day experience?
Your preparation
What would they suggest learning or practicing to understand the role more clearly?
For more prompts, see the coffee chat question guide.
An AI layer you control
The beta is free. AI helps organize public information and your own preparation; it does not provide private contact data or replace your judgment.
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Public-profile research prompts
Atlas can organize leads from public sources and link to an original profile or firm page. Confirm a person’s role and preferred contact method yourself before reaching out.
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A prep brief before every chat
Before a scheduled coffee chat, Atlas can organize your notes, public context, and questions you want to ask. Treat it as a draft, then make it your own.
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AI-drafted outreach emails
Draft a cold email or a follow-up note built from your own background, ready to edit and send, instead of staring at a blank compose window every time.